scotslass

Well, those are fond memories, aren't they?

Happy Birthday

I'm not sure that they need water, but they certainly prefer it. When I kept ducks, they always mated in the pond. In fact, don't they need water to keep their eggs moist while they're incubating? I wonder if this duck has enough water to do that? Does she have a place where she can actually float and put her head under water? The other problem is what happens if she does hatch ducklings; ducks are notorious for leading their ducklings into danger - is the water source "safe" for youngsters? Ducks don't seem to herd their young as hens do - they just waddle off and the ducklings have to follow...and that can mean the ducklings drown if they end up in water where they can't get out by themselves (before their adult feathers have grown, I mean).

Happy Birthday, Suzeanna. Hope you feel better today. Liz and Bonnie.

Safe journey, Sir H. You'll be much missed. for your Mum.

I'm so sorry. Run free, Lucy sweetheart.

I agree. As for the sweet old lady Labour-voter...if she'd been 25, would we have thought she was sweet? There's a lot of patronising tosh in the papers about her and her views on immigration - hers was a stupid question, stupidly expressed. We all know which parties support the use of words such as "flocking" and "flooding" when used in relation to immigration - and the Labour party isn't one of them. I think Mrs Duffy forgets how life has improved for most people in theis country - here she is, complaining that her grandchildren may not be able to afford university fees, but they're just back from an Australian holiday. I agree with Gordon Brown, I'm afraid - and that doesn't mean I like the man. I'm nearly the same age as that dear old lady, and I know plenty of people like her. They are bigots.

Have a lovely birthday!

My heart goes out to you. Sleep tight, little Daisy. Your mummy loved you so much.

I live in Menston, near Ilkley - I've seen Roxy's posters everywhere, poor girl. I'll spread the word here too. Hope the reward encourages someone to "find" her soon, and return her to her family.

Happy Birthday! Liz.

It's so sad, isn't it? Just kittens themselves, but past the novelty stage. The kittens on the webcam look very lively at the moment - and their Mum is beautiful.

I keep going back to look - it's compelling viewing. I'm sorry you lost one baby, but perhaps Mummy knew something was wrong with it? I expect you're exhausted too - but it's lovely that these mother cats are getting the care they deserve.

Wonderful pics - you are lucky to have such a beautiful place to stay Miffi. The weather brings back memories of our camping trips - in an average Scottish summer, mind.

And meantime, they're warm, well fed and loved. I wish Mums and babies happy futures; it's lovely to see them.

Hope you get the eating sorted out soon. What a worry. Oh, sweet little Hugo. Run free, little man. Well done, Tikka and to those with horrible unappreciative bosses.

Happy Birthday!

Well, gosh. How do you avoid people as you walk through the hospital? Do they let you out of a side door or something? Random mundane facts. I think.

According to the PAT site, it's pretty straightforward. "What does the assessment involve? The person carrying out the assessment will check that your dog is sociable and friendly without being over-boisterous. Your dog should be calm and gentle when being groomed or stroked, without mouthing you or the grooming equipment. The examiner will also want to see how your dog reacts to a sudden noise – such as a walking stick falling to the floor. It is normal for a dog to back away, but is he confident enough to approach again readily if asked to do so? " I'm thinking of trying Bonnie out once we move; I've seen for myself what a difference it makes to people in care homes. While we have this heartless belief that old people and their pets must be separated when the human goes into residential care, it's the least we can do. I've seen amazing responses from people who are virtually non-communicative, otherwise, when they catch sight of a visiting dog.

Horrifying. I don't understand it either - people seem to think their dogs will sense danger, but it's up to us as owners to anticipate it. My dog - and most of my previous spaniels - might easily run off a cliff after anything which moved - so she doesn't get the chance. Poor dog.

I'm so sorry, Kathy. Hope things improve soon. That sounds very painful. Poor you.

I'm a recent convert to Skype too. My student daughter was on earlier, showing me round her new room, and introducing me to her flatmates. Much better than phoning - and free!

What lovely news. I hope she brings lots of joy to her family. Just relish it while you can - it's a lovely feeling. I can't remember when I last felt sick with excitement about anything. Mildly nauseous, perhaps.

Sorry I'm so late - I missed this. Happy gotcha day, Timmy.

I honestly can't imagine not recognising that I had the wrong dog - Bonnie is a cav, and I see loads of dogs who look very similar to her, but I'm sure I would know if I'd been given the wrong dog. I mean, there are all kinds of individual quirks such as how she sits to have her lead and harness put on, how she leaps into the back seat to be harnessed when we're going out in the car, when she barks, and at whom (birds and the poor postman ). And other little things such as where your dog sleeps, and when, and so on - wouldn't you notice if she completely changed her habits? I accept that with a self-colour dog, it's going to be harder to see immediate differences, but those dogs don't even look that alike to me. Mind you, I don't know what I'm implying. But didn't it ever occur to either of them that they might have the wrong dog? It's outrageous that the groomer didn't take precautions and possibly even worse that a chip was allegedly mis-read.