Can animals be neurotic?....humm it is an interesting question, especially given the fact that I try (albeit unsuccessfully not to attribute human traits to the animals under my care).....on reflection I think the answer is a definite yes!......The rapidly growing half dozen guinea fowl chicks spend their very young lives in a state of potential hysteria. Standing in frozen awareness, they watch every tiny thing that you do for them before one bird explodes into a fit of screaming panic which causes a chain reaction with the rest of them. My nerves are shot to pieces, with the constant upheaval of feathers and shrill bird calls.....after ten minutes in the shed, I could quite happily strangle the lot of themMaddie, has a definite neurotic fear of staircases, which can be traced back to when she was two when she fell down our previous cottage staircase dragging a dyson vacuum cleaner on top of her. Ever since then she can quite happily walk up a staircase, but cannot face the downward journey on her own!.. Both Chris and I , now think it is perfectly normal to respond to her frantic barks for help on the upstairs landing by trudging up the stairs to carry her down.....
Albert on the other hand is perhaps the most perfectly balanced animal we own. In actual fact following his second accident and subsequent operation, I think it is me and not him, that overly worries about his condition and lifestyle dangers on the lane outside the cottage.
Today I thought it prudent to actually let him out again, despite still having a limp, and within 10 minutes he had caught and killed his first mouse which he paraded in front of the dogs with that snarling pride cats exhibit when they have a mouthful of rodent....
The Church wall is a good six feet high, and with his poorly leg, he still managed to scale it like a kitten on speed.With my heart in my mouth I watched his antics....until I could not watch anymore......I have said this before...these animals will be the bloody death of me...
on night shift tonight.....
I think those guinea fowl would make me nuts. We have one noisy hen and that's enough. Great that Albert is doing so well. Love the rock wall. I had a doberman who was afraid of stairs. I spent a few days lifting each paw one at a time up and down the stairs, until finally she decided she could move faster than me picking up and placing her paws on the next step. She was too big to pick up and carry.
ReplyDeleteguinea fowl are not for me, glad to hear your tales so i can dodge that bullet - your cat is phenomenal, and here we were all so worried for him, nature is powerful energy - hope you are resting today, peace
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