Bunny attack

Albert's painkillers seem to be working well, and obviously they are sedating him nicely. I have fed him titbits throughout the day, which he has wolfed down, but generally he has spent his time in the cage sleeping. I have spent most of the day clearing the vegetable beds ready for the spring planting with the help of Broody Nolan (below) who has eating her weight in earthworms every time I turn over a large sod!

While I was working, a couple of large crows decided to attack the diminutive Bunny (top photo centre) It is the first time that I have seen this aggression aimed directly towards her, although when the buffs were small, they were attacked in a similar way. Unable to run Bunny hunched over and cried out loudly as the two crows pecked at her again and again. Before I could gallop over (with visions of another vet visit!!) two of the other hens, Nonnie and Belle bounced over and launched themselves at the crows clucking , shrieking and slashing at them with their claws ....this of course galvanised Rogo the cockerel into action and he chased off the attackers. I have often seen the cockerels in attack mode but not usually the hens. The whole event was incredibly interesting to watch.

Bunny survived her attack with a few pulled feathers, being the runt guess does have its drawbacks.

Belle and Nonnie have become two of my favourite hens, they are two of the survivors from the dog attack last year (Bunny and Rogo survived also) and strangely for hens they have become inseparable. Daily both girls slip through a hole in the electric fencing, and spend hours foraging around the graveyard in a tight knit little group of two. Many of the visitors to the Church have commented how sweet they look

Hazel

Il y a longtemps que je t'aime (2008) was bloody well sold out when Hazel and I got to Theatre Clwyd which was a real bummer. It is only showing again for one more night, so I will try and get to see it tomorrow. We had a look around the art gallery then had a drink and a proper chat, something that we haven't done for ages!
Hazel is just emerging from a very messy divorce, and is doing so with a great deal of dignity, so we had a "girly" time discussing her dating needs and the like.
Hazel is my only friend in Wales that loves arthouse cinema....and thank god I found her! I couldn't cope with life if I couldn't have a pretentious chat about the whys and wherefores of a certain film's narrative or structure!

I got home just before 10pm.....Chris was in bed knitting Janet a scarf. Albert was asleep in his cage, snoring gently to himself.......with William lying next to him on the outside of his bars, with his nose pressed hard against Albert's fur

Albert returns home

Well I picked Albert up this evening. He was thankfully more settled and comfortable after having his fractured femur wired this morning. It is obvious that the original plaster cast was incorrectly fitted, so perhaps it would have been more prudent for him to have had the operation earlier, thus saving him a lot of pain , two anaesthetics and four days at the vets!
Although I was very grateful to the surgery and said so, I did say that I hoped the bill would reflect the mistake........taking a cheeky glimpse at the vets notes, I saw it would be!
Anyhow the dogs have all touched noses with him when he arrived home. He ate a small meal (above) and settled down next to the fire with four pairs of eyes closely watching him

sigh.....

I got up early this morning as I wanted to start clearing some of the allotment beds seeing that the ground has softened somewhat after the recent cold snap. True to form (best laid plans and all that) it has started to rain heavily! Looks as though I am going to get a little damp today. At the moment I am grabbing a proper coffee while the dogs are performing over their breakfast bowls.

The vet has just called (it was the brusque girl who looked after Finlay so well). Apparently Albert has removed his plaster cast overnight and it looked as though it had been put on incorrectly!

Poor little chap, I suspect the discomfort from this was causing his "erratic" behaviour....

So as we speak he is having his leg pinned!....

Albert saga continues and a masterclass in humour

William and Meg (above) have had an exhausting day getting acquainted with the poultry on the field.I have been taking the dogs over more regularly in an effort to get them used to the birds so that excited attacks may be brought to a more acceptable level. The Scotties now, can and do walk alongside the hens without battering an eye but the welsh cannot and probably will never be let off on their own.Both Meg and William literally shake with anticipation when any of the birds come into view and would I am sure happily maul anything that came within reach. Funny that the Scotties after one telling off, now will potter around next to the hysterical ducks without wanting to give chase.
Albert has still not been "discharged" from the vets. Although he is eating and drinking well, the vet nurse is still reporting "excitable and erratic behaviour" from him as he continues his efforts to get rid of his plaster cast.
Hopefully he will be able to come home tomorrow, mind you I have been given strict instructions he is to be nursed in a cage............the vet fears he will gallop around on his three good legs smashing into every wall if left free.......sigh......!
I cannot remember when I watched something on tv that made me literally cry with laughter. Last night I watched Mark Lawson's interview with the actress Maureen Lipman on BBC4 and amid an intelligent and measured discussion, the thoughtful Lipman told a story of how the obsessive film director Roman Polanski prepared his actors for a scene in the holocaust movie The Pianist (2002) Wanting actor Frank Finlay to look a little more shopworn, she wryly recounted how the director used sandpaper and (of all things) a large German sausage to give Finlay's face the "right" look. Lipman's comic timing even when she is telling a dinner party anecdote is right on the money, and I laughed till I almost wet myself.......cracking and thoroughly enjoyable tv
I caught up with Nu this afternoon on the phone. She seems numb and ever so flat after Una's death. The only thing that seems to be helping her is therapeutic trips to the cinema. She gave The Reader (2008) a 9/10.......I didn't ask her if she had seen Winslett's painful and dotty acceptance speech at the golden globe awards.
Tomorrow I hope to meet up with Hazel (it's been an age)....I think we are off to see Il y a longtemps que je t'aime (2008) (I have loved you so long) at theatre Clwyd..... it will be nice to get back to normal

Bach Double Concerto for Violins

Some pieces of music make you stop dead in your tracks.
I heard this on the car radio today and had to pull over to listen to it.
Quite amazing...........

Wintry day (Albert and the credit crunch)

Today has been a dull,wet,wintry day. I seem to have been outside for most of the daylight hours and now feel chilled and tired. Albert is not being discharged today. Reading between the lines, I think he is leading the staff at the vets a merry dance with his much hated plaster cast. Apparently he has been galloping around his cage desperate to get rid of the dammed thing, so much so that the staff feel that he may be in danger exacerbating his fracture. So although he is eating and drinking ok, he won't be discharged until tomorrow......I suspect a little Valium may be in orderThe only pub in the village The Crown has now unfortunately closed. High rents, dropping client numbers, the smoking ban, crap food.........I guess there are scores of reasons why small businesses fall by the wayside nowadays. It saddens me because the pub and restaurant was once someones dream of success, a hopeful new way of life, a new venture, a new challenge........
The place looked cold and unloved when I walked past with the dogs this afternoon. Although it had been renovated to cater for shall we say, more modern tastes, the two fireplaces were always lit and the fires were always welcoming and rather sweet.
I hope someone takes the business over, and I hope they return the old pub to something more old fashioned and traditional.Strangely enough The Crown has never felt central to the village life as the Memorial Hall obviously does ......................perhaps it is a sign of the village's slightly puritanical roots.

Albert & Charlie

Albert didn't come home today which was a little worrying!, I rang the vets at noon and at two, but due to pressures of work he had his plaster cast fitted late so was not well enough to be allowed home today. The "nurse" however said that he was stable and had been asked for me!.......nutter!
I do miss the little chap
Janet gave me this balaclava the other day to help me with this bitter weather. I have been instantly transported to my primary school childhood when I walked to school wearing my hand knitted gloves and orange ever-so-tight balaclava!!! (I honestly looked like a small Japanese soldier!)
It has been lovely to wear but I must admit I do look like a sad pervert in it!

This Morning I let the ducks out first as I wanted to herd them down to the main hen enclosure without interruption by the inquisitive hens. As they waddled down the field two foxes burst into view not 25 yards from us. The ducks formed their defensive "huddle" immediately but the foxes ran on , zig-zagging across the field, through the neighbouring fields and then back again!!!!! They were oblivious to us watching them, as I suspect they were a "courting" couple, but the proximity of two "charlies" is terribly worrying (Charlie is a local nick name for a fox apparently!). I have spent the day on and off the field with trusty George in tow, the electric fencing has been re installed around the expensive buffs and we have seen no repeat visitation!....perhaps my balaclava scared them off?