For all the cat-lovers . . .

For all the cat-lovers . . .

So sweetJ

I’ll try and find one for the dog-lovers later.

Cruise Control

Cruise Control

Recently I learned that it can be dangerous to use cruise control in your car on slippery or wet roads. Snow, ice or rain can cause wheel-spin and loss of control. Although cruise control can be deactivated quickly by touching the brake pedal the extra time taken to effect this may result in your vehicle going out of control and possibly careering into a ditch or into the path of oncoming traffic.

Surely this information should be displayed in the car alongside warnings about air bags.

Update on Gus

Update on Gus

Phil-the-Vet phoned to tell us that the tumour is benign and should ‘drop off’ (highly technical term!) in two or three months. Much relief all round.

Meanwhile, not to be outdone, Frodo the Faller developed a strange patch on his head. I thought it was food but when I cleaned it I discovered that he had grazed his head. He has a habit of investigating the dishes in the dishwasher when I’m stacking it and I can only think he caught the top of his head on the upper arm of the machine. The patch doesn’t seem to bother him and the other animals haven’t investigated it so I don’t think it’s anything to worry about. It actually looks better today. There was slight swelling there but that has reduced. Yesterday we thought we would have to take him to the vet but now I think it will get better on its own.

The Twentieth Blog of Augustus Lazarus Cooke (Gus)

The Twentieth Blog of Augustus Lazarus Cooke (Gus)

Hello everyone!

It’s been very busy in our house. Bethan came to help Mr and Mrs H with ‘decluttering’, whatever that means. It was very unsettling for us dogs to see lots of stuff being put in boxes and taken off to what they call ‘charity shops’. I was worried we’d end up in a box.

We listened hard to see if we could find out what all the activity was about and discovered that Susannah and Frankie were coming to live with us for a few months until their new house is ready.

Then Mr H fitted some doors upstairs so that Susannah and Frankie could have their own space. The cats were a bit miffed ‘cos the corridor has been shut off and they used to like racing along there. Still, they’ve got the rest of the house so they shouldn’t complain – but they do!

When Susannah and Frankie arrived they brought lots of things with them, including a cat! We were a bit surprised to see her. She’s called Cleopatra but Susannah calls her Pats or sometimes Patricia. We’ve all met her and she’s all right but Mr and Mrs H won’t let Herschel and Isambard and Jellicoe see her, not yet, anyway.

Us dogs are very interested in Frankie – he smells fascinating and he’s just the right height for us to lick his face though we’re not supposed to do that. We’re not allowed in the dining room when he’s eating but we go in afterwards to clear up – there’s usually something tasty on the floor as well as on Frankie.

Life has changed. Mr H takes Susannah to the station early every morning and Mrs H is busy all the time with Frankie. Us dogs could feel a bit left out but the Humans make a big fuss of us when Frankie’s in bed. He goes to bed a lot!

Me and Jenna had to go and see Phil-the-Vet the other day for our injections* ‘cos some of our joints are a bit painful sometimes. Mr H asked him to look at a small lump on the inside of my ear flap. I didn’t mind him looking but when he brought out a needle to stick in it I wasn’t very keen. I was a brave boy, though, and Phil-the-Vet only took a little of my blood. My Humans should hear soon what it is and whether to worry.

I think we’re going to have breakfast soon and later we’re all going for a walk. Frankie might walk a little way but most of the time he’ll be in his buggy. That must be funny – sitting in a chair with wheels and being pushed along. I think I might like that.

Be good.

Hwyl fawr am nawr! (That’s Welsh for ‘Goodbye for now!’)

*Cartrophen

The Entropy Gang's May 2014 blog (formerly Conservatory Cats' Chats)

The Entropy Gang’s May 2014 blog (formerly Conservatory Cats’ Chats)

Herschel: We are exhausted!

Isambard: There are many reasons for this which we shall enumerate for your edification.

Jellicoe: It may justifiably be said that we are disenchanted with our Servants. They have allowed other matters to intrude on their first duty which, of course, is to US.

Herschel: We have told you before that our Servants have what they call FAMILY and that some of them had very small Servants who had to be carried around and spent much time on the floor.

Isambard: The very small Servants are not quite so small now and they can run around on their hind legs.

Jellicoe: The thing that has upset us most is that one of the very small Servants has come to live with us. His name is Frankie and he is noisy and untidy. He has taken over the Conservatory, which you may recall is our province. The whole place is filled with his books and toys. Isambard has become almost invisible during the hours he is awake.

Herschel: Jellicoe and I have agreed to share the space with him. We love being in the Conservatory - it’s lovely and warm and bright and we get a wonderful view of the birds. Bird-watching at this time of year is time-consuming and we are fatigued.

Isambard: I enjoy bird-watching too, but I don’t go in the Conservatory when Frankie is there. I am getting used to him but he makes me nervous. I know I can run and jump faster than him but I’m a peaceable sort of chap and I don’t care much for change.

Jellicoe: Of course, Frankie didn’t come here on his own. His Mummy, Susannah, came with him. We like Susannah. Susannah likes us. Isambard is her favourite but Herschel and I don’t mind that. She says he is like her cat. We haven’t seen her cat.

Herschel: What has disturbed us is that it’s not just Susannah and Frankie who have come to stay – there is another cat! We haven’t seen it but we can smell it and hear it.

Isambard: Not only that, it has taken part of our domain. We think it must be Susannah’s cat. She calls her Pats. I’m very interested in her.

Jellicoe: Susannah would like us to meet but The MAID and The THINKER say we must all wait.

Herschel: We’d just about got over the shock of the invasion by Pats and her Servants when The MAID and The THINKER had the effrontery to invite more Servants to lunch. We knew them all, of course, apart from one who was unfamiliar. The one we would have liked to see, Robert the Cat Whisperer, didn’t come because he wasn’t feeling well. That was disappointing.

Isambard: Now we’re not pushy – we don’t force our attentions on anyone – but the alien Servant flinched every time she caught sight of one of us. She doesn’t like cats. Can you imagine that? How could anyone not like cats – and especially us? Actually she didn’t see me at all – I was hiding in my special place under the stairs. I didn’t come out until Frankie had gone to bed and everyone except Gillian had gone home. We like Gillian – she gives us treats!

Jellicoe: You can appreciate that we have had our paws full with all the changes in our Palace. It’s all going to change again later when Pats and her Servants move into their own house.

Herschel: That won’t be for a very long time. In the meantime we have to catch our cuddles when we can.

Isambard: We do all snuggle up together at night on the Servants’ bed.

Jellicoe: But it’s not the same as choosing a lap whenever the mood takes us.

Herschel: We are getting used to the small Servant – we make him laugh.

 Isambard: I have even stayed in the same room as him once or twice recently – but not for long.

Jellicoe: The MAID tells him to be gentle and he’s a good little boy really – just young.

Herschel: All the Servants have been very unsettled for months and now they’re beginning to relax again. 

Isambard: But we are exhausted.

Jellicoe: Change is always tiring but we’re coping. We’re never too tired to create a little more entropy. Pulling the ceiling blinds down was our latest trick. That was me! I wondered what it would be like to lie in a hammock and the ceiling blind seemed to fit the bill.

Herschel: The THINKER wasn’t very pleased.

Isambard: I wasn’t even there . . .

Jellicoe: Butter wouldn’t melt in your mouth, Isambard. You’re not as innocent as you make out. After all, you are our brother.

Herschel: Now, now, let’s not squabble. You know the Servants don’t like it. Time for a zizz, I think . . . z-z-z-z-z-z-z-z

Isambard: z-z-z-z-z-z-z-z

Jellicoe: z-z-z-z-z-z-z-z

Settling, like dust . . .

Settling, like dust . . .

Susannah has had a trying several months/years but finally has found the strength and courage to make the break, long overdue, with her manipulative and disturbed partner. She has sold her London flat and is buying a house near us so that her small son can grow up in a calm and peaceful atmosphere.

Our house has been overhauled and tidied to accommodate Susannah, Frankie and their cat until they can move into their new home, some time in September. I have had little time or inclination to blog but life is settling down again and increasingly I am able to pursue hobbies and other interests.

Naturally, the cats and Gus have their own versions of recent events and their blogs will follow this one.