the accidental smallholder :: diary archives

Garden competition

We were third in the biodiversity class and have won £10, which we will spend on bird seed.

I think I'll ask for feedback, so we can do better next year. Not that I'm competitive or anything.

Cassius' Story

Homer's had quite a lot of coverage on the site and Copper has her spot, but Cassius only gets a passing mention. But, in fact, if it wasn't for Cass, we wouldn't have either Homer or Copper.

When Dan and I moved here, we both wanted a dog. We were dog lovers. So we got Tess. Then we got Meg. Cats didn't really feature and Dan professed to not being a cat lover. Ha!

Although I had never owned a cat, my Gran always had a cat and I've always liked them, although Gran used to embarass me by talking to any cat we met out in a "silly" voice. (Which is exactly what I do now).When I worked on the farm, the cats always became my "pets".

So once we had the dogs, I started to think that "a house isn't a home without a cat". I suggested to Dan that we might get one and he didn't say"no" (quickly enough). So I bought a bowl with "cat" on it, a dish with a picture of a cat on it and a cat carry box. After these had been on the kitchen table for a few days, Dan asked if we were getting a cat.

A few days later, I was out to lunch with a girlfriend at a little place that, when I thought about it, was quite close to the SSPCA shelter. So, after lunch, I popped along to see if they had two tabby kittens (female). These were to be called Merry and Pippin, after the Hobbits. I had it all planned in my head!

But, best laid plans etc etc. The shelter had NO CATS. Oh, hang on a minute, yes, they did but it wasn't a kitten and did I want a look? So in I went to be shown this large, black, "recently ex"-tom cat. He limped out of the cage (he'd been injured). I picked him up. He leaned back in my arms, looked me in the eye, then put his head on my shoulder and started to purr. Was I hooked?

I consulted with Dan, who was resigned. Six days later, Cass came home. He is called Cassius because he is big, black and beautiful. And had one fight too many!

We were told Cass was between two and three. Our vet thought he was between 6 and 10 and had been in a road accident at some time, resulting in a (now healed) broken pelvis and a large (but stable) hernia. He also had raging halitosis, which had nothing to do with the accident, but required urgent action, for no other reason than Cass has a penchant for sitting on your chest, gazing deep into your eyes. One whiff of breath, and you were retching.

We brought Cass home in March 2002. Since then, his claim to fame is having to visit the vet every festive season. In 2002, it was his hernia that finally needed repaired. In 2003, he had a urinary infection, which lead to the diagnosis of a heart murmur. What a bargain he's turned out to be! When the vet sees us coming, he gets right on the phone to his travel agent.

But Cass is a dream. He is such an affectionate cat. We'll never know his story or why he ended up in the shelter, but I'm sure he must have been a well loved pet. Did he belong to an elderly person who passed away? He's certainly never been abused - he is the most confident cat with humans (and dogs!).

He's very beautiful, lazy, lithe and a consummate killer. He can always find the best spots for sunbathing and the cosiest spots in winter. He enjoys a bit of computing and likes reading the local newspapers (if he can read through his bum). He's such a smart cat!

We just love him to bits and he has made us into cat lovers. That's why we have three of them and wouldn't be without them. But if it hadn't been for Cass, who knows...

PNH

Smokey and I have begun a journey together. We have started to learn to communicate using natural horsemanship. Parelli Natural Horsemanship or PNH. If it all sounds a bit weird and touchy feely, believe me it's not.

Some folk at the yard had a session with a horse whisperer recently. Now that, to me, is pure mumbo jumbo and shouldn't be linked with PNH. The horse whisperer told one of the owners that her horse liked being owned by her because "she bought her comfy boots". What a load of piffle.

My view is that many of the problems we horse owners experience are caused by us treating our horses like humans. They aren't human and they can't communicate on a human level. What PNH tries to do is help us understand the language that horses use and to use it to work better with our horses.

Two friends and I went to Wyoming a few years ago for a working holiday on a cattle ranch. The wranglers were brilliant horsemen and treated their horses with respect and affection. But they didn't expect them to behave like humans and they didn't treat them as pets.

Anyway, i'm in no way setting myself up as an expert. I saw a Parelli demonstration a couple of years ago, just after I bought Smokey and was quite interested. It's been on the back burner - I've read the books and watched the videos but never really got started on the programme.

However, for my birthday, Dan bought me a one day course with an Australian instructor called Kaye Thomas. It was brilliant but really hard work. There were five people on the course. Smokey and I were the least experienced but we made reasonable progress. Since we came back, we've been working away on the seven games. Already, he's becoming more responsive. Smokey's not the most sensitive of horses - he's quite laid back and very strong willed. A trait in natives and particularly Highland ponies.

If you're interested, have a look on the Parelli website I'll keep you posted of developments.

It's been a while...

Boy we've been slack around here! Over two weeks since our last post just isn't good enough - must try harder.

We've been busy though. Lifting and drying hundreds of onions (all that's needed now is the will to plait them), picking and shelling endless pea pods, dealing with what could only be described as a jungle of docks, lifting and drying mounds of spuds and preparing the garden for the local garden competition (we're in the 'biodiversity', or 'scruffy howff' category) in the little spare time we have had.

This morning we had a breakfast party with some friends - almost completely home produced, with scrambled eggs, streaky smoked bacon, herb sausages, grilled tomatoes and fried potatoes. If only I'd lifted those field mushrooms last week we could have done the whole shebang...