PossumCorner

Terrific series. The track looks very only just. Were there ever any times when you thought you might not make it - given that photography minimises slope, so it was probably even steeper than it looks??

Welcome to the forum kreatific, but so sorry to hear about Ivy, she looks a lovely dog. As for her breed, it's always a guess as to their background - she has the lovely colour of some Rhodesian Ridgebacks, maybe some Staffie - and her ears ?Ibizan. If you had some of her hair from a brush or bedding you could even look into DNA testing - although as you say "when the time comes" - the right dog will find you.

Ponies at a round bale remind me of office-workers around the tea trolley. Sheep on the farm over the (dirt) road are not mine (I wish) - and are very aristasheep Merinos. I live in terror of our black ram jumping the fences and landing me in debtors prison.

Early Spring, so a few (like hundreds) of baby bunnies around. Can't usually get close, they are as wild as mice, but camera was focussed on the ducks behind him when this one froze for a moment and disappeared again at light speed.

Falling way behind, but not missing anyone elses' shots - so much, so good. These are my latest two geese, semi rescue, breed uncertain. The dam should be a clay-brown colour, but a blue-sky sunset has done something to the water.

Filled it in. Not with a lot of optimism (lies, damned lies and statistics, all that). But it's like voting, or the current yes/no survey, if you don't participate you can't whinge at the outcomes.

No for sure it's not only dogs - snail parasites cause bilharzia in people just with contact, not eating them. Friend contracted it in Kenya, wading in Lake Victoria for some reason - which is full of freshwater snails. Cystitis, dreadful disease, central nervous system affected, he was near death. (Recovered fully, one of the very lucky ones).

We're all watching and waiting Rebanne and hopeing for beautiful puppies and a well Phoebe.

Sounds like one of our dogs - used to love day-trips, but if he saw a tent or cooking gear being packed it was very much: "Is this one of those damned things when we stay out all night?" Is it the heat that's getting to them?

Truly sorry Cannibalgoldfish - lovely that you were there for him - but the pain of loss is so hard.

Yes Katrina attitudes were horrendous, just the newsclips on tv show a change of heart here. Or are demographics everything?

House flies mostly. And blowies. I remembered (looking at this Flies ain't Flies page from CSIRO) how bad the bush flies were in Canberra years back, grateful we don't get them like that, so something has changed in sheep country in the numbers. https://blog.csiro.au/flies-aint-flies/

We share your sadness Boronia, so sorry.

I made those last year, useless, flew in and flew out. But I see in the small print on Persephone's diagram I should have partly covered the entry to only allow one fly - okay, will try again this year with a tab of duct tape over half the entry point.

Maybe dog-friendly picture theatres in the early days led to the term "the flea house" - it's what local suburban theatres were always called.

No not even a little bit, all good. I wasn't having a shot, just think it's all quite interesting the way these issues are interpreted, whether dogs or people or horses.

Not replying to this post particularly, just in general. I don't like calling a dog's follow up reaction PTSD. It's not mental illness, it's pain or trauma memory, two different things. I was in Viet Nam. I still wake up in terror, I have flashbacks to things nobody should have to see. But I don't have PTSD, people I know do have, and you wouldn't wish it on anyone or their dog. I just don't think it is the same as recalling bad stuff waking or sleeping. Memory is memory, no-one says that remembering good stuff is mental illness. Equally remembering bad stuff is not PTSD, its just recalling something seen or experienced.

We have a Numatic Henry, made in the UK, reliable as. They are a small handy commercial jobbie, with full commercial use guarantee. Love it. Previously we have had Dyson, Wertheim, other high-end vacs, Henry is good as any of them, better than most.

Also the Forum (sadly) has shrunk, I guess as people wander off to group hugs or whatever, and there just isn't the breadth of experience, opinion and discussion running through threads as once was.

Ongoing problem Rusty, free range do catch things just as much, often from wild birds which are all carriers. It's all a bit lose/lose. Some egg producers hardly treat birds at all, but then they cull at 12-18 months old, so if birds are infested, well they're past their use-by date for laying anyway. Emptied pens can then be power-sprayed or fogged, and a new lot of layers started. And yes the new stocking rates are sickening.

Poultry farms use it to control lice and mites on chooks. The little bloodsucking things (aside from just inflicting pain which reduces egg production due to stress) cause anaemia which reduces egg production, feather-mites destroy feathering, and scaly leg mite make legs scabby, causes lameness. And that's aside from internal parasites like worms and coccidiosis. So the poultry farms variously spray pens and it gets into the bird's system topically, absorb through skin: or worm them the same as we do dogs, mostly by mouth, sometimes by spot-on treatment. Once in the bird's system it can absorb into internal organs including eggs. There are all sorts of safeguards in the regulations but when did they ever work in the livestock industries?

http://www.express.co.uk/news/world/839293/EU-Egg-fipronil-contamination-Belgium-Denis-Ducharme-Netherlands-health-crisis We don't feed it to our animals though, isn't it the content of a spot-on?, so not direct into the digestive system, kidneys, liver. Like ivermectin topical (not oral). All animals need to be treated with parasite protection whether lice and mites or internal worms. The neglect of not treating them is worse than the possibility of damage the meds might do - it's not ideal because poison is poison, but images of totally neglected dogs with mange plus worm infested is much worse on balance than the occasional bad reaction to a med. I think. Another spin off in reaction to this egg throwing is the BRexit - those in favour doing a justified point and laugh because EU members are now snarking at one another - and the anti-Brexit had used the argument that the UK would be the ones suffering from this lack of control, not the EU.

Are these the Koolies from "In the News" - the cruelty sub-section? Glad that some are going well Perry's Mum - any updates on these fosters?

And the owner is still allowed to keep five dogs.

I'm glad she is ticking along okay now Perry's Mum. Is Friskie still on medication or was the one-month enough to get her sorted out?