RIP BWB

When I went out to feed the hens first thing Wednesday morning I found Bloody White Bastard lying dead by the garden by the back door. Looked like he was waiting to be fed and had a heart attack. Buried him in the garden with all state honours. Ten years was a good age but I really miss him following me around the place.

The farrier braved the rain Tuesday morning to trim Briar's hooves and came to tell me she was limping quite badly. She had been fine Monday so he felt she'd either been kicked or else had an abscess. He suggested I leave her a few days to see if it burst on its own. By Thursday Briar could barely hobble around so left a message with Bart Thompson the local equine vet. He returned my call in the evening and as luck would have it he was going to be seeing a horse on a farm down my road at lunchtime Friday.

He arrived dead on time and we braved Tobermory goat to get to Briar who was standing near the tack shed with the Kaimanawa horse. She had an abscess deep in her right hind hoof which Bart lanced before giving her a huge injection of penicillin and a shot for tetanus. He says it's the time of year that caused the abscess- we have days of rain and then it becomes hot. He left me four packets of painkillers but I have to say that after only one day Briar is nearly walking normally again. I had only just sent a cheque for the last of Demelza's vet bill so am not happy I'm back in debt again but you can't watch an animal suffer like that and not do anything.

I have been busy upgrading and revamping my menagerie website and now it has all my stock uploaded I'll hopefully get some orders before Christmas. I am also hoping to complete more spinning for the handspun yarn page and have asked my sister for help getting me back knitting so I can make small items from my angora fibre. Haven't knitted since I was about eight or nine and it's true- if you don't use it you lose it. I think I can vaguely remember how to cast on and cast off.