Friday 12th March 2021 Day 353

10.30  Should have gone for early walk because now it’s tipping it down out there, I’ll have to keep my eye open for a break in the weather.  Audrey is quite happy at the moment because she’s had a lot of attention this morning, as in grooming from head to foot, the attention was because at midnight last night as I was on my way to bed, I gave her her usual bit of night time fuss and felt something by her jaw which turned out to be one of the few creatures that make me shudder – no not a snake, – I’d probably have noticed that without touching her! –  it was a very large tick which fell away into my hand and took me a moment or two to realise what it was, fortunately dead as a Dodo because I had put flea stuff on her a couple of days ago.  I got a jar and put it in there just to make sure that it definitely was a tick and then washed my hands practically down to the skeleton of my fingers!.  Poor girl, there is a bit of a lump there which I will keep an eye

on and wash with hibiscrub .

11.00  The rain miraculously has cleared and we meet Janet in the fields for a walk, it’s coolish and blustery but not too bad and Audrey decides to add to the frivolities by rolling in something, fox probably and covering herself in it head to foot – not pleased.

We get home and I scrub her with warm water and dog shampoo which she doesn’t mind but objects to my turning the hose on her afterwards to get rid of the suds.

On a walk the other day in Kiln woods, after losing the ball irretrievably down a rabbit hole and spending the next ten minutes trying to assure Audrey that it was actually lost and was not going to magically appear in my hand or my pocket ,( I bet the rabbit is still trying to make head or tail of the unwanted visitor,) we then came across a sad sight; one of the little wooden bridges that straddle the streams, had been severely burnt at one end, whether on purpose or by accident was hard to tell but to be honest difficult to think it was the latter, hardly a place you were likely to have a little barbecue and if it was on purpose then Why?

14.30  I have just returned from Bird in Eye Farm where I went to collect some compost. The bags belied the weight and I had to ask the guy to put them in the boot for me.  I kind of rolled them out of the boot when I got home. I was only gone for half an hour max but on returning home I was met with the sorry sight of Audrey lifting a front paw off the ground, apparently unable to put any weight on it. She was fine when I left and I have no idea what on earth she could have done while I was out but she won’t let me near it, she takes my arm in her mouth very gently when I go to look and makes a little growly noise to warn me off, I guess we’ll have to wait and see but I think I can see a vet visit looming and they can have a look at the tick lump while we’re at it.

So now we have all rushed off to have our jabs, we are being told that other European countries are suspending the AstraZeneca vaccinations due to a link, so far unsubstantiated, with blood clots.  Talk about after the horse has bolted!