Miracle dog!

Great news this afternoon. Millie has been back to the vets for a check up. They are amazed with her progress, she is putting on weight and growing. The vet was so delighted with her that they took her off to show all the other members of staff. We now have to go through the next dose of worming and she needs to go back in just over a week for her next inoculation and to be chipped.

Not much has been happening at Redlands the last couple of days. Alistair's sheep have learnt how to get across the cattle grid and into the main yard. He has put an electric fence up to stop them so hopefully they will stay in the right area.

The orchard was full of dead trees and there is about three which are still alive. Not sure whether they are apple, plum or pear trees. Alistair has worked really hard and cleared a lot of the dead wood out. The previous owner kept horses and we have discovered that when they died they buried them in the orchard and erected a little plaque with the name of the horse and dates on them.

Progress!

A much better day today. Millie is eating well now and gradually going back onto her proper diet. She is full of life and mischief. She has found a way to knock the bin over and pull the contents out. The Jack Russell's are becoming more tolerant to her and Patch is beginning to play with her on occasions.

This afternoon Geoff had a meeting with the water consultant and knows what we need to ensure the water is safe. All very positive for us as he says we can have a water purification plant and be self sufficient for water.

At long last we have got hold of the electrician who will be coming on Monday to have a look. Finally we feel as if some progress is being made.

Sad Day

Unfortunately Tess was very ill this morning and sadly we have lost her. The parvo-virus test was negative so the vets think it could have been corona virus which is a derivative of the SARS virus. We know the vets tried their best for her and they were upset that they couldn't make her better too.
At least Millie is doing well. She is eating now, putting on weight and full off mischief. Back to the vets on Friday to just check that she continues to progress well.

The architect arrived with the amended plans today. All the alterations we asked for have been done, the next hurdle will be if the council allow us to pull down the existing house and build a new one.

Geoff has finally got hold of the water consultant and will be having a meeting with him tomorrow to explore the options of using the existing well as there is no mains water supply available. We did make enquiries with the water board and were quoted £37,000 as the nearest mains was a little way off. Hopefully we can be self sufficient.

Alistair has had a frustrating day as his pick up truck went in for repair and the courtesy vehicle did not materialise. They maintained that he couldn't have one because he is under 21. After several heated phone calls he finally got some joy and a vehicle arrived this evening.

Good News and Bad News!

The good news is we have got Millie home. She is remarkable and it is so hard to believe that she has been so poorly. She is full of mischief and wants to play and getting terribly spoilt at the moment as we never thought she would pull through. As the day progresses her appetite is improving. The bad news is that Tess is two days behind where Millie was and very poorly and still at the Vet's. We are hoping that tomorrow will bring more positive news. Millie is really missing her, our two Jack Russell terriers are very unsure of her and keeping away from her.



This morning began with a sharp frost which was followed by a beautiful sunny day. This meant conditions were ideal for us to check the bees and see how well they have survived this winter. Last Autumn we had six colonies. Four of them very strong. Unfortunately the winter has taken its toll and we have lost two colonies. One other colony looks quite weak also. The rest are looking good. We put the queen excluders in and checked they had got food. They will be moved to Redlands later in the year and be housed in the Orchard. We don't want to move them yet as there is a field of rape planted in the field behind us so we are hoping for some good rape honey.



Alistair has taken some sheep to Redlands today. It is great to see animals in the fields again. So far we have pigs and sheep over there. Once the water is sorted out then he will take some cattle over. He has four lovely heifers which he is hoping to show. Yesterday he attempted to begin halter training them. This wasn't as easy as he thought it would be, trying to get close to their heads and put an halter on was quite challenging. Eventually he succeeded with one of them but no chance of getting it to walk alongside him. I suspect this will take several months of hard work and dedication.

What a week!

It is hard to believe that one can become so quickly attached to ones pets. The last two days have been full of anguish as both pups ended up being kept at the vets with a drip. The vet suspects they have canine parvo-virus which they must have been incubating before we brought them home. They are both beginning to improve and we are hoping to bring them home tomorrow if they do not relapse overnight. We know there will be a few weeks of TLC to get them in good condition yet and we are hoping they will make a full recovery.

Not been our week as a lorry reversed into Alistair's pick up truck whilst it was stationary. On the surface there doesn't look a lot of damage but the bonnet has been buckled, the bumper damaged and a light broken. The driver has admitted liability so Alistair will be able to make an insurance claim.

Geoff has been doing some measuring up to replace some of the gates and doors. We hope we can start to do more now that the nights are beginning to draw out and the weather is improving.

Poor Millie

Since the architect came we have had a good look at the plans, scribbled on them and decided which design is likely to be the most suitable for us. Naturally we have chosen the largest plan which means it will be the most expensive to build. Hopefully the architect can cut down some of the room sizes to cut the expense down a bit.


Geoff is trying to get the water consultant and the electrician so that we can check that the electric around the farm is safe to use. There are wires everywhere so we want to make sure it is safe to use electrical equipment. We have been told that the well at the front of the house is a holding tank from the main water supply at the edge of the field. More things to work round.


Since our last post one of the pupies, Millie, has become very unwell. We have had to leave her at the vets where they are keeping her to put a drip onto her as she is becoming very dehydrated. We are very worried about her and hoping she will recover. Tess is okay at the moment but missing her sister already so suspect we are in for a noisy night.

One Man and His Dog!!

The puppies are settling in well and becoming very inquisitive. They have found a way to lift the lid in the recycling bin and managed to pull an empty box out. They have had great fun playing and chewing it to bits. Eventually the puppies will be housed in a barn at the farm as they will be working dogs. We are hoping to get them trained to work with the sheep and probably begin to breed collie puppies ourselves. You never know One man and his dog here we come!!


The previous owner of Redlands had cats running around everywhere. They have been sent to new homes all except one which couldn't be caught. It is strange because it has taken a real liking to Geoff. Every time he enters the yard it appears. We were told that it would never go into the house but I suspect this will change when we eventually get there. No idea whether it is male or female but have just learnt that it is called Firefly.



The architect has been to see us this evening, leaving us with a lot to think about. The existing house is going to need so much doing to it that it may be more economical to rebuild. He has brought several plans for us to mull over and decide what we want to do. Decisions, decisions, decisions!!