I am heartbroken to tell you that Oscar died at around 11am this morning as they sedated him to try to operate to see what was happening to him. We opted not to put him through an autopsy, but pancreatitis or a blockage is most likely. We went to sit with him afterwards and he looked very peaceful.
Thank you for all your well wishes, Oscar must have been one of the most loved dogs on the planet.
We simply do not know what we will do without him.
Run free our sweet darling boy.
Katy and Martin x
Saturday, July 28, 2007
Friday, July 27, 2007
From Healthy Boy To Sick Boy
**Update number 2 @ 9.20 am. Lyn the vet just called to say they are almost certain it's a blockage as despite all the fluids etc he hasn't been sick or had diarrhoea. They are giving him some special fluids to try and stabilise him some more and plan to take him to surgery at 11am despite the risk. She said there is a slight possibility that all the fluid is caused by a disease, but they will know once they operate. More prayers please. Of course I'll let you all know as soon as we hear how he's doing.
**I'm sorry to update with bad news but my darling Oscar is very, very sick. The vet called at about 11 pm to say his heart rate was 250+ and despite huge amounts of IV fluids he was becoming more and more dehydrated. They x-rayed him to check for a blockage but found nothing, then tried a scan. That showed huge amounts of fluid in his intestines. Lyn the vet thought it was either a blockage that they still can't see, or possibly parvovirus (though he was vaccinated as a pup by previous owner and was due to go for his booster this coming Wednesday). She said she was trying to get his heart rate down and him better hydrated as to operate while he was so unstable was too risky.
She called back an hour later to say they have been giving him shock fluids and basically replaced all his body fluid and they had got his heart rate down to 150.
The nurse just called (7.30 am) to say he's held his own overnight but that his heart rate is creeping up again despite lots of fluids by IV all night. She said the vet is probably going to operate shortly no matter the risk as they need to see what's going on.
She said Oscar is pretty out of it on strong pain meds but he was giving her his paw to tickle.
Please, please pray for my baby. I'm so scared we're going to lose him. I can't tell you how awful it is in the house without him with all his toys lying around. I just want him on my knee having ear scratches.
Hi all, it's Oscar's mum Katy here. After all Oscar's talk of being healthy and eating his veggies yesterday, the poor little guy is at the vet hospital tonight and feeling very poorly, hence the sad face photo.
3
On Wednesday while I was out, he chewed on a TV remote. He has never so much as looked at a remote control before or chewed anything he wasn't supposed to but it had been left on the sofa, so maybe he thought it was his for the taking. After I picked all the pieces up, it all seemed to be there so I thought he'd chomped and spat (nice!) and wasn't too worried.
The yesterday evening I took him for walkies to meet Poppy. On the way while he was still on his lead 2 very large dogs came hurtling at him barking, growling and snapping. He was terrified and somehow managed to back out of his collar and just fled. I panicked as we were still on the way to the fields along pavements and roads. I ran in the direction he'd gone calling him but he'd sped off as hadthe other dogs in pursuit. I eventually managed to find him and gafter what seemed like an age and get his collar back on and tightened, but he was clearly petrified. The dogs then came at him again. I held the one that was nearest away with my foot (in wellington boot) and shouted "move!". Not very sensible I know but I wasn't thinking straight. 2 very young boys appeared, the oldest about 7 years old at most. I shouted at them that they shouldn't be out with 2 dogs that size and demeanour, but they just muttered and ran off calling the dogs to follow which thankfully they did. I checked him over and he seemed OK, just scared and I managed to coax him to walk, and we did go to meet Poppy. Due to all the rain, there weren't any other dogs about on the fields and he had a good run around with her and seemed OK.
This morning he was very quiet when I got up, no waggy tail greeting at the bottom of the stairs. I took him on his walk but he wasn't that keen.
I went to work for the morning and when I came home at lunch he didn't come to the door to greet me like usual and he'd pooped in the house which is not like him at all. I let him in the garden where he was either standing all hunched up with tail down or lying on his side. He then went onto the grass and was REALLY sick (like the sound of someone emptying a whole bucket full of water). It smelt REALLY bad, and he seemed to feel worse afterwards. During the afternoon he was sick twice again and seemed very depressed and restless. I called our vet and told them about the sickness, the remote control chewing and how scared he'd been by the dogs the previous night. They told me to take him to their hospital branch about 20 minutes away.
He was sick 3 times in the car (I have left it for his dad to clean in the morning, ick!), and twice in the waiting area. When the vet examined him she said she couldn't feel any blockages which was my biggest fear - I think he's told you about his sock and washing up sponge eating antics - but said he was reacting as if he had very tender tum and had a very high temperature. He was sick again in the examining room.
So my little baby is at the hospital overnight for re hydration, blood tests and x-rays. I had tried all afternoon to get him to have some ice cubes or water but he wouldn't touch it. The house feels so quiet without him and I can't wait until the morning to phone and see how he is. He's normally such a bouncy crazy little lump that to see him stood all hunched like an old man with his tail down and ears back gagging and gagging was horrible.
I know you'll all send good vibes for him to feel better tomorrow and have a smiley face again! I'm sure he'll be keen to tell you all about his vet visit in every gory detail!
Katy x
**I'm sorry to update with bad news but my darling Oscar is very, very sick. The vet called at about 11 pm to say his heart rate was 250+ and despite huge amounts of IV fluids he was becoming more and more dehydrated. They x-rayed him to check for a blockage but found nothing, then tried a scan. That showed huge amounts of fluid in his intestines. Lyn the vet thought it was either a blockage that they still can't see, or possibly parvovirus (though he was vaccinated as a pup by previous owner and was due to go for his booster this coming Wednesday). She said she was trying to get his heart rate down and him better hydrated as to operate while he was so unstable was too risky.
She called back an hour later to say they have been giving him shock fluids and basically replaced all his body fluid and they had got his heart rate down to 150.
The nurse just called (7.30 am) to say he's held his own overnight but that his heart rate is creeping up again despite lots of fluids by IV all night. She said the vet is probably going to operate shortly no matter the risk as they need to see what's going on.
She said Oscar is pretty out of it on strong pain meds but he was giving her his paw to tickle.
Please, please pray for my baby. I'm so scared we're going to lose him. I can't tell you how awful it is in the house without him with all his toys lying around. I just want him on my knee having ear scratches.
Hi all, it's Oscar's mum Katy here. After all Oscar's talk of being healthy and eating his veggies yesterday, the poor little guy is at the vet hospital tonight and feeling very poorly, hence the sad face photo.
3
On Wednesday while I was out, he chewed on a TV remote. He has never so much as looked at a remote control before or chewed anything he wasn't supposed to but it had been left on the sofa, so maybe he thought it was his for the taking. After I picked all the pieces up, it all seemed to be there so I thought he'd chomped and spat (nice!) and wasn't too worried.The yesterday evening I took him for walkies to meet Poppy. On the way while he was still on his lead 2 very large dogs came hurtling at him barking, growling and snapping. He was terrified and somehow managed to back out of his collar and just fled. I panicked as we were still on the way to the fields along pavements and roads. I ran in the direction he'd gone calling him but he'd sped off as hadthe other dogs in pursuit. I eventually managed to find him and gafter what seemed like an age and get his collar back on and tightened, but he was clearly petrified. The dogs then came at him again. I held the one that was nearest away with my foot (in wellington boot) and shouted "move!". Not very sensible I know but I wasn't thinking straight. 2 very young boys appeared, the oldest about 7 years old at most. I shouted at them that they shouldn't be out with 2 dogs that size and demeanour, but they just muttered and ran off calling the dogs to follow which thankfully they did. I checked him over and he seemed OK, just scared and I managed to coax him to walk, and we did go to meet Poppy. Due to all the rain, there weren't any other dogs about on the fields and he had a good run around with her and seemed OK.
This morning he was very quiet when I got up, no waggy tail greeting at the bottom of the stairs. I took him on his walk but he wasn't that keen.
I went to work for the morning and when I came home at lunch he didn't come to the door to greet me like usual and he'd pooped in the house which is not like him at all. I let him in the garden where he was either standing all hunched up with tail down or lying on his side. He then went onto the grass and was REALLY sick (like the sound of someone emptying a whole bucket full of water). It smelt REALLY bad, and he seemed to feel worse afterwards. During the afternoon he was sick twice again and seemed very depressed and restless. I called our vet and told them about the sickness, the remote control chewing and how scared he'd been by the dogs the previous night. They told me to take him to their hospital branch about 20 minutes away.
He was sick 3 times in the car (I have left it for his dad to clean in the morning, ick!), and twice in the waiting area. When the vet examined him she said she couldn't feel any blockages which was my biggest fear - I think he's told you about his sock and washing up sponge eating antics - but said he was reacting as if he had very tender tum and had a very high temperature. He was sick again in the examining room.
So my little baby is at the hospital overnight for re hydration, blood tests and x-rays. I had tried all afternoon to get him to have some ice cubes or water but he wouldn't touch it. The house feels so quiet without him and I can't wait until the morning to phone and see how he is. He's normally such a bouncy crazy little lump that to see him stood all hunched like an old man with his tail down and ears back gagging and gagging was horrible.
I know you'll all send good vibes for him to feel better tomorrow and have a smiley face again! I'm sure he'll be keen to tell you all about his vet visit in every gory detail!
Katy x
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Healthy Boy
Now as most of you know, I eat a raw diet, consisting of minced meats like chicken, lamb, rabbit, beef and fish, raw meaty bones like lamby shank, turkey neck, oxtail and other yummies, muscle meat like heart, offal (which isn't awful, hehehe) such as liver and kidney, raw eggs, raw veggies and fruits and plain natural yogurt along with a couple of supplements such as kelp and garlic powder. I used to get poorly tummy about 3-4 times a week on kibble no matter what one mum tried. Now I rarely do, and when I do it's usually because somebody gives me a treat I can't eat without asking mum or dad first. I of course am too greedy to refuse the treat even though I know it will give me poorly tum. Yeah, I'm stoopid!
So anyway, what part of my yummy dinners do you think I will generally dive into first? Have a look at this fine bowl of food before you make your decision. See how meaty and delicious that oxtail looks.
So anyway, what part of my yummy dinners do you think I will generally dive into first? Have a look at this fine bowl of food before you make your decision. See how meaty and delicious that oxtail looks.
Have you made your choice? OK, let's see if you're right.
OK, so maybe that was a fluke right? Let's try it again with some yummy chicken & a raw eggy. Do you like my poor little starving urchin face? I think I have it perfected!
Ready, set go! If you don't like the noise of bones crunching you might want to turn down the sound.
Yep, I'm a funny boy. I'll always go for a bit of yogurt and my smushed veggies before eating the meat. Delicious as my meaty bones are, I know that I need to be healthy and eat my yogurt and green stuff to so I grow up big and healthy!
Mum makes up big batches of my veggies and freezes them in individual portions and while she's chopping up, blitzing and bagging I sit waiting expectantly in the kitchen. I don't even mind the loud noise the blitzer makes as I know it is producing good stuff for me to eat, yummy!
Licks
Oscar x
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Rainy Days & Monday
Hello all, hope you're OK. I am fine if a little soggy. Some houses a few streets away were flooded over the weekend but we are dry so far, though our patio was more like a paddling pool for a while over the weekend. Lots of places around are suffering badly, it's so sad to hear about all the people who have had flood damage to their homes. My pal Blue who cam to see me on Saturday has flooding very close by, so I have paws firmly crossed that it does not reach her house. You can read more about the floods and see photos here.
My super cute wirey friend Asta Up Over awarded my the Rockin Dog Blogger award, thank you Asta!
Well, we had a dry day on Sunday, so I made sure I got outside to make the most of it. I decided dad needed some exercise, so I persuaded him to play one of my favourite games with me. He pretends to be a big scawie monster and chases me around. it's so much fun, and a very good cardiac workout (maybe more for me than him if you see how tired I am by the end of the video!).
As mum and I were heading off to grooming class, I gave dad some jobs to do to make sure he didn't get bored. He finished off painting the new fence. I kept an eye on him before I left to make sure the work was up to my high standards...hey dad, you missed a bit at the end here!
As you can see, Willow is still stood by my mum on the step while we all play. I'm now playing with Indie (he finished his poop) while Ruby cheers me on and tries to get Willow to come and join in!
My super cute wirey friend Asta Up Over awarded my the Rockin Dog Blogger award, thank you Asta!
Well, we had a dry day on Sunday, so I made sure I got outside to make the most of it. I decided dad needed some exercise, so I persuaded him to play one of my favourite games with me. He pretends to be a big scawie monster and chases me around. it's so much fun, and a very good cardiac workout (maybe more for me than him if you see how tired I am by the end of the video!).As mum and I were heading off to grooming class, I gave dad some jobs to do to make sure he didn't get bored. He finished off painting the new fence. I kept an eye on him before I left to make sure the work was up to my high standards...hey dad, you missed a bit at the end here!
Before he painted the fence he got out the scawie grass eating monster! Now I used to be a teensy bit scared of this when I was a littler pup, as seen here:
But now that I am a mature boy of nearly 14 months I am not so bothered by it. I still wouldn't say I liked it - it does eat the grass and I'm quite partial to doing that myself thank you! I will however tolerate it now.
Anyhow, so we left dad working hard (though I think he actually crept off to watch something called the Grand Prix once we'd gone, hehehe) and mum and I drove to grooming class. Mum got help getting my neck and chest hair shorter, though I still have some left to poke out of my cowboy waistcoat in a manly fashion.
We didn't take any photos of boring grooming, only of the best part about the classes - getting to play with other Dales! My buddies Ralf, Molly, Rupert, Archie or Milo weren't there today, but I'm a friendly boy so I soon made new pals!
Here I am getting acquainted with the laydees! Beside me is little Ruby who I met at the first grooming class I went to. She's almost 1 now. She recently got badly attacked by another doggy who ripped all her side and underneath open. She is healing well now thank doG, and apart from being a little nervous, doesn't seem to have suffered any lasting effect. Little Willow - who's not actually so little anymore at 6 months old - is at the bottom of the photo. Poor Indie was trying to have a poop in peace and got caught on camera, sorry Indie!
Once Ruby realised I'm a gentle boy her tail came up and she was happy to have a good old game of bitey face, yeah!
Willow really wanted to play, but she just wasn't quite brave enough to join in properly, preferring to trot around and watch us. I guess as she gets older she'll get braver. She's also very dainty, so maybe that's why she isn't too keen on running around with us bigger dogs.
As you can see, Willow is still stood by my mum on the step while we all play. I'm now playing with Indie (he finished his poop) while Ruby cheers me on and tries to get Willow to come and join in!
Indie had a word in my ear to ask if I thought he should ask Ruby if she'd be his girlfriend. I told him to go for it. Lovely as she is, I am faithful to my Airegirl Faya.
We discovered there were lots of sticks on the floor and had great fun running around with them playing "chase me". At one point 3 of us had one stick in our mouths, running around in a row, but mum just couldn't get a good photo.
As you'll see on the video, even Willow couldn't resist coming to chomp a few stickies! I am the big fuzzy one!
Yay, Willow is out playing and her little tail is up. I guess she realised how much fun we all are! Grooming class is great for socialisation as well as the horrid hair pulling. Can you see Indie's ears? They're all sticky uppy the whole time and very cute. That's my big fuzzy butt in the background!
Ahh, nothing like a communal butt sniff! The paler guy sniffing my butt is Russell, and he belongs to one of the ladies who runs the class.
So all in all, grooming class was great fun, not the stoopid standing on tables bit so much, but the play time in between rocked!
Licks
Oscar x
Saturday, July 21, 2007
Meeting Blue
This morning I had agility as usual. No photos or videos today as I went on my own as lazy dad wanted a lie-in! Anyone would think it was the weekend or something! My teacher Tracey says that from Wednesday I am moving up to the highest class in obedience, eek! I think the first lesson will be tough while I find my paws and get used to the new dogs, but hopefully I'll soon get the hang of the tougher lessons.
After agility we headed back out to meet my pal Blue! She's a lovely lady who has been visiting my blog for a long while. She was coming to Swindon to meet up with a potential new dog, so her and mum arranged for us all to meet. This was the first time meeting any of my bloggy pals, how exciting!
Here's the handsome Thistle who will soon be Blue's new boy, isn't he handsome? Blue will be back to collect him in a couple of weeks so I look forward to meeting him then, and hopefully lots of times after that too!
We met here at The Tawny Owl pub. I used to come here when I first came to live with mum and dad so it was nice to go back. The staff couldn't believe how big I got! A little girl came to play with me while we were waiting for Blue, and mum showed her how to make me do "bang", so she was very pleased with herself!
When Blue arrived, her and mum got on straight away, natter, natter, chat, chat. I got lots of snuggles and pets. Soon the rain started and as the hoomans were still yapping away, we went back home for a cuppa (well, not for me!).
There are some photos of mum and I on Blue's blog, and here are some of me and Blue! She's such a lovely lady.
After agility we headed back out to meet my pal Blue! She's a lovely lady who has been visiting my blog for a long while. She was coming to Swindon to meet up with a potential new dog, so her and mum arranged for us all to meet. This was the first time meeting any of my bloggy pals, how exciting!
Here's the handsome Thistle who will soon be Blue's new boy, isn't he handsome? Blue will be back to collect him in a couple of weeks so I look forward to meeting him then, and hopefully lots of times after that too!
We met here at The Tawny Owl pub. I used to come here when I first came to live with mum and dad so it was nice to go back. The staff couldn't believe how big I got! A little girl came to play with me while we were waiting for Blue, and mum showed her how to make me do "bang", so she was very pleased with herself!
When Blue arrived, her and mum got on straight away, natter, natter, chat, chat. I got lots of snuggles and pets. Soon the rain started and as the hoomans were still yapping away, we went back home for a cuppa (well, not for me!).
There are some photos of mum and I on Blue's blog, and here are some of me and Blue! She's such a lovely lady.
I look forward to seeing you again in a few weeks Blue. I'll introduce you and Thistle to Seven Fields (weather permitting!).
Licks
Oscar x
Friday, July 20, 2007
Well Bred and Read
Are you sitting comfortably? Then I shall begin! Hehehe, I just love sitting ON the sofa!
My human friend Blue (who I am hopefully meeting tomorrow!) and my cool new WFT pals Agatha and Archie tagged me to reveal my favourite books. Now I'm not really one for long complex novels - I'm only just a year old remember, and I am a terrier with the associated attention span after all!
Here I am sitting ON the sofa with my birthday birdie from Faya waiting for story time!
My second choice is this very sweet book about a lady who was left with nothing but her 3 female Airedales after her husband left her. Her dogs gave her the strength to carry on and she bought and repaired an old cottage, set up a grooming business, bred Airedale puppies, made new friends and lived to a grand old age!
This is one of the books mum read before changing my diet over to BARF. I'm grateful to Tom Lonsdale as I really love my dinners, and my tummy is soooo much better. I'm sure mum and dad are also glad that I don't have the windy bottom from hell any more, hehehe!
We use this book to learn new tricks. There are some cool ideas in there such as learning to put rubbish in the bin. Funny concept if you ask me - I much prefer trying to get stuff OUT of it! Mary Ray is quite famous here in the UK as she does a lot of great doggy dancing (heelwork to music) like my pal Amber-Mae does.
My final choice is this manual. Mum read it before she even got me and said it has some great advice in there, especially for first time dog owners like her. This book definitely helped make me into the good boy I am, along with hard work from mum and dad - and your truly of course!
My human friend Blue (who I am hopefully meeting tomorrow!) and my cool new WFT pals Agatha and Archie tagged me to reveal my favourite books. Now I'm not really one for long complex novels - I'm only just a year old remember, and I am a terrier with the associated attention span after all!Here I am sitting ON the sofa with my birthday birdie from Faya waiting for story time!
My first choice is this book of pubs and hotels here in the UK where I can tag along with mum and dad! There are a few dog friendly pubs around here, and it will be very useful if we ever want a holiday without the taking the tent - which might be soon if this rain doesn't stop!
My second choice is this very sweet book about a lady who was left with nothing but her 3 female Airedales after her husband left her. Her dogs gave her the strength to carry on and she bought and repaired an old cottage, set up a grooming business, bred Airedale puppies, made new friends and lived to a grand old age!
This is one of the books mum read before changing my diet over to BARF. I'm grateful to Tom Lonsdale as I really love my dinners, and my tummy is soooo much better. I'm sure mum and dad are also glad that I don't have the windy bottom from hell any more, hehehe! 
We use this book to learn new tricks. There are some cool ideas in there such as learning to put rubbish in the bin. Funny concept if you ask me - I much prefer trying to get stuff OUT of it! Mary Ray is quite famous here in the UK as she does a lot of great doggy dancing (heelwork to music) like my pal Amber-Mae does.
My final choice is this manual. Mum read it before she even got me and said it has some great advice in there, especially for first time dog owners like her. This book definitely helped make me into the good boy I am, along with hard work from mum and dad - and your truly of course!
I hope you liked my choices. I have enjoyed reading my pal's lists. I'm not sure who has been tagged, so join in if you want to play!
Have a great weekend everyone. I have agility, meeting Blue and grooming class amongst other things, so I'll be busy as ever!
Licks
Oscar x
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Wild Wild West (England)
Ye ha, cowboy fans! Look what came in the post from Butchy and Snicker's mum / Snitchybug Dog Designs!
I am now a genuine bona fide Sherif Sundance Kid!
I've got my cow print waistcoat.
I've got my cool chaps with tassels.
Do you like the way my manly chest hair is spilling out over the top of my waistcoat?
Watch out other doggies, I'm so going to win every fancy dress competition I ever enter!
I am now a genuine bona fide Sherif Sundance Kid!
I've got my cow print waistcoat.
I've got my cool chaps with tassels.
I've got yet another bandanna, proper cowboy stylee!
And I've got a very cool cowboy hat.
Isn't Butchy and Snicker's mum clever? It's all beautifully made and stitched. It blows my stoopid Woody outfit right out of the water.
So, how do I look?
Do you like the way my manly chest hair is spilling out over the top of my waistcoat?
I like wearing my hat at at jaunty angle, kind of cowboy meets Justin Timberlake!
I'm looking for cows but I don't see any.
I think I look pretty cool! Butchy and Snicker's mum also forwarded us a link she found for a doggy gun holster. That would finish my outfit off a treat!
Watch out other doggies, I'm so going to win every fancy dress competition I ever enter!
OK, enough of the posing, I'm headed off to the saloon bar for a big glass of whiskey...erm water!
The camera battery ran out, but mum will have to get a video of me walking in my outfit, as she says I really do look like I have a cowboy swagger going on. I guess I need to get used to walking in trousers!
Thank you so much for my outfit Linda, I love it!
Licks
Oscar x
Monday, July 16, 2007
Animal Magic
Hello! I hope you're all well. I am good. I had a fun weekend. My hooman step sisters were here this weekend. It's E's 6th birthday on Wednesday so we celebrated with her.
We went to a really cool place called Cotswold Wildlife Park. There were so many different animals there. I couldn't believe how many different animals there are in the world, and how many of them are in danger because of humans destroying their habitats.
It's a cool place because us dogs are allowed in most areas of the park apart from the bat belfry (eek, who wants to be near scawie bats anyway), the farmyard area where animals are roaming loose and the reptile house. Apart from that we can see all the animals, cool!
First we went to see the Humboldt penguins. They were really cool guys. They come from Peru and Chile and are a smaller breed of penguins, weighing around 4kg when grown.
We watched them being fed (mackerel, yummy). These 3 were obviously the greedy ones of the group as they were waiting at the door to the keeper's office where they could obviously smell the fish being prepared!
Next we went to see the meerkats. As it was quite a chilly day, a lot of them were hiding, but this little guy had come to have a sniff to see what was going on.
I asked if I could share a fish but there was no chance!
This is a great hornbill. Isn't that beak quite something? They use it to amplify their call, which can be heard for 800 metres!
Here is a pair of alligators! There was also a crocodile who was sitting under a waterfall as if he was having a shower, but sadly the photo didn't come out as it was just too dark. Mum and dad used to call me The CrocoDALE when I was teething, but these guys have some serious teeth going on!
Here's a big fat piggy. I bet he has some good pork ribs I could munch on. Oops, sorry mum!
Mum used to have guinea pigs when she was little, and likes these scruffy looking ones the best.
This one looks like he's a bit camera shy! 2 of them were playing chase and were racing around.
We went to see the lions and leopards. The lions were all high up in the branches snoozing, and we could only just see the leopard having an afternoon nap.
After all those and many more animals we sat down for a well deserved ice lolly. Well, for the hoomans, poor little me didn't get anything.
On the way back to the car we saw the Bactrian camels from SE China. Their humps are full of fat so they can survive out in the desert without having to eat and drink regularly.
The last thing we saw were these giant tortoises, these guys were huge, E & J could easily have sat on their backs and had a ride!
When we got home the excitement didn't end. Mum had made E some birthday buns. E & J can't eat dairy produce as they get poorly when they have lactose, so mum made these buns and the icing from special ingredients. She said they didn't rise as well as regular cakes, but I still think they look pretty good.
E was certainly impressed with them, look at that smile. Ansd everyone agreed they tasted good. Everyone except me that is as I didn't get to try these either. Harumph!
E was allowed to open a small presents from us, she took her main present home to open on her actual birthday.
Phew, so that was my busy weekend. I hope you enjoyed learning about all the animals. I certainly did, and hopefully I can go and visit them again soon.
We went to a really cool place called Cotswold Wildlife Park. There were so many different animals there. I couldn't believe how many different animals there are in the world, and how many of them are in danger because of humans destroying their habitats.
It's a cool place because us dogs are allowed in most areas of the park apart from the bat belfry (eek, who wants to be near scawie bats anyway), the farmyard area where animals are roaming loose and the reptile house. Apart from that we can see all the animals, cool!
First we went to see the Humboldt penguins. They were really cool guys. They come from Peru and Chile and are a smaller breed of penguins, weighing around 4kg when grown.
We watched them being fed (mackerel, yummy). These 3 were obviously the greedy ones of the group as they were waiting at the door to the keeper's office where they could obviously smell the fish being prepared!
After they had been fed they stand and digest the fish which they store in their gullet until it forms a mushy fish paste, yum!
We also saw lemurs. They come from Madagascar. The park has two types, ring tailed and black and white ruffed. These are the ring tailed as you hopefully worked out! They are omnivores, basically meaning they will eat anything!
Next we went to see the meerkats. As it was quite a chilly day, a lot of them were hiding, but this little guy had come to have a sniff to see what was going on.
Most of his mates were inside their house. This one was really camping it up for the camera! They look cute, but are very territorial and will fight to the death in the wild if a rival group of meerkats try to take over their territory.
We found more fish eaters! These are otters and they were having a great time splashing about and eating their fishy dinner.
Look at this cute little baby with his mum. He got his own fish when they were fed and there was no way any of the bigger otters were going to get it from him!
I asked if I could share a fish but there was no chance!
I can't remember what this animal is. Maybe one of you will recognise it. They look very chilled out sitting on their rock watching the world go by.
Next we went to look at the monkeys. They were so great at using their hands, feet and tails to swing across the cages, nets and trees.
E & J thought this bird only had one leg, so dad explained that they like to stand like that. Can you see the fluffy baby in the nest?
This is a great hornbill. Isn't that beak quite something? They use it to amplify their call, which can be heard for 800 metres!
Here's a beautiful male peacock. Sadly he didn't put his tail feathers up to show us the full glory of his plumage, but he still looked pretty spectacular! He was just roaming around the car park when we went back to the car to get our lunch!
Here is dad looking at the tortoises. They had very bumpy shells. They were munching on lots of lettuce and tomato.
Here's an iguana. He was so still he almost looked like a statue. I bet he can move fast if he wants to catch some prey, or if an animal is chasing him though!
I wasn't allowed in the reptile house, but the girls told me there were lots of ants, spiders, stick insects (wow, I would have liked to have seen those!) and snakes! It was hard to get photos as everything was behind glass.
Here is a pair of alligators! There was also a crocodile who was sitting under a waterfall as if he was having a shower, but sadly the photo didn't come out as it was just too dark. Mum and dad used to call me The CrocoDALE when I was teething, but these guys have some serious teeth going on!
These guys are siamangs. They are the largest gibbons. There was a teeny baby but he was dashing all over the place and we had no chance of a non-blurred photo of him!
And here's another monkey...oh whoops, that's E playing in the park. It looked like a huge agility course but I wasn't allowed to play on it, boo!
I could have stood on here while it span round but noooo, had to sit and watch.
These are zebus. They are the scared cow of India. Can you see the hump they have on their backs?
Here's a big fat piggy. I bet he has some good pork ribs I could munch on. Oops, sorry mum!
They had very bristly hair and were very stinky. Look at his cute curly tail!
And here's a little billy goat. Cute huh? Wouldn't want to get too close to those horns though. His beard is even more impressive than mine, that's why he's looking so smug I think!
There was another fat piggy. Can you see his big tusky tooth sticking out? he was dreaming and his mouth was twitching away. He must have been dreaming about eating.
I have seen these animals in the pet shop. They're guinea pigs. There were lots of them and they were all going "wee, wee, wee".
Mum used to have guinea pigs when she was little, and likes these scruffy looking ones the best.
There were also bunny rabbits like Simba has at home. These 3 definitely look like they're plotting something!
And there was a HUGE rabbit like Sunshade's Georgie. I asked him if he knew Georgie, but he looked at me like I was stupid!
Back outside there were some zebras. I liked their stripes a lot, though they did make my eyes go a bit funny when I stared at them lots. They originally come from East Africa.
This one looks like he's a bit camera shy! 2 of them were playing chase and were racing around.
Wow, just look at this guy. he's a southern white rhino and was just huge! They can weigh up to 3600kg! He had obviously found a great muddy puddle, lucky thing.
E & J posed with him. The beauties and the beast.
There were also ostriches. These guys are very tall. They can reach speeds of up to 43 miles per hour and their kick could kill a human, yikes.
We went to see the lions and leopards. The lions were all high up in the branches snoozing, and we could only just see the leopard having an afternoon nap.
After all those and many more animals we sat down for a well deserved ice lolly. Well, for the hoomans, poor little me didn't get anything.
On the way back to the car we saw the Bactrian camels from SE China. Their humps are full of fat so they can survive out in the desert without having to eat and drink regularly. 
The last thing we saw were these giant tortoises, these guys were huge, E & J could easily have sat on their backs and had a ride!
When we got home the excitement didn't end. Mum had made E some birthday buns. E & J can't eat dairy produce as they get poorly when they have lactose, so mum made these buns and the icing from special ingredients. She said they didn't rise as well as regular cakes, but I still think they look pretty good.
E was certainly impressed with them, look at that smile. Ansd everyone agreed they tasted good. Everyone except me that is as I didn't get to try these either. Harumph!
E was allowed to open a small presents from us, she took her main present home to open on her actual birthday.
Phew, so that was my busy weekend. I hope you enjoyed learning about all the animals. I certainly did, and hopefully I can go and visit them again soon.Licks
Oscar x
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