Sid’s barking woke me up. I woke finding myself hanging off of the edge of the bed. All three “upstairs dogs” had lined up to take up pretty much all of the bed space that er indoors TM” had left. Who’d have dogs?
I came down, chivvied Sid outside, made toast and watched a couple of episodes of “Superstore” as I scoffed it.
I then did my COVID-19 test and whilst it incubated I had a little look-see at the Internet. The pornmongers who had tried to peddle filth via Facebook yesterday and last week were both still active. You have to admire Facebook’s so-called “community standards”.
I also had a look at the Facebook page for Hastings Old Town. Hastings Old Town really is a step back in time – not just for the old buildings but for the completely outdated mindset that lives there. Several people were posting on that Facebook group making it crystal clear that anyone whose family hasn’t lived in Hastings Old Town for several generations isn’t welcome in the place, and they should move out. There is even a new hate-term in use in that part of the world “DFL”. Quite literally it means “down from London” but is being applied to anyone who is felt to be in any way an outsider.
Hastings Old Town was incredibly insular when I worked there forty years ago and it has got worse.
I also saw that a friend had posted to Facebook about a dog which was snatched from his owner whilst walking in Lydd. There have been several reports of this sort of thing recently. This is happening far too often. Clearly the police are unable or unwilling to do anything. I honestly think it would only take one dog-napper to be seriously broken by decent people to make everyone else sit up and take notice. Am I advocating that we all become vigilantes? Not really - I’m more interested in having a police force that is fit for purpose.
There was also talk of the word “bodacious”. I thought it was invented for the Bill & Ted movies. The word was in use over a hundred and fifty years earlier than that. One lives and learns.
I had a couple of emails. LinkedIn had excelled itself in suggesting I chum up with the boss. I thought about it… but LinkedIn is odd. Does anyone ever do anything with it other than sign up for an account and then wonder why they bothered?
I took Fudge to the vet. Yesterday I’d managed to get an emergency appointment for him, and it was as well that I had. Today he needed a day in dog hospital for fluid infusions to sort out the pancreatitis that he has developed. The nice vet showed me the results of yesterday’s blood tests and, knowing a thing or two about them, I could see that the results weren’t good. I left Fudge there, came home, and took Treacle and Pogo up to Kings Wood for a walk.
We had a good walk and (it has to be said) we certainly made better time without Fudge straggling like he does. It isn’t that he can’t keep up with us; he just won’t keep up. He’d far rather rummage about in bushes sniffing about than actually get on with the walk.
Once home I made a cuppa. The postman arrived with a couple of cards of sympathy following mum’s passing last week. People have been kind.
er indoors TM” decided that since Pogo is to be with us for the foreseeable future she’d look at getting him insured. She contacted the people who do Treacle’s insurance who quoted half the cost of what we are paying for Treacle. Brother and sister – born the same day… insured by the same company. Go figure(!)
And with talk of insurance being bandied about and with the vet bill for the week running at the thick end of five hundred quid I dug out Fudge’s insurance policy to see about claiming some of the money back. I had something of a shock. The policy says: “Conditions are only covered for a 12 month period and up to your vet fee limit. After 12 months or once you've reached the vet fee limit, whatever comes first, the condition is permanently excluded”. I phoned the insurance company who confirmed this. So… since his renal failure was diagnosed eighteen months ago and his back went over five years ago, I’m not covered for the main reasons why I’m insuring him? (spondylosis and renal failure). I’m currently spending £835.68 a year just in case anything else goes wrong, in addition to the ongoing spondylosis and renal failure costs. I suppose I’m lucky that he’s not had pancreatitis before? The vet assures me that this little episode is covered under the insurance. I hope so – in two days I’ve run up a bill of six hundred quid with probably another three hundred to come tomorrow.
Am I probably better off not having a policy and putting that amount of money aside each month…?
I spent the afternoon ironing, and once I’d taken Sid to the groomers I collected Fudge. The vet said he’d been good as gold, but he’s got to go back tomorrow for more fluids. In the meantime he has to wear the cone of shame as he has a cannula in his leg and he keeps trying to chew it.
Treacle’s reaction to Fudge was odd. She could clearly see he wasn’t right, and she spent quite some time alternately sniffing at Fudge and whining at us to tell us Fudge was ill. Fudge seems rather spaced out (probably the drugs) but has eaten and not been sick so I’m seeing that as (at least) six hundred quid well spent. Let’s hope tomorrow’s day in dog hospital sorts him out…
No comments:
Post a Comment