Totgesagte leben länger

The title of today's Blip is very fitting and somehow the English version is not quite the same "There's life in the old dog yet". The German version plays more on the word "gesagte" meaning reputed or pronounced i.e. "Those reputed to be dead, live longer". It's also the title of a well known southern German comedy film.

Flash is making good steady progress and does not appear to be in any pain. He is able to get up by himself and wander around but we do still keep a close eye on him. He hasn't had any repeat fit, is still a bit wobbly but that's not surprising since he had at least 10 fits on Sunday/Monday. Important to have him walk around a bit and get the muscles working.

I am 100% convinced that the turmeric is doing its job and taking over from the strong painkiller he has been getting for a year or more. From personal experience, I can't believe he could survive coming off the drug instantly after such a period without massive side effects if he didn't get the turmeric.

Some will say it's hocus-pocus rubbish. I am usually a doubter on such things but just like it instantly gave him a new lease of life a few years ago, stopped my one knee's arthritic pains, so it seems to be at work again and even if we have a bit of a fight to get him to take the stuff, his innards accept it well.

When Angie is around, he spends all his time getting under her feet. Has in the past often been annoying (it's a common problem with Border Collies) but she is now thoroughly enjoying his OCPD. He will only relax if she is out of sight when he has personally witnessed that she has driven off the property in the car.

So when she left late afternoon to do some shopping and take Luna for a long walk, I put him in the back of the car and parked it on the field next to the vegetable patch that I am currently fighting with. And there he slept and occasionally checked the hens weren't totally out of control.

The girls really do make life difficult with any form of gardening, except greenhouse. I am now at the stage where I could sow seeds but I just don't know how to do it and protect them from the vicious claws. All I managed this evening was to dig a trench and put in some sprouting potatoes from a bag we had bought from a local market gardener some while ago. The girls did an excellent job in back-filling the trench and I have a week or two to think about how to protect the earth while heaping up the row.

I am quite happy for them to keep scratching around in the unplanted areas as we are now being subjected to a snowstorm of flying dandelion seedheads. Not only do the plants need some rain but we could do with it to wash away the yellow dandelion pollen that is covering everything outside.