Back to Winter Today

Notice we are both preoccupied today with Spike's appointment at 16.00 this afternoon with the Orthopaedic vet.

We are both hoping that the vet’s diagnosis of Spike after he has spent 4 weeks since the last appointment in the metal box will be good.

Hope he does not need an operation or anything but supervision so that he does not go mad jumping and doing somersaults.

This recent problem of Spike’s stems from an injury he got in 2006, when he jumped for a ball did a somersault and landed with a loud thump on his back.

At first there seemed no problem as he picked himself up and carried on playing with enthusiasm and renewed vigour without any problems.

Then when Richie tried to cover him with his blanket the next day, he bit him, this is when Richie realised Spike must be in tremendous pain.

He took him to our vet’s who sent him to the same Orthopaedic vet who prescribed 6 weeks rest in a metal cage.

6 very worrying weeks for us all, especially for Spike who hated being contained in the metal box.

What he specially hated was when he got his 5 minutes freedom every day that Marleen would go in to the cage.

She would search his blanket, until she found all of Spike’s carefully hidden treasures, which she would then steal and take one by one to her bed.

Spike hated it and has hated the past 4 weeks as every day Marleen has spent all the time he was out trying to open the door to the cage.

Sadly for her without success and sadly for Spike it ruins his freedom so much so he demands to be let back into his box before time.

No spring weather today, unlike yesterday it does not look pleasant at all, it looks like it could either rain all afternoon or if it is cold enough it could snow.

I prefer neither, really liked the delightful spring sunshine yesterday, oh well no sun outside means we have to be sunnier inside.

Difficult to do on my own, but no problem with the help of a P.G Wodehouse audio book which transports me into the world of Bertie Worcester and his butler Jeeves.

It is an incredible world, where invariably Jeeves is always right and saves Bertie from making the wrong choices.

And when the audio book finishes there is the Friday film review with Mark Kermode and Simon Mayo this afternoon on BBC Radio 5 Live.
Then there is the The News Quiz chaired by Sandy Toksvig with Susan Calman, Jeremy Hardy, Andy Hamilton and Victoria Mather followed by The Archers.

Before that my darlings will be home from the appointment.

Spike needs an operation to secure his knee caps, first one on 19 March then 6 weeks in the crate to recuperate.

Then a couple months later the other knee and 6 weeks recuperation.

We could have gone for a wait and see if it gets worse but Richie wanted the option that is best for Spike.