Anything For Animals

posted by admin on Aug 20

Back again with some more easy to achieve tips for getting ready for your horse shows.  And this collection are all about your horses appearance - and planning ahead for the show.

You may well already use some of these - or you could add yours to the comments below to help others.  Either way, here they are:

1) Create your own great quarter-marks with a snapped up set of teethed combs. Practice with both fine and wide toothed combs to find the best effect and then design your patterns in advance!

2) To hold your quarter-marks in place for longer - use a little hairspray - as long as it doesn’t spook your horse!

3) To make a white tail look really white - try washing it in a tiny amount of biological soap powder - but be careful not to get it on your horses skin!

4) When trying out new styles of plaiting, quarter-marks or your own clothes, make sure you take pictures from both close up and farther away (like the judges will see). This way you can find out in advance which looks better for the show.

5) Plan to space you plaits evenly by using a plastic comb or other small item as a measuring stick. Planning it’s length in advance will let you know how many plaits you will need for the complete look.

6) When plaiting up before the show - make sure you have threaded up all the needles you think you will use and stick them in the front of your jumper - rather than using the 1 needle and wasting a lot of time inbetween each plait!

7) Also, the types of plait you use can help improve the appearance of your horse. For example lots of smaller plaits can make a short neck look better proportioned, and larger raised plaits can make a thin or long neck a bit more chunky looking!

8.) To keep plaits in place during a show - why not use a setting lotion instead of water while plaiting.  This should stop wispy bits from coming loose during the day.

9) If cutting your horses tail for the show, get someone to put their arm under his tail to raise it slightly to the height he carries it when moving - otherwise you may cut it too short!

10) And if not cutting the tail then plait your horses tail tip when still wet and leave to dry. When ready, brush out the plait with your fingers with the result that the tail tip will look wavy and fuller in time for the ring!

Fantastic Stuff! Your horse should look beautiful by now!

posted by admin on Aug 15

RSPB - The Royal Society For The Protection Of Birds

Although the full name seems very old-fashioned and a little specific in nature - the new RSPB is about so much more these days!

Yes, it is still the UK’s biggest bird charity - but they have expanded their horizons.  They have found that just protecting the birds themselves doesn’t solve the problems facing them and neither does keeping them isolated.

Birds have to feed, breed and rear young - they aren’t just isolated beings - therefore their whole habitat and feeding areas need to be preserved.  As do all the other animals that make up that environment - including humans.

The Wider Landscape:
For example an estuarine landscape needs to be fed by a clean meandering river, enriched by an unpolluted sea, grazed by certain livestock and managed by sympathetic landowners.  There needs to be a whole host of insects and larva in the mud-flats to feed other insects and waders in the shallow waters, which in turn feed other birds and animals in the wider landscape.

And although certain habitats are threatened by encroachment of human habitation and quad bike users for example - keeping humans out of the picture doesn’t create ongoing support for their work.

By keeping these areas a ‘people-free’ zone, they are keeping away the very people who will be able to look after them in the future - the kids.  So the RSPB are encouraging schools and youth groups to become more involved in the work that they do and in getting hands-on with the wildlife on their reserves.

Even Further Afield:
And, the RSPB know that looking even further from their habitat is essential for supporting our visiting birdlife as many species migrate here from across the globe.

There is no point making everything perfect for species A here in Norfolk and species B in Lindesfarne if they live somewhere else for 9 months of the year!  What if species A has to contend with Maltese hunters to get to Africa and species B has to fly to the dirty tar sands of Canada to breed?

How do we know they will come back next year if we don’t start to protect them around the world?  What if there is nowhere for their young to fly to in the spring?

And it’s not just UK birds that they help around the globe: they have brought tropical rainforests in Indonesia and changed fishing practices around the Antarctic!

What Can You Do?
Well, you don’t even need to spend a penny to help the RSPB with their aims!  There is plenty for you to do that is totally free or of very little cost to you.

For example, you can sign up to their newsletter online so that they can keep you informed of any activities they are organising - like their current campaign of a ‘Letter to the Future’ aiming to save our landscape for future generations to enjoy.  All you need to do is sign it and send it off!

Visiting their reserves is also a great way to show support as their visitor numbers can reflect growing interest in the ‘great outdoors’ and can help them to decide which species interest the most people and start a campaign to help it.

Also, encouraging your children and their schools to become more involved with nature will start them off in the right direction for the future.  I mean there is no point in saving habitats today if nobody wants to care for them in the future!

If you want to become a member you can do so for just £3 a month, or only pay a few pounds for entry at the few sites you visit each year.  Most of their sites are free anyway, so at least donate a few pounds each time anyway. 

I mean - if people don’t support the places they love; then they can’t expect them to be there in the future can they?

posted by admin on Aug 10

Not many people think of cat breeds when they think of cats - to most people; Cats are just Cats!

So, what I have done is to put together a list of the 5 most popular cat breeds in the the UK today, and a little description of each one.  This way you can get an idea of what is out there.

1) The Persian:
This long-haired cat breed always wins hearts!  With it’s flowing coat that comes in a huge variety of colours and it’s gentle nature (if properly groomed!) can make almost everyone go ‘ahh!’.  They have a long history of being a show cat and love to be pampered and to just sit on a lap or cushion and be stroked!

2) The Siamese:
This breed is the noisy one of the bunch!  They love to be heard over everything else - and can be very persuasive pets!  Their very short coat makes for low maintenance in that department, but they are very active - and very long-lived so can keep you on you toes for over 16 years!  Modern breeding has made for a much more ‘pointy’ cat - but the older style is still very in demand.

3) The Maine Coon:
A highly desirable large cat - and ever so family friendly.  One of the oldest known cat breeds from the US - this breed is found all over the world even today.  It’s thick insulating coat is great for all weathers, and it’s relaxed attitude wins it many human friends!  Once thought to be a cross between domestic cats and raccoons (!), this large breed cannot be mistaken for a standard moggie!

4) The British ShortHair:
Recently overtaking the Persian in UK show registrations, this very soft and very colourful breed is really increasing in popularity.  With huge eyes and a thick cuddly appearance - they make the most adorable kittens!  The males are considerably larger than the females and develop the large ‘jowls’ on their faces as they mature.  The blue colouring was so widespread at one point that it gained it’s own name: the British Blue - still winning shows today! 

5) The Ragdoll:
This delightful breed of cat is one of the most relaxed.  Not wanting to chase birds and rodents al the time, or destroy furniture and curtains by climbing all over the place - these cats make great indoor pets.  They all have striking blue eyes - the brighter the better for showing - but all stem from one American breeder with a single male and 2 females!

There are plenty more cat breeds out there, but hopefully this gives you an idea of those breeds you are likely to see for sale near you.

posted by admin on Aug 5

This appeal works to help save wildlife habitats in the UK.

The Details:
The Landfill Communities Fund offer funding to restore habitats - but you have to raise the first 10%.

This way if you offer £10 to the WWT, they can ‘unlock’ a further £90 from this Landfill Communities Fund - therefore turning your £1 onto £10.

However the funding is lost completely if the initial 10% isn’t raised.

Therefore the WWT are currently asking for donations for their latest fund to save and restore valuable habitats in local areas across the country.

Previous Work:
Over the past 3 years, previous campaigns have helped to raise over £100,000 - pretty impressive on it’s own - but don’t forget: this gets multiplied by 10 - so they were able to get their hands on a further £900,000 as a result.

That’s £1 million to help restore wetlands and heathland all over the UK! 

So, what did they do with all that money?  Well they had several large projects including the Great Crane Project which was featured on Springwatch and various other wildlife news reports and events.

The other successful actions were restoring wetlands at Slimbridge, saline lagoons at Washington and adding a canoe safari to their events at Martin Mere.  Also at Arundel they have started some serious work to help the water vole population on the River Arun - and pictures coming in from visitors show the results of this project!

How To Contribute:
You can help in a number of ways for this specific appeal - but with an immediate donation having the desired effect!

Belts may be tight - but think of what you would like to donate at the top of your budget - and then divide it by 10.  Basically just £1 of your money will in effect be a £10 donation, so if you would love to offer £100 but are a bit cash-strapped - then just offer £10 and you have done your best!

Obviously if your pockets are not quite so empty, then be as generous as you can and work out your total donation by adding the noughts!  If you can spare £100 - that’s £1000 in the WWT bank and so on.

Alternatively visit their website to find other ways to support them in their valuable work.

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