Category Archives: Shadow on Tour

All about my trips

Shad does PAWs animal sanctuary

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Have you ever met a rabbit who thinks she’s a chicken?  John and I did at the weekend.  This rabbit spent her life with chickens and was not socialised by her previous owners.  So when PAWs Animal Sanctuary in Findon, West Sussex rescued her, she was unable to settle with other rabbits and soon became affectionately know as Mrs Grumpy!  This big bundle of fuzz is now well cared for and lives happily with 2 tortoises and a cat.  Her name is Fluffy and she has long soft downy ears and fur so thick and lush that the tortoises snuggle up to her at night for warmth and comfort.

PAWs has been rescuing, rehabilitating and rehoming animals for the past 30 years and is a small locally-based charity run by Stacey and Sheila in their back garden.  John and I met Stacey on our visit and she welcomed us in and showed us round, telling us about the animals she is currently caring for.  Some of them are permanent residents, like Fluffy who needs special care and patience, and some of them are looking for new homes.  Basil the black cat was rescued from the house where he lived when his owners moved out and left him behind.  Then there’s Harry the long-haired black and white cat with a black beard and half a moustache.  There was a number of cats with amusing facial markings and I must admit I felt a little jealous.  I reckon I’d look good with a white handlebar or a Fu Manchu!

Now, you know how curious cats are.  Abbey the old tabby cat you can see sitting on my camera bag was sniffing round my equipment the whole time we were there.   Her tongue hangs out because her jaw is misshapen due to wearing a metal brace in her mouth for 5 years following a road traffic accident.  The brace should have been worn for only 6 weeks but the owners never took her back to the vet to have it removed.  When this friendly little pussy-cat was rescued, she had dreadful ulcers and infections in her mouth, but PAWs fixed her up and she is now living a comfortable life.  I thought she was being a nosey parker but it turns out John had hidden some treats in one of the compartments in the camera bag, so me and Abbey hooked them out with our paws and enjoyed a snack together in the sunshine.

Abbey has lots of company at PAWs including a donkey, guinea-pigs, a peacock and a clutch of chickens.  The chickens spend their days clucking and pecking around the garden and are tucked up safely into bed at night.  If you pop over to PAWs on a Sunday afternoon, you can buy some of their scrumptious free-range eggs, drop a couple of quid in the collection tin and sit on the bench in the garden, watching the animals and talking to the volunteers who are busy grooming, feeding, medicating, exercising and bonding with the animals.

Like every animal charity, PAWs is always full and has a waiting list of animals to come in.  But PAWs provide a unique service to the animals of Sussex because they rescue 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  However they can only go out in the middle of the night on Christmas Eve to rescue an animal in distress if they have the resources to care for it.  They don’t have secured funding or a national infra-structure to support them so public donations and support from local businesses are essential.  All proceeds from donating go directly towards the upkeep of the animals and enable PAWs to meet the increasing costs associated with caring for animals.  They have also launched an appeal to raise money for a desperately needed bigger and better animal sanctuary so good luck to them for that project.  Thank you PAWs for the dedication and hard work and sacrifices you make every day to look after animals in need.

Shad gets jiggy with the Saga Louts

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This music-crazy bunch of over-forties form a band called the Saga Louts and consist of a lead singer (John’s brother) who also plays the harmonica, a lead guitarist, a bass guitarist and a drummer.  They played down the pub the other night and I decided to forego my mid-evening nap to tag along with John and see them perform.  It was all very rock ‘n roll as they played songs such as Route 66, Summer of ‘69 and Brown Sugar.

It was quite loud but very entertaining and I could see how much the band and the crowd were enjoying themselves.  At one point, John’s brother Colin was crooning with all his might, eyes tight shut, lost in his own world, swinging his groove thing and serenading the ladies!  I was hoping to catch John having a shake and a shimmy but he’s much too shrewd to get caught doing a ‘Hammer shuffle‘ or a moon-walk so unfortunately I have no embarrassing photos to show you.  But here are a few pictures of the Saga Louts doing what they do best.

Shad does the NCC

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The National Cat Centre (NCC) at Chelwood Gate (near Haywards Heath in East Sussex) was completed in 2004 and is the largest cat re-homing centre in the UK, finding homes for over 1,000 of my wayward feline cousins every year.  That’s a lot of cats!  It’s based in a lovely location in Ashdown Forest and includes over 200 pens, a veterinary block and a maternity unit.  They have conference facilities and are keen on teaching people all about how to take care of cats.  They welcome schools, colleges and community groups for educational talks and tours and gave 500 informative talks in 2012.

Reception
One of the three pen corridors
Main Entrance
Cafe and Shop
So far this year

I think it’s really important to educate young people about cats and our needs.  We are after all complex creatures and often get misunderstood.  We like companionship yet we need our space, we can be very affectionate yet we also get moody.  We’re clever enough to break into the biscuit box and work out how to open the door,  yet so daft we cross the road with no concept of the dangers and climb trees with no thought to the consequences.  We communicate in subtle ways, using our ears, tails, mouths and paws to tell humans how we feel and we behave inexplicably, chasing our tails, inspecting your toes or attacking the armchair.   We are notorious haters of water, yet we have an unhealthy fascination with the sink!

Anyway, I get quite excited when John takes me to the NCC.  It’s a veritable haven of cat-friendly paraphernalia.  I trotted in to reception and met Georgie, a 14 year old tabby girl who was having a snooze on her blanket.  She is up for adoption but is not kept in a pen because it’s nice to have a resident cat (even if it’s only temporary) and she is quite relaxed and well-behaved.  She let me play with her toys and climb the cat tree and I had fun hiding in the tunnels while John was looking for me.

Georgie

Then we went to see the cats in the pens and I made some new friends.  Like Suzie, the gracious 10 year old tortie and white who is a bit scruffy looking but absolutely adorable and a little sad at being overlooked due to her age.  Gizmo is the tabby in the castle and Pumpkin is the ginger on top of the castle.  All the pens contain grey castle-shaped beds which the cats can sleep on or hide in if they are feeling a little shy.  The diligent staff do everything they can to make the cats as comfortable as possible while they wait to find new homes and I was also lucky enough to meet one of the volunteers who visits the centre to spend time with the cats.  This quiet and unassuming man takes time out of his life to sit with the cats, stroking them, playing with them or simply just being there, talking to them and reassuring them.  I don’t know his name, he doesn’t get any awards for what he does, and when the cats leave they will soon forget him.  But those precious moments he spends with the cats enrich their lives and help them on their journey to happiness, and the impact of his kindness will last forever.

Max is the 15 year old black and white that you can see strolling up the passageway in the photo.  We chatted in the corridor for a while and he told me about Arrow, a black and white cat who had given staff the run around a few days earlier when he escaped from his pen and started frolicking around in the play area, much to the amusement of the other cats.  Oh and you should have seen Elvis, a sassy black cat who teased me something rotten, posing for the camera and then moving every time I took a picture, playing the clown.  All the fun of the visit made me thirsty so John fetched drinks for Elvis and I which we gulped down in seconds to see who could drink the fastest.  Elvis won so I threw my straw at him which he paraded around haughtily.  No one likes a smart-aleck Elvis!!

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Shad checks out the kite-surfers

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Jumpin’ jiminy was it windy out there this weekend!  John and I were driving along the seafront and spotted some large kites swaying and souring through the air.  Intrigued, we pulled up and saw a photo opportunity – wet-suited kite-surfers riding the waves.  It was exhilarating to say the least, setting up my camera on the promenade whilst the wind whipped through my fur and the salty sea-mist sprayed my whiskers.

It looked like a tough and risky business but I imagine the surfers must have been getting a real adrenaline kick as they harnessed the power of the wind with their kites and propelled themselves across the choppy water.  They spotted us taking photos and started showing off, maneuvering their bodies with strength and balance.  They performed tricks, gliding across the surface of the sea and jumping and flying through the air, grabbing their boards and landing skilfully.  I was amazed that they didn’t get their kites caught up in each others’ and I was impressed with their persistence, no matter how many times they came off their boards, they just climbed right back on and kept going.  That’s the spirit!

Much as I enjoyed shooting the surfers, we packed up after an hour because my paws were getting damp and I had a heck of a hankering for fish.  We gave the surfers a wave goodbye and jumped into the car to dry off.  Luckily, John keeps my favourite travelling blanket on the back seat, so I curled up and had one of my cat-naps, dreaming of crowds of people applauding as I back-flipped my way across the water, the first hot-footing free-styling feline to ride a surfboard!

Shad does Paris

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John and I decided to take a short holiday last summer, so we packed an overnight bag and my pet passport and hopped on a plane to visit the bustling and booming capital city of France, otherwise known as the City of Love.  John booked a room in a small hotel in the Montmartre region which is home to a popular Parisian landmark called the Basilica of the Sacred Heart (known locally as Le Sacré-Cœur).  I want you to read that in a French accent please!  It’s located at the summit of the ‘butte’ Montmartre (that’s pronounced ‘boot’ not ‘butt’!) which is the highest point of the city and affords a panoramic view south of the Basilica.  There were 300 steps up to the front of the church which was jam-packed with tourists, dodgy street sellers who kept looking over their shoulders, and amusing street entertainers such as mime artists and a human statue.

Further along the street full of cafés and bars is the birthplace of the modern can-can dance, Le Moulin Rouge, where John took me to see a burlesque extravaganza that evening.  The tickets were very expensive but luckily I was not charged an entrance fee because I reminded them of Le Chat Noir.  Hôtel Le Chat Noir (The Black Cat Hotel) is close-by and was named after a friendly stray black cat found during the renovation of the site.  This fluffy scruffy feline soon became a symbol for the wild and risqué cabaret nightlife that is notorious in the district.  The entertainment was spectacular and the performers were all talented and gorgeous.  John had this dreamy look on his face all the way through. I think he was mesmerised by the flouncing feathers and twirling tassels worn by the leggy ladies.

On our second day, we took a boat trip down the River Seine, stopping at Notre Dame Cathedral on the way.  The Cathedral was built 8 centuries ago and is considered one of the finest examples of French Gothic architecture in the world.

The boat had seats down the middle and walkways along the outside (excuse the lack of nautical terminology, I wouldn’t know my bow from my stern).  We sat comfortably with our lunch and admired the architectural treasures this romantic city had to offer.  The boat departed from the Eiffel Tower and toured the Ȋle de la Cité, an island at the epicenter of Paris.  The on-board guide provided an informative commentary on the history and culture of the surrounding structures, such as the magnificent and ornately decorated bridges that link Ȋle de la Cité to the rest of Paris.

The iron lattice tower named after the engineer Gustave Eiffel, whose company designed and built it, was erected in 1889.  Despite the unbelievably long queues, we couldn’t go to Paris without visiting what is probably one of the most recognisable structures in the world.  The tower has three levels for visitors and when we reached the third, we spent ages gazing out across each of the four sides of the floor, captivated by the outstanding 360° views of the landscape on this clear warm day.  Unfortunately, when we started our descent, I got a severe case of jelly-legs and John had to carry me tucked into his jacket.  I know that doesn’t sound like the normally courageous and adventurous cat that I am, but those stairs were metal and I could see all the way down to the ground through the holes in each step.  We managed the 1,600 steps (well John did anyway!) and I was glad to be back on solid ground.

Before we left for Paris, I had been practising my French so that I could tackle the snooty French waiters!  Little did I know that it would also come in handy for flirting with sultry French felines, and even lead me to enjoy another encounter of a personal nature, which I am far too discreet and gentlemanly to divulge.  Suffice it to say, ooh la la!  I found Paris to be noisy, busy, expensive and uncompromising, but it was also exciting, mysterious, diverse and full of character.  Its a great place to visit and I thoroughly enjoyed the trip.

Shad does Arundel Castle and Gardens

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I wonder what life was like for a black cat like me in the 12th Century Norman Period in a place like Arundel Castle.  I would hopefully have been part of the Royal Court, being hand-fed haddock or loitering outside the kitchen, hoping for some scraps of pheasant from the roasting spit, while watching battled-scarred young men put on their armour and prepare to leave for the perilous Crusades.  Outside the Castle, life was hard on the streets for both humans and cats, and medieval people were superstitious about cats and persecuted them.  In fact, cats have taken a bad rap throughout history, particularly in Europe, where they were associated with witchcraft.  Yet around the same time in Egypt, cats were kept to control rat populations and protect food stores, and gradually became members of Egyptian households and were even worshipped.  It wasn’t long before the cat craze spread to India, China and other Asian countries and now I like to think they we are highly regarded pets.

Arundel Castle overlooks the River Arun in West Sussex and has a 1,000 year history spanning from the reign of King Henry I (1068-1135) to being passed to the seat of the Dukes of Norfolk and their ancestors for over 850 years.  It has been at the forefront of English history and displays a unique and priceless collection of fine furniture, tapestries and clocks dating from the 16th Century.  John and I, and a couple of other friends, wandered around the corridors and rooms, mouths open in awe at the shiny polished silverware, the grandeur of the paintings and the skilled craftsmanship evident throughout the castle.

We also took a stroll through the peaceful grounds and the meticulously kept gardens.  The gardens are divided into formal courts and have a central canal pond with water fountain, an ideal place to dip my paws and freshen up.  The gardens are imaginatively planted and managed in an eco-friendly way and there were various gateways to walk through and pavilions with seats based in oak where we could rest.  I enjoyed chasing the insects in the peach house and vinery, hiding in the herbaceous borders and taking a nap under the palm trees.  Altogether, the gardens were lovely and had a rustic charm.

Shad does Colchester

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Colchester Zoo is the largest privately run zoo in the UK and celebrates its 50th anniversary this year.  It relies on its internal income (retail, catering and admissions) and donations to monitor and preserve the health of the animals in its care and to support conversation projects all over the world.  The dedicated staff at Colchester Zoo organise training programmes to help the animals adjust to their surroundings and coordinate enclosure enrichment to improve the welfare of the animals in their care.

So John, his daughter and I decided to visit Colchester Zoo to see the animals and talk to the keepers about their work.  John’s daughter was particularly excited about the white rhino baby that was born earlier this year called Pembe.  We watched her playing in the paddock with her mum (Emily), charging and hopping and looking at her mum for approval.  Who would have thought that something so leathery could look so cute!  White rhinos are endangered due to excessive hunting for their horns which are used to make dagger handles and trinkets, and unfortunately poaching has increased in recent years.  However, Colchester Zoo’s charity supports rhino conservation in South Africa, raising funds for education and the equipment needed to protect both white and black rhinos in the hope that this trend can be reversed.

I really liked the slow and steady giant tortoises, surprisingly graceful despite having to carry their homes around on their backs.  Giant tortoises are among the world’s longest living creatures, with an average lifespan of 100 years or more, and can grow to weigh as much as 300kg (that’s 660 lbs in old money).  Historically, they have sadly been caught and killed in such large quantities that they were virtually extinct by 1900, so giant tortoises are now under strict conservation laws.  What magnificent beasts they were.

There was a cheeky pair of red pandas in an open-air enclosure in the Wilds of Asia section, but every time I got my camera out, they kept hiding behind their bamboo.  I suppose I can let them off this time though, seeing as they’ve been busy raising two red panda cubs (the first red panda birth for Colchester Zoo in 14 years).  Apparently the keepers hadn’t witnessed any mating, so the first time they were aware of the new arrivals was when the cubs were seen through the hatch of the nest.  Altogether now – ahhhh!!

The Komodo Dragon is classified as vulnerable and their number has declined in the wild due to the threat of habitat loss, a loss of prey species and hunting.  The Dragons in the enclosure were quite small and young apparently, and the keepers said that a male Dragon can reach 3 metres long when fully grown.  They like to catch a few rays and can often be seen basking in 40 degrees of heat during the day in their specially designed enclosure, which comes complete with pool and rain water showers.  I was thinking of spending a couple of weeks here in the summer, but I don’t suppose the Dragons would go for that!

Komodo

One of my favourite animals was the Sun Bear.  They seemed so mellow and gentle, and they were black like me (although they had a golden crescent marking on their chests which in Eastern folklore represents the sun).  The Sun Bear (also known as the honey bear after its love of honey) is the smallest of the eight bear species.  The Sun Bears at Colchester Zoo have been given the chance of a new life too.  One female was found as a baby in a village in central Cambodia weighing around 300 grams and suffering from pneumonia.  Jo Jo was rescued from a bar in north-eastern Cambodia when he was 6 months old where he was kept to amuse visitors.  I’d like to acknowledge the efforts of Free the Bears, a charity who work tirelessly to help bears in these conditions.
Another highlight was feeding the elephants in the Kingdom of the Wild exhibit.  These gentle giants had wisdom and sorrow in their eyes, almost as though the memories of their past persecution in their native lands linger on, along with the hope that their role in the zoo will raise awareness of their plight and lead one day to a peace between humans and the kingdom of the wild.  They patiently watched us, grasping the food from our hands with their powerful hairy trunks and letting us stroke them on their rough grey noses.  I spent the whole of the car journey home licking my paws to get rid of the elephant dribble, but it was totally worth it!

Shad meets the Equihunter again!

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Equihunter – Luxury Horse Box Manufacturers

Here are some rather stylish images (though I say so myself!) John and I captured when we took another jaunt to the Felbridge Showground.  This horsebox is for sale and is 3½ tonne as opposed to the 7½ tonne vehicle I told you about a few months ago.  John’s friend took the horsebox in to the jumping ring and we were lucky enough to find a nice rider willing to pose for us in one of the photos.  Horse and rider appeared so dignified that I couldn’t resist a closer look, so I hopped up on to a fence where I was level with the horse’s face.

Soon all dignity had gone out the window as we were nuzzling and shnozzling unashamedly.  I’m not normally given to swooning, but I am a cat after all, and when I find something I like, I have to rub myself against it!!  He had a lovely big nose with soft lips and short thick whiskers, and every time he huffed and whinnied, hot air blew out of his large round nostrils.  I like horses, they’re loyal and work hard, and I’ve seen some horses happily let a cat have a snooze on their back too.

3.5 Ton

It was raining on the day so I spent most of the time lounging around inside the horsebox, enjoying a nap on the cream leather seats of the cabin, checking out my reflection in the mirror and watching John contort himself into all sorts of weird and wonderful positions to get some good shots.  He had wet knees and frizzy hair by the time we left.  On the way home, he made a remark about my apparent lack of exertion during the day, but I explained that I was conducting research in the vehicle, serious corporate quality assurance work, all part of the business.  He rolled his eyeballs and smiled while I shut my eyes for a late afternoon siesta.  It’s a cats life!

Two ringed cooker
Compact Sink and Cooker

Equihunter – Luxury Horse Box Manufacturers

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Shad does Huxley’s again

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John and I took a picnic to the Birds of Prey Centre in Horsham this week.  We spent the morning wandering around taking photos, talking to the keepers, admiring the birds, having a laugh with the kookaburra and gazing at the flowers in the garden.  We got chatting to Julian, the owner, who works incredibly hard and gives every ounce of his energy to caring for the birds at the Centre.  He told us about some of the captive-bred birds of prey he has rescued, like the owl who was tethered in someone’s garden all its life, enduring all weathers and horrible children throwing stones at him, or the hawk who spent the first seven years of its life in a barn and never flew.  Sad stories indeed, but happy endings for these proud creatures now cared for at Huxley’s.

Huxley’s Birds of Prey Centre and Gardens

Despite the thick dark rain clouds overhead, the weather stayed dry, so we ate on the benches overlooking the well-kept lawn.  I had tuna and John had an egg and bacon sarnie which looked rather scrumptious.  I was feeling a little impish so I employed one of my ‘stretch and swipe’ techniques, managing to acquire a large piece of bacon, a blob of egg and a crust from John’s sandwich.  Good haul!  I had to nuzzle around him for several minutes afterwards to get back in his good books, but he was suitably impressed when I bravely fended off a wasp before having my early afternoon nap.

Flying Area

Flying Area

I was awoken at 2.30pm by Huxley the European Eagle Owl hooting at his dad (that’s Julian) as he got ready for the flying displays.  We were treated to a whole two hours of flying (pretty darn good for a fiver) and volunteers from the audience helped Julian and his team to fly the birds.  I wanted to have a go but the gauntlet (leather glove used in falconry) was too big for my paw and there were concerns for my safety.  Something about small mammals and talons!  Although John might argue that there’s nothing small about my gluteus maximus!

Huxley

Huxley

I opted for staying on my seat whilst we watched Cola the energetic falcon (lanneret) chasing the pigeons from the trees and Neo (another lanneret) fly to a swung lure (leather pad) which represents their airborne prey.  Khan (the Harris hawk) played hunting games with a ‘dummy bunny’ (dragged lure for a bird that would normally catch ground game) and the a rather enthusiastic kestrel called Turbo came out and squawked his little head off trying to impress his dad.  Mature majestic Marsha (a buzzard found in the Kent marshes) who flew graciously from person to person, not bad for an old girl of 30.  Most birds of prey typically live 10 to 15 years in their native environments but can live up to 5 times longer in captivity, thanks to good healthcare, plentiful food and no stress associated with surviving in the wild.

I always leave Huxley’s with a great sense of awe at the dedication shown by Julian and his team.  It’s not easy to run smaller zoos like this one with a limited budget and all the registers, insurances, inspections, licenses and other bureaucratic ‘hoops’ they have to jump through.  Calm down Shad!  Julian has a great sense of humour and was quite cheeky to me during the displays, teasing me because I asked him if birds have teeth!  But I can easily forgive such mischief because he loves cats, and has 3 of his own (all rescue of course).