Hand Back

We have now handed back the Grazing Officers job...all the animals survived and all the sites are looking good and so we are now freeeeeee again:))))  It has been a good experience but both hubby and I agreed that we wouldn't want it as a permanent job as the hours are just too long. Nearly every evening we worked late and every weekend we had to go out to see to something or other.  It wasn't too bad as we were doing it together but if one or the other of us were at home waiting for the other, it would have been very hard going.  It certainly isn't a job that is conducive to a social or family life.

The last few weeks have been quite challenging with several odd things to contend with and we have learnt a few things along the way, one of which is that Wild Parsnip has a nasty sting in its tail..... 

I was helping our trainee set up electric fencing to make two enclosures for his project, comparing the grazing habits of Herdwick and Beulah sheep.  The site was steeply sloped and I wasn't well at the time with severe dizziness if I moved suddenly, so I was very carefully making my way down the steep incline and was just passing a patch of Wild Parsnip, when I fell down a very deep rabbit hole.  As my leg disappeared, the world started spinning...it was a real Alice in Wonderland moment:)))  I was left floundering in the Wild Parsnips.  A day later I noticed by arms had several big blisters on them and on investigation it turns out that Parsnip makes one very hypersensitive to the sun.  I now have some lovely purple scars but can't help at being amazed that a simple plant can have such a powerful effect.

One part of the job that I have really enjoyed is the planning of what, when and how to do things.  There are so many jobs and not enough time so one had to prioritise things which wasn't always easy. 

On the morning of the day we had arranged for Reigate Animal Health to come to take blood samples from the goats, we also discovered a lamb which looked like it may have fly strike.  This is where flies have laid eggs on the sheep and the resulting maggots start feeding off their flesh.  It has the potential to kill a sheep surprisingly fast so it had high priority and we needed to get it sorted before going to the goats..... 

Unfortunately the lamb's mother kept leading it away every time we tried to catch it (really frustrating when you're in a hurry!!!) so it ended up with myself, hubby and the trainee having to round up all 76 ewes and lambs just to treat that one. It was well worth it though as the lamb did have fly-strike and, because it was treated early, not too much damage had been done so it should recover well. This was the third lamb to get fly strike so we have now sprayed all the lambs with a fly repellent..... 

The main problem came when we then tried to catch the goats later in the day as we were not left with very much time.  The goats very obligingly came over several times to the holding pen where we had rigged up some netting to stop them jumping out but they are clever animals and sensed something was up and so scarpered each time to the other end of the field and eventually we ran out of time.  Thankfully Reigate Animal Health were sympathetic and will come back another day...and as we have handed the job back, it has the bonus of no longer be our responsibility:)

The thing I will miss most is the Landrover.  I found it very comfortable (hubby didn't) and I liked being higher up and able to look over the hedges as we drove along and best of all was being able to take it off road to get to the various sites, taking everything we needed with us in the back.  I also felt quite proud to be driving around with the Projects details on the side.

So what now?  We have a lot of catching up of important work around the bungalow to do.  The main jobs being to sort out various leaks in the roof...lets hope we don't get much more rain!  I will also leave time for exploring the wildlife of 'my valley' something I have been missing a lot. It has started well with the wildlife actually coming to me (a bonus of the garden looking like a jungle).  Instead of getting up early to rush around making packed lunches etc., I can now get up early to just look out of the living room window for wild goings-on.  Around 5 am I have found the deer are coming to the end of the garden to feed of off the bindweed growing up the sheep netting...

And one of my friendly pheasants is also bringing her four babies to visit the garden which I am so pleased about as I thought I had missed them all this year.  She seemed so happy to see me at the window again and ran over, chicks in tow, remembering I will throw her a handful of grain:)  The Buzzards seem to be missing though so I will have to see if they have moved down the valley...I just hope they haven't been shot.



I am also formulating a plan for something else.  When my husband retired from the fire brigade we started a project to walk round the coast of Britain.  We have completed the South East corner but to carry on will need us to stay away from home which I am not keen to do too often as I need to be around for my mother as she has Alzheimer's, so I am now thinking of starting to walk the Thames Path as most of it can be done as day trips.  I think there should be a good deal of wildlife too and if we get tired we can take a boat:)  I might even make another blog site about our progress. 

Sunny Dry Days

What a good week.  The sun has been shining, the sky clear blue and the rain has stayed away. We have therefore been able to get all of the weather dependent jobs done with the sheep.  I think the sheep were happier too.  The teaser who had been showing signs of bloat, has deflated, the fly strike lamb's sore back is healing nicely and we have had no more lame sheep.  The good weather has also brought on the wildflowers and I was pleased to discover, when checking a boundary hedge, some Nettle-leaved Bellflowers...I never realised how hairy they were.

The warmth has also got the butterflies going.  Each year I intend to get to grips with identifying the different Blue butterflies that are so common in this area but I never seem to find the time.  This year is no exception and again I keep seeing different Blues but don't really know what they are.  This is one I saw at Saltbox SSSI the other day.  I think it is an Adonis Blue as there is a lot of Horseshoe vetch there and it was a very bright blue but if I am wrong please let me know:)

Last year I caused some controversy by mentioning that we were pulling Ragwort at Saltbox SSSI as some people thought it shouldn't be done because it is a valuable plant in its own right.  Besides it being listed as an injurious plant under the Weeds Act, the picture below shows another reason why one has to try to control it. This is the same area of Saltbox that we cleared the ragwort from last year but it is there in abundance again. No one would dispute that this attractive yellow plant is valuable to invertebrates but if it isn't controlled it quickly chokes out other valuable plants. Now, because there was not time to gain control of it before flowering and seeding, it will pose a threat to the whole site as well as the neighbouring grazing land and livestock:((

I have enjoyed this week so much more than the previous week where I felt quite stressed with the various ailments of the sheep. That was until the old grazing officer phoned and said, "You seem to be coping, so why are you worrying?"  It was a very good point.  I have never had any doubts that I could cope, one has to when looking after animals.  Also my husband pointed out I am not doing this alone as besides him there is also a very competent trainee, other staff members, plus a great bunch of volunteers who have all had years of experience with livestock.  When I actually stopped to think about it, I felt quite silly, but it shows how quickly things can get out of perspective when one gets tired. Thanks P for the phone call and pleased to hear you, your family and Jack are settling happily into life in Wiltshire

One of the jobs that needed to be done in dry weather was to spray the sheep with a fly repellent.  The first lot we did were the 30 breeding ewes. We also had to dose their 46 lambs with wormer so that meant that all 76 sheep needed to be collected in. We no longer have Jack the sheepdog so, expecting it to be difficult, we asked all our livestock volunteers to come along but ended up with rather too many people. Consequently the first attempt went a little awry and there was a farcical few minutes with people and sheep running everywhere but getting nowhere.  If it hadn't been so hot, I would have found very funny:)) We decided to let everyone, sheep and humans, cool down and calm down. After an early lunch we put out some more netting and had another attempt but with just myself, hubby and our trainee rounding the sheep up while the volunteers hid behind the landrover. Thankfully it was successful.  It was a good opportunity to check over the animals who were all fine and because we needed to weigh some of the lambs to work out the correct dosage for their wormer, we were very happy to see how much weight they had gained in just one month.  Even the younger Jacobs are looking good and robust.

The next group to be sprayed were the replacement ewes who are grazing a small scrubby enclosure up a steep bank.  There is, at the moment, no entrance that is accessible by the landrover so we hauled the hurdles up the bank by rope and handed them over the fence.  All went well and again I was pleased to see a sheep, who a few months previously had suffered a dog bite to her muzzle, was now looking much better and was regaining the weight she had lost.  Another interesting discovery at this site was that of a nude sunbather !!:))) Quite amusing but also a nuisance as we feel that the lone females should not stock-check this secluded little site so my husband and I will have to do their days until the sheep are moved on. You will be pleased to know I don't have a pic of Nudy Man..not a pretty sight!

The last group for spraying were the boys.  Firstly, the ones still at the farm following shearing, had to be transported to a field at Tatsfield, a site pleasantly situated on the side of the North Downs and this time I managed to refrain from telling hubby how to drive :) Four of the sheep were Herdwicks that needed to be reunited with the other Herdwicks who were grazing an adjacent field.  All went well and we were all feeling well pleased when the phone went.  It was Reigate Animal Health who have to do various inspections of animals in their area.  In this case they were wanted to arrange an appointment to inspect our goats where they will need to take blood samples from them all.  When one considers that it took us 10 hours the last time we caught them to trim their hooves and move them to their present site you can imagine we were not too happy.  We have referred it to 'the boss' but meanwhile hubby and I have been working out some tactics.  A few days before we had managed to catch one of the goats by hand to replace a lost ear tag and I know a couple will go into the holding pen for food so I think it will be a matter of using a combination of methods.

They might be difficult to catch but they are still well worth having as they have done an amazing job of controlling the regrowth of scrub at Saltbox SSSI in the areas that have been cleared.  This picture shows how it was last year before the goats.  The whole area was covered in regrowth and a vast number of Aaron's Rod...

Now, after four months of the goats grazing, it is looking a little less like a jungle with an emerging covering of wild Marjoram, Wild Basil, St John's Wort, Birds-foot-trefoil and more:)

Sunday Drama at Little Chump

I was just poised over the computer ready to do a post when the phone went.  Overnight a car had demolished a section of stock fencing at Little Chump, the field that holds the Downland Project's 76 ewes and lambs.  Our trainee, who was stock checking at the farm, kept the sheep in the field and luckily there was a group pulling ragwort in another part of the farm who were able to get over and help put the sheep in another field.  The car, a Mercedes, had apparently crashed at around 2.30 am!  It must have been a bad crash as it demolished a double line of fencing including several heavy straining posts but all that was left in the morning was debris and a number plate.  How the car had been removed we have no idea.  I am just pleased the sheep hadn't strayed through the large gap that was left.

We are half way through our time filling in for the absent grazing officer and assistant.  It has so far been made difficult by the weather but today the sun is shining and the forecast is for a dry week:))))

Last week we gave the boys (sheep that is) a health check, trimming their hooves, checking their teeth etc.  All were in very good condition except for our teaser (he does as his name suggests, teases the ewes with his good looks, personality and a few hormones to get them in the mood before the ram is put in)  Unfortunately he has been showing signs of bloat ever since we brought back to the farm for shearing. His stomach is very distended but strangely he is still eating, ruminating and going to the toilet as normal and didn't show any signs of discomfort when he was sheared.  The vet confirmed it looked like bloat from the photo but as there were no other symptoms just to monitor him. I am very worried about him as he has now been like it for over a week, however, today I think he looks just a little less fat, so fingers crossed he will soon be back to normal as he is rather an important chap.

We have had quite a few other problems especially with lameness but I think the wet weather has had a lot to do with it so hopefully, if things dry up, it will all improve.  We have also had a lamb with fly strike on its back, a ewe with an abscess on its neck and a lamb with what looked like Shelly hoof where the wall of its hooves were separating from the underlying tissue.  Unfortunately a stone had gone up one of the hooves and when removed it bled like mad.  These things all came to light on the same day after we had finished the boy's health checks so it was very late when we got home and I was filthy covered in sheep poo, puss, blood and maggots..for once I didn't feel like eating:)

I am finding it all quite stressful and spend half the nights awake worrying or looking things up on the computer.  Luckily my husband is his usual calm self and very tolerant of me especially when we are towing a trailer load of sheep where I become a very bossy back seat driver, even telling him (an ex-fireman who drove fire engines) when to change gear! I feel awful but can't seem to stop myself.  I am not usually like this and even when I was with the old grazing officer, who was driving quite fast down some narrow lanes because we were running out of daylight, I managed to keep my mouth closed, although, I did have my eyes closed too...perhaps I that is what I should try when my husband is driving:)

Suddenly I am finding that I am quite envious of the volunteers going off to do tasks like ragworting and when we cleared the barn of all the bedding from where the sheep had been housed prior to shearing (to keep them dry), it quite went to my head and I enjoyed every moment of it (I had had rather a lot of caffeine though, which might have helped:)

I always thought I had quite a wildlife friendly garden but since it has been so neglected this year it continues to surprise me with even more wildlife than usual.  Without the demarcation of the cut lawn several common lizards have found their way in to be discovered under discarded weed collecting bags left from last year, a Blackcap has been visiting the Hogweeds which have an abundance of mating cardinal beetles on them and some of my favourites... a Green Woodpecker has been a regular visitor, searching out bugs from the lawn..



A beautiful Comma butterfly has been visiting the Lavender..



And a good variety of dragonflies and damselflies have been visiting the ponds..

I really must make sure that I somehow retain this level of wildlife in the garden next year.

I Wish I was a Frog

Why are frogs so happy?
They eat whatever bugs them:))

After the freezing temperatures of the last few winters our garden frog population seemed greatly reduced despite having three deep ponds in which they could hibernate. I am therefore really pleased to see their funny little faces popping up from the ponds again especially as we have an explosion of Mosquitoes...

The garden continues to be neglected due to our lack of time but the self sown wild flowers are making the garden look quite pretty.  In particularly the Red Valerian and Purple Toad flax...

It is a great relief that the garden isn't looking too bad as time is so short.  We have now completed one month working for the Downland Project, filling in for the absence of a Grazing Officer, and have just done our first week without even the Grazing Assistant to advise us.  So far all is good, although the days are long and physically very demanding.  The longest day (so far) was the first of the shearing days when we started at 9am but didn't finish until 9.50pm!  Unfortunately the shearer's trailer had broken so she was 4 hours late arriving but at least we got the job done.:)

The sheep being sheared in this first batch were the non-breeding ewes, the Herdwicks and the breeding ewes, 58 sheep in total.  The ewes and lambs needed to be separated so we took the opportunity of dosing the lambs against a parasite called coccidiosis which a faecal egg count had shown they had in high numbers. They didn't mind having their medicine but they did object to being separated from their mums and persisted in making a terrible din...

The mums didn't seem to mind one bit that they were not with their progeny and happily awaited their turn at the hairdressers...

........and then, turning their backs on their offspring, enjoyed a tasty hay supper:)

The shearer was also able to tell us what to do about a horn that had grown uncomfortable close to one of the Herdwicks eyes....

"Get some loppers and chop it off," she said, so we duly passed the loppers to our trainee lad saying it would be 'good experience' for him!!:))) So under the shearers guidance the deed was done and I'm sure the Herdwick (who didn't seem to feel a thing) will be a lot more comfortable.

Now the sheared sheep need to be moved out from the farm and back to their conservation grazing sites.  Last week we took he non-breeding ewes to Hutchinsons Bank, a largish area of chalk grassland that has expanding areas of Kidney Vetch, the food plant for the Small Blue butterfly caterpillars.

The sheep were going into a small scrubby enclosure yet to be clear enough for Kidney Vetch to survive as it doesn't like competition from other plants. However the enclosure is adjacent to an area where scrapes have been dug into the bank for the Kidney Vetch and where it is growing prolifically.  We wondered if we would have trouble encouraging the sheep up the steep bank into the enclosure but we needn't have worried as with one shake of a bucket of nuts they trotted up with no hesitation (there is actually netting running along the right side to stop the going on to the scrapes on their way up)...

We have also just put the ponies on to another enclosure at Hutchinsons Bank that does include several scrapes with areas of Kidney Vetch in. In general the ponies don't eat many of the wild flowers but we are monitoring it carefully.  The ponies looked like children in a sweet shop when they first arrived as they had come from a field of predominantly rather boring grass.  Tavey immediately started pigging out on Hog weed and was eating like there was no tomorrow.... not good when he is already overweight.....

Needless to say by the next morning he had a tummy ache and didn't look too happy.......

Young Rufus, who is more sensible, was ok though and as we got to the field gate the next morning, he buried his head into the long grass and lifted it up with a bucket in his mouth that he had pulled out from under the water bowser.  Then, looking very pleased with himself, he proceeded to wave it up and down in greeting to us. Unfortunately I didn't have my camera but I'm sure you can imagine it.......

I have become very fond of the ponies, especially little Rufus.  He was so brave when he first arrived  at 18 months old, just a baby really. My husband and I were their first stock checkers and being  horsey people, we soon became involved in working with them so that they could be caught and handled without problems. Tavey was fairly confident when he first came but unfortunately someone must have frightened him when he was grazing a site in Chipstead as he is now very difficult to catch. It will take a lot of input to regain his confidence.  Rufus, although nervous to begin with, is now a lot better.  He always tries so hard to understand what is wanted of him and really wants to interact.  He's very intelligent and inquisitive and I love him to bits.  Unfortunately, because I am one of the few people that have consistently been around him since he first came, he is beginning to form a bond with me (and me with him).  That would be ok if he was my pony but he is not and I am not always happy at where or when the ponies are sent to graze, especially this latest move (for several reasons which I won't go into) and I am beginning to find it quite upsetting. So I have decided that when the assistant grazing officer returns I must try to back out of their care and return to just being a stock checker for them:(((

Garden Jungle & Naughty Pony

With our busy life that we have at present, the garden has turned into a jungle, but the wildlife is loving it.......

I have had so many families of baby birds in the garden this year that it resembles a big birdy nursery full of fluffy bundles with beaks open wide, while their rather battered and tired looking parents try to keep up with their demands...

Bees busily visit the self sown corn flowers and geraniums and a group of Foxgloves that we grew from seed but didn't have time to plant in the flowerbeds, so were dumped rather quickly into an area of the veg plot, have grown up to provide a busy buzzing pollen bar for masses of bumbles

The veg garden, including the polytunnel, has been taken over by many of the weeds/wildflower seeds that have migrated from the adjoining field and the whole area seems to be a mecca for Hover flies.  The only veg planted in the plot are some early onions which are on the verge of flowering. 

Slow worms are to be found in any warm patch, anywhere in the garden but especially under some old weed suppressant covering on the bank.

The whole of the back garden looks awful but I have to say I am rather enjoying it:))  We have never really gained control of the garden since the adjoining field became set aside land around 17 years ago. The field is now mostly covered with invasive weeds that can look quite pleasant when in full flower....

Increasingly though we are seeing more and more typical chalk grassland flowers springing up between the invasive plus quite a few Pyramid and Common Spotted Orchids. The next field along now seems to have more chalk flowers than the section of Saltbox SSSI that it adjoins. This section is privately owned and not managed as it should be, so has scrubbed over again (another letter to Natural England required!). The bordering edge, however, is covered in swaths of Horseshoe Vetch, the plant food of the Chalkhill Blue and Adonis Blue caterpillars.  Sadly with the cool wet and windy weather we've been having this year there have been fewer butterflies and moths around here but usually the two fields are filled with many varieties, especially the blues.

I have not had much time to walk in the fields behind us and I also haven't had the energy as we are doing long days of physically demanding work while filling in for the staff absences in the Downlands Project (see previous post).  We have also had a few extra tasks such as the 'Open Farm Sunday' that took place last weekend.  We were very fortunate to have a sunny day for the event and had what we estimate to be in the region of 300 visitors. Firstly I was involved with a demonstration of how we do our sheep health checks (trimming hooves, checking teeth, condition scoring them and sending them through a foot bath) then I was sent up to the lambs field to tell people about our sheep as visitors followed a trail around the fields. Back at the farm there were a variety of children's activities, including face painting, all themed around nature.  There was also the information trailer, displays, refreshments, our cows and some more sheep, one of whom was recovering from a dog attack.

 
The lambs field was unfortunately covered in a lot of tall grass so it was very hard to actually spot any lambs especially as they all tended to be on the far side of the field where the shorter grass was or sheltering in the shade of a tree covered dip.  However the Project Manager valiantly led groups of interested people over to visit the lambs throughout the day, taking them into the field and then gathering the sheep with the help of a bucket of nuts.  By the end of the day the sheep had begun to get rather bored with this and were not so willing to come over but the P.Man. persevered and even the last group of the day managed to see at least some of the lambs:))

It has been a busy week gathering in the sheep from their various grazing sites around Surrey ready for shearing this coming week and then giving them all a health check.  Unfortunately, one of the days involved an early 7am start as the grazing assistant needed to be at a meeting by 9am and in the hurry to get the job done I made my a very silly mistake...I won't go into details as it's embarrassing but suffice to say if the old grazing officer had still been there he would have exploded like Vesuvius!!  I certainly won't make the same mistake again.

The next day was not much better as we had the farrier visiting to trim the ponies hooves.  We were at a team meeting all morning and by the time we got to their field it was pouring with rain and the wind was blowing.  Rufus allowed us to catch him with no problem but, although we had been catching Tavey with no problem on previous days, he decided he was not going to allow anyone near him and not only that, he was determined to get Rufus to join him, so he kept storming past Rufus at the gallop, who by this time was having his hooves trimmed.  Rufus was soooo good and only tried to pull away a few times which was very good for such a young, relatively un-handled pony. The farrier eventually left saying if we ever managed to catch Tavey he would come back.  It took a long time to calm Tavey down enough for us to put his headcollar on and I am very grateful to all the hints we have picked up from reading Kelly Marks' books and going to Monty Robert's demonstrations as we needed to use quite a bit of horse psychology to win him over and to keep Rufus calm all this time.  We couldn't let Rufus go as he was the only thing keeping Tavey near us.  Eventually we were able to call the farrier back and the job was done by which time we were all very wet and not too happy.  So next time you see this beautiful little pony in the field you will know he is not as innocent as he looks!! Lets hope he behaves himself next Friday when we plan to move them to another site.

Whatever happened to May?  It flew past in such a flurry of activity that it's as if it didn't happen and things are destined to continue in the same way as my summer is now officially booked up right until the second week of September.  I am very fed up about this. Last year's summer was so busy I was determined that this year I would have time to enjoy my valley again, catch up on work around the property or, as several of my friends do, go off travelling. I feel like spitting the dummy but it would do no good as it is just a combination of unfortunate circumstances so best to just get on with it and look forward to next summer.  Hopefully we will have a good Autumn especially as we have several essential jobs we must do before the winter such as doing something about the cracked rendering that is letting water in to the bungalow when it rains and replacing the garage roof which has mostly disappeared!!  Anyway, enough moaning.  There have been a few good things happening...

In April we moved the Project's six goats to Saltbox SSSI.  It was a difficult move that took 10 hours, mainly due to two of the goats refusing to go in to the holding pen. As Saltbox is one my stock checking sites I have since been watching their behaviour and it would seem that these two goats are not particularly worried about people but more nervous of their fellow goats as they are at the bottom of the pecking order so, especially when their is food around, they stay well away from the others.  No wonder they wouldn't go into the confines of the holding pen when we were trying to catch them with buckets of goat nuts!

The goats are doing a fantastic job of eating the scrub regrowth and large areas are now covered in bare stalks..

We were  a bit concerned that they may also eat the Orchids so I have also been monitoring this carefully.  Thankfully they are only interested in the scrub and there is an abundance of Orchids making an appearance.  I counted over twenty Man Orchids in just one spot and every day now another Bee Orchid pops up...they really are so beautiful and a bit magical the way they appear in totally different places to last year..

This bit of Saltbox SSSI is such a special place and getting better all the time thanks to the care of the London Wildlife Trust and the Downlands Project. 

Can't resist a rather amusing goat joke my grandson told me....

Patient,   "Doctor, doctor I feel like a goat."

Doctor,   "How long have you felt like this?"

Patient,   "Since I was a kid."

Another recent, very enjoyable livestock move was when we took 24 sheep to the appropriately named Happy Valley.  The sheep needed to be herded across the site to an enclosure on the other side so the Grazing Officer sent me down to the bottom of the valley where there were two entrances so I could stop walkers entering with their dogs.  The field was covered with Cowslips, the valley echoed with bird song and rabbits hopped in and out of the hedgerow.  I was just thinking things couldn't get any better when I glanced over my shoulder to check on the sheep's progress only to find a fox peeping out of a hole so engrossed in also watching the sheep that for a few minutes he was totally unaware of me standing behind him.  Just one of those wonderful unforgettable wildlife moments:)))

Unfortunately because of our busy summer we have had to cancel our holiday so we decided to just go away for a couple of days for our wedding anniversary and my birthday.  We didn't want to waste too much time travelling so decided on the North Chilterns.  We spent our anniversary at the N.T. Ashridge Estate (amazing they don't charge for parking as everywhere around our way does!)  It has wonderful woodland with a good variety of trees and plenty of fallen trees left for wildlife which I always like to see..    

  

                             

These plants are growing on a very large, old, decaying, fallen tree...

                                                                                

As time went on the woods started to get a bit busy so we took a footpath down into the valley through chalk grassland fields of grazing sheep where there was large areas of Sainfoin..

                                                                 

Along the tree line there was a group of Fallow Deer and unusually many were black backed..

                                                       

It was a lovely day, finished off with a great meal with plenty of plonk, so a suitable way to celebrate 36 totally happy years of marriage.

For my birthday I decided that I would like to meet up with my son and his partner and visit Whipsnade Zoo.  I am not a great 'zoo' person but find the way Whipsnade keeps its animals to be acceptable and they do valuable research  and breeding programs.  The rain fell in sheets and the wind blew but it had its advantages as by the afternoon it seemed we were the only visitors left and so we had no trouble seeing the animals and didn't have to suffer loads of screaming children (although I was amazed at how knowledgeable some of the quieter children from the morning were).  I particularly enjoyed the lions that were separated from the public by a glass screen and conveniently they wer sitting just the other side so one could stand right next to them and look at them in detail...wow...they've got big mouths and feet!

One of the things we will be doing over the summer is filling in for the Project's Livestock Officer and Assistant.  The assistant is visiting her homeland of Hungary for six weeks and the Livestock Officer has left to take up a job as Senior Livestock Officer for Wiltshire Wildlife Trust.  It sound a great job being involved in the management of some very special places and also doing some interesting work like Badger Vaccination trials.  Having been a member of the West Kent Badger group for many,many years, I am horrified at the thought of mass culling of badgers to control TB in cattle but I can also see something urgently needs to be done to get on top of the problem.  Therefore I am really pleased when I hear that certain groups like the National Trust and various Wildlife Trusts are prepared to  work on badger vaccination as I just can't see that killing badgers will solve anything long term.  This is an albino badger that used to visit our garden prior to our neighbours getting Rottweilers..

I will miss the Grazing Officer as I enjoyed working with him. Besides making a big difference to a lot of chalk grassland sites in this area, he made the livestock volunteering tasks interesting by sharing his knowledge of grazing and conservation and when he was in a good mood (which was most of the time) he could be quite amusing.  He also put up with us volunteers which can't have been easy!!:))  Hope he and his family will be happy.