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SuomiWell, we thought it might stand for 'nO snOw. We were wrong:
.... one day you're planting fruit trees and then wake up next morning to .....
.... very confusing for a dog, particularly if you're black and white.
But really, this month, one 'O' is for Oska. Readers of this Blog may have noticed that occasionally Oska is in a photo or two. This might be due to his size or it may be due to his insatiable curiosity. Some of you may know that for a while we have been worried about Oska's back legs - for although he can run like a racehorse, and can rise up from prone with considerable speed and has a turning circle that a London taxi would envy, he has a weakness in the back legs that is pronounced, particularly when walking. We have taken him to a specialist veterinary clinic here and he's had X-rays, MRI scans and many examinations - but it remains a puzzle. Occasionally he is in pain, but we have managed this by reducing his weight and trying to ensure gentle rather than rumbustious exercise. The condition is not getting markedly worse at the moment - but, we would like to know what it is, whether it can be fixed and what might be the longer-term prognosis. Oska is such a bright, charismatic and sweet-natured dog and he is still comparatively young - and we felt we had to take things further. So, a few months ago we asked our French vet to make a specific referral to Professor Noel Fitzpatrick's (the Supervet) clinic in Surrey. Rather to our surprise this was accepted and Oska is due to see the Professor himself on March 30th. We leave for the UK in a couple of days and hope that when we are all back at Le Bruel we will have some answers and, we hope, something definitive can be done. Wish us luck! There'll be an update on the Blog in a couple of weeks.
But really, this month, one 'O' is for Oska. Readers of this Blog may have noticed that occasionally Oska is in a photo or two. This might be due to his size or it may be due to his insatiable curiosity. Some of you may know that for a while we have been worried about Oska's back legs - for although he can run like a racehorse, and can rise up from prone with considerable speed and has a turning circle that a London taxi would envy, he has a weakness in the back legs that is pronounced, particularly when walking. We have taken him to a specialist veterinary clinic here and he's had X-rays, MRI scans and many examinations - but it remains a puzzle. Occasionally he is in pain, but we have managed this by reducing his weight and trying to ensure gentle rather than rumbustious exercise. The condition is not getting markedly worse at the moment - but, we would like to know what it is, whether it can be fixed and what might be the longer-term prognosis. Oska is such a bright, charismatic and sweet-natured dog and he is still comparatively young - and we felt we had to take things further. So, a few months ago we asked our French vet to make a specific referral to Professor Noel Fitzpatrick's (the Supervet) clinic in Surrey. Rather to our surprise this was accepted and Oska is due to see the Professor himself on March 30th. We leave for the UK in a couple of days and hope that when we are all back at Le Bruel we will have some answers and, we hope, something definitive can be done. Wish us luck! There'll be an update on the Blog in a couple of weeks.
And the other 'O' this month are is 'Orson the Olive Tree'! The olive tree arrived here three years ago, to celebrate the birth of our grandson, Orson:
That's a picture of Orson, of course - not the olive tree. But here's some photos of the olive tree arriving:
That was April 2014 and over the past three years Orson the Olive has been growing very well (as, indeed, has Orson), and this year it has been evident he's outgrowing his pot - so, time to plant him out. A bit of a daunting prospect, as we reckon he now weighs around 250 kilos. We wanted to keep him in about the same position, as he's in the line of vision of the sitting room's french doors and sits well in alignment with the walls of the outside buildings. So, he only needed shifting a couple of metres. We wanted to dig him in about two-thirds of the root depth and then have a raised earth area and an oak surround, with a rockery planted out with grasses - here's what happened:
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