Just two weeks after his baby (Schnee) died, Trea also died – peacefully, in his sleep. Nel found him when he was still warm and came sobbing in to me, holding him in her hand. We’d only been saying a day or two before this that we thought he may not have long left as [...]

On Saturday 9th January 2010, little Schnee died peacefully in her bed. She was the baby hamster and really, had been amazingly lucky/tenacious to have had the life she did and that’s the way we’re trying to look at it. She was the only surviving pup of Nel and Trae’s four, and she had one [...]

Last Thursday, I went and collected Tinker’s ashes from the vet – and had a little cry of course. Holding those in a box, was such a contrast to holding his warm, soft, purring, affectionate little furry body in a cuddle. That said, the pet crematorium had presented the ashes beautifully, in a little circular [...]

As we are in the midst of yet another crisis I will have to just give a quick outline of what’s been happening here: • Our last crisis is much more settled and we feel more in control of the situation, thank goodness. • I’m busy in my clinic just now with both old and [...]

Last week (Tuesday night actually, but I didn’t know until Wednesday) Laura’s Syrian hamster Rikki died quietly in his sleep. We’d half expected him to go soon as he had become sleepy and much thinner but it’s still sad. We all loved him – he was totally mad, but so bright and cute. Billy particularly [...]

Poor Laura has had a muddle of a room since we first moved in to this house 5 years ago, and she’s had to put up with the grotty, DISGUSTING, blown vinyl wall paper on the walls for good measure. I had a very casual conversation with her a couple of months ago and established [...]

• Felt very ropey again, all day, but think that the usual winter mix of herbs I take to boost my immune system is keeping something larger at bay, so I can live with it. I definitely have a bit of a temperature, which I enjoy when it makes me actually feel warm, but mostly [...]

Well, as you will have gathered by my silence, and my last post, it’s been a stupidly busy week. I spent the entire time doing my best and feeling guilty that I wasn’t elsewhere. The inevitable result of having to cover at the hospital whilst Lee was off sick, was that I was behind there, [...]

Schnee is a boy – so we need to buy yet another cage! I can’t believe some inspired manufacturer hasn’t designed a block of flats for hamsters! But if such a thing exists, it’s well hidden. I expect we’ll get something like this, though as Billy claims Rikki is a “space cadet”, perhaps we should [...]

I’m sure you’re dying to know about Nel and her baby. Laura is not entirely sure yet, what gender the baby is, but she’s named it “Schnee” (pronounced “Shnay” being the German for snow.) However, she’s discovered that it has three paws and a stump – which only served to make her more determined to [...]