Rat is an empty nester 5 February, 2010

Wee? Me? Snowflake gets into social media

Tragedy befell Snowflake this week, as Jane and a tearful Kira took her babies back to the pet shop from which she came. Kira was surprised, and perhaps a little mollified, to find herself presented with 20 Euros for the eight babies we handed over.

One ratling remains behind with mum. As yet unnamed, she is black, with little pink paws and a white tip to her tail. She is already happily shoulder-tame, and Kira is making renewed efforts to bring the albino mum to the same domesticated state.

Having successfully encouraged the rat to perch on her shoulder, she demanded an audience with Granddad Bernard using the Skype video facility. All was well until Granddad asked for the rat to be brought nearer the laptop’s built-in camera so he could pretend to scratch its ears.

Snowflake, unsure of the proper protocols for effective use of social media, left her own comment by grabbing the top of the laptop and urinating over the screen and the keyboard.

Meet the hammies 29 December, 2009

Hard to handle: Taffy turned to the dark side as soon as he and Storm moved away from the rest of the family.

Anisa’s new Christmas buddies, Taffy and Storm. They lasted a day together before having to be separated, due to Taffy’s apparent desire to remove Storm’s appendix without anaesthetic.

Running for cover: the victim, Storm, is small, cute and pink-eyed. She now lives on her own and is trying to make a new life for herself.

Reflecting on flamingoes 27 October, 2009

Flight path

Shortly before leaving Kenya to begin our move to Cyprus, we spent a weekend in a cabin at the Pinklakeman’s resort in Lake Elementaita, a couple of hours drive north of Nairobi.

The lake is famous for its flamingoes, who enjoy eating the spirulina algae which thrive on the sulphurous hot spring water that feeds one end of the lake.

We wallowed in the hot pool that is formed by these springs, though it took care to avoid the debris left by local maasai women who wash clothes there. The mineral-rich water has an oily feel which, we hope, is good for the skin – though it makes it harder to get dry afterward.

Kira in the pink