A day in the life of Petal....(when Tom is away):

I was up at 4.50 to let Esinter in at 5 and our guest left around 6, leaving 2 still in bed. Around 8, Bonwell came to see me to say that someone who had been cutting branches of the pine had fallen and broken his back and leg... he went to investigate. I got ready to take him to hospital.Turned out that yes he was injured but his back was not broken. I took Hodor (large and trusrworthy pick-up) and put a blanket in the back as he needed to be lying down. Got him into the truck and off to hospital. He is now there with his brother and money to get taxi back. I don't think that he was badly injured all things considered: maybe broke ribs and broken/bruised coccyx - that is incredibly painful though. Luckily for me, no bones poking out.... Got back around 10, organised taxi for my guests to go to town but failed to tell them where anything was so I had to do that remotely whilst i was out with hounds. Got back and was told that there was a school group from Mr Carr's outside (Nsanama School).Turns out that it was the Wildlife group and they want to start a nursery and plant some trees :)

And then I had lunch... who knows what delights await me this afternoon :)) 

Poo Watch: an update

Beware: this post contains pictures of poo!

I find droppings really interesting so I guess if this is not your thing, you might want to skip this post :)

A few months ago I posted some pictures of poo and I was told that the giant poos belonged to a civet. Sadly, I am not prone to believing experts, preferring to side with my view of things until proven otherwise. I really wanted the giant poos to belong to fruit loving leopard (unlikely I know) or to a giant jackal (also unlikely).

My beliefs were irrefutable shattered when I came across a mound of evidence: civets like to use communal toilet facilities called latrines or middens - I was told that they were also called civeteries but this apparently was a made-up word - a word that we have thought many of our guests over time... so the civets are tidy little creatures and it seems also that they may have gender specific latrines.

I found one latrine with giant poos and one with more dainty droppings and both within 100m of each other: is that not fascinating?