Free weightwatchers

Hello all, Bracket here and I've time for another chat. There's a free computer so here goes. Going to be quick today as I got told off for 'playing' on Lisa's computer last week... little does she know ! With the winter nights now drawing in our owners find it so much more difficult to find time to walk us, their four legged friends. Dogs and cats (and our guardians) prefer to settle down in front of the fire than get out and about on cold winter evenings. The problem is we then eat the same gorgeous bowls of food, along with treats and left-overs, and we start to gain the odd pound. This excess weight can lead to joint problems, diabetes and heart disease (and I hate taking tablets at the best of times, so do not intend on self inflicting that punishment). I climb on the practice scales each week to keep an eye on my waistline, and you can too. Pop your owners into any of the surgeries and check your weight - it's free to do. The lovely qualified and registered veterinary nurses run free weightwatcher sessions - they are great fun to attend. Give the practice Head Nurse, Sarah, a call and have a chat - boy, can she chat! Well I can hear Lisa coming up the stairs so I had better 'blog off'. Speak, I mean bark, soon.

Look after the garden birds

Max here writing this whilst I lie by our warm fire. With the colder days coming it's worth sparing a thought for our featheed friends. Common species such as blackbirds, blue tits, robins and sparrows really struggle with the cold nights. These birds can lose up to 10% of their bodyweight just keeping warm. This means they need to be well fed during the day to replenish their daily reserves.
There's lots we can do to help. In our garden my mum leaves out fresh water (and later in the winter changes it twice a day as it regularly freezes). She stocks the bird table with high calorie, high fat seed mix. Extra household scraps are always welcomed by our feathered visitors, like cooked potato, cake crumbs, soft fruit and grated cheese. We also have hanging feeders - that I cannot quite reach! In them we have sunflower rich mixes and unsalted peanuts. Just the look of them makes me so hungry!! Remember to keep them out of me and my friend's reach so the birds feel safe, and are able to feel undisturbed. Don't put them near fences or hedges as them crafty cats can easily catch the feeding birds. A perch for our feathered friends is ideal.
I found loads of great ideas for my mum on www.rspb.org.uk