Hoarding...not just on TV

lostinrates

Byatt wrote: »

Wow, I never knew that, does it just apply to greyhounds, whippets? I should have realised because they are used for racing but never connected the dots.

Jo-Jo, we (my DD and I) just agreed to an op on our elderly dog. It was a tough decision on my part in case we lost her under anaesthetic, plus was it fair to put her through it. Well she had the op tuesday and is like a pup now! She's on numerous medications too but hopefully we will be able to reduce them now. My DD paid for the op I couldn't afford it, having paid the same amount 2 years ago, and the vet then (different practice) "forgot" to remove the lump and then said I should have reminded her. :eek:

Sight hounds look like greyhounds....but might have different sizes or coats...

Deerhounds wolfhounds, borzois, salukis,afghans, The grey hounds ( there are a few types, not all recognised) Sloughi, and there is a new breed called the Silken windhound..it's like a mini saluki, for people who want smaller longhaired ones! Less common ones exist too...pharaoh hound the etna hound, quite a few others? I thought about wind hounds, maybe breeding a new litter or two, but feel strong affinity with enough of the traditional sight hounds to not feel the need to go 'new' yet.

babyshoes

Jojo - did the vet suggest Royal Canin Convalescence Support? I have used it and swear by it for animals that aren't eating. It's designed for cats and dogs but works for all carnivores.

It is a nice smelling powder that you mix into a 'milkshake' or paste, suitable for either syringe feeding or mixed thickly for hand feeding if they will lick off your finger. Most animals seem to love it - all the ferrets I've had love it, and when I've given a spare sachet to cat owners to help with medicine giving and feeding I've had good reports too. It might make your life a bit easier to feed that for some feeds rather than liquidised meat!

I tend to keep a sachet in at all times, occasionally giving a teaspoon mixed with water as a treat so they are used to it when it is needed, either to feed an unwell pet or as a food substitute. It can be bought online, usually a pack of 10 for around £20ish plus p&p, or singly from your vet. Some charge a sensible ammount, while others inflate the price hugely. My usual vet costs less than buying it in bulk online. I popped into the vet next door to work once when I ran out though, and they charged over £3.60 each!

There are other equivalents too, but I haven't tried them. Oxbow carnivore care is similar though more expensive, but have heard mixed reviews - seems some pets love it while others won't touch it...
Hope your kitty pulls through and starts feeling better soon.

Italian Greyhounds are indeed elegant creatures. Saw one for the first time when we went to lunch with the in-laws a while ago, and the MIL was enchanted! She is an artist, and asked me to take some photos of him so she could do a drawing.

GreyQueen

Hi Jo Jo, great to see you posting again, your style cracks me up. Your cat is a very lucky girl to be so pampered while you dine on the basics. Wishing her good health.

blossomhill on the subject of tackling what seems insurmountable, an idea which I've used is a sort of triage thingy.

Sooo, a first go round on a room/ pile/ cupboard would be to remove the most obvious trashy stuff like the old newspapers, broken coat-hangers, holey and stretched-out garments.

Second pass would be the slightly-less bad stuff. And so on. The idea being to give you room to move and a sense of progress. When you can't find the blinking floor or are in danger of being junk-slided by a pile of carp, you don't want to be nitpicking thru your junk-jewellery collection of the past 30 years.

I also try to work it so that I use good energy (I have ME and my energy isn't good often) for big tasks and the halfwit time for piddly little things.

I find you can paw through a shoebox of misc quite easily whilst nattering to a pal on the phone, f'rinstance.

You can also apply the Lost or Stolen Test, a concept I got from a minimalism blogger.

As if, if this item were lost or stolen, would I spend money to replace it?

If the honest answer is NO! or errr, probably not, it doesn't mean that much to you and you probably have it because you have it, IYSWIM.

OK, enough drivel. Am tired and not cooking on a full set of pans tonight and have a washing machine to unload.

Laters, GQ xx

PS, very pleased to hear about Bess's recovery, Byatt.

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

babyshoes wrote: »

Jojo - did the vet suggest Royal Canin Convalescence Support? I have used it and swear by it for animals that aren't eating. It's designed for cats and dogs but works for all carnivores.

It is a nice smelling powder that you mix into a 'milkshake' or paste, suitable for either syringe feeding or mixed thickly for hand feeding if they will lick off your finger. Most animals seem to love it - all the ferrets I've had love it, and when I've given a spare sachet to cat owners to help with medicine giving and feeding I've had good reports too. It might make your life a bit easier to feed that for some feeds rather than liquidised meat!

I tend to keep a sachet in at all times, occasionally giving a teaspoon mixed with water as a treat so they are used to it when it is needed, either to feed an unwell pet or as a food substitute. It can be bought online, usually a pack of 10 for around £20ish plus p&p, or singly from your vet. Some charge a sensible ammount, while others inflate the price hugely. My usual vet costs less than buying it in bulk online. I popped into the vet next door to work once when I ran out though, and they charged over £3.60 each!

There are other equivalents too, but I haven't tried them. Oxbow carnivore care is similar though more expensive, but have heard mixed reviews - seems some pets love it while others won't touch it...
Hope your kitty pulls through and starts feeling better soon.

Italian Greyhounds are indeed elegant creatures. Saw one for the first time when we went to lunch with the in-laws a while ago, and the MIL was enchanted! She is an artist, and asked me to take some photos of him so she could do a drawing.

No, she didn't. Maybe she was feeling guilty about the list of things she had already put on a list for me to look up. And I had inadvertantly mentioned that Madam forced herself to eat my rump steak planned for my dinner a couple of days ago. And deigns to consume homemade chicken stock (which goes into syringes rather well with crushed bits of liver medication, by the way - quite good for flushing the giant penicillin tablet down, as well )

I shall look it up. Considering the entire food shopping I did today was stuff for her and not me, I might ask the vet first.

She seems to have done a little more since the medication onslaught commenced. She's sitting in her basket with her head up - and I heard a growl, hiss and found a rather stunned young cat with a scratch on his nose for being a pest laying on his back behind the sofa where she'd bopped him one. Told her she was a Good Girl - but hopefully she won't remember this or she'll be insufferable

yellowdots

alec_eiffel wrote: »

I agree with the others, don't let your perfectionism get in the way of posting, we don't post here for the thanks count or to get responses from people, we do it because we know that someone somewhere will understand where we're coming from.

And I agree with you that the time you feel at your worst is exactly the time you should post :j

Ahhh thank you I've not posted much on threads here over the years simply because I couldn't keep up with some of them. I might be able to join in this one once in a while now and I will definitely be reading it.

I've already read loads and I must say its helped a lot. I didn't have myself down as a full blown hoarder but I know I do have my problem areas and I do hang onto stuff because there's nothing wrong with it or it would be wasteful etc etc.

I also have a problem getting rid of possessions I first had after leaving home at 17, not furniture, but things like my first camera, lol! I don't even use it anymore and haven't for years

Oh and I never would have described myself as a perfectionist but a couple of friends have commented that I must be eeek. It might explain why I haven't put blinds up in the hallway yet, blinds which I bought almost 2 years ago, simply because the hallway isn't beautifully decorated in order for them to go up. Sigh at myself

Thanks everyone for making such a brilliant thread and I am getting a lot of inspiration from it and beginning to see that stuff is just that ... stuff.
:beer:

Byatt

Hiya, Yellowdots, I never used to think of myself as a perfectionist, but like you others have said I am, and I have of course come to realise I am. Nice to meet you.

I'm posting a pic of my stove, I've lived here 2 years and virtually ignored it, never used it, but since this thread I have made some changes to my living arrangements and because of tidying/decluttering/cleaning I could not only move in the room but felt able to get a sweep to clean the chimney, which was done today! It is now lit, and lovely.

So Jo-Jo, your thread has had a huge impact on my life for the better.

yellowdots

While I think about it and before I log off.

Whitewing, thank you for the suggestion pages and pages back about the birthday cards I am having trouble with getting rid of. I really am not a scrap booking type of person and I really would like to be free of them.

I try and rationalise with myself, self conversation is something like this.

"What are the reasons for wanting to keep them? Well some of them are really pretty. If they were that pretty you would have framed them or had them on display."

"ok some of them are from people I'm no longer in touch with and I wont remember their names if I get rid of them. Well, it would mean looking through years worth of birthday cards to remind yourself, which doesn't make sense."

And on its goes! lol

As I say I have my problem areas. I'm quite good with getting rid of clothes and keeping the living areas of the house fairly tidy.

Problem areas, eeek can't believe I am writing them down, hope it will help. Under the stairs cupboard, lean-to conservatory, one corner of the living room, garage of doom, and a box which has been in the kitchen for what seems like a year - which I am slowly sorting through - and which has been there so long we are used to manouvering around it! lol!

It would be great if someone can tell me I really don't need to keep a Thomas the Tank Engine mug which was my eldest sons first 'proper' ceramic mug with an easter egg. Its very faded, too faded to give to charity shop and eldest son is not in the slightest sentimental so he wont want it.

Sorry for the long post

yellowdots

Hiya Byatt *wave*

Wow your stove looks wonderful! You must feel realy pleased and proud. The whole area looks really clutter-free

Have to rush off now sorry.

katep23

Hi Yellowdots, nice to meet you :wave:

Byatt, wow, that looks lovely and cosy. Hope you enjoy

Moneysaverme

Hello Byatt,

I just want to thank you for the photo you posted. How lovely, it's brilliant that you have discovered your wood burner. I really hope you enjoy it, there is something very comforting about a real fire.

I have recently started to read this thread and can identify with some elements. It's been really helpful to me. I'm a perfectionist and since moving into an old Victorian house three years ago, I lived in unpacked chaos because I wanted to wait until I had the money to do renovation works properly before doing anything.

There was plenty I could have done to make it more pleasant, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. It was sort of all or nothing if you know what I mean. Even though it made me unhappy, stressed and too embarrassed to invite anyone round, I still let it continue.

Things are turning around, the renovations are ongoing and the house is transforming. However I still find myself holding onto stuff for all the reasons identified on this thread.

So thanks to all for this thread and Byatt, enjoy that lovely fire!

X