Cosset & Walker Now Provide a Hen Sitting Service!!
April 27, 2010
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As many of you are aware I was thrown in at the deep end somewhat last year when I rescued 5 ex-battery hens in conjunction with the British Hen Welfare Trust (see their website www.bhwt.org.com) but have absolutely loved every minute of learning how to care for ‘the girls’ properly.
It is now a joy each morning to see the healthy, perky, inquisitive young ladies they have become gathered around the back door looking for company – so very different from the poor sorry little creatures I collected from Haslingden what seems like eons ago now. They are truly a huge part of the family now and Flo my (usually quite bossy) Border Collie would do anything for them!
Hen owners will know though that it is one of the first jobs of the morning to let the hens out from the hen house (and collect the delicious eggs!) and that late evening means a timely check to see that the girls have taken themselves off to bed so that they can be secured for the night against Mr Fox.
Cosset & Walker are pleased to annouce that they are now providing a Hen Sitting Service in the Sale and Ashton on Mersey M33 areas.
So if you are already experiencing the delights of having your own hens or are maybe looking into the possibility of rescuing some ex-battery hens yourself (do rescue if you can – you will soon discover that watching all their hilarious little antics is better than watching television!!) and you need somebody to look after your hens when you go on holiday – or even if you are going to be unexpectedly late home from work some evenings and just need someone to pop round to make sure they are safe please do give Cosset & Walker Petsitters a call on 0161-973-4901 or mobile 07961 34 34 78 or email me direct at
//L>K
I am proud to say that Cosset & Walker has already undertaken a repeat booking for their very first ‘hen sitting’ clients (Rose & Bluebell who were absolutely delightful) and we are looking forward now to many many more. Just when we thought our job couldn’t get any better….!!
Maggie the Cat Sitter (and now Hen Sitter!), Sale and Ashton on Mersey, M33 6PE.
Book Lover Needed for PDSA in Sale M33
June 30, 2009
Help dogs and cats in Sale and Ashton-on-Mersey by volunteering to help out for a few hours each week in the PDSA Charity Shop on School Lane, Sale. The PDSA help pet owners who can’t afford to pay for veterinary care and is looking for a book lover who can help with pricing and who can chat to customers about the books on offer. You can visit the website www.pdsa.org.uk/volunteering for more details or you can contact shop manager Jane Austen (no joke!) on 0161-976-3814
Maggie The Dog Walker
National Poop Scoop Week 22-28 June
June 16, 2009
National Poop Scoop Week is coming up! I know I have what may be bordering on an obsession with getting dog owners and dog walkers to pick up after their dogs but it would be great if everyone could make a huge effort next week to support this Dogs Trust initiative. My petsitting and dog walking business in Sale is continuing to issue free ‘Scoopy Doo Doggy Doo’ bags to new clients and the Council will now also be providing dog owners and dog walkers with a limited number of free bags for the duration of National Poop Scoop Week which can be collected from Sale Waterside, Trafford Town Hall in Stretford or from the Mersey Valley wardens at Sale Water Park. The Council are doing a great job of helping to improve awareness of this problem but have said that they can only put so many resources into tackling the issue and that they need the support of the local people, especially dog walkers, to combat the anti-social behaviour that gives all our dogs a bad name! Please support them and the local community by doing your bit. Maggie The Dog Walker
I would never get a dog because…
June 9, 2009
I have some funny conversations when I am out dog walking in Sale but I think this must be one of the strangest.
We went along a lovely dog walking route yesterday near Sale Water Park, myself and a couple of other dog owners and dog walkers. We were just about to take the dogs through the woods to dry them off a bit (don’t ask!) when we came across another walker who did not have a dog with her but who greeted our dogs with great enthusiasm. She began to tell us how much she loved dogs and how much she would love to own one and even said that she thought being able to run a petsitting service or dog walking service would be the ideal job. She said she could never get a dog though because “On the News, bodies and things are always found in woods and quiet backwaters by dog walkers who have been out walking their dogs in the early morning”.
Well, it’s hard to know what to say to that…
Maggie The Dog Walker
The Dog WALKER…?
May 30, 2009
I love living in Sale. I love all the lovely places there are to take the dogs walking and I love all the local people I meet when I am out and about.
I am lucky that the dog walking community is so particularly nice in the Sale and Ashton on Mersey area because I spend so much of my time in and around it. I always find dog walkers and dog owners so friendly and love that they will always stop for the dogs to play and for the owners to have a quick natter. Some of them can be quite cheeky sometimes though – when I was being introduced earlier today to a dog owner who had been enquiring about my dog walking services, I began to chat about what I do, and where, and how etc at which point a lovely gentleman we meet almost every day popped his head round and said “Dog WALKER..? Dog TALKER more like!!”. Cheeky monkey…
Maggie The Dog Walker
Mmm..trifle flavoured dog biscuits
May 25, 2009
We’ve just had a lovely long walk around Sale Water Park and met lots of lovely dogs and dog walkers out enjoying the unusually fabulous bank holiday sunshine. One Dog Walker we met on the way back, along the Ashton on Mersey part of the River Mersey, stopped to chat as our dogs chased around together like lunatics. As his dog looked back at him, Mr Dog Walker put his hand in his pocket and his dog immediately came bounding back, skidding to a desperate halt at his feet, and sat down with unwavering eyes on the emerging treat. My dog, who will usually never take food from anybody, rushed over with an equal amount of uncoordinated urgency before sliding into a similar position next to her new friend. We then watched with amusement as the two sat intently side by side, not a blade of grass between them, each vying to try and edge nearer whilst desperately still trying to keep bottoms sitting on the ground for fear of penalty. I told Mr Dog Walker I was surprised by my dog’s reaction and asked what these treats were that had given rise to such rapt attention. When it sounded like he said “They’re trifle favour” I presumed I had misheard and queried whether he had said “tripe flavour?” but he said, “No, trifle flavour. Sherry, I think. The dogs love them. And each one is injected with tiny amounts of hundreds and thousands..”. Well, my eyes were like saucers – and it was only when he began laughing that I realised just how gullible I am. They were chicken.
P.S has anyone got the number for Dragon’s Den though…?
Maggie The Dog Walker
Two Old Ladies…
May 23, 2009
I have been walking my border collie ‘Flo’ in Ashton Park for almost 4 years now and so we meet many of the same dogs, dog walkers and dog owners each time we go out which is nice.
One such person is a lovely ‘elderly’ gentleman we meet occasionally if we are out at a certain time of day. We happened to bump into him this week for the first time in a while and he came over to us saying he was glad he had seen us because he was going on holiday for a week over the Summer and wanted to know if I could look after his gorgeous Labrador for him while he is away. He is a genuinely lovely man and was ever so complimentary about my pet service and so I was feeling really rather pleased – right up to “Now I remember that you have the two old ladies’ names, but remind me, which one are you again, Maggie or Flo?”. I was chuckling all the way home. Old ladies’ names indeed!
Maggie The Dog Walker
“Look Mum, It’s the Dog Lady..”
May 22, 2009
“Look Mum, It’s The Dog Lady….”
I love kids and what they say. I sometimes wish we were all still like them. I love introducing them to the delights of having a pet as well.
There is a lovely little boy who lives near to me in Sale and he often sees me out dog walking and gets all excited. If I have a friendly dog with me I will take it over so that he can pet it (or do his “bit of fussing” as he calls it) but if I am walking a more powerful dog or one that is not as friendly, I will just wave and shout hello and he will generally just wave back.
Yesterday though for the first time as I walked past with the dogs I heard him shout “Mummy, mummy, there’s The Dog Lady!!”. I was quite pleased with that, thinking what a lovely childlike way to describe what I do. Until I went home and him indoors said “Hmmm. Don’t you think that sounds a bit like ‘The Bag Lady’?”. Well, it does NOW!!! Grrrrr…
By Maggie The Dog Walker
“Leave ‘abandoned’ Baby Birds Alone!!”..RSPB
May 21, 2009
“Leave ‘abandoned’ Baby Birds Alone!!”…RSPB
As dog walkers and animal lovers we spend a great deal of our time outdoors and are therefore likely, at some point, to come across an injured or ‘abandoned’ wild animal, yet few of us know what we should do for the best.
In fact the RSPCA say that in spring and early summer RSPCA wildlife hospitals and animal centres become inundated with fox cubs and other wild animals brought in by well-meaning people who believe they have been abandoned or orphaned – but RSPCA advice is that, unless injured or sick, very young wild animals will ALWAYS be better off being cared for by their natural parents.
The RSPB also say to please leave ‘abandoned’ baby birds alone!! They say the young birds we see hopping around in the spring and summer are usually ‘fledglings’ who have left the nest and are waiting in the undergrowth for their parents to return to feed them. These young garden birds usually leave the nest about two weeks after hatching, just before they can fly, but are otherwise mobile and can walk, run and hop on to low branches to escape most dangers and so the advice is to leave such birds well alone only moving them, or encouraging them to move a short distance to safety if they are in immediate danger.
Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre, ‘Wildlives’ confirm the advice given by the RSPCA and RSPB saying that best practice is to check to see if the animal is in any immediate danger and if not, to leave it for an hour or so before returning to check on it. Usually they say, the mother will be nearby or searching out food and will come back to it as soon as you go away. By the time you return therefore they will have moved away together.
There are however a number of occasions where intervention should be made :
a.. If an animal is clearly suffering a broken limb or obvious other injuries
a.. If a water birds or other animal has become tangled up in something such as discarded fishing tackle, wire, netting etc. In such circumstances you should never attempt to remove the entanglement yourself for fear of making the problem worse
a.. If an animal has completely collapsed and does not react to your approach
a.. If an animal has been attacked by a cat and therefore requires antibiotics (a cat’s teeth and claws contain poison and even a small scratch to another animal can lead to that animal dying from blood poisoning)
a.. If a hedgehog is out in the daytime (as strictly nocturnal animals, any hedgehog out in the daytime requires professional assistance).
a.. If an underweight hedgehog is spotted after October (as hedgehogs going into hibernation for the Winter should weigh at least 600g or they may never wake up again after hibernation).
a.. If a Rabbit is spotted sitting in the open, barely moving, with red, swollen eyes (Myxamatosis). Unfortunately there is no cure for this disease but you can relieve the rabbit’s suffering by allowing it to be put to sleep.
a.. If a bird is injured (rather than ‘abandoned’). For injured birds, the RSPB say that you should place them gently in a box and keep them quiet, dark and cool. It may be that the bird is in shock and will soon recover so you can let it go. Even if it is more seriously injured, the box will reduce stress on the bird until you can get advice on how you can help it. The RSPB does not have bird hospitals or a rescue service because they are a conservation charity and you should therefore telephone your local vet or contact the RSPCA 24-hour Cruelty and Advice line below to get more advice.
b.. If a very small ‘abandoned’ baby bird is identified as a ‘Nestling’ rather than a ‘Fledgling’. Fledglings are identified by being almost fully feathered whilst ‘Nestlings’ are recognisable by having only a limited number of feathers and are very baby birds. Nestlings are totally dependent on the security of the nest and will therefore need help if found outside of a nest. If a nestling is found you should contain it in a well ventilated cardboard box and then take the bird directly to a local vet or contact the RSPCA. You should never try to return a nestling bird to the nest.
If you think a wild animal or bird might need help, just phone one of the below and ask!!
The RSPCA 24-hour Cruelty and Advice line 0300 1234 999
RSPB Wildlife Enquiries Team 01767 693690.
‘Wildlives’ Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre 01206 251174
By Maggie The Dog Walker, Sale M33
