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Post by Lucy on Jan 26, 2012 20:06:36 GMT
Hello All, I thought I better say hello properly. I started dog walking back in June with my boyfriend Al, shortly after that we bumped into Susie at the home and got involved with Friends of Cardiff Dogs home that was in it's infancy then. I've been helping out occassionally taking some photos of the dogs and at the dog show. Bit about me, I work as an ecologist in Cardiff, so doing lots of surveys for protected species like badgers, bats newts etc. My work takes me away from home a lot during the week in the summer so we aren't able to have a dog plus my house isn't really big enough but one day I'll have the space! Meanwhile we've got a cat who thinks he's a dog, Jonas, who we got from the RSPCA 2years ago who is the best cat ever but very very talkative! I am also a rescue bat carer for Cardiff so if someone finds a bat in Cardiff that needs attention they will phone the Bat Conservation Trust and then they get given my number. I've got 4 bats in at the moment who have been caught out by winter weather over the last couple of months. It's a busy life but I'm enjoying it Lucy This is Jonas Some work photos Bat Rescue Photos
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Post by stephandalfie on Jan 26, 2012 20:51:09 GMT
Good Evening Lucy,
I was reading through your post, got to the bat bit and though ohhhh defo need photos ,, you beat me to it.
they are so so tiny, absolutely incredible.
had a scary experience in chester zoo bat area as a kid,, so would be nice to try and lose my little discomfort about them. Least you have a use for off fruit hey!
tell me,, I'm not a cat person really but talkative..... huh!?!
Where was that photo taken on the tree? is that really cardiff?
Thanks for the education,, and sorry in advance for all the questions.
Steph
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Post by angelad on Jan 26, 2012 21:44:28 GMT
Wow Lucy, those photos are amazing. Knew you were an ecologist but wasn't quite sure what that actually involved - are those Great Crested Newts, not sure? Bat photos are fantastic and Jonas is regally handsome ;D
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Post by Lucy on Jan 26, 2012 22:20:42 GMT
Hi, Yeh, the bats are really tiny, I should have put a label for what they were the small ones in those pictures are common pipistrelle bats which are on of the most common bat in this country, also the smallest, but this is an adult, people often think they find a baby bat but it's an adult, they just look bigger with their wings out. The other pic is of a Brown longeared bat which are also pretty common, doesn't take a rocket scientist to see why they are called longeared. They are great little creatures and a lot of the reason I do the bat rescue stuff is more about getting people misconceptions corrected about bats and hopefully encouraging peoples interest in them. Steph you are more than welcome to come and have a look at one in the hand if you want to tackle the phobia, they are pretty awesome little things. All the bats in this country feed on insects so no spare fruit for them but the fruit flies that would be attracted to the fruit would be handy! That was a great crested newt in my hand in the photo, a male in breeding season, they have an amazing silver flash on there tail that they wave around when doing their mating dance to impress the ladies The lizards on the log pic was taken in this country, not Cardiff on that occasion though, near Gatwick, we were doing a translocation job were we had to catch all the reptiles and move them to a save area so I put a bunch on a log and while they were warming up I managed to get some photos As for Jonas being talkative, he will quite happily meow away at you, whether you're just having a chat with him or he's announcing his arrival back into the house, waking you up in the morning or just making sure he is being noticed. Whats amusing is he's such a big cat but he is quite rare in that he dribbles when he happy and purring he then shakes like a St Bernard and it goes everywhere, like I said, he's really a dog with big whiskers and pointy ears
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Post by additions on Jan 26, 2012 22:29:02 GMT
hi there lucy love your photos. welcome to friends of cardiff dogs home.im sharron (additions) iv been on the committee since august last year. i have a german shepherd called Rex hes 4yrs old. well Lucy hope to meet you one day best wishes sharron x
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Post by Lucy on Jan 26, 2012 22:33:57 GMT
Just thought, I should probably put a picture of a torpid dormouse on here as everyone loves a sleepy fat dormouse pic!
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Post by carol on Jan 27, 2012 0:15:42 GMT
a torpid dormouse!!!
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Post by stephandalfie on Jan 27, 2012 8:58:03 GMT
Steph you are more than welcome to come and have a look at one in the hand if you want to tackle the phobia, they are pretty awesome little things. really?? that would be amazing,,, so kind of you. I'm off to find a small box to bury my dwarf hamster - RIP Marley x x He passed away over night,, with his favorite treats and an entire bag of cotton wool x bless him x ps. see www.friendsofcardiffdogs.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=rehomeddogs&action=display&thread=409 for my boy Alfs x
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Post by pennyb on Jan 27, 2012 10:37:24 GMT
Hi Lucee - I remember you from the dog show - I had the little scaredy sprocker pup (who's now a big pup growing by the day and not as scaredy)
I used to work with someone who also did bat rescue (Oxford area) and she used to feed them at work - was lovely to watch. We went along when she released him as well. I love watching the bats at dusk down by the river here where we swim the dogs during the day (Daubenton bats I think)
I believe the dormouse population are doing quite well in this area but have never seen any (I know quite a few of the local rangers who have put up the dormouse boxes).
I love Jonas - I have a cat who announces everything he does and its so lovely having a conversation with cats like that LOL.
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Post by Kara Collie-Cross on Feb 1, 2012 15:03:09 GMT
What a lovely thread!!!!!! ;D
We loved early evenings around the fields by Heath Park and at dusk the bats come out and circle and dive-bomb around the dogs. LOL
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Post by plasticflower on Feb 11, 2012 19:25:53 GMT
Hi Lucee, Lovely to see your photos. I live in a converted barn and there are bats that live at the roof here. We normally see them come out at a certain point of dusk - changes as the hours change. It's lovely to see wild animals here. I thought it was just one but somebody told me bats don't live on their own. We now often see two flying at the same time. Pipistrelles I think - I saw somewhere a diagram of pattern of flight? Sorry to digress from the Welcome!! Hope to catch up with you one day! Hello to Jonas too!! A xx
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Post by pennyb on Feb 11, 2012 22:56:07 GMT
Hi Lucee, Lovely to see your photos. I live in a converted barn and there are bats that live at the roof here. We normally see them come out at a certain point of dusk - changes as the hours change. It's lovely to see wild animals here. I thought it was just one but somebody told me bats don't live on their own. We now often see two flying at the same time. Pipistrelles I think - I saw somewhere a diagram of pattern of flight? Sorry to digress from the Welcome!! Hope to catch up with you one day! Hello to Jonas too!! A xx Somewhere in Cardiff where there are 2 colonies of horseshoe bats - one is the nursery where the mums are and in the other place are all the batchelors, which I thought was really neat
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Post by Lucy on Mar 27, 2012 19:05:52 GMT
Penny - Yup bats often have different maternity roosts for raising the pups, I am very lucky and for work for the last couple of years have been going up into some of the lesser horseshoe roosts near Abergavenny to count the pups and see how the colony was getting on. Feeling particularly pleased with myself today as released my first over wintered bat last night after 2.5months back where he was found stuck in an office in Llantisant Three more to go.... Pics below
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Post by Lucy on Jul 6, 2012 18:45:22 GMT
Not being lucky enough to get my own dog (yet!) I have my lovely cat Jonas who is a massive character in the house. I just have to share this photo I have just taken of the lazy monster taking up and almost falling off the whole arm chair! ;D Wondering if I should buy a poof so he can stretch out fully! I got him as a stray from the RSPCA he was found in Merythr.... I'm beginning to wonder what he might be crossed with, everyone comments that he is the biggest cat they have ever seen ;D Bless him
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Post by Becky on Jul 6, 2012 18:48:20 GMT
Never mind his own poof, he needs his own sofa! Thats one big cat ;D
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