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val douest

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Everything posted by val douest

  1. I guess Amanda isn't logging on at the moment but I seem to remember that she is in the process of adopting a gordon setter called Tony whose elderly owner was no longer able to cope.  He was being fostered here while his UK passport is sorted.  I know she responded to the posts about Alex but was unable to consider having him as her adoption of Tony was ongoing.  In the thread about Alex there were a couple of kind families in the UK who were hoping to offer him a home but he turned out to be too sick. If you check out the thread   http://www.completefrance.com/cs/forums/2390093/ShowPost.aspx  and contact them, maybe they would be able to help.  In fact maybe it would be a good idea to start a new thread for Dylan and Finn - something on the lines of  'Two passported young setters need new homes"? Val
  2. I have read the various references in previous postings and think I understand what is involved in setting up a voluntary association; this one is basically a social network and information exchange, mainly expat but with a strong French presence too.  It has evolved over the last three years from an occasional coffee morning and the time has come to regularise it, open a bank account etc.  I have the outline requirements for what must be included in the Statut and been given examples of the Statuts of other voluntary associations.  It appears that the latter are far more complex and involved than the bare requirements as they are set out and I am wondering if I can just stick to the bare bones or whether it is expected that the whole thing is padded out to cover every eventuality.  For example, the Statuts I have seen have provision for directors, a council and a committee.  We would prefer to operate with just an elected president, treasurer and secretary who are then free to co-opt or appoint other people as and when appropriate.  Minutes will be taken in the language of the speaker they are recording but presumably the official minutes available for inspection must be entirely in French. If anyone has set up an association recently and has any pointers or words of warning, they would be much appreciated. Thanks, Val
  3. That's such good news, Merlin.  What a very lucky dog he is, and a brave one too.  We look forward to keeping in touch with his progress - and many thanks for doing so much for him and all the others. Val
  4. Yes,  Ryanair are indeed pulling out of Pau next month after disagreements with the city over its contribution to the marketing budget.  However, Ryanair will be running a new service three times a week between Stansted and Lourdes which will begin in April.  There is also a new route starting on April 1st between Pau and London City Airport, operated by CityJet;  this too will run three times a week.  CityJet's fares include one checked-in bag and there are no extra charges for credit card booking, on-line check-in etc.  Val
  5. I think it would be possible to dog-proof the driveway rather than the gate with an electric barrier, with the no-go area running from the fence on either side in a slight arc away from the gate.  I've no idea of the cost or exactly how it would be done but the site here http://www.dogfence.co.uk/products/products_outdoor_fences_groundskeeper.htm  shows that it is feasible as they actually mention dog-proofing driveways.  Good luck! Val
  6. Like Cooperlola, I order from the Zooplus UK site as I prefer to pay in sterling.  But the parcel always comes from Germany or the Netherlands (I can't remember exactly offhand) which is probably one of the reasons delivery is so prompt  - sometimes just 2-3 days to the rural depths of SW France. Val
  7. Hi Merlin I'd be happy to send a cheque to help with Alex's expenses, too.  Could you please send me a pm with details of whom it should be made out to and where it should be sent.  And many congratulations  on the work you do for Alex, Scramble and all the others.... Val
  8. Many thanks, Patf.  But I don't play, and sadly our piano was sold before we came to France.  I'm very much enjoying listening to the various versions of this piece (and others by the same composer) on the internet though. Val
  9. Many thanks to you all - now I can get the music and listen to it all the way through! Val
  10. The Beeb are currently running a trailer for their 'Romancing the Stone - the Golden Age of British Sculpture' series which is accompanied by a haunting piano solo.  The music sounds so familiar but I just can't place it - can anyone help? Val
  11. Debbie - it would be worth looking at http://www.frenchhealthissues.eu/insurance/top_up_overview.htm which explains it all very clearly. Val
  12. There seems such a wave of goodwill and practical help on offer for Alex, which is very good news.  I do hope some things are happening behind the scenes, as it were, and that the forum will be updated when there is some positive news.  Has Alex gone to his temporary foster home yet?
  13. There are quite a few advertised on Le Bon Coin - see http://www.leboncoin.fr/animaux/offres/limousin/haute_vienne/?f=a&th=1&q=poules Val
  14. Rowan - would it be worth contacting one of the English setter rescue organisations in the UK?  (Maybe www.englishsetterrescue.org.uk or www.englishsetterassociation.co.uk/rescue, or one of the regional rescue groups through the Kennel Club at http://www.the-kennel-club.org.uk/services/public/club/rescue/Default.aspx?breed=2033). If you have a foster home available for him in France while he gets passported and has his rabies shots, then I'm sure it would be possible to get someone to take him across the channel when he is ready.  I for one would be willing to chip in towards the cost of his shots.  I think any breed rescue organisation worth its salt would find it hard to let one of their own - and such a lovely dog, too - die of a broken heart. Val
  15. Well - what a cop-out!  It doesn't sound as if we missed very much with the plot line being so far-fetched but many thanks to you all for putting an end to our suspense!  I agree that the programme seems to be straying further and further from the original concept; this one was all cops and robbers.  I don't think the Hungarian tourist office will be ordering extra copies either! Val
  16. Can anyone please put us out of our misery?  Having watched the first part if this week's Silent Witness (set in Hungary) where Harry Cunningham appeared to have been shot and then doused in petrol and set alight (which I was quite sad about as I rather like him), we set the second part to record while we did something else.  About 20 minutes into the programme we realised it wasn't recording so switched on to watch the rest, only to see Harry Cunningham running around, a bit bruised and battered but very much alive.  So what happened in the bit we missed - how did he escape what looked like total annihilation?????  Any explanation very welcome. Val
  17. We only have cats but several of our dog-owning friends use the kennels run by Sue and Gerry Green near Madiran, which is about 20 minutes drive from Aire sur l'Adour.  I have heard only positive reports and I know the dogs get two good walks each day.  Their website is http://www.k9france.com/. Val
  18. There is a company called http://www.selections.com which sells a large range of propagators and associated equipment including a windowsill propagator warming mat for  £17.99.  They deliver to European destinations and their quoted postal charge per order of garden items is £20.  I've not ordered from them myself but just thought they might be of interest because they will send stuff overseas. Val
  19. What some local people do here when they desperately need to rehome unwanted youngsters is to hang around the edge of the local market with an improvised 'stall' where the babies can be displayed.  Some heartwrenching placards saying they must go today are the order of the day but the main thing is to get the kids to act cute and to try to attach themselves to any slightly interested passers-by.  If they have any 'party tricks' (handstands, hula hoops etc) now is the time to put them into action.  I know an inspected home and a well-thought-out adoption is the ideal but when things are getting very difficult then needs must ... after all, there's that puppy to think of.
  20. Many thanks to you both for that - there's nothing worse than driving round an airport not knowing where you are going and being moved on at every stage!  I'll suggest she susses out the lower level pick-up area then moves on to Tesco's to wait for my call. Val
  21. I am flying to Gatwick next week, an airport I haven't used for a while.  I arrive at the south terminal and my daughter will then drive over to collect me.  Looking at the airport website it seems that there is nowhere I can wait outside for her to drive past and pick me up and that she will have to park somewhere and come to find me.  Would it be possible for me to go up to Departures and be picked up where passengers are dropped off?  Any information from anyone who knows the airport would be gratefully received. I arrive late in the evening and really need to know where I am heading for. Val
  22. Has anyone any experience of air purifiers?  I would like to buy something to try to make at least one downstairs room in the house more or less cat-free for the comfort of visitors with allergies.  It is impossible to keep the cats completely out of any of the downstairs rooms as they interlink, but the cats usually just pass through the dining room en route to the kitchen so an air purifier could be worth a try in there.  I have been looking at something called the Airfree steriliser  http://www.allergybestbuys.co.uk/ebuttonz/ebz_product_pages/airfreeairsteriliser-903020m.shtml# which has lots of positive reviews but it's quite pricey so any firsthand experience of that or any other air purifier would be useful. Thanks, Val
  23. We have three cats and one of them, Tash, seems to cause tremendous allergy problems for people that way inclined and even for those who have not previously had any trouble.  Tash is a short-haired black cat with white markings who came as a very small kitten from a farm where he was about to be disposed of; his mother was a barn cat and although he is friendly and affectionate he still has some feral tendencies.  He is now four and with our other cats has free access in and out through a cat flap so it would be very difficult to ban him from the house, even if we wanted to.  But the problem really is quite severe:  I have to dish out antihistamines like sweeties to guests and at least two of our very good friends can only visit if we eat outside or in the guest cottage in the garden (from which all the cats are banned).  We also keep one section of the house cat-free but the cats have access to the kitchen/dining room/living areas - hence the problems with visitors.  We had no real trouble with super-sensitive guests until Tash arrived and these same guests can visit other friends with cats without problems. Tash's fur is particularly dense, almost like an otter pelt, and I think the problem is probably caused by some kind of oil or secretion rather than loose fur flying around as he doesn't seem to moult  much.  Has anyone else had this problem?  And can anyone suggest any kind of solution - maybe a room spray which counteracts 'cattiness', or something I can apply to Tash's fur?  I live in hope....... Val
  24. Wonderful news!  Incidentally, I gather from the first post in this thread that Tony is in Concots in the Lot, south east of Cahors. Val
  25. Sorry - I hadn't realised my original post had become live again or I would have posted earlier!  Our kitchen is finished and we are delighted with the granite worktops which have now been in use for over six months.  We chose a black granite with small blue pieces in it which catch the light and make the worktop look as if it has just been cleaned even when it hasn't!  It has been very tolerant of hot pans and all kinds of spillages though I do try to mop up things like lemon juice rather than leave them sitting there. The granite was bought from Sarl Voldoire who have a showroom and workshops in Arcizac-ez-Angles, just outside Lourdes, so might be of interest to the poster who restarted this thread. Tel 05 62 42 91 70, [email protected], http://www.voldoire.fr.  Once we had chosen the granite they came and measured everything up including the hobs which were waiting to be installed and they took away the sink, which was a special type for under-counter mounting. Voldoire are mainly monumental masons but have a big kitchen-fitting section now and are very clued up as to what works well for different requirements.  Our granite was supplied ready sealed and certainly the surface seems very stain repellent.  The fitters came with the granite delivery and made an excellent job of installing it.  There is just one join (as the main worktop run was too long for a single piece) and it is quite hard to spot.  As well as the usual polished finish (which we have) they can supply some of the granites with a soft leather-like finish - it's quite extraordinary and even feels warm to the touch!  We were told it's not as hardwearing as the polished granite so we steered away.  We were also enquiring on behalf of friends about replacing a damaged marble tabletop (Voldoire have a big selection of marble too) and were advised that pale granite would be a much better option as marble is not nearly so hard-wearing and scratches easily. Hope this helps, Val
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