wildey

My husband and I are looking for a house to rent in the Castelnaudary area while house hunting in the area. We have 2 dogs, so would require a fenced garden, and a pool would be a bonus. Does anyone know of one?

Point taken!

Thanks for the replies, that clears that up.  You couldn't get away with bypassing the agents in UK - if only we could!! But then I suppose they have to make a living, and the French don't have expensive glossy brochures to pay for.  We're looking forward to looking for our French home.

Please could anyone tell us of any hotels/B&Bs etc. between Cherbourg and Albi which have facilities for kennelling dogs outside?

We have noticed that some houses come on to the market with several agents and at different prices.  If you are registered with all of them, but buy from the cheapest, who gets the commission? Could there be a snag with the other agents?

We plan to move to France later this year and take our two dogs.  We feed them or Forthglade - does anyone know if it can be bought in France?

If we take our UK TV with us, I know we can't receive French TV on it, but can we still play videos on it and can we access SKY, or do we need a French TV for all of this.  Does anyone know?

No, we don't ski.  We are looking for a rural life with animals.  Pretty much the same as we have in Somerset.  We love walking, and having deciduous woodlands to walk in is a must.  We love the area around the Foret de Gresigne in Tarn, but would like to improve on the winter weather a little, if possible, by going SE.  Would still like some more suggestions if anyone has any!

Would be interested to know the area the oak forest is , i.e. the nearest town.  Also a little about the climate.  We know France is cold in winter, but is this area particularly wet?  Is it flat or hilly, vinyards or pasture?  It sounds like it will be worth checking out, anyway.

We are interesting in buying in the mediterranean strip between the Pyrenees and Nice, away from the coast, but find the Corsican Pine scenery quite boring.  Does anyone know of a reasonable size area of deciduous forest in this region, i.e. southern slopes of Montagne Noire, etc.