26/1/24 - New beginnings and a sad ending

I can hardly bear to write the next sentence. My darling Scout is dead. She was breathing super fast on Monday night so on Tuesday morning we drove her to the vet. She was in the back of the car and I sat in the back seat so I could lean over and stroke and reassure her. We had to stop for roadworks in Pezenas and at that moment she was sick then threw her head back. I carefully held her lovely big head and she died in my hands. Her huge heart had finally given enough. She was nine years old. I know big dogs live shorter lives than small dogs but I wasn’t at all ready for this.

Two days on and I still feel super tearful at the thought of never again walking with my best buddy. We covered thousands of miles together. Scout was a once in a lifetime dog. I’ve loved them all, but she was special. Adieu my love.

I find myself facing spring in a rather subdued state, where normally I would be super-excited. But life goes on. We saw the first toad in our pond today. Last year the first ones arrived on 3 March. Yesterday the temperature rose to 20℃, with a low of 8℃. Last year on the same day it was 7℃/-1℃. I know you can't compare single days, but this doesn't feel at all right.

First toad of the season.

I pruned the apple trees today, but I’m dismayed to have found considerable damage caused by, presumably, a borer of some sort. The damage is obviously new, so I’ll see if I can get some nematodes to sort the problem out before we lose the trees completely. At least the goldfish are happy. Which reminds me, I need to clear out some weed from the pond before to many other creatures arrive.