It's a Dog's Life...

Well actually...if you were to ask Gucci, our latest canine resident, what she thinks of life at Domaine des Rochers, perhaps she would tell you that it's not too bad at all, especially when the time comes for her afternoon walk. In spite of her fourteen years she seems to love it. Whether we are climbing up-hill , or heading down towards the valley, I can guarantee that she will have covered three times the ground that we mere human beings have, as she explores every scent , every trail , twig and leaf. In case you were wondering , Gucci is not our new pet. She belongs ,in fact, to some friends who are currently on holiday. But hey, a three week holiday at Domaine des Rochers is not to be sniffed at, is it Gucci? More of your doggy friends may be following as the summer holidays approach. We readily welcome dogs to our gîte, as the forest tracks around our house are just perfect for them.

But since yesterday, we have had to watch Gucci closely as she heads off enthusiastically ahead of us. For, if you have read my earlier blogs, you will know that the pine forest around us supports many nests of the pine moth processionary caterpillar. These begin to emerge in the early spring, and are bad news for any human or animal who may wish to inspect them more closely, as they provoke a severe allergic reaction. Last year our friend Dawn lost Kyle, one of her two lovely white ponies. Yesterday Brian spotted one of these hairy caterpillars lying on our road. As they begin to emerge from hibernation they do a couple of practice runs, processing down the tree in a straight line. Then they return to their nest. But soon they will be emerging for real, and we will see long strings of them processing through the forest, nose to tail. If one is disturbed or hurt, the whole line becomes disorientated and goes bezerk! Finally, they bunch up tightly together and bury into the soil, where they pupate. However, many perish at this point , for the forest track is hard and stony. Only the lucky few who choose to burrow in softer soil will survive. As for Gucci, we shall be keeping a very close eye on her for the rest of her stay.

Watch Out Gucci!

Of course we do like the companionship of dogs , and we have had three faithful friends during our marriage. All were abandoned, or at least looking for a new home. From 'Zimbi,' our faithful Welsh collie who lived with us on our smallholding in Wales, to Black who was looking for a home shortly after we arrived in France. He was a long haired black mongrel with a large amount of épagneul breton, and he was much loved by all of our guests. "It's funny," one person told me who was staying in our gîte," Black always seems to turn up just before supper time. "

And then came Simba.Simba was a large, male golden retriever who was looking for a new home. Like many dogs in France he lived in a kennel/compound outside , and we took him over when his young owner could no longer cope with children and a dog. He was untrained , and until we got the measure of him , he liked to trot off down to the village in search of 'lady friends.' In time he grew to be a good, gentle and 'fairly obedient 'companion.

When Simba died in 2018, we reluctantly decided not to have another dog. Indeed dogs are quite a commitment, but enormously rewarding, so it was, and still remains a difficult decision. However Léo, our cat, is very happy with this status quo! But what about 'les procéssionaires ' Léo? "Pouf! I was born in this forest and learned to fend for myself the hard way. That is, until I discovered this comfortable home. I shall be just fine! "