We went for a long drive to Carreira’s Centre in Randburg today where we normally buy bulk veggies at the Randburg Wholesale Market. The roads were quiet, so we were surprised to find that cars were queueing to get into the centre. The parking lot was full. As a car came out of the parking, another could enter. We decided to park outside on the pavement and walk in. The veggie shop was crowded with people and trollies. We selected what we needed and got out as quickly as possible. Looking around while in the queue at the till, I was amazed at the extremes; some folk wore gloves and masks, whereas others took no precautions at all; no mask, gloves (I don’t believe in wearing gloves either) or social distance.
While we were parking our trolley and gathering up our purchases we noticed a number of policemen arrive. Wondering what it was about we glanced back while walking to our car and noticed that the market’s doors had closed. I am not sure if the police arrived to help bring order, or whether they closed the shop for the day because the owners had contravened the lockdown rules of limiting access and social distancing. Seems we got out just in time.
Francois told us this morning, via a video on our WhatsApp Group, about a ‘cat’astrophe (his term!) they had this week. They live on a plot near Hartebeespoort Dam where they are currently experiencing a seasonal problem with ticks. Adri bought ‘Spot-on’ and they dosed all the animals; dogs and cats. In a very short space of time, 3 of their 4 cats became seriously ill. They rushed all of them to Onderstepoort Veterinary Hospital where they were told that ‘Spot-on’ is toxic for cats. The cats were treated but had to stay over-night for observation, due to the seriousness of their respective conditions. It was touch and go but they all pulled through, thankfully. I won’t even mention what this cost them.
His story reminded me of an incident we had on the plot many years ago.
We always had animals of every description on the plot; 5 dogs, 3 cats, chickens, pigs, horses, sheep, pigeons, you name it. At one stage even a monkey, but that is a story for another time.
I have this belief that when one has pets and free-range domestic animals, deworming should be done every six months; pets and humans alike. It was a Saturday and there was some function we were going to. As always, certain things get left until the last minute. It was deworming time and although the doses had been measured out per animal, not all had been administered. The horse still had to get his dose which consisted of tiny pellets mixed in with dried whole kernel mealies, as per the instructions on the packet. Someone would normally stay to make sure that everything was consumed. Because we were running late the mix was just put in the horse’s feeding trough while we went into the house to wash up and prepare for departure. Be that as it may, we were ready to leave when Eugene came running into the house, breathless and upset, saying
“The chickens are not well. I think they are dying.”
We rushed outside only to find that every single chicken was lying, literally, with its feet in the air; all of them stone dead. They had been pecking away happily at the horse’s meds, which of course was not intended for them. It was a sad day indeed, and a very dear lesson to boot.
Back to today. We’re now in the habit of starting our evening routine at around 6 pm. Pour a glass of wine, cook and watch TV after dinner. It was just before 6 when Craig, our neighbour, knocked on the door. He brought us some curry! Earlier in the day, as we returned from the veggie market, Roger had a brief chat to Marion and mentioned that we could smell the wonderful curry aromas all the way down to the basement. In true neighbourly spirit she decided to share. This was a double pleasure; we now did not have to cook, and the food was absolutely delicious. There is a lot to be said for community living. We will have to catch up on the social side once we are able to.
Our death toll has increased by 7 to 86.