Catfield News October 2021
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Issue 214 Catfield News October 2021 Time to cut the field edges and footpaths Photo sent in by Carolyn Skipper October Notice Board Ever played petanque and wanted to play some more. We need your support to get a petanque pitch in the village. See page 15 for more information. See page 3 for your letters and adverts. With the darker evenings approaching why not be creative and make a Christmas tree for the Church Christmas Tree Festival. See page 11 for more details. Try our Quiz with a difference. Turn to page 18 and have a go at the October Quiz. Why not make it a family effort? The Mobile Library Service is now back. Check the website www.libraries.norfolk.gov.uk for the latest updates. There are still books and jigsaws available in Catfield Church porch for you to borrow . 2 Your letters and adverts We live down the far end of Sharp St. The footpath that's behind our house, the hedges at the start of the footpath were getting overgrown and stinging nettles and brambles were coming over onto the path, meaning you had to dodge them. My two young boys at the weekend with their own initiative asked me if they cut the stinging nettles and brambles back, so I said yes and gave them some small shears and kept a close watch while they cut them back. They did a good job and felt good about it afterwards. So between them and our next door neighbour Adrian Clare (Chuff) who always cuts the footpath on his ride on mower for free, the footpath is looking much better, well done Kasey and Riley Cooper. Thankyou from their mum Emma Cooper A MASSIVE thankyou to my dear friends and neighbours in Lea Road for looking after my dog at home while I was in hospital. Your kindness is much appreciated. Carole Swimming Sylvia Daniels is looking for some ladies to join her swimming group Thursday nights 6 until 7 For more information call Sylvia on 01692 583151 or 07470655799 3 The terms of office for two Trustees to Catfield United Charities are coming to an end. Please contact the clerk by 3rd October if you would be interested in being considered as a Trustee. [email protected] or 07818709080 OCTOBER PARISH COUNCIL MEETING The next Catfield Parish Council Meeting will be on Wednesday, 6th October at 7.00pm In the Village Hall. Catfield Village Hall The Village Hall is now open for use. Anyone interested in booking please contact Elaine, the Booking clerk (see page 34 for contact details), who will send out the Village Hall risk assessment and simple guide to hirers and users. THE CROWN INN The Street, Catfield NR29 5AA - 01692 580128 www.catfieldcrown.co.uk Email us at [email protected] QUIZ AND CURRY NIGHT THURSDAY 14TH OCTOBER 7.00PM, £6pp BOOKING essential BANGERS & MAGIC EVENING SATURDAY 6TH NOVEMBER 7.30PM See website for menu Magic provided by Sean Goodman 4 Quilting Show and Concert Catfield Church held a Quilting Show from the 10th-12th of September showing off the beautiful work of Heather Hasthorpe and friends. People came from miles around to marvel at the talent and were also able to enjoy a sit down and of course a piece of cake (or two!) and a good chat. On Saturday evening people listened to a wonderful young organist, Elinor Hanton, waking the organ from a deep sleep and showing what it could really do. Elinor is now off to University in Oxford to study organ. May I, as Church Warden thank Heather and her team for a splendid display, also to the gentlemen who climbed the ladders and put up in the quilts and to those who manned the stall and worked so hard to make this event possible. A splendid total of £1900 was raised. A special thanks to those who came along and supported the event. Judith Gardiner 5 There is No Planet B Browsing through Country Life magazine recently I came upon an inspiring piece by Sally Smith McLeod. She lists many, many ways she tries to help our Planet in her home and garden following her parents’ example a generation before her. Things we can all do! Like Sally, my parents lived through WW2 and endured rationing ‘til the early ‘50s.Through my childhood my mother let nothing go to waste. She only threw away things which she could not mend, reuse or recycle. She sewed many of our clothes, knitted our jumpers, darned, replaced buttons and even used remaining bits of wool to show us how to make pompom balls as toys! In the garden, Sally advocates at the end of the summer, when flowers are over, to dry and store seed heads in airtight containers for use next year. This will save lots of money! She suggests using plastic yoghurt pots to make plant labels and for sowing seed. We cut up large milk containers to make bird seed scoops. We have aimed to have an organic garden for many years and have succeeded in the main, save when it comes to slugs! People say spreading egg shells broken up helps as these creatures like a smoother surface. Still at least we try and if millions of people try we’ll collectively get somewhere! Anne Filgate Please write in with your ideas for subjects and useful information! My aim is for an interactive page…a conversation on what we can all do to help the Planet! [email protected] 6 This month I thought I’d write about an unusual, but very rewarding case. The dog in question is a very fit and energetic 4 year old Spaniel with no history of illness until recently, when she started occasionally being sick. This was followed by her stopping eating a short while later, very unusual for most Spaniels! She was brought straight in to see us as her owner had noticed her gums were yellow, or jaundiced. We ran blood tests which demonstrated elevations in all her liver enzymes so proceeded to ultrasound examination of her abdomen. At the time her abdomen looked quite normal and aspirates of her liver demonstrated inflammation of an unknown source. Initially she responded well to intravenous fluids and anti-biotics, but her liver enzymes remained high on blood tests and she started to be sick again. Blood tests were also run for leptospirosis as this is a relatively common cause of hepatitis in dogs, but she had been vaccinated and it was subsequently ruled out. At this point it was determined that liver biopsies were needed to reach a definitive diagnosis. Fortunately these could be performed by keyhole surgery which greatly reduced the risk and helped her recovery post surgery. These biopsies indicated that the inflammation had been going on for longer than we could know about and her liver had started to fibrose in places as well. She started anti-inflammatory medication and is currently still eating well (a special diet for liver disease) and back out on her walks. Her prognosis is uncertain, but we have some other patients with a similar condition who have continued to do well for a number of years, so our fingers are crossed for a similar outcome. Although this patient tested negative for leptospirosis we have unfortunately seen another confirmed case in the area last month. This water borne disease is something that can affect our pets so we strongly recommend vaccinating to prevent it happening. Toby Morrell MRCVS Westover Veterinary Centre 7 Nature Notes for October 2021 By J & C As we now head into autumn, the sight of a gleaming otter, swimming along the river with a fish in its mouth, is undoubtedly one of the most special wildlife encounters you can have in Britain. Autumn and winter are brilliant times of the year to see these elusive creatures. They are most active at dawn and dusk, and they are identifiable from their broad head and long wide tail. Your best chance of seeing an otter would be to take a long walk along the Broads; they are often seen along the river Yare and Wensum. They are also seen at NWT Ranworth and Barton Broads, so a couple of hours waiting patiently in a hide could prove rewarding. Nature can be right on your doorstep as well. Take an early morning stroll around the garden to see intricately built spider webs glistening with dew covering the lawn and hedgerows. And look out for our only spiny mammal, the hedgehog. The characteristically long snout with a black nose, short tail, small ears and approximately 6,000 spines make hedgehogs easy to identify. At this time of the year, you can help hedgehogs by creating hibernation spots. This can be a box or an undisturbed log pile. Hedgehogs also love the warmth of compost heaps, which also provide hedgehogs with food. Please remember to check bonfires for hedgehogs before setting light to them. Norfolk is second to none as a county to see birds all year round. It is not renowned for just the sheer quantity of good birds to be seen but also for the quality of them. This is certainly helped by the fact that Norfolk holds a great variety of habitats within its boundary. From the flat Fenland in the west, the freshwater Broads in the east, to the dry Brecklands of the south and the coastal dunes and marshes in the north. Each habitat supports its own special birds. Many resident species are either not found elsewhere or are localised.