Thursday 10 March

Bren was up first to take the dog out but he got into some distress when he couldn't poo and didn't know what to do with himself. We had heard of this before – he needed his anal glands squeezing. Sounds messy, and it was! Managed to clear a small blockage and he promptly dumped the rest on the floor-mat, but he was in a right old mess and we spent quite some time trying to clean him up. Eventually we resorted to a bowl of warm water, which did the trick, and he settled down although remained very subdued for most of the day. Dogs!

Poorly puppy

After (a late) breakfast Bren took advantage of the warm sunshine and fresh breeze (yep, we've still got it) to get the washing done. No machines here so resorted to the old fashioned way but it was all completed and dry by the end of the day. Terry spent quite a lot of time filling/emptying tanks! Then it was settle down and keep the dog company.

A little about this site. It's only been open just over 12 months but is already very attractive. The main building houses the pottery, a small garden centre and a popular cafe/bar which does meals a couple of times a week as a sort of community event, as well as the main ablutions block. The pitches are all marked out with stone borders, planted with shrubs. There are pitches of various size to cater for all sizes of motorhome – one section is dedicated to RV's, the really big units – and all on hardstanding; probably a good idea as the underlying surface is sand and would probably be very muddy or dusty dependant upon the weather. There are water taps and a couple of extra small ablutions blocks dotted about, more being built. There are a couple of landscaped ponds and a larger carp pool being excavated, intended to provide fishing. Quite a few vans are long-term residents.

Not as crowded as it looks.

Decent size pitches, nicely marked out

However we learned that they do have a problem, probably originated by a rival campsite, in that approx. half the site only has agricultural planning permission and the site owner has been given notice to clear it. We understand that negotiations are under way to have this changed; we spotted the owner showing some people around and it looks promising. It would be a shame to lose such a lovely spot which is sure to be very popular when the word goes round.

Around teatime Jamie perked up and demanded his tea; as we were having chicken and rice he got some too, it apparently being just the thing for poorly puppies. He wolfed that but still demanded more so he got a small helping of his usual dinner; we didn't want to give him more until we were happy he was okay, despite him still asking. Cut down on his treats too in case that has an effect.