my animals

just a try-out on this blog-thing on a sweltering saturday in christchurch.  what else is more appropriate for me than to start writing about the creatures near and dear to me.  could write a detailed profile on each but that could soon bore you to tears, there are many around the house, each with their own story to relate!

one, however, must be mentioned: "wee quake".

after the massive 7.1 quake subsided i managed to find a (barely) working flashlight and did the thing you are advised to do by civil defence: go around and switch off all appliances to prevent a fire when power comes back on.  rather than being lazy and switch off the lot at the power board, i wandered around the very dark house, keeping what light came from this pen-light torch firmly on the ground in front of me.  after checking living room, office, hall, bathroom i entered the second living room and saw the devastation.  one tropical fish tank had fallen over, was in shatters and i disconnected its light-unit, filter-pump, heater.  suddenly i noticed something small flapping on the totally sodden carpet, underneath the dining table.  remember, the pen-light was pretty poor!  i took a further look and saw something that resembled a fish lying still.  clenched the flash-light between my teeth and gently scooped this creature up, carefully releasing it in the other tank.

given it was very dark and as the power supply was not restored 'till 1 or 1.30 in the afternoon, i had no idea if she had survived, especially not after i had covered the entire tank with blankets and duvets to keep the temperature in that tank at a level which would not be detrimental to the many tropical fish in it.

i was totally delighted this creature had survived her ordeal when i removed the improvised insulation later in the afternoon.  she was swimming, obviously hungry and generally doing well.  since, she has given birth (plattys are live bearers) and from her entire "litter" one remains: wee quake.  against all odds it survived not only the quake, also the numerous natural predators (angels) in the tank.

her mother has since passed away: too much damage was done to her when her tank crashed and she had to spent some 10 or more minutes on sodden carpet.

a remarkable story of survival.