Happy Hour by the Pool

As a vet, I often say that when I go on holiday I need a break from cats and dogs. This never happens.

On holidays before I have been saddened by the condition of stray animals in some of the tourist areas of Greece. However, on the whole, the strays of Santorini seem to live in apparent harmony with locals and tourists alike.

Dogs appear to have bee n adopted by local businesses, and there are pet food feeders located along the streets for the animals to help themselves to doggy biscuits and dry food. Cats hunt and supplement their diets with leftovers from the restaurants.

At our little house on the caldera, we were regularly visited by a couple of cats who popped down to snooze on the sun lounger, chase lizards in the bushes and sample the pool water.

This one initially had a bit of a snotty nose, and therefore was quickly named 'Snotalotapuss'. Here he is grabbing a drink and, you'll be pleased to hear, the snots had gone by the time we left.