ToySkunk

If you see a hedgehog out during the day, it has something wrong with it - 100% guaranteed!

Hedgehogs sunbathing are not showing healthy behaviour. I found a little hedgehog yesterday and was told by a dogwalker that it had been there the day before too - despite the fact that it was right on the path next to a field of horses (and everyone here goes to talk to these particular horses, they're very popular) nobody had picked it up. I took it home when I found it, but quickly realised it had flystrike. Unfortunately, flystrike is extremely damaging if it isn't caught quickly - I tried to float the hedgehog in salt water to remove as many maggots as I could, but when I started picking off egg clusters, it opened its eyelids and I realised that the poor little hoglet didn't have eyes anymore. Maggots had eaten them and were still in the eye sockets. If only I had been walking the dog the day before, maybe I would have found it - or if only someone had thought to pick it up the day before - perhaps the fly eggs wouldn't have hatched.

As it was, I had to take the hedgehog to the vets to be put to sleep, so at least I prevented its death from being any more drawn out than it had to be.

You can help hedgehogs. Here's a page of basic first aid for hedgehogs you find: www.leicesterhedgehogrescue.co…  

If they don't weigh enough in the winter, they won't survive, so it's worth weighing any you find wandering around after 30th September and during the winter. But if they're out during the day at all, there is definitely something wrong.

And please don't use metaldehyde slug pellets (the blue ones). They either kill too many slugs (hedgehogs don't have enough food) or worse still, hedgehogs may eat the poisoned slugs and be poisoned themselves, which is fatal. I use wool slug pellets (SlugGone) which slugs hate crawling over, they don't like the fibrous texture and lanolin - but they won't end up with any toxins in their bodies that will poison slug-eating predators!

... post project slump?

Or even the 'mid project slump'. Or 'pre project slump'. Just general slumping around projects. The sort of slumping where you feel a bit like you don't really know what you're supposed to be doing. I seem to be looking back at old projects, wondering how on earth I did them and whether I'll be capable of doing something similar again. Annoyingly, I've lost the habit of doing digital paintings as frequently as I used to (I'm still focusing on fashiony things, but I really miss the old stuff). Having not done one for a while, I am not quite sure how I used to tackle them!

If you get it - what do you do about it? Why does it happen?

Answers requested!

This isn't the kind of thing I normally post journals about but I figured that there's a good audience for manga novels on dA, and I have some to sell! These are all in good condition except for some minor spine damage (they were well loved). Here's what I have. I'm selling them as multiple books per series. If I don't get any takers on here, then they'll be going on eBay. Payment via Paypal.

Hellsing sold

Alichino issues 1-3

£10 + shipping

Samurai Deeper Kyo issues 1-8 and 10-12

(sorry, somehow I guess I lost issue number 9 while moving house or something!)
£25 + shipping

Arm of Kannon issues 1 and 2

£6 + shipping

Battle Royale issues 1-15 complete set

£40 + shipping

Just let me know in the comments or via a note if you're interested in anything!

Watch this space for more things for sale that I've actually made.

I found it hard to choose a winner, as always.

But the 200 points goes to Isaacs-Collar! sta.sh/01gp6cwon5os

Also... I simply have to give 50 points to KatIsConfused and RocCenere for making me laugh



Just so you guys know, I now have an Etsy shop here:

www.etsy.com/uk/people/ToySkun… : star:

There's not much in it right now, but that's going to be the easiest place to buy crafts both premade and to order. Watch this space for all sorts of crafts!

So, I haven't really been here for a while - too much on! I'm doing a lot of sewing for somebody, and alternately working on a project that I can't show anyone yet.

However, it's my birthday on Friday 25th and to celebrate, I'm holding a small contest!

Deadline: April 29th 5pm GMT

What's your task?

Reply to this journal and 'add drawing' to your comment. Use Muro to draw a balloon.

Yeah. Just a balloon.

I was going to make it just 'party themed' but I want to see how creative/ridiculous you can be with a drawing of a rubber bag full of wind (please don't all draw politicians for me, though).

The best balloon wins 200 points!