Fate inhabits every space she is in as if she owns it she has adopted the ice pond. She patrols it, skates on it, explores it. She is careful yet fearless. Today, another chapter, she went out onto the ice, investigated it very thoroughly, then settled on one spot, and began licking, chewing and pawing open a small hole. It’s possible that she was smelling something, or hearing a fish, but the most likely explanation is that to her, the ice represented a challenge. She knew there was something on the other side, she has walked in the pond, so she had to get to it.

We watched in fascination for two or three minutes, she suddenly had a two inch hole, and then was drinking water through it. I can’t pretend to know just what it is that Fate was digging for, I can just say it was great fun to watch. She is an unusual creature, bursting with a love for life.