P RTtalktalkIssue 17 ••• DeCeMBeR 2011

FarmLouarna’sShe may always look beautifully presented at work, but at home she is super mum to 23 pets, which sees her getting up before dawn to tend to all of her children and then still come into work everyday and happily talk to St Kilda Town Hall visitors. Here she tells her story…

“At 5.20am, while most folk are still snoring, my day starts with me organising my family for the day. My family consists of three pugs, six cats, two lovebirds, eleven hens and a rabbit.

Once I’ve walked the dogs, replenished water supplies, poured pet milk, cleaned cat and rabbit litter, chopped fruit and veg, distributed grain, seed, cat and dog food... it’s hair, makeup, wardrobe, and out the door. My weekends are spent cleaning out coops and hutches and I relish every second of it.

Why so many pets? It’s the best contribution I can make to

animal welfare. I have such a strong connection to my pets, they bring me so much joy and comfort, and oh how they make me laugh! Whenever I’ve lived alone, they

have been my company; during years of crippling

depression, they have been my reason to live. I pledge with

each pet adoption, that I will care for them for their entire lives. I have had to make some big sacrifices: I can’t live overseas, holidays take a lot of preparation, spontaneous weekends away are impossible, house inspections are a production... but I wouldn’t change a thing.

I never stood a chance, both sides of the family are crazy about critters. I’ve never

been without a pet in my life. When I moved out of the nest in my early- twenties, I adopted a single kitten from an animal shelter. Then I adopted him a friend. And on and on it went.

I foster animals too. I’ve hand-reared many kittens that don’t have mummies. It’s a lot of work, but so rewarding. City of Port Phillip employees Belinda Evans, Amanda Swinton, Maggie Pridmore and ex-staff member Eva Parkin have each adopted one of my hand-reared babies. It is such a joy to watch them thrive.

As you can imagine, I’m a regular at my vet. I once remarked to him that I’d never be rich and he pointed out that there are many forms of richness and I’m very rich in love and happiness. That really resonated with me, I think he hit the nail on the head.

Most people have items on their bucket list like volunteering in a third-world country, travelling to an exotic location, participating in extreme sports. Not me. Mine is full of different dog-breeds and cat-colours. I want to add to my family, plus I want to be a goat-owner before I die.

After City of Port Phillip I would love to own my own doggy day care centre or cattery, and in my next life, I’m planning to be a big-cat handler.”

“The number one rule of pet browsing online is NeVeR eVeR let your partner just go and have

a look …the rest is history. I wanted the strange little brown one, but how could I leave her little

white sister behind? The answer is: I couldn’t! My itty bitty kitty committee are weird,

wonderful, and endlessly entertaining! They are scottish Folds by the way…”

Sian Whalley – Coordinator Communications and Engagement

Brett is pictured here with his 4 chooks, Fluffy, Drama Queen, Razorblade and

Combover. He loves his chooks because they are low maintenance

and very friendly. They bring his garden alive with colour and

movement, along with taking care of all green waste including weeds

and lawn clippings. His other ‘pets’ are tadpoles, possums, a family of magpies,

along with a wide array of local birds and a quail that recently wandered into their bush garden.

Brett Hedger – Greenhouse Programs Officer

“LuluBelle: rugga muffin princess, rings her collar for attention, will only drink out of a glass & has the neighbourhood wrapped around her little finger!”Sheri Peters – Online Communications

“My first family portrait with

my fluffy babies, sushi and Lockie,

and Chris my partner, with his

best angle.“Yuki Kojima – Community Partnerships Officer

“Jackie B who is nearly 15 yo is so loveable, very cheeky and sometimes a stubborn little boy who is well known around elwood by shop traders and residents. He is always looking for a cuddle or treat and with those big eyes looking at you he is certainly not short of either. We are fortunate to walk on elwood Beach or visit the wonderful elsternwick off leash Dog Park on a daily basis.“Helen Oakley – Assist Officer Corporate Services Community and Councillor Support

All creatures,great and small!“Here is my daughter Jade

and her pet snake Jorge. He is a coastal carpet

python, who loves wrapping himself around warm bodies and eating rats. He is still growing

and will continue to grow for another 7

years. Jade loves him!”Julie Jorgensen – Family Support Worker

“I’d like to introduce you to my pet Valma the 1967 VC Valiant. This is the fourth 1967 VC I have owned since the early 1990’s, so I clearly have a thing for them! she’s a very original and well-worn ‘Regal’ in arctic white with bronze interior, and I’m putting a nice pale blue plush-pile carpet in for a bit of nice. I am a member of the Chrysler Restorers Club and am restoring her to run on the Club Permit scheme, which allows 90 days use per year – perfect for weekend use with occasional car shows and club meets.”Chris Sager – Council Planning & Performance Officer

“Kilbi the Kelpie/Coolie and Lambertu our lamb who is

getting ready and excited about the spring Carnival. Kilbi is

making sure Lambertu is dressed appropriately.“

Leanne Pentland – Co-ordinator Organisational Development and Learning

“At the risk of sounding like the crazy cat lady I am the proud parent of 2 wonderful and

well adjusted cats. Mushu – a 10 year old

Blue seal Point siamese rescue from the upper Valley Humane society in New Hampshire, usA. And Iggy (short for Ignatious) – a 1 year old Chocolate Burmese from Caulfield. I adopted Mushu while living in the us. When I moved to Australia I couldn’t leave him behind so he came with me. He is jam packed with purr-sonality going for walks on his leash or tucked in my satchel. We often have breakfast at a local café – he sits on my lap while I eat. And Iggy (aka Nugget, Ig-man or Monster) is your typical teenager zooming about and flopping on his side for love. I got him as a pet for Mushu (aka Moo, Monkey or Princess) and the household will never be the same.”Alison Breach – Landscape Architect & Tree Planning Officer

great and small!

Some people have kids, some have animals, and then there are those who have both... But the love of an animal is unconditional. No matter how bad or good your day was, they are always there for a pat, cuddle or lick, and just want to be with you.

As I speak to other people here and we talk about our pets, I am amazed by their beautiful and funny stories, so here are their stories in their own words, to share with you all.

And with love from our sister city in Japan!

“Coming home one day, I walked into the kitchen to start getting dinner ready and heard what I thought was a possum on the roof. I couldn’t hear the dogs usual yapping when

a possum is around so went out to check, and I found not a possum but my little terrier Oska. Having a fit of laughter I couldn’t tell him off, I jumped on a ladder and got him down thinking he got stuck and it wouldn’t happen again. Over the next few months I would come home from work every day to be greeted on my front veranda by Oska, patiently waiting on the roof for me. Last month I get a call from the neighbour, he has witnessed Oska jump a full six feet up the fence after getting into his backyard and then walk like a cat along the fence to get home. Needless to say poor Oska’s adventures have had to come to end before the dog catcher takes

him away, he now resides in a properly constructed dog run.“Jayde Welsh – Financial Training & Systems Support

“When you own a Great Dane it is pretty hard to hide and you cannot get down the street without being stopped – this breed definitely draws attention …he is usually referred to by people as a horse and even a giraffe!! It’s also a little strange when you go to the park and someone you have never met before tells you they have heard about your dog from other

park goers!!! Bob spends most of his day sleeping in preparation for his evening trip to the park or the beach

to play with his friends and for a special treat he attends day care once a fortnight – this is so great for his socialisation skills and

when he gets home he is out for the count! Bob is almost two and is a very funny pooch with a huge personality to match his size – he loves people, other dogs and play dates with his brother Roy. He loves the water as long as when he is in it, he can touch the bottom! Oh and he even hops in and out of the bath by himself …you just fill it up and in he pops …needless to say he splashes so much

the bathroom ends up covered in water!“Miriam James – Family, Youth & Children

60 Seconds withSharyn Scott

An Animal Management Officer since Oct 2002, Sharyn previously

worked at Cottage Kennels &

Cattery managing their boarding facility. She considers herself very lucky to be able to work in helping animals and humans to co-exist happily in Port Phillip.

My earliest memory is: Making cups of vegemite dissolved in hot water and being upset that my family refused to drink them.

My most treasured possession is: My german shepherd called Henri

I wish I had: A bicycle. It would make training for triathlons much easier.

I’m very bad at: Swimming

At home I cook: Lasagne

If I wasn’t me, I’d like to be: Happy being me.

My last holiday was in: 2009

My dream holiday is: The Inca Trail Peru

At the moment I am watching: Any movie with Guy Pearce in it. He’s my hero

At the moment I am reading: Pathway requests they are riveting and you never know what you will get. A bit like a box of chocolates

At the moment I am listening to: A howling cat. An audio sent to me by a complainant.

The last thing that caught my full attention was: Myself in the mirror.

I often wonder: Did I leave the kettle on.

Friends say I am: Shiz hear me roar.

What about a sustainable gift? “This year I will combine my love of crafts with my passion for good skin care products by making lip balm as a Christmas gift! All I need is beeswax, essential oil and some flavours. I will get pure organic beeswax from my friend who has a hive, some lavender from my neighbourhood. You melt it all together on a stove top then you pour it into small glass jars or directly in a beach shell. You can wrap it up in recycled papers and voila... Homemade lip balm with no preservatives and artificial colours. It is small enough to be sent by post or to be dropped into a friend’s letter box!”

Vesna Zadnik – Sustainability Education and Promotions Officer

New work valuesWhen I was first asked to be a facilitator for the Values & Behaviours program I wasn’t sure about it; I didn’t feel that I had the right skills to be part of the program and I also wasn’t sure if “Values & Behaviours” was something I believed would add great value to work we do everyday.

I decided to see what it was all about and quickly came to realise that at the root of the program, it was really about creating the time and space for teams to ask, “how are we going?” and to frame that conversation in terms of the Values & Behaviours of the organisation. Once I saw the value teams were getting out of having this opportunity my doubts very quickly disappeared.

Gregg Dearborn – Departmental Systems Administrator

A week in the life of GovernanceYou have probably seen us swanning about the office often as a pair chatting whilst pushing a giant trolley or standing in front of the colour printer printing and printing and printing…

Well, we are Rachel and Michelle – and we are the owners of Lucy the Kelpie and Gus the black Lab and the Council Meetings Officers (Not Stat Functions or Chubb Security). We are your friendly support staff who look after the administrative tasks

related to Port Phillip Council Meetings. We assist the EAs/PAs to the Executive Management Team, Councillors and Mayor in preparing

briefs and reports for distribution. We also prepare Agendas and attend the Council Meetings to prepare Minutes for Council.

We both work part time and our week is usually jam packed with deadlines, negotiations and general running around. There are elements of our job that are quite routine – being the treadmill-like cycle of Councillor Briefings and Council Meetings. However, there is also

variation – in the range of issues Council deals with and the different departments we are consequentially in contact with. Then there are also

the individuals in the greater Community we often liaise with in our role.

Next time you see us around say hi and we apologise in advance for hogging the printer… we can’t help it!

Michelle Huang (pictured with Guss her dog) and Rachel McFadden – Council Meetings Officers

Busy busy beesMy wife and I are apiarists (bee keepers) and have approximately 800,000 bees in hives at home and the backyards of two other households. We love our bees and treat them as pets, even though they are wild. When the odd bee comes into the house, we carefully take her outside (all worker bees are female).

Bees are hard working- bees fly on average 2-3 kilometres around their hive collecting nectar (for food and making honey), pollen (for food) and plant resin (for making propolis to seal hives). Added up, a colony of bees flies 4 times around the world to make 1 kilogram of honey.

Our bees give us honey (for our food, gifts and sale), bees wax (used for making candles and floor wax) and propolis (used for medicinal purposes).

Gary Spivak – Housing Development Officer

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