Galahad

My little cat is Australian - came with me to the UK AND will be going back..... She's family. And a feline frequent flier ! She's 12 now & is still kitten-like.... If I hadn't brought her - or didn't plan to take her back, she would pine away waiting for my dogs to come back from 'walkies'.... she precedes both of them in terms of her ownership of me & adores them... If you own a cat in Australia you need to make sure it's never allowed out at night because of wildlife.... Perhaps it would have been wiser for the original cats never to have been taken out there - but they are there now & you just have to take precautions.... There are some people who say horses damage the environment - & it's true that their hooves do more damage than a cloven-footed animal - but the original horses helped to build Australia.... It's always going to be a contentious issue for some - but you just have to be 'environment aware'......

Do you know what I did to get to Australia..... Well - see - I went to this bridge somewhere in New York & I jumped off it at midnight - straight into the arms of Hugh Jackman....& what do y'know .... it worked !!!! Uni - doing drama ? It think it suits you to a tee !!!! :wacko:

Hi Moonwalker, I've read all the posts & sensed your anguish - there is some good balanced advice in here (& a few little sparky bits - hey - it's a forum - it goes with the territory!) I can't relate to your homesickness & therefore (as another poster put very well) can't walk in your shoes....in that anyway.... But I am a Mum of two, now grown up sons. They, because of my life experience at the time, had a very broken education - moved several times & family life was strained & that's putting it mildly.... Son No.1 was 'academically' the one who found school easier....although home life interrupted his concentration - often. Son No.2 struggled at school & was also asthmatic - often brought on by stress of circumstances....he left school with only one GCE....in Computer Studies. When children are young, the mother - in particular - is the strongest educator - & the father if there is one still present..... From what you have said, you are already doing everything you can to get over, or at least reduce your own homesickness....but I guess what I am saying is don't worry too much about your son's perceived position in the 'education system'....with one strong & loving parent - let alone two, which I'm sure is the case in your family - he - in fact all children can achieve great heights. Son No.1 later went to University & now, many years on is a lecturer in English at a Korean University - & is happily married to a beautiful Korean interpreter... Son No.2 used his one GCE to get a great job (with computers) rose to become CEO, moved companies several times, (was even 'head-hunted') became very respected for his expertise & has now 'retired' in his mid forties to run his own business & has absolute financial security. Plus beautiful home, wife & child..... All I am saying is that keeping your family together (unless there's violence or cruelty) is soooooo important....the rest can wait....perhaps not go away for ever - but wait. With strong parent/s children can reach for the stars - where-ever they've received their education....

Fourcorners....... ".....Hobbies. I no longer go horse riding due to limited opportunities here....." Good Heavens girl - you just ain't in the right place - Australia is awash with horses !!! The horse-riding/working horse tradition is alive & well Down Under ! I'm sure you're there in Kalgoorlie for a work reason - but in some parts of Australia it's been said there are more head of horse than humans (Toowoomba).... So don't give up hope on that one.... Reading some of the posts it's clear that those with a lot to lose felt they lost it..... To give a balance - I have found Australians to be some of the most loving & helpful on the planet...but then what is an Australian ? Someone from somewhere else originally.... " I am, you are, we are Australians " Answering the OP question - what did I sacrifice ? Nothing, really - If you got nothin' you got nothin' to lose..... And I've been back for three years caring for my Mum (OK, having the freedom to do that because I'm retired, I admit...) but the fact that Australia is home doesn't stop me planning more trips - have friends in Barcelona - never been - & Cornwall - love it.... I don't think anyone should feel bad that they want to go 'back' to England or 'back' again....it matters because ? It's whatever makes them happy & we're all different.... :yes: http://www.kalgoorlieponyclub.com ..... Hope this is helpful - ALL PCs are grateful for 'on-the-ground' members & I'd be surprised if someone didn't have a spare horse - many people have spare stock horse in the back paddock & they're the best horses in the world - an Australian stock horse who knows what its doing..... AND they've got a Grade A Cross-Country Course !!!! May have to go there myself.... !

I agree with Loopylu - your original post sounds like that of someone in depression.....you have been through so many changes & you are home with a one year old.... It's all sooo understandable - the feeling of desperation takes hold of you.... I recognize these feelings - not about Australia - but a long time ago I felt just like that about a situation I was in..... Grab hold of all the help being offered on here (what a great bunch of people!) get out as much as you can - the desperation WILL pass & you'll be able to think straight again.... You are NOT alone.... Meanwhile, lots of :hug::hug::hug:

So happy for you - what gorgeous dogs !!! My lot will be going to Sydney so it's great to hear your praise.... Seeing their happy faces makes it all worthwhile doesn't it ? :yes:

"All the wife needs to do is call immigration and tell them the relationship is over and withdraw her sponsorship = the fact that she has not done this says to me that in her eyes the relationship is not over. If she finds out about you - I'm sure that will be what she will do" Yes......Or, if she does know, & I suspect she might...she is reluctant to take the first step to end the relationship... Be warned. Be very warned. However you want to dress this up by words like 'love' & 'in love' - he is a cheater. You've had some excellent & knowledgeable advice from a couple of posters - if I were you I'd be making myself very scarce until he's sorted his situation. If he really is in an impossible marriage (& it's such early days for them) he must deal with that, with due consideration for his wife. First. I hope the advice you've received helps to point you in the right direction.....

My first reaction is that you can do nothing......it's all too short a time.... Presumably he emigrated with his wife (or to her if she is Australian) so he has to sort it.... Immigration is not heartless - they realize that in the stress of emigrating, relationships do not always last....& it's not a given that he will be deported at all.... I suggest that he goes to Immigration or talks to an Immigration lawyer about the situation & the desire to separate from his wife.... I don't think you should or can do anything until this has happened....he needs to do - & be seen to be doing - things properly, no matter how badly the invective & recriminations are... Without more detail it's difficult to be more specific - vis-a-vis their property sharing/financial arrangements etc. etc....& I emphasize 'he' because it is him who must begin to sort his situation first & foremost... Initially you can be supportive while he starts the ball rolling but it's far too early to be claiming to be his 'de facto' - in a legal sense - quite apart from the fact that he is, however tenuously, married.... Immigration may decide to upgrade his visa to allow him peace of mind to sort his situation...then he can begin to unravel his snarls.... I don't know whether they will do that now - I do know of a situation where a relationship broke down & this happened, but each situation is different..... & you will both need patience...

You'll stop somewhere - I don't think London to Sydney non-stop is an option - yet ..... C'mon Richard, get your act together - we need a 12 hour flight to the antipodes !!! If you stop at Singapore head for the free massage chairs and/or the showers depending on time available....& there are 'feet-up-higher-than-body' relaxing chairs too.... Last time I flew I used all three options - got back on the plane so relaxed I fell asleep straightaway - made such a difference..... :cool:

Agree with everyone who says 'hire a car' - it's a must... No matter how well you get on with your family it's great - if not necessary - to get out on your own... When I first drove in Devon lanes I hunched my shoulders trying to make myself & the little Peugeot 107 hire car narrower ! The minor roads felt very minor ! Loved wearing 'proper' Winter clothes (my first visit for 10 years was over Christmas & New Year) & I enjoyed the snow we had that year.... The green-ness of the grass (yes, even in Winter) was wonderful to see & the 'indoor' Christmas was very enjoyable.... This last stay has not been a holiday & I've now been here for 3 Winters & 3 Summers (if you can count what we've had this year as 'Summer' !) Take 'light' suitcases - you're bound to enjoy the shopping as everyone will be selling everything for buttons given the dreadful Summer - shop, shop, shop.... In my case - always glad to return to Australia - my heart is where my horse is.... Have a wonderful time, whatever you do & wherever you go.... :smile:

"....We are both in the country that's right for us. I hope you find which one that is for you, because when you do, when you get that wonderful feeling that you are home, and wouldn't want to be anywhere else, it is a wonderful thing....." Love this comment.....it's so true..... I'm one of those people who feels absolutely 'at home' in Australia - did from day one - it's something indefinable, that feeling of 'being home'....it's not something I need to work on, or easily explained - it just 'IS' somewhere deep down... Born in Shropshire, have lived in London, South Wales, Lincolnshire, The Cotswolds, Merseyside, Dorset & Devon in my life & have been happy to - at the time.....I appreciate all that England has to offer.... But that feeling of 'belonging' is something which defies logic sometimes...but once you feel it, you KNOW.... For those of us who have the choice - aren't we the luckiest people in the world ? :laugh:

Bunbury.....South Devon - big old Victorian house (all double glazed though) .... but it's so damp down here .... Queensland humidity without the warmth ! Paul - There's a saying that one of the best ways to view the world is through a horse's ears at a canter..... Yep - I'd have to agree with that..... And to those guys giving serious info. about the mining industry- sorry - & Thanks, really do appreciate the knowledgeable views....

Hi Paul..... I'm actually a citizen - have lived in Sydney, The Hawkesbury & for the last 15 years or so in S.E. Queensland.....always on acreage & always with many horses.... I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Queensland Winters....the 5.30-ish darkness simply meant I needed to 'feed up' earlier.... And of course I kept the Uggs & the sheepskin gilet.... I will have been in England 3 years at the end of this year (came over to care for my elderly Mum when I retired, until she passed away in February) & despite eating jam butties all Summer to save the money to fly two :animal-dog::animal-dog: & a :animal-cat: back (who all came with me to the UK) I cannot wait to go riding again in the Queensland sunset on me big black 'orse - him in the profile pic..... Have I been cold in Australia ? 'Course I have.... Have I spent as much on heating a home in Australia as here in the UK, even given that Mum was in a nursing home during last Winter, so just keeping me warm - through Winter & this less than wonderful Summer ? Nope. Does that make me a 'wannabeagain'....!

Wow - what an interesting thread - don't have any connection with, or knowledge of the mining industry, but love to learn what people who know what they're talking about think..... On a (perhaps) very basic level - I know I'd rather be sitting on a deck with a tinny & a bag of chips in the warmth of a November evening in Australia, bemoaning the state of the economy, than huddled over a one-bar electric fire here in the UK with the curtains drawn at 4.30pm because it's pitch dark outside anyway & I can't afford to run the gas-fired central heating because it's too expensive to consider.... :eek:

Great post JB - I sooo empathize with the cleaning ! (Though not on the same scale !) I've had to clean all my 'horsey' boots - Hunter wellies, joddie boots etc. & yeah, Thank Goodness for the pressure washer - but have now sold the pressure washer on eBay !!! I do hope you will post again when you are 'sorted'....shall look forward to your up-dates.....:biggrin:

Veeeeeery useful - reading everyone's experiences & advice..... Looking at fatty & chubbs (Abby & Skippy) lying on the bed beside me (I get the outside edge) & pussy-cat Purdy draped across my feet, her second preferred - or should that be 'pre-furred' position, the first one being draped across the laptop.... Pause for change of position - large Abby paw stretching across numbers section of keyboard,,,,, Anyway - I don't think I'll visit - they would all think they were coming home with me.... When we arrived at Heathrow three years ago, when they saw me, they left with me... Shall definitely do the 'doggy-walker' thing & send lots of bouncy 'ballies' for Abby....Skippy doesn't do 'fetch' - always been a bit beneath her, but she does intervene if any other dogs come along in the park to pinch her sister-in-paw's possession ! Really interesting point re. the being able to see 'hooomans' from the enclosure - of course ! I shall bear that in mind - mine are 'rescues' & very much 'people' people now.... I'm not looking forward to the separation, but it will make it easier to organize myself in the 30 days intervening.....& if by chance I'm lucky enough to benefit from the reduced quarantine period - I shall just have to organize myself more quickly.... The option of not taking my 'furry family' is just not an option..... :animal-dog::animal-dog::animal-cat:

Hi Sandyb, I shipped two dogs & a cat from Australia to the UK three years ago & am just going through the process of preparing them all to go home..... We used (& will use again) Dogtainers, who I felt were excellent & somewhere in the middle, price-wise - but there are many options - many good shippers.... All three animals were beautifully cared for....& I had no problems with communication - they didn't mind any amount of 'stooopid' questions.... The cat was fine - if a bit indignant - but absolutely fine.... I welcome the proposed shorter quarantine time - if it happens, but have no doubt that the quarantine period will be harder on me than them.... Expensive - certainly - but I can live on jam butties for six months if I have to.... Good luck.. :jiggy:.

"... It's only a draft proposal at the moment - I wouldn't count on it until the ink is signed and all is sorted. It may end up that they don't go with it for various reasons ...." ....Very true - these things can take ages - so no point telling my girls yet - 10 days or 30 days - we'll handle it ... I think they will eventually adopt it - or at least reduce the time, simply because there are so many 'companion animals' now travelling.... I don't know if anyone has done a survey of the increase (like they do with numbers for immigration) but the explosion in the number of 'pet shippers' gives a clue to the amount of business available to keep them afloat.... I'm all for some quarantine - having lived through the horse 'flu epidemic which swept Australia & wreaked havoc throughout the horse community (to say nothing of the anguish of having two very sick horses) ..... That was caused by lax quarantine practices .... So we wait with bated breath .... BTW, Congratulations (on your post-script message) JoandJon .....

Oh, wow - I wonder how quickly the new quarantine time will be put into practice ? Logic says that there must now be sooo many 'companion animals' who are squeaky clean when they arrive that the system needs to be speeded up..... Is it too early to tell my 'girls'.....? :animal-dog::animal-dog::animal-cat: I plan to send them at the end of the year - at the moment we are pootling along quite nicely with all the vaccs....it would be wonderful, both for them & my wallet if the quarantine was reduced by then..... Great post - Thank you...... :smile:

Aaaw - c'm-ooooon - they could have reached a compromise - they could have suggested the passengers fly half way - then utilize their 'right to leave'.... ! :biglaugh::wacko::biglaugh:

Oh that's such good news - now remember to breathe again ! I'm preparing my lot for the trip back to Australia - we've done it the other way already.....so I know how you feel....mine have never done quarantine though, which is going to be much harder on me than them ! So glad you'll see yours soon.... :ssign19:

....Can't even begin to think how you must be feeling ! How terribly worrying for you - I do hope you are OK.....the dogs will be fine - they don't know there was a problem.... lots of :hug::hug: