Betty gets Bloody for Badgers.

Hello Betty Badger Fans,

Do your remember how I told you that Badgers don't have water coming out of their eyes when they are sad- you know, that thing called crying.  Well I would have cried this week if I could but Mary cried enough for both of us so that's OK.  

We were sitting here at the computer looking at our pictures when suddenly Mary let out a big roar of grief that I thought would topple the world on its axis and a lot of water came out of her eyes.  When she had calmed down she told me that DEFRA had just announced how many of my Badger friends DEFRA had killed this Autumn and it was:

32,601

Can you picture all those dead Badgers?  Here is a picture of just four shot Badgers and that is sad enough.

Imagine what 32,601 looks like.  Imagine how much fear and sorrow there is in the Badger clans when their brother or father or mother doesn't come back from foraging.  And imagine how frightened they must be when they hear the sound of guns.  

And, as you know, there is no scientific reason to kill Badgers.  It is Cows that cause bovine TB and wicked farmers like Mark Pickford in Stoke who was moving infected Cows around "putting profit before animal welfare" said the newspaper..... as if that is anything new....

So our trip to DEFRA today was important.  Before we left Mary made a new sign and spilled red paint over me which I didn't think was very kind, but she said we had to make a bigger impact.  It was to remind Hupeople that the Cull was about killing and hurting and causing blood to flow.   Here I am outside DEFRA with my paint and new sign:

Oh and I wore my Santa hat .  One Human said the fake blood was a good idea as it made more impact.  Another Human was upset because I had been festive and jolly last week in my Santa hat and now I had spoiled that for him.  Fewer Hupeople spoke to me and Mary, and a few DEFRA staff looked guilty and sneaked away hoping I wouldn't see them.  One lovely Human wasn't worried about the blood and gave me a Hi 5 or however you spell that.

Mary wasn't much use today though because she kept weeping so sometimes I pretended I wasn't with her.  She is also sad because one of her new Hens called Henrietta died of a mystery illness.  This is one of the Hens although I don't know if it is Henrietta as they all look the same to me:

I think there may be an affair of the heart, as you humans call it, involved too. I am confused by how much fuss you Hupeople make about these things and am not really sure why you call mating an affair of the heart; we Badgers use different body parts for that and it works fine as demonstrated by my large family of Cubs.  

I think you will agree with me that Hens are not as good looking as Badgers.  One DEFRA person called me "cute" today even though I was covered in fake blood.  I never will understand Hupeople.

In housing the rescue Chickens Mary has taken on more than she bargained for.  The Pheasants from the local shoot have started hiding in her garden and going in the coop to eat the Chicken food so Mary is now feeding around 6 ordinary Hens and around 30 "Designer Chickens".  I call the pheasants that because they are pretty and don't have all that red dangly stuff around their heads.  Here is a picture from Mary's garden with her various hens: 

If you have been reading this BLog for the last year or so you will recall a couple of trips me and Mary took to the Conservatory Party Conferences in in Birmingham and Liverpool.  Remember these times?

Do you also remember how I met a Dog and his Human who were protesting against Nuclear Power outside these Conferences .  We became chums, even though his Dog growled at me quite a lot.  Anyway, we met again this week in Smith Square as he was protesting against the Brexit fiasco.  It is certainly a fiasco for Badgers because everyone is so busy talking about Brexit and Christmas that they didn't hear about all the dead Badgers.

Mary had an argument last week with a Human who came out of DEFRA in Smith Square.  I don't know who he was but he was quite important, probably a Minister or a Senior Civil Servant, because he spoke in a very posh voice and had a coat with a velvet collar like this one. He also had a Driver as he was too important to drive himself. 

As he left Nobel House hew shouted at me and Mary and said we should go away and protest about something that actually matters.  There is a Human expression "red rag to a bull" .  Well, Mary became very angry and shouted back that the killing of innocent Badgers was very important indeed.  And he shouted that she was stupid and should stop wasting her time. Then his driver drove him off very fast before Mary could say (or do!) anything else. But he did make us both sad.  We have been going to DEFRA every week and to Conservatory Party Conferences for more than a year now and wonder if we are indeed wasting our time.  I reassured Mary that we had to stand up (and occasionally sit down when we get tired) for justice and kindness.  Then a DEFRA person came along and whispered "Don't give up . I'm on your side" so we felt a bit better.

Perhaps it wasn't just my "blood" that made Hupeople avoid us today but also because they didn't want to be reminded of the harsh realities and cruelties of the world and instead want to focus on the dream and sparkle of your holiday called Christmas. I reminded Mary that it was the Ox and the Ass who saw Jesus first- the Shepherds and Kings came later.  

Seasons Greetings Hupeople!  

Mary and I are going into hibernation for a couple of weeks so you won't see us at DEFRA next week.  I told Mary if Mr Gove can Have Christmas off then so can we.  Also, I think she needs a rest as she is downhearted and to replenish her eye-water reserves in case she starts crying again as she has run out of tears .  

I remembered she said how much she was disillusioned with the Human race and wanted to become a hermit.  Well, I have a big Christmas surprise for her.  I have dug her a big sett large enough for a Huwoman and dug a bed chamber filled with fresh straw and a food store filled with her favourite peanuts so she can sleep snug and sit and eat peanuts until she is ready to come out again.  Please don't tell her that I tunnelled my way into her bird food bins and stole all the peanuts.  I think her (and my) need for peanuts is greater than the birds'.  

PS: I do hope I can get all the red paint out of my nice fur before spring.  I might want another mate and in my present state no self-respecting Badger Boar will give me a second look

PPS: I just heard that the world did topple on its axis but Mary said it was not her roar of despair over the Badger Kill-Cull that did it, but today is the Winter  Solstice so that happens anyway.

PPPS: The Homeless Dog and his Human friend are no longer sleeping in Pimlico station.  I hope that are happy and warm in their own home.

PPPPS:  Thank you to the lovely staff of Pimlico station for the inspiring notices they put up for Hupeople to see at the top of the escalators.  We trudged very downhearted and weepy on Thursday and then we saw this, which made all the difference and gave us HOPE :

Wishing all Betty's fans a Joyful and Safe New Year, from Betty and Mary and Cubs Chickens and Designer Chickens. 

Betty 🐾🐾🐾

Betty Badger and other Animals

Hello Betty Badger fans.  You might have started to worry that I had been culled or run over, but here I am safe and sound.  

I am, however, a bit disgruntled because Mary's priorities seem to have changed in the last week or so.  Her latest enthusiasm is for... you will never guess what... Chickens!  Which seems a bit odd since she doesn't eat eggs.  She now has  six Rescue Hens in her garden which keep producing eggs. She has been giving them to her lovely neighbours Mike and Vanessa.  I said she should give them to me.  Actually, she has probably forgotten that Badgers do eat eggs..... and Chickens.  I promise I won't eat her Chickens..... unless I get really really hungry. 

She got her Hens a week ago and has named them Henrietta, Charlie, Orlando, Pauline, Mike and Vanessa.  Mary isn't sleeping because she is so worried that a Fox will get them during the night. She has big rings under her eyes like a Panda.  

Mary is pretty handy with a screwdriver. Here are some pictures of her building a hen coop:

Mary has also been organising demonstrations against reindeer exploitation and here is the evidence:

But of course you are not reading this to find out about Chickens or Reindeer or Mary - you want to know about ME, your favourite Badger. Despite all the Alternative Animal Activity, Mary and I have been to DEFRA for the last three Thursdays as usual.  We have had wet weather, misty warm weather and bitterly cold weather.  The lovely Caffe Nero Huwomen brought us hot coffee again.  Thank you Caffe Nero for saving our lives.

Today was quite fun as we met some of our old friends and made some new ones.  We met a very clever man who knew all about the Godfray report which said that killing us Badgers was not a very sensible thing to do and certainly won't do anything about the spread of bovine TB. We talked about global warming and how Hupeople need to eat less meat if we want to save our planet.  I wonder if that includes worms?   I would find it very hard to give up worms... But lots of Badgers and other lesser Animals died of thirst this year because of the drought that might come from Global Warming so perhaps we all need to do our bit

I met a man called Paulo who is a member of the group who wants to disrupt traffic and daily life in London so that Hupeople take climate change seriously.   He was on a bicycle of course.  He promised to read my blog.  Hello Paulo!

We also met an old friend who works for the Cathedral sorting out relationship problems.She is so lovely and supportive with a bright smile and always cheers me up.  She did a selfie with me, as did lots of other Hupeople today.  Betty is becoming Ubiquitous-  I don't actually know what that means but Mary said it and I thought is sounded impressive. 

There was a very important diplomatic meeting in Smith Square where I spent an hour or so.  Huge black cars called BMW and Audi with special number plates lined up outside beside me.  I wondered if all the Humen in the backs of these metal boxes on wheels had a disability because they had Drivers in the front to drive them. They looked very healthy and affluent when they got out of the back and Mary said it wasn't that they couldn't drive just that they were too important to drive.  I have made a note of the number plates, just in case.  

It occurred to me that I might subcontract myself for spying outside government offices because no one is going to suspect a Badger of anything, apart from TB of course.  I have amassed quite a useful portfolio of photos of the goings on outside DEFRA and the Home Office.

Returning briefly to the subject of Chickens, I think the Human Resources Department of DEFRA needs to look at the motivation and happiness of their staff.   On the stroke of midday, when their lunch break starts I suppose,  loads of staff rush out of he entrance, almost falling over each other in their desperation to leave the office.  They remind me of Mary's Chickens when she opens the coop door in the morning and they come bundling out.

I also met a Huwoman who had run over and killed a Badger last week with her car.  Her friend told me this information while she was walking by and I think she was a bit embarrassed.  Hopefully she has learned her lesson and is very sorry.  50,000 of us Badgers die each year because of cars.  I only wish that Hupeople would drive more slowly especially at night.  If you see a dead or injured badger please contact your local Badger group and they will help.  I am going to put a picture of a Badger here in case you are reading my Blog for the first time and don't know what  Badger looks like.  We are very attractive and intelligent animals who are highly talented at digging tunnels. 

On Tuesday when we were on our way to a Badger meeting Mary found a beautiful Deer knocked down by a car .  We were so sad that everyone was driving by fast and the poor thing was going to be squashed so Mary put her car in front of it to protect it.  After Mary had stopped crying, she rang her friends and they took it to a wildlife vet who operated; the Deer will survive.  Mary did some more crying and the next day rang up the County Council and asked them to put up a deer crossing sign, because deer are always getting killed there.

Now I haven't said anything about Mr Gove or Mr Eustice this week because I know that soon they will make an announcement about the number of us Badgers they Killed this year and what they intend to do next year.  They will release this information when everyone is too busy to notice, possibly because of Brexit or on the day when Parliament breaks for Xmas.  Call me cynical.... .

I will write my blog again soon if Mary helps me with the computer and is not too busy cleaning out Chicken muck!  This Badger is very clever and is quite capable of cleaning out her own sett.

Night Night

Betty  🐾🐾🐾