All About Dani

This is a post that will give utterly useless information about Dani, the nail artist at Popular Polish.

Name: Dani Grego
Age as of this blog: 22
Favourite colour: Green
Favourite animal: Red Squirrel
Favourite video game: The Monkey Island series

First Pets

When I was 19, I was living in Harrogate with an ex partner. I took this opportunity to research getting a pet, as I had not really had pets as a child. (I had a goldfish and a mouse, but I was too young to look after them properly.) I decided on a pair of Roborovski Hamsters. My ex - Let's call him Richard - Already had some toys, shavings, and a small aquarium from his last hamster. We went to pets at home and were asked a couple of questions, like did we have a cage and have we owned them before. We were not tested on our knowledge though, and though it didn't bother me at the time, it now does affect me that people aren't really briefed before buying a pet. I called them Karot and MelOn, after the internet pictures: 

I split with Richard and a few months later met my current partner Andy. We eventually had to separate the girls, as they began to become territorial and fought each other. When one of them had some blood on their back it was the last straw. (I now believe that if they had a cage of a better size they wouldn't have fought.) But they were so precious to me. My perfect little girls.

One morning in January 2012 I woke up and got my cup of tea as usual, and checked on my girls who should have been sleeping (As hamsters are crepescular). Karot was snoozing away and then I looked in MelOns cage. If I had been holding my tea, I would have dropped it. MelOn was on her shelf, lying on her back, little paws in the air, cold and not breathing. She was dead. 

I was hysterical. I didn't know what to do. I called my partner Andy and told him what happened, he was upset too. I was home alone and devastated. I put the cage with her in the study for when she got home, and my mum set up a little funeral for her. We put her in her house and made sure she was all cosy on her journey to the rainbow bridge.

When I was less hysterical, I started doing my research as to what it could have been. My answers ranged from a heart attack to constipation. I did remember seeing her when she had just passed, her back end was open with a lot of seeds in it, so I thought this could have been the answer. It made me feel so awful that I didn't know.

Not long before MelOn had passed away, Karot wasn't sounding too good. She was making little squeaky sniffling sounds. After doing a bit of research on this, we decided to go to the vets for a better diagnosis. They thought it was a respiratory infection, so I stopped using wood shavings and changed to carefresh, and started giving her baytril. She really didn't like it, but I did what I could to make sure got it. Usually putting it on a treat. The medicine did nothing, and she just kept getting worse over a few months. I remember holding her during her final moments, she was wheezing and slipping away from me. I kept reassuring her it was okay to go and whispering that I was there. This was one of the most upsetting things I had ever dealt with. Both my girls in a short period of time. 

Again, I got on the internet. This just wasn't right. I asked other hamster owners who then mentioned fluffy bedding. I was confused. How could a nesting material have any affect on a hamster, or even kill them? The symptoms described were exactly what MelOn and Karot had. and it made perfect sense as to why Karot did not improve with antibiotics. 

My precious little Karot, near the end

Teddy-Bean

Over time I got a new hamster; Teddy-Bean (Beans, Beanie, Madam buns, Muffins, Muffin-Buns). She was originally kept in the Abi cage. She was a bouncy, feisty jumpy golden Syrian hamster. 

6 Week old Teddy-Bean, on her way home with us

She liked to sleep in weird positions...

Yet again, I had done my research but still didn't know everything. When we got her home she seemed to be very stressed. We left her alone in her cage to get settled but she refused to settle down and kept running around and running on her flying saucer. I kept checking on her every 15 minutes or so, and one time she seemed particularly stressed, she was sitting on her saucer looking like she was dropping off to sleep, but she fell backwards off the wheel into that heartbreaking back position that every hamster owner dreads. I panicked. We took the top of the cage off and tried to pick her up. She was breathing. When we picked her up, she leapt off us and on to the floor, and started sniffling around exploring! We are still unsure whether it was heat stroke (We were in the middle of a heat wave), stress, or that she was just pretending as she wanted to get out. But she was immediately fine. To be on the safe side, we removed the wheel for that afternoon and she eventually went to sleep in her house. 

I began taming her after about a month, and I was very nervous as I had never properly handled an animal. She was actually very friendly considering she was quite jumpy to begin with and not too friendly with people other than me. I used a big empty box as a playpen and used this opportunity to put my hands in. She was very happy to step on me and seemed to enjoy having me near. 

The first time I handled her properly

Over time our bond grew and I couldn't go a day without getting her out to have a cuddle or explore. Particularly now that I live in my own place with my Fiance, she likes to be on the sofa with us! She was a bar chewer in her Abi cage, so I decided to have a large upgrade and get the Mamble 100 cage. It takes up an entire side in the kitchen, she has more space than we do!

 

As I type this, Teddy Bean is over two years old and is showing her age, which would be around 75 in hamster years. She developed Pyometra which is a very mysterious infection and unknown as to how they get it. I give her Baytril and Metacam daily and we don't know whether it will work, but she is too old for surgery. I hate to think that one day I will lose her too, but at least I know I have done what I can with her. She has been loved and she has given me strength and inspired me. She is beautiful and full of character. I feel privileged to have each moment that I do with her. 

Old lady Beans having some cat milk

Her 2nd birthday meal

Her retirement set up

Animal Activism

After my previous two angels passed away and I first got Beanie, I decided to do continuous research instead of as and when. I would spend a lot of my time reading books and articles to learn about requirements, the best care, and illnesses. It developed into a passion, I wanted to inform others of the things I previously was not aware of. After I had an unsuccessful P@H interview, I decided to post a blog article on what went on during the interview, which already has thousands of readers. 

Click here to view the blog post (Opens new window)

This was around the same time that I started my campaign to spread awareness about the dangers of fluffy bedding. I wanted to inform people of my story, the dangers, and also contact companies to explain the issues to them. After a year or so I had developed my mini army of hammy people, and I lead the way to get the Rotastak nesting material removed from Pets At Home! This was a huge achievement and inspired me to continue the fight at other places. 

I am also now meat free, a member of the Peta action team, and I support the BUAV leaping bunny using cruelty free make up. I am commonly found posting and 'admining' hamster groups on Facebook.

To view exactly what it is that I do with regards to animals, click here. 

Disney

Disney is a huge part of my life. I had all the classics on video as a child, and the passion has passed through to adulthood. At work about a month ago, I had a child of about 5 and their mother come through my checkout. She whispered something to her mum and the mother said "Tell her!". The child went coy and hid behind her mum. The mother then said "Tell her she looks like Elsa!" I went bright red. I was a big fan of the film and LOVED Elsa so much! 

My video TRYING to get an Elsa doll

The most important Disney film to me is Pinocchio. I can't listen to "When You Wish Upon A Star" without bursting into tears. When I was two, my uncles next door neighbour knitted me a Pinocchio doll, which we named Pin. 20 years later, I still have Pin. He's been my inanimate support throughout my childhood and is still my main comfort now.

  

Work

I have had a few previous jobs. My first was when I was 13, and it was work experience in a nursery. I became attached to a 3 year old boy called Joshua (Who when I think about it, will now be at senior school...). Every time the kids were dropped off by their parents, he would hand up his coat and look round the room. As soon as he spotted me he would run straight at me for a big hug. He would always want to sit with me in the assemblies. He had blonde hair and these cute little bob the builder wellies.

My second job was during college, I worked at BP. My job title was "HR Intern for the Angolan Developments Team". I did the basics like filing, photocopying, neatening documents. I was 17 and I really enjoyed it, it was a great place to work. Huge open office, £5 free for lunch every day, and free tea, hot chocolate etc when working and a free gym membership. I kept crisps in my drawer. 

I briefly worked for a club/bar when I lived in Milton Keynes. I REALLY didn't like it. It just did not suit me at all, this party scene. I originally thought it was a nice restaurant but I was on the door letting drunks in and out, getting blisters until 2am. When we reached my 2 months probation, we sat down and discussed the job, them saying I am not particularly outgoing and me saying I just don't enjoy dancing with drunk people and interrupting people eating. I left, and I've been teetotal since new year 2013.

I did another admin/receptionist job at a recruitment agency in 2012 which I did rather enjoy, but I now work for a Supermarket. It has it's ups and downs but overall I like the job, particularly my colleagues. For each spiteful customer there is another one to tell me what a great job I'm doing, or that I'm pretty or useful.

Buddhism

I discovered Buddhism by accident, I was not looking for a religion. January 2013 I sunk into a dark place mentally due to a combination of factors. It got so bad I needed almost constant care due to instability, and was under daily watch by the Crisis team. I also had regular visits from three different support workers. When things got slightly more stable I started going to hospital to get different forms of rehabilitation. Everything from light exercise to basic living skills, mindfulness to assertiveness. I was also on a confidence building course where I met some amazing people that really affected me. All this opened my mind, listening to other peoples problems made me become a much more tolerant person. To hear what other people go through when looking at them you would have no idea what they go through. I greatly sympathise and it was really refreshing to have other people listen to me too. 

Buddhism had tied in to a lot of the skills I had learnt on this journey, particularly mindfulness. Mindfulness is being aware of a certain feeling, circumstance or emotion without judgement. So say someone cuts you up when driving on the motorway. You say to yourself "That's fine. It's happened now, I accept that, and I understand that I have no control over it." That's being mindful, and it's an amazing skill to learn. To understand that you are in total control of how you feel. Now I'm not a monk, I haven't fully mastered it yet, I still get mopey when I have a cold or grumpy if I don't get sleep. But I'm sure I will get there through regular meditation! 

This is one of the reasons I love Brighton so much. It's full of Buddhist shops and culture. Everyone is different and accepted. I have visited the Brighton Buddhist centre and it's a beautiful place, it feels so right. It feels warm and calm. The people are mellow and accepting of anyone. The first time we visited, we were geared up in our tourist rags; jeans and trainers. But we were fully accepted and welcomed. 

I also attended a Buddhist workshop where I live where we were taught skills relating to mindfulness by a genuine monk. 

There's me on the far left!

 Nail Art

I began doing bits and bobs of nail art around 2011. This would just be the odd manicure with rhinestones, nothing adventurous. Then at the beginning of 2013 I was inspired by Blues Clues to do a design of the dog, Blue. This was my first ever design.

And when Kevin Duala from the show tweeted back to me, I was fuelled to do more nail art! This was the start of an ongoing passion for me. I decided to set up a website and facebook page called Popular Polish. Everywhere I had searched, nobody had taken that name. 

As of May 2014 I have done approximately 90 designs, and I have 24,619 fans on Facebook! I am so grateful for all the support I have got and would like to thank anyone reading that has already liked, shared, commented, or suggested me. If you have not yet, here is the link to like my page! - Popular Polish - FB

Superdrug Winner

E.L.F. Winner

So far I have won two competitions, the first was my minion design for Superdrug. I won with a difference of about 300 likes! The second competition I entered was for E.L.F. cosmetics, which was the 2013 christmas competition. I entered my Santa design, which I thought was weaker than my christmas pudding design, but I still won. Thank you to these companies for their wonderful prizes!

I have also gained a lot of support from other companies, BeautyUK (Which is one of my ultimate favourites!) have liked me on Facebook and sent me a package worth over £40 of their products. 

Future Hopes

I would like a nice house to add my personal touches to. Ultimately I would love my career to be voluntary and revolve around helping animals. But that's just not possible full-time. I would certainly like to marry Andy, who is just so special to me. I would like a Bichon Frise called Woofles. I would like a son and daughter called Joshua (Andys choice) and Zelda (My choice).

This is a post that I believes gives a very general idea of who I believe I am. I have not gone in to depth and I don't want to with regards to some things, because I want to keep this overly positive. I won't go in to detail about relationships as it's a difficult topic. Thank you very much for reading, and I hope I've inspired you to go for the things you believe in and dream of, no matter what hurdles are in your way. 

Pets At Home Store Review 2

Today I took a trip into town to visit the East Grinstead Pets at Home. To read about my previous visit and review of the Crawley branch (In which I state some problems with P@H nationally) please click here.

Date of visit - 01/06/2014

Time of visit - 2:30-3:30pm

When I arrived I was greeted by an immaculately kept store, there was no litter or stock strewn across the floor. Most of the products were well stocked up.

I had a look at the leaflet rack and it was almost full, apart from Syrian hamsters. I approached a nearby colleague and asked whether there were any more out the back. She giggled and went to get some. She came back with a pile and stocked it back up, handing me one too.

Pets At Home are well stocked up on wood shavings and I couldn't see any Carefresh anywhere or another suitable alternative for those with allergies. They also sell scented wood shavings which can be irritable for the hamster. Upon closer inspection, some of what I thought were shavings were actually sawdust. On the back it states suitable for hamsters, but in their own leaflet on Syrian hamster care, it states "Do not use sawdust as it can make hamsters ill". Hamsters cannot use sawdust as it is too fine and can be inhaled, so yet again they are going against their own advice, and policy where 'pets come first'.

The sign below does not make sense, as hamsters have been domesticated for generations. The hamsters they sell are not wild hamsters. They like places to hide from potential predators, not because they burrow in the wild. 

I walked past a woman who had about 6 young syrians in a small cage with a 6 inch wheel with very little wood shavings. I had then realised that she actually could have been a breeder for the store. I hovered and when she saw I was looking I went in closer hoping for a conversation. I said "Sorry to be nosy, they are so gorgeous!" She just looked impatient and didn't respond, like she wanted rid of them and to go home quickly. This concerned me. The colleague then came back to her and like a lot of the staff members I had seen, refused to pick them up properly. She first tried the 'grab from behind' approach (Which is not advised before the hamster is tame, as this is how they are picked up by predators.) and couldn't get hold of it. She then got a log bridge from one of the shelves and let the hamster climb on, and when I came back to the hamster displays later I saw they had already been put out to sell.

I asked a different colleague a small tester question, "Do you have chinchilla sand for hamsters?" he responded "You mean chinchilla dust?", "No, chinchilla sand for hamsters", which seemed to confuse him. He then took me to the hamster litter and started looking for the sand. They didn't have any stocked in and I couldn't find a space for them on the shelf. He said "We usually get a delivery in on Mondays". While he didn't understand what I was after, I was pleased that he didn't hand me the dust and claim it is safe for hamsters, however i would have been more impressed had he informed me that the dust is harmful.

Like the Crawley store, they didn't stock a single cage suitable for Syrian hamsters. There was also a mix up with the measurement labels, as one cage said 38cm in length, but one that was much smaller was labelled as 40cm. Their cages for rabbits were actually the base size of my hamster cage. The image below shows the measurements of their largest hamster cage.

For the same price as the very poor cage in the image below, you could get an Alaska or Barney online, which meets the 75cm x 40cm general minimum guideline. This was one of their larger hamster cages in store...

The worst part of my visit came towards the end. This was the big one. I approached a third employee and said to him "I wonder if you could give me some advice please, I was wondering what the best bedding is for hamsters". He took me over to the nesting material and it was obvious straight away that he was bluffing his way through this sale. He pointed to the paper flakes and said "They are good", then pointed to Safebed paper wool (Which is plant fibres, not paper) and said "That one is good too". I said "What about this cotton bedding, is that one any good?" and he said "Yeah it's good like the others. They can take how much they need. Just if they go toilet on it it can be hard to clean out." I bit my tongue so I didn't start explaining the hazards and my disappointment that their training doesn't involve this, and thanked him for his help. After he'd gone, I decided to get the only one he hadn't advised which was actually the most suitable for a hamster.

In the adoption center, they had a folder with images and details of the rescue animals. I turned to a roborovski and read that they had to have their leg amputated. I was then horrified to see fluffy bedding in the image with the hamster.

There was a woman that came in with her daughter who wanted a guinea pig. She was out the store within 5 minutes with the animal. I hovered nearby when the child was holding the piggie to see whether the colleague would properly test the customer to ensure it's going to the right home, she said "Do you have a cage and stuff?" She said "Yeah, yeah." with no further queries after that.

The **disturbing** images below were shown to me by someone who visited the Newton Abbot store. Not only is there no stimulation or enrichment whatsoever, there are smears of what looks like blood on the side. 

I find it exceedingly disappointing that despite genuine concerns towards this company, they show no desire to improve or pay attention to modern research. They continue to sell products that are considered harmful, or that appeal to children instead of practical for the welfare and life of the animal itself. 

www.hamsteradvice.com

Campaign Facebook Page

Pets At Home Interview