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Irish Times
3 days ago
- Business
- Irish Times
Moving from Dublin to rural Ireland: ‘Every time we went away we loved all the green around us. Then we thought, let's just go do it'
With traffic, queues and people – so many people – town and city life can lose its lustre, and many dream of moving to the peace and quiet of the countryside for more space, and often better value . Having land and property in picturesque rural settings can also provide opportunity in itself – in the form of tourism, food production and even pet training. Siobhán Owens has devoted her life to animals since she began volunteering with the DSPCA in Ballymun, north Dublin, in 1989. 'It's a small selection of people, along with plants and animals,' that make her happy, she says, speaking from her home in Athboy, Co Westmeath . Her youngest daughter starting college was the catalyst for her and her husband Jonathan to bite the bullet and move with their family to the countryside, where Owens would have the land to expand her pet-training business, Dublin and Meath Pet School. READ MORE 'Every time we went away – we'd go on camping and caravan holidays in Ireland – and when we were sitting there in those caravans with all that green around us, we said: 'Oh, isn't this wonderful? Isn't this what we love?' And then we thought, let's just go do it.' Siobhan Owens, owner of Dublin and Meath Pet School. Photograph: Alan Betson/The Irish Times In 2023 the Owens family sold their four-bedroom semidetached home in Finglas and moved to a three-bedroom bungalow with a big attic (that they hope to convert) in Athboy, just over the border from Meath in Co Westmeath. Most importantly, the property is on more than 5.8 acres of land, providing more than enough space for Owens to carry out obedience classes and behavioural assessments on her four-legged clients. She continues to operate home visits in Dublin as she always has done, but it's much better to carry out assessments of dogs in a safe and secure space on her land in Athboy rather than in public parks where other dogs and owners tend to interrupt, she says. [ How to move job, move country and find a new social scene Opens in new window ] One of the Owens's first logistical considerations was for two of their children, both in their 20s, to get their driving licenses so they could drive back and forth to Dublin for work and college. It turned out to be much quicker to get their driving test at the Navan test centre than to graduate from the waiting list they had been on in Dublin, and they both got sorted quickly – a benefit of living in a less populated area. [ Naoise Dolan: Moving home to Ireland was an easy decision. Here's what I've learned Opens in new window ] Not having a convenience shop within walking distance of their home was something the family had to get used to though, Owens says. 'It could be a little annoying. I'd suddenly discover that there is this one ingredient that I'm missing and I have to get in the car and drive. But it's just a seven-minute drive away, so it's not the end of the world.' The Owens family moved out of Dublin for a quieter life and to find space for Siobhán to operate her dog-training business. Photograph: Alan Betson / The Irish Times Jonathan also has to commute to work in Dublin city centre more often now that the company he works for called for a return to the office, whereas he had previously been able to work from home in the wake of the Covid pandemic, she says. 'He just gets up a little bit earlier and he gets in just ahead of the traffic and that's really all that you have to do. There's always a way around it. If you really want to [move to the country], hesitation is going to be your biggest hindrance,' Owens says. And despite the commute her husband has no regrets. 'Listen, he's out there on his tractor going around the land in the sun, having a great time. It's great for the mental health,' she says. 'We adapted to the country lifestyle very easily and now we just come home in the evening and have all the green around and you have peace and quiet, and I just love it.' Two donkeys have also taken up residence at the Owens' new home. Photograph: Alan Betson/The Irish Times The grounds have also become home to two donkeys and two horses, which Owens adopted from My Lovely Horse Rescue, as well as chickens which produce eggs for the household and are 'whistle-trained' to come out and say hello on command. She also grows an array of vegetables, has installed a hive to attract bees and has plans to rewild an area of marsh land and add a pond. Siobhan Owen with one of her three dogs Morgan on the Agility Course. Photograph: Alan Betson / The Irish Times Just a 10-minute drive across the border into Co Meath is another dog-friendly business, the Pheasant Lane short-stay retreat, near the village of Clonmellon. Geraldine Curran and her husband Derek Keogh bought the early 1800s farmhouse and outbuildings as their first home together in 2018 for €165,000, Curran says. There are often pheasants around the place, she says, but her inspiration for the property's name came to her was when she saw a hen followed by 10 or so chicks waddling up the lane. She originally stumbled upon the listing for the property one weekend and thought she'd have to wait until Monday to view it, but when she called selling agent Chris Smith from Quillsen, he got the couple a viewing that Sunday afternoon, and they immediately fell in love with it. Geraldine Curran of Pheasant Lane Retreat, Killacroy, Clonmellon, Co Meath. Photograph: Alan Betson / The Irish Times 'The driveway sold it to us because it's a beautiful 300m-plus driveway and it was just idyllic; there was a new forest just planted around it, it was two or three years old at that stage, but now it's matured over eight years and it's all around the house ... and the birds are constantly singing,' Curran says. Curran grew up living in a B&B run by her family in Spiddal on the Co Galway coast, and both she and Keogh have a background in hospitality, so they saw the potential to convert the cut-stone outbuildings into guest accommodation. Pheasant Lane is a short-stay retreat. Photograph: Alan Betson / The Irish Times Geraldine Curran offers a range of holistic therapies on-site. Photograph: Alan Betson / The Irish Times With a little help from their friends, they have converted them into three short-stay cottages – two of which are named after their mothers, Iris and Sarah – catering for guests who want to take a break and breathe in some fresh countryside air. Trained in holistic therapies, Curran has a therapy room on the property where she provides a range of services from reflexology to Indian head massage. Also on site for guests are two hot tubs and a barbecue hut. 'I love having people around but I also like my own company so the short-term rentals work quite well; you have the best of both worlds' Curran says. Potential 'working homes' Renovation opportunity in Rathosey Rathosey, Coolaney, Co Sligo Rathosey, Coolaney, Co Sligo Rathosey, Coolaney, Co Sligo €248,000, Sherry FitzGerald The right person could make something really special out of this property near the village of Coolaney, and 20km outside Sligo town. It contains a fully converted, beautifully fitted-out outbuilding, where you could live comfortably while developing the rest of the property. The main house on the site is a derelict period farmhouse, but with a healthy budget and the right know-how, it could be transformed into a guest house or retreat space. There is also a hay barn and old farm sheds on this 7.4 acre plot. Artistic inspiration in west Cork Dunkelly Middle, Goleen, Cork Dunkelly Middle, Goleen, Co Cork €975,000, Charles McCarthy Auctioneers Artists, writers or craftspeople may find inspiration in the stunning views from this contemporary waterfront property on Mizen Peninsula overlooking Dunmanus Bay towards the Sheep's Head Peninsula in west Cork . The property comes with approximately 30 acres of land and potential to add separate studio buildings, a workshop or guest accommodation to create an artist's retreat centre. Extending to 235 sq m (2,530 sq ft), the home is B2 Ber-rated and has three bedrooms. It is just a 10-minute drive from Goleen village and 20 minutes from Schull. Horsey haven in Co Monaghan Annacramph, Castleshane, Co Monaghan Annacramph, Castleshane, Co Monaghan €250,000, Sherry FitzGerald Conor McManus If you have ever dreamed of turning your love of horses into a business, this property on 7 acres may be the right place to do it. It is currently home to two horses and offers them plenty of field space, as well as two stables. The house itself extends to 67 sq m (721 sq ft) and has three bedrooms. It is in decent condition but could do with a cosmetic refresh, and the E2 Ber rating will need to be addressed. You can easily access both the Dublin Road (N2) and Armagh Road (N12) from this tranquil spot. B&B by the Brosna Riverside House, Charlestown, Clara, Co Offaly Riverside House, Charlestown, Clara, Co Offaly €345,000, Mark Nestor Property Services This four-bedroom, five-bathroom period town house sits right beside the River Park in the charming town of Clara. With a C1 Ber, this home needs an enterprising new owner to give the interior a modern refresh to restore it to its former glory as a B&B. It has a spacious driveway to the front for guest parking and a lovely back garden where you could grow fruit and vegetables to delight your guests. It is walking distance from the town and train station, where there are services to Dublin Heuston, Galway, Athlone and Westport.
RNZ News
4 days ago
- Health
- RNZ News
Common myths and curly questions about our fur friends answered
Not all tail wags from our dogs are actually friendly. Photo: Unsplash What does it really mean when your dogs wags its tail? Why do they sometimes like to eat poo? And can cats really make good therapy animals like dogs? Well animal behaviourist and certified dog trainer Dr Zazie Todd answered some curly questions around our canine and cat behaviours. Todd told Sunday Morning there were many myths surrounding our furry friends, including what it meant when dogs wagged their tails. She said the way a dog wagged its tail suggested it was feeling positive or negative emotions. "There's some research that shows that depending on the side of the dogs body that they are wagging too, it tells you something about the hemisphere of their brain that's involved. "So if the dog is wagging the tail to the left it would mean that the right hemisphere is involved and that's more associated with negative emotions, where as if their tail is wagging more to the right, that means that the left hemisphere is involved and that's positive emotions." But she said not all tail wags from our fur friends were actually friendly. "If the tail is quite up right and if it's kind of a tight wag and sometimes quite a quick one, that actually is a sign of the dog feeling stressed and aroused and that is also a sign that you should be more careful of that dog." Zazie Todd with her late dog Bodger Photo: Supplied ' Todd said when it comes to the personality of a dog it is largely not determined by its breed. "There's actually a lot of variability in a breed, in terms of how those dogs behave. "There is probably more variability within breeds than, you know, between different breeds, so the breed of a dog doesn't tell you everything about how that dog is going to behave. Genetics and environment both shaped a dogs behaviour, she said. Todd said dogs eating poo is actually a really common behaviour. "From the dogs perspective, poo seems to be quite a delicacy and something they enjoy eating and it might even have some nutrients in it from the food that has been eaten before." She said the best thing owner could do was just not give their dog the opportunity to do so. "Clearing up in our yards... maybe also have a conversation with your vet if your dog likes to eat poop often and think about making sure you have de-wormed them. "As well we can teach them to leave it and that's a really helpful thing to teach dogs anyway," she said. Cats can sometimes be a therapy animal. Photo: Unsplash Another mystery question that needed answering was whether cats could be a therapy animal like dogs? Todd told Sunday Morning they could, but it was uncommon. "Therapy cats can help people feel less stressed... but most cats won't enjoy this," she said. "The cat also has to go somewhere for this to happen, which is something most cats don't like. If you think of what most cats do when you get a cat carrier out - they run and hide." She also said scent was really important to cats, and when placed in an unfamiliar environment that didn't smell like their home "it can be quite stressful for them". "So i think some cats can make great therapy cats but I think they are a minority." Just like a dog wagging its tail, a cat purring didn't always mean they were happy, Todd said. She said sometimes cats could purr when they were sick or scared. "There is something that we call a solicitation purr... which kind of corresponds to the frequency of a babies cry. "So when the cat is waiting to be feed and wants some food that is the purr you will hear," she said. Cats have evolved this particular frequency overtime, Todd said. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
