Small animals having big impact For many Housing Choices Tasmania residents, pets are important family members and housemates. For this edition of Home Stories, we spoke to some residents about how having a pet makes a house a home. Nigel and Daniel Osbourne. Housing Choices Tasmania residents, housemates and brothers Nigel (48) and Daniel (41) lived with their cat, Tiddles, in Somerset. The pair were gifted the feisty, long-haired feline 16 years ago. Sadly, Tiddles passed away a couple of months ago, leaving Nigel and Daniel grieving the loss of their beloved friend – but with a lifetime worth of memories together. “A friend of Daniel’s had a cat who had kittens and they gave one to us,” Nigel said. “She was only four weeks old when we got her, which is probably a bit young … Tiddles immediately became a significant member of the family pack. “It’s good to have a cat or an animal around,” Nigel said.
Nigel pictured above.
management transfer. In the past eight years they’ve become valued members of a range of
“Tiddles would always be doing something silly, which would make me laugh. “We previously had a budgie, a German Shepard … and a mixed bread Corgi-Terrier. We almost got another cat too.” About three years ago, Nigel and Daniel trialled bringing another cat into the mix – but Tiddles wouldn’t have a bar of it. “Tiddles had been a solo cat for so many years. She really ruled the roost.” Nigel and Daniel joined the Housing Choices community in 2014 when their two- bedroom property was transferred to HCT from Housing Tasmania as part of the original Better Housing Futures
Housing Choices Tasmania groups, including Fun Fridays, Sewing with Jo and Christmas in July, as well as joining other residents for community barbeques. Nigel has also learnt and shared his wood burning skills with other residents and had his work showcased at a local coffee shop. “I use a tool to burn a design into Huon Pine. I’ll burn sayings like: ‘have a nice day’,” Nigel said. “Housing Choices are doing something for the community, and I’ve met some good people.”
5
Made with FlippingBook Digital Proposal Creator