MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE - PLEASE CLICK ON THE ARROW BELOW FOR AMUSEMENT!    STILL WAITING We are still waiting on a reply from the local authority in Scotland, Erskine, which allegedly gave cart blance to householders to rid themselves of nesting gulls causing a nuisance - despite a General Licence in Scotland which required the reporting of dead gulls. We are now six months down the line having contacted the local authority in the summer to ask questions on behalf of Erskine householders who were furious at the council's stance.  One of our members found a dead gull on his roof that had been killed and got nowhere with the council, the MP, or the police.  He, like us, was met by a wall of  silence. We ask again, would we be met by the same wall of silence if it was some intolerant person who shot a cat because it fouled their flower beds or a dar because it barked too much.  Or how about a human who irritates everyone around him or her?  And we ask again - has the law been changed?  Has there been a consultation process or a green paper or a white paper?  And if so, when? We do not think it's acceptable that a local authority can ignore questions - whether it deems those questions to be legitimate or not.  It is not the remit of a local authority to judge the legitimacy of any questions but the remit to answer those questions.  The same applies to the MP, whose office said he did not deal with matters like this and it was a matter for the MSP although it was highly likely that the MSP would not respond from anyone outside of their constituency.  Well, we are also representing members of their constituency.  It was members of their constituency who contacted us and asked us to help.  We will keep this page updated - assuming we ever get a response from those who are responsible for the state of affairs in Erskine and, lately, Dumfries.  If we don't, we'll be contacting them all again and their responses or lack of them will be published here. We also have a letter available for download for those of you who want to question the authorities yourselves.  Just contact us.  The letter was requested by one of our members but can be universally applied and seeks to stop local authorities from ignoring the protected status of gulls.  It urges MSPs to refuse to allow the introduction of any  bye-laws affecting the gulls and urges local authorities to tell people about the preventative measures they can take to stop gulls nesting on their properties - safe measures that harm no one.  People who are reasonable, tolerant and civil will  use these measures.  We believe, only those who are generally disgruntled and unhappy will shoot at anything and will not use preventative measures which is why householders should not be given permission to kill these beautiful birds.  BACK TO SAY HELLO - The chick who flew the coup about seven weeks ago has paid a visit to his carers and the disabled seagulls who brought him up. The little creatured was rescued after falling off a roof and being put back up on the wrong roof where the adult gulls almost killed him.  A woman thought the best solution was to put him under the wheels of her car but she was overheard by someone who snatched the gull before she could kill it.  It was brought up in a garden with a paddling pool where it learned to swim and dive for fish.  It had disabled seagulls for company. "It was lovely to see the disabled gulls greet the chick," said the woman who had cared for it.  "They let it have first go at their food and let it eat as much as it wanted as well.  They sort of adopted it and it was lovely to see it return to say hello."  The Seagull Appreciation Society now has more than 700 members and wishes all of them a very happy Christmas and a good New Year. It costs nothing to join us but your membership means a lot to us.  It shows us that people do care about the gulls and will put their name to paper to help us address any issues that affect the birds' welfare.  Remember, it's as much a Save Our Seaside Society as it is a Seagull Appreciation Society.  The idea of the seaside without the gulls is unthinkable - and they are an endangered species. CLICK HERE TO JOIN   The sales of The Angel With The Whiskers On, published by Devon Print Ltd, priced 9.99 is going very well and the music on the CD - with accompaniement from Bobbie the Collie is proving to be very popular.  You can see him on Youtube at youtube.com/meeowow on Smokey's Tune or  the Tigerra Waltz.  The book is a testament to the pets the author has had over the years, each of them inspiring a piece of music and each of them rich in character and unique in character.  The author, one of our members, believes that each creature should be treasured because the world is a tapestry and to damage one thread of it is to spoil the entire work.  You  can also order the CD and book from http://www.devprint.co.uk We are currently having the book reviewed and will post the review here shortly.  Many of our members are creative and we will publicise their works here when space allows. The Seagull Appreciation Society thanks Devon Print Ltd for the use of webspace and for all the support the company has given to the society.  The society was founded when a nest on private property was destroyed and the chicks killed - against the law.  The resulting publicity and the founding of the society left the perpetrators with egg on their faces and a confrontation with the police.  We aim to help those who find themselves isolated because of such instances by giving them support against the bullies who believe they are above the law and nothing matters apart from anything that's important to them.