Wilbur Flies the coop, Over Rainbow Bridge....

Hello dear friends and fellow bloggers,

It with a heavy heart I share with you all the sad news that our boy Wilbur the Barnevelder Rooster died today, Friday 13th January 2012.

Although Yollie tried her best and did everything she could to try save Will, he lost his fight in the early hours of this morning.  We are not sure what happened to him, or why he fell so ill so suddenly.  It has been horribly hot here over the last few weeks and although every effort (ice bricks in water, water sprays over birds, shaded areas and wet blankets to cool air down) is made to minimise heat stress, it is still a possibility.

Some of you may remember Will's story but for those of you new to our Blog, here it is, but now with his final chapter too.

Wilbur, one day old hatchling (27/11/10)

Will was hatched right here at Fairy Castle Farm on 26th November 2010, he was the last chicken to hatch of 8, our runt.
Tinkerbelle hatched him, although she was his surrogate mum (he came to us as a fertilised egg from another farm) he had different ideas of his own.
The very morning after he was hatched Yollie and Miss Princess found him on the cold floor of the nesting area. He had fallen out of the nest and was lying cold and stiff on the ground, there was no sound.
Miss Princess began to cry, the sight was most disturbing.  He was all stretched out stiff and cold. To protect her girl from the image Yollie quickly scooped him up and held her to her breast whilst consoling her.
After a few minutes, the crying had stopped Yollie was explaining to her girl that as horrible as it was to see their little chick 'dead' it was a part of raising little chickens that not everyone makes it.  As Yollie spoke still holding Will against her and away from her daughters view, she felt something.
She did not want to give her girl any false sense of hope, yet at the same time she wanted to see if the bird was in fact still alive, she suggested they go inside.  Her little girl started crying again, not wanting to leave her chick.  Just then Yollie was sure that the chick definitely moved.  She told her girl to stop crying as they needed to go inside as soon as possible, because the little chick had moved!!
Over the next four house they both worked solidly warming and rehydrating him. Will responded beautifully, he went from strength to strength and never looking back.

That was his story, his fight for survival and second chance at life.  Today however suddenly and with great sadness the final chapter also needs writing -
The Final Chapter:
  Will's rocky start and extra handling meant he became imprinted to his human 'mums' forming a very close bond.

  He learnt to chirp so they could communicate and he enjoyed a wonderful chick-hood of mischief and adventure.  He was a special guy, our 'Will-Bill' our 'Wilbur' our mate.

He thought himself more a human or bunny (his second adoptive family) than Chook anyday!  As he grew he developed into a strapping young Cockerel, loved by all.

Will was never aggressive, never rude he was a gentle soul and fair fowl. Loved nothing more than 'cuddletime' with his adoptive "mum'.  He would walk over, bok low down in his throat, then look and Yollie and she would know....

Deep in thought - at his happiest, with his Yollie

Preening Yollie!

 Soon he had grown into adulthood, he ruled the roost. Just quietly, he ruled to warren too, us bunnies loved his 'eagle eyes' and loud alarm in the event of any predators being present!

Sweetie and baby Wilbur hanging out together, playing

The hens respected him and accepted him as their mate. He fathered 11 chicks, 7 of which still live with us today.  He always kept a close eye on his chicks, never needing to be separated as he never posed a risk. He happily undertook 'mother-hen' duties, proudly parading his flock and teaching his young how to find the best grubs and morsels of food.  He versed them in the language of lagomorphs and human, such a clever boy he was. Quick to diffuse a spat and impart a calming air, a stress free flock a wonder to share.  It is here his story is cut too short, a life just begun but now come to an end. Yollie tried, cried and tried, and then cried lots and lots more.... but for all her efforts Will would be no more, he just could not get out of this mess.
So to our Wilbur we say; Goodbye, farewell - oh how we all loved you, you will live in our hearts and memory forever. Fly free over Rainbow bridge, until we meet again.

RIP Wilbur, 2010-2012.

With great sorrow,

Sweetie xoxox

Milestones a plenty !!

Sweetie here,

Firstly I wish to apologise for my lax attention to our blog.   I am not sure if it is just consequence of the season? I just haven't had the opportunity to take up my space at the lap top to click and tap open our world for you.   For this I am truly sorry and am actively working to rectify this!  Do you forgive me?

To bring you all up to speed, our Bis-Nonna (Great human grandmother) celebrated her 461st Birthday (or 81st in human years).

Nonna celebrates her 461st Birthday!
 She enjoyed a wonderful day shared with all her family and great friends.  She even got herself a little pickled over lunch!  Happy Birthday Nonna. 

We also celebrated a milestone, we now have our very own YouTube channel and you can take a walk down memory lane with me.....  our first video is of me when I was only days old!!  here is the link : 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hf2qaxF-TkY  

All in all we have been very happy enjoying mild weather, super yummy produce including end of harvest stalks, stems and excess seeds from the garden. Fantastic romps aplenty through the kingdom have been invigorating and exciting.

Patches and Angel, Son and Father.

Patches as always is looking for ways to cause trouble, his latest mission is to sneak into the veggie patch any chance he gets!  I tell him he is confused in thinking his name is Peter and the garden belongs to Mr Mcgregor!!!

An update on our re-homed chickens. Our dear Pox has settled into her new home, she is still getting used to her new kingdom but we know she will be very happy.... Our latest update from the girls was very positive and exciting.  Let me share it with you all.
Firstly the three little girls have their true names... Milly, Molly and Mandy (from a 1920's children's series of books their new mum loves). Pox too has her forever name, she is now known as, Alice (the Aunt in the book).  And my little boy??  Well yes he too has settled in marvellously with his new family and is now known as, Billy (a dear friend to Milly Molly Mandy in the books). I think each of there names are marvellous and suit them perfectly!
 I am delighted also to report that Billy has found his new mum's shoulder to perch upon just as he enjoyed to to with Yollie.   Yollie misses her feathered kids dearly and very much so, Alice's morning chatter but she is happy to know they are all well loved and happy.  She especially loves all their names.

So as you can see we have been very busy and as always there has been great activity and celebration here - we love to be able to share this with you all.  Make sure if you stop by, you do say Hi, I love to hear from you all.  A quick mention on my last post, some fantastic suggestions for keeping cool. We especially love the freezer tile!!  Thanks for sharing .... and 19 more sleeps till Christmas, if you celebrate what do you have planned????  Here is a sneak peek...

 I will share our plans on my next post!  Promise,


take care and keep well.

Love Sweetie xoxoxo

It's getting hot, hot, hot! ....

Hi, Sweetie here,

Just a quick update on all things Fairy Castle Farm...

Summer is just around the corner, boy do we know it!!!  On Friday it got to 37 C (99 F) and it is still spring!!!!  We are very lucky to have not one but two underground burrows to rest in during the heat.

My Yollie comes up to the fairy castle regularly to check on us and the chickens, change our water and bring icy celery sticks and carrot tops from the fridge.  Every time she calls us to the surface and hands out the treats, she has a big smile and a giggle. This is because she says that we feel like we've been in the fridge.  She also laughs as we grab the snacks and tear back down our burrow, we just don't want them to go warm and limp after My Yollie went to all the effort of chilling them for us >(;oP

The chickens get special treatment too. My Yollie has old towels pegged to the wire of the coup and she wets them down so that any breeze that passes cools the air down for the chickens, it really works!  Wilbur or as we say, Will our rooster comes right up to the hose and holds his wings out for a shower, he is "Some Rooster!"  (Thanks Charlotte).

Wilbur aka "Will"

Also on Friday we were able to meet our chicks new mum,such a lovely lady and we know she will take wonderful care of our Chick siblings.  Sadly her flock were taken by a fox, right in the metropolitan part of town!  She has since repaired the coup so that it can't happen again, but is so sad to be without her beloved hens and Bantam rooster of 14 years.    My Yollie has allowed her to take her babies ahead of time and to help the chicks settle in, Pox has agreed to head the flock.

So we sadly farewell our beloved Pox, but we know she will again take her rightful place as Queen once again.  Pox's position was unceremoniously de-ranked when Wilbur came of age and assumed the position of King and Ruler.  Not one to complain or cause a scene Pox denounced her status and stood down, but My Yollie could see she really was not the same after this.  So with a tear of sadness mixed with tears of joy and hope we say goodluck and good bye to Pox and her flock of four.

Pox, Chicken Pox - signing off. Bye bye xoxo

Now take care every bun and if you are like us and experiencing the heat, please try and keep cool.  Lots and lots of water, and iced water bottle is also nice if you don't have a burrow and try some fresh greens from the fridge, they are extra yummy, I promise.

What tips do you have for keeping bunnies cool in the heat??  Please share with us, we would love to hear them.


Till next time

Sweetie xoxoxox

Our Kingdom Thrives...

To our Kingdom!

Teegee here, Sweetie's Mum, It has been such a long time since we have visited. We have so much to catch up on...   Make a cuppa, sit back  relax, that's it.  Now make your escape..............

Angel and Sweetie here,  ready to take you on your jorney.....

Well don't just sit around grooming yourself Patches, show the nice people around!

*grumble, grumble*

Ok Miss Princess, hurry up and open our gate, we want to get going....

Ah, morning rubs and delicious brekkie we are all set. 

 Today we are going to take you around our magnificent food garden and show you all the nommie things we have to eat.  And some not so nice things that we don't eat *giggles*
Ready?

Ok, lets go!

First up we have a fruit called "Peppino"
it's leaves are not good for bunnies, but we do enjoy a bit of the
 fruit in moderation.
It is invading our kindom walls it is growing so big!

Here you see it from the other side of the wall, wonderful isn't it

Oooh, now we have what our human Mr Stewart calls the "Mortgage Melter" Yollie Planted this "Truss Plum" tomato in summer of 2009 and look at it..... 

It's has not stopped fruiting ever since!

My bunny tummy rumbles just looking at these beautiful tomatoes, mmmmm

 Hopping along now, are you keeping up?    Good!

 Scrummy Strawberries, oooh how we love these, we get to eat the leaves and sometimes even some of the berries.  Miss Princess giggles to see us in our red "lipstick" once we have gobbled up these gems.

 Now we have passed the bunny race track and veered into the magical broad bean cove....

broad beans are not good for bunny eating, but the broccoli are super scrummy
 

 Binky through the orchard and on our way too......

Peaches beginning to ripen

What I would give for an hour alone in there !!!!

Lettuce Heaven!!!!

Yummy, in moderation of course!

Of every colour and variety!

 Although we don't eat onions, we can certainly appreciate the awe and grace of this magical fairy wand!

Onion Flower or could we say...
"Magical Fairy Wand"???  

 To finish our wonderous romp, a little nibble if you please..... excuse me coming through, out my way!!!

Chocolate Mint.
Perfect for the sweet tooth bunny

Well we are pooped!  We hope you enjoyed your visit, now that our tour is done it's Nap time *yawns*  See you all soon.
Remember, don't be shy to say hi!

Keep well and enjoy the wonder of life, from Sweetie, Teegee, Patches and me.... Angel

Bye Bye! xoxox

Spooky Visitors to the Castle can mean only one thing.....

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!!!!!

*scary, spooky music plays*

 Sweetie here, did I frighten you?  Oh Sorry.... It's just I was a little scared myself tonight!

Look who stopped by for a visit, it's  
Wicked Mabel Toadboiler ....  scary!


Who has she brought trick or treating?


Why it's none other than...  




*wolf howls in the distance*
Queen Ogre Yollie Daisyslayer!!

So did they get to trick or treat???
We had a lot of fun and would like to wish all our dear friends and new visitors a very happy Halloween...
This special occasion is not commonly celebrated in Australia... But since we have made so many new friends from all over the globe, including ones that do celebrate, we thought we would dedicate this post to you!



Happy Halloween, remember, don't be shy to say hi!  Take care everybun, from Sweetie, spokes bun of Fairy Castle Farm 
>(;ox

Bunny Twilight! The Kingdom as you have not seen it before.... At Twilight!

 Hello every-bunny it's Sweetie here....
Well up here in the castle window to the left....  I know you can't see me can you?
Well that is because it is night time, silly!

Today, for something a bit different, I wanted to share with you a magical time in every bunny's day......

BUNNY TWILIGHT!!!

You may not even be aware of it (or you may be well-aware and I would love to hear your stories, please comment).
Humans are very familiar with the lunacy that accompanies the full moon, right?
Ok, well bunny's experience this (cats do to) EVERY DUSK AND EVERY DAWN.
Yep, daily maddness !!!   My Yollie tries her hardest to be there to share this magical time with us....  here is how it starts...

 The sky gets all colourful and still, the shadows begin to form and dance....  The street lights turn on....

 Little chickens think of somewhere, dark and safe and warm ... they head inside the safety of the Castle....

 Now all the chickens are roosting behind the drawbridge, lets check on the baby chicks.....

Here is the new "Chook Nursery" That our dear Stewart built, isn't he just the best?  
Where have they gone?
 Let us have a peek inside their nesting box:

Ahhh, found you!  Night night Tinkerbelle and babies, sweet dreams...

 It's almost time.....

Teegee and Patches are having a last minute spell, before the magic begins....

 Here we go.... sorry if it's a bit on the dark-side *giggles*  and we do play in fit's and starts, sorry for any slow bits....

And to finish our evening of binkies, grooming, chasing and flops?   Supper!!!!  nom, nom, nom

 Well there you have it, Bunny Twilight..... *yawns* .... Yollie has tucked us up into our castle all snug for the night. We are exhausted but happy! Good night.

 Well that's it for me, have a bun-tastic day and I will leave you with a question.....  Do you believe in fairies?  We sure do...

taken during the night in the Humans' quarters