As we lay Sir Chester the Mouser, of Fairy Castle Farm to rest...

Welcome dear friends,

It is Sweetie here, I have the honour bestowed on me of sharing with you all a great story.
This is a true story, a wonderful celebration of a life now departed.
Please take a moment, make a cuppa, get comfy and I sincerely hope you enjoy my tribute to a very fine and majestic puss......

"Sir Chester - the mouser of Fairy Castle Farm"

Chester was born April of 2001, and found his way into the hearts and home of a young married couple, Yollie and Stewart.  Stewart made a promise to his bride, infront of all their guests as they celebrated their marriage.  His promise? Well, Yollie could choose and bring home a feline fluffy bundle of joy to raise as their own,

as soon as they returned from their Honeymoon....

And so it was done!   Chester came to live with his new family, June of 2001, he was an outgoing kitty, oh so independent, never liking to be held or 'mothered', much to Yollie's dismay. Cuddle time was ALWAYS on his terms! But alas, she gave him time and love knowing in his heart he loved his fur-ever home.

 

And love them he did!!

Chester's foster mum, Blossom, when he first came to live with his new family.
  Blossom too is over the Rainbow Bridge, quite possibly showing him the ropes once again!

Blossom , showed him the ropes, she was a rescued pooch already an adult, also living with Yollie and Stewart. Taking great care of him, Blossom made sure he always had a comfy spot to snuggle and feel safe.

Life was just purrfect (excuse the pun) for this little 'prince'. 

 Chester had the run of the place and he knew it!  

Even with all this freedom he was still a treasure to behold.  Not once did he hang for the curtains, or destroy any of his families belongings, infact he was quite partial to the odd fetching of ones toy or sock, when the need arose.  Yollie would always remark "Chester, you are the best cat in the WHOLE world!!!"  and she meant it!! 

Life was just how it should be. A happy home, a great bed and a tummy full and warm.  

See ya bud, will miss you heaps, my little fuzz ball .....
(Holly)

Then, Chester had his work cut out for him!  Everybun, meet Holly.
 Holly was 12weeks old when she arrived at Chester's door. Boy he was NOT impressed!!
This heavy, huffy, clumsy bag of skin had bounded her way right into his castle, but later his heart.
 Chester did what he did best, took it all in his stride, set down some firm house rules and kept Holly in check (sorry to say the odd show of claw was needed, thankfully very rarely though).

Although initially a fairy bit of teaching and drawing of boundary lines was necessary over time, Holly too became one of Chester's best friends and life long companions....  to the end sharing a bed.

After all the early additions were done, Chester enjoyed life - learning his most accomplished and excellent mouser skills and  boisterous doggy activities, until his life would again need to accommodate further change....

Introducing, Miss Princess.  By far Chester's best and most loyal friend and sister in all the land.  She could do no wrong in his eyes....

Miss Princess made her 'brother' beautiful :O)

 When Miss Princess started Kindy, he would wait for her under the rose bush, by the driveway.
Miss Princess in her little 4 yearold voice would so elloquently announce,
"Chester, I'm going to big girl Kindy, you wait there for me, Ok?"
Wait he would and he did, each and every Kindy day, for two months straight.
Knowing his little sis had started a new adventure of her own, eager to greet her as soon as she returned home.  Oh and how he thought she smelled funny upon her return, needing a thorough cat wash!
As school came along, the time under the rose bush also grew, but eventually as with all things, he adapted and found other ways to keep occupied. The mousing skill grew even further!

Miss Princess, with her best pal, Chester

 Now, finally to our great friends final chapter.  The hardest to write.....

Chester enjoyed the construction of the Fairy Castle, ever helpful and perfect supervisor, ensuring all was pre-tested and safe for us bunnies (and the chooks) to reside.
He, till the end kept the pesky vermin at bay and (shhhh don't tell Yollie) enjoyed an odd cat nap on our bale of hay!

He welcomed every resident graciously. Oh,  how his tummy rumbled with every hatching and cracking of egg, he never once lay a paw or claw on any of our chicks always giving Yollie his famous nod.... She trusted him with all her heart and all her pets, till the end.
 So we wish to say, goodbye dear Chester, we all pray for you, hoping your reunion with Blossom is one we can one day share too.....

I too, say a prayer, dear Chester, how I will miss you.
( Angel )

Farewell, "Sir Chester - the mouser of Fairy Castle Farm" From me, Sweetie and all of us here at Fairy Castle Farm. xoxox

Sweetie

A Triumph! The Battle has been won!!!!!

Let me out this gate!!!!!!!  I have to share some bun-tastic news with you all.
It's Sweetie here,

hello!

First of all however I wish to thank all our wonderful friends. Your beautiful and comforting words during this sad time as we remember Will, have been so overwhelming and humbling.  Thank you.

Thanks Every-bunny 

Before I get into our wondrous buntastic announcement, let me also welcome all our new followers and fellow bloggers who come to visit us so frequently and even more, say HI!!  We bow low to you *curtseys low* and welcome you with open paws!!!

Okay, okay without further digression, I Princess Sweetie, daughter of the 'Great King Angel the First of the Kingdom of Fairy Castle Farm' and Spokes-Bun of this very bloggy blog. have some binky-fyingly brilliant news......

Are you ready?   **looks around**

*whispers* Well, we have conquered the neighbouring lands formerly known as,  "Fairy Garden of the Main Dwelling".  Yes, that's right, our Kingdom has expanded!!!!!!!

*shouts* We are just so excited, the carrot juice has poured non-stop, the 'celebratory' lavender bush is looking very lean, Patches has binkied himself silly!  (Not that he had far to 'fall' *giggles*).

Chester "Patrolling" the "Fairy Garden of the Main Dwelling"

It all came about after some serious negotiations between the residents of Fairy Castle Farm (us bunnies and Chickens) with the Humans and Neighbouring Beasts; Yollie's bonded-mate 'Stewart', Miss Princess, Nannie, Holly Dog and Sir Chester the Mouser and Yollie (of course) and guess what?  Yep!  We WON!!!!!

Fairy Garden of the Main Dwelling.
Please note this is an old picture, the hutches you see were for our previous Bunny, Buddy. Buddy sadly crossed rainbow bridge Dec 2010, and now form part of the Fairy Castle!

(RIP Buddy we remember you Dec2010)

Basically, we wanted more room to sprint and play and run and well, just be bunnies.  The Humans coincidentally were considering a re-vamp of the area as it felt a bit on the dark and dingy side to them and what they called "A waste of space" *frowns and shrugs shoulders* whatever that is *shakes head*. So we suggested they tear down the horrible iron sheets that divided our two lands and open it right up!! They considered our argument, but they were worried we would become unruly or messy or heaven forbid, DESTRUCTIVE with so much freedom during our roaming time!!  So, we put their fears totally at ease, promised to be on our absolute best behaviour and watch our p's and q's at ALL TIMES.....

Conclusion?   We have a whole new Kingdom to explore and we are loving it!

Yollie promised some photos of us in our conquered land, soon!

Till then I am going to get stuck into my tucker *nom, nom, nom*, keep well, thanks for visiting and remember........   "Don't be shy to say.....  "

Sweetie xoxox

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