possum magic

My daughter Elli, is an animal lover. Not just your average everyday garden variety type, but a truly committed sort....... one that will handle any foul animal parts or droppings without batting an eye yet can't stomach a mouldy bit of food from the back of the fridge. She has raised young magpies, five scrawny sparrows, rabbits, baby mice, a calf and several guinea pigs. Her ideal would be to raise a few orphaned wallabies but I just can't bring myself to stop and check every dead wallaby on the side of the road! We are as encouraging as we can be but sometimes I do not like sharing my small space with three cold guinea pigs and a sick lamb! 

Luckily she has a very good friend that does share her love of all things feathered and furry. H also has a passion for raising orphans and over this last summer he spent all his time bottle feeding a baby brushtail possum. Now, I know they are very cute but they are a nuisance around here, eating garden goodies and roses, and sleeping in roof cavities. However, JD the possum has been successfully raised, thoroughly spoiled and completely loved, by both H and my girl. 

These pics were taken a couple of months ago but I was reminded of them when we recently saw H and he told us JD was going to an animal sanctuary as he was too 'soft' to survive in the wild. It will be a shame to see that cute, furry bundle go..... but I'm sure there'll be another critter to take his place soon!

weekending

1. Digging more potatoes - Nicola and Brownell - and finding a fossilised teddy bear head!

2. The first of the beans....... I am hoping the frost stays away just a little longer. 

3. Fresh radishes for our evening meal - I love radishes! 

4 & 5. Enjoying the last of the summer blooms..... both the bumble bee's and I! 

6. The beginnings of the polytunnel/hothouse - I am so excited about this, I already have visions of loads of tomatoes and cucumbers next summer! 

7. Guinea pig grooming time....... I walked inside after an afternoon gardening to find the dining table covered with seven little piggies, towels, combs and munchies!! Here they are all rugged up after their bath, nibbling on fresh carrots that had been filched from the carrot bed! 

I was not amused!

After writing out this list and pondering a little on all sorts of things, I have come to the realisation that our weekends are mostly the same as our week days.......working! I'm thinking that this needs to be remedied and will use this space to record that we need to make an effort to have some adventures of the travelling/beachy/relaxing kind, away from the ever present jobs that need doing around here.

Do you ever feel like you've forgotten how to relax and enjoy the wider world? 

Henster? or Roost-hen?

We have a motley selection of chickens.......  some we bought not long after we purchased our place; some were hatched by those first few birds; and a couple were given to us by friends when they moved house. This past winter we lost a couple to old age and we are now left with the grand total of nine girls and the fancy-pants rooster!  

In her younger days......

But........ about 6 months ago I happened to be awake very early one morning  and heard not one but two, roosters crowing in our chook house! One of course was our Blush, mature and very sure of himself. The other was a more hesitant, juvenile and croaky cock-a-doodle-doo! At first I thought maybe the younger one was from some one else's chook yard and the sound was just carrying in the still night air. When it happened again over several mornings in the following weeks (and I had woken the Best Man to have a listen - much to his displeasure) I decided to make a thorough investigation. 

Thats the changeling on the left not long after we first got her - and yes, she did lay eggs! 

And truly, I was amazed!! One of our hens was looking very rooster like! The Best Man was doubtful that such a change could occur but she was certainly looking very butch with a large comb, dangley wattles - even a manly chest!  

A very different chicken now 

Since we made this discovery a few months back, I've kept my eye on her/him and I have seen her crowing, although only in the dark or when the Real Rooster isn't nearby. S/he also calls to the hens in a most roosterish manner when she finds a titbit, rubs her wing on her leg just like a rooster when he wants to do his stuff and she mounts the chooks! Not often and obviously not for long but never the less, she does half-heartedly try! It's fascinating to watch how they all get on together. She is nice to all the hens and they treat her almost as if they know she is a bit odd but really quite benign - like an eccentric maiden aunt perhaps! She's just one of them, and even if she does mount them now and again, they just continue with what ever activity they were doing or move on. She is the biggest hen - slightly bigger than the rooster - although he is definitely the 'head of the house', so I'm not sure what she is compensating for! 

Foraging with some of her/his sisters

 Blush (the real rooster!) treats her just like one of the girls although he does give her a peck if he's feeling crabby. I have never seen him trying to mount her - which I suppose he wouldn't do seeing as she wouldn't be laying anymore. 

This is up to the minute firsthand reporting -  I wrote this while sitting near the chook house watching all these goings on with acute interest! 

Have you ever heard of this happening before, or perhaps seen it yourself? I must say that if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I'd find it very hard to believe! 

For Karen - you made a comment on my nice rooster here and I told you his name was Blush without looking back at the pics in my post. Miss Elli informed me later that it wasn't the Real Rooster but this pseudo one..... so obviously I'm not the only one that thinks she is a he!!!

Chicken muster

Sometimes children (and chickens!) are Very Exasperating. 

And sometimes they give me a jolly Good Laugh. 

Watching Elli herd our chickens under the wild plum trees today, was the latter! Considering I was laughing so much, it's a wonder I snapped any pics! But here they are....much to her dismay! 

You've gotta have some perks when you're a parent!!!    

Wool and cotton

We have some new additions to our little menagerie. 

Since we've lived here - about 2 years now - we've always battled with the long grass in our paddock. We had several calves in there for 6 months in the first year and then last season we had the pasture cut and baled. But in between, the grass grows very long and lush and hard to wade through.

So now we are sheep sitting for a while.

They are not too friendly but they do spend their day munching, which is just what we like!! I think they are Wiltshire (but I must check on that) which means that they don't need shearing. I'm expecting little bits of fluff all along our fences soon -  the birds will be very happy in spring!  

And the cotton? Well ...... thats an exciting addition to my doily stash! 

I love. love. love. them! My kids think I'm loopy "Mum, not more doilies"! but I just don't listen to them. 

Don't they look so lovely casting lacy shadows on the doona cover? 

Does any one else share my Doily Love?