Happy Easter...

Firstly, Happy Easter to you all.

Fur & Feathers:

Isla has found an alternative use for an Easter egg box today...

This afternoon Mike and I went to the Exotic Pet Refuge open day in Deeping st James. There are over 350 animals living at the refuge of which most of them are the result of greed. A lot of the animals were bought as trophies by the rich as youngsters and then they seem to be surprised when they grow to be adults.

We saw a couple of beautiful lynx that were bought as kittens on the black market and then dumped when they grew, we saw a 6ft long alligator that lived in a top floor flat in London until the owner realised it was going to get a little bigger than expected and so on. It was quite sad really as all of the animals should be wild and living in their natural environments however are unable to do so as they have been raised as pets. Here are some photos of what we saw...

For more information about the refuge visit http://www.exoticpetrefuge.org.uk/ There next open day is Sunday 19th May. Really tempted to volunteer my services.

When Puddles met Ellie and Isla...

Fur & Feathers:

It wasn't quite a 'When Harry met Sally' moment but it was very amusing when we introduced the girls to Puddles yesterday. The girls came out of the house first very cautiously and then we let Puddles out. Every time he turned his back Ellie and Isla got down on their bellies and practiced hunting and every so often Puddles would turn round walk very boldly up to them and try to peck their noses. No injuries were gained so i think it went quite well. The photos aren't great as they move so quickly but tried to catch some of the funny moments on camera...

One of our neighbours ducks is currently sitting on some eggs, so in the hunt for a lady friend for Puddles we may be rearing another duckling again soon. Fingers crossed the eggs are fertlized and the bad weather disappears so the eggs hatch. A white farmyard duck would be the perfect companion. The same neighbour is also going to give us a lesson in clipping a ducks wing. It's not as easy as chickens as the blood runs to the end of the feathers so you have to be extra careful which is why we haven't done so as yet but by doing this it means we can let Puddles wonder freely around the garden with us.

We're all going on a summer holiday...

With just over three weeks until Mike and I head off here...

an island in the centre of Lake Maggoire in Northern Italy, making sure all the animals are going to be fed and watered is proving a little tricky. Animal logistics is not easy!

Fur:

So the girls are booked into the best cattery in our area, The Bythams Cattery, for nine whole nights. Unfortunately we can't collect them until the Sunday even though we're home on the Saturday afternoon due to collection times being morning only at a weekend, We're pretty gutted as we're going to miss the kittens a lot.

Lily is going to stay at my mum's house for the week in the bottom of a budgie aviary with plenty of space to run around.

Feathers:

Puddles is also going to my mum's house for the week and staying in an aviary with canaries! I hear he is going to be very happy as a large plastic container has been filled up ready for him to have a good swim and wash in.

Lucky, Bea and Gladys who are usually no trouble at all are the ones causing us some problems. We've got a local pet-sitting company coming over a week on Saturday to potentially look after them. Nothing set in stone as yet though.

We'll be ready for our holiday by the time all the animals are sorted!

Foliage:

And of course the hope is that the weather will be a little better by then and seeds will have been sown so the next question is who is going to water the plants?!? I'll save that concern for another day.

Cold enough to freeze the balls on a brass monkey...

Will this freezing weather ever go away? It's nearly the end of March and this week so far I've been battling with the foot deep snow in the garden and freezing water bowls and we're are apparently officially in Spring. Well I hope the weather takes a drastic change real soon is all I can say.

On a good note this week I've found out that one of my colleagues has a sheep farmer in her immediate family so if we ever get to the stage of rearing some lambs we now have a contact. All we need now is some land and a few more hours in the day!

Fur:

Clearly the girls have made no attempt to go outside in this weather, a central heated home is definitely their preference at the moment.

Ellie really made us giggle earlier, she is such a tinker. Mike and I were enjoying our tea in peace with the girls shut in the hall when all of a sudden Ellie's little face appeared through the glass pane. She had attached herself to the back of the door. After a couple of seconds she jumped down but soon reappeared to then hang on the door handle trying to open the door! What a clever girl she is.

Poor Lily has been jumping around in the snow in her run and oddly eating as much of it as she can. She doesn't seem to be that bothered about the cold weather.

Feathers:

Puddles is very grumpy at the moment not only have we not found him a girlfriend yet but he has been stuck in his night time house for the last few days to keep him out of the cold.

The chickens are also equally as unimpressed and are spending a great deal of time in their house however Mike did manage to entice them out in the garden this evening with some beansprouts. Must be the worm like appearance!

Foliage:

Not a seed has been sown as yet I think I am going to have to brave the elements soon and get some planted and keep them in one of the spare bedrooms. Top tip - I've been saving lots of toilet rolls for growing seedlings in. I read somewhere that by cutting four slits into the bottom of each one and folding the sections in you can make a recycled plant pot. You then fill with compost and plant a seed as you would any other plant pot however the really clever bit is that once the seedling is big enough and the weather is better the whole thing, toilet roll and all, can be planted in the ground. The toilet roll decomposes naturally allowing the roots to grow.

Is it a bird, is it a plane no it's Isla...

Fur:

Yesterday Isla was being nosey in the kitchen and got her head stuck in the handle of a carrier bag, before I had a chance to get it off her she panicked and ran all the way through the house with a plastic bag swiftly following behind her like a superman cape. When i found her upstairs minus the bag her tail was just like a toilet brush! She had absoutely terrified herself. Poor thing. Mike and I managed to keep the laughter in until we got back downstairs it really was quite a funny sight.

It's raining, it's pouring...

Well rain really has stopped play. I've barely seen the animals this weekend and haven't made any progress on the garden. Will we be able to sow those seeds any time soon - I'm really not sure. We're holding out for the long Easter bank holiday weekend.

We think we've had a cat burglar...

Fur:

The kittens have been busy today whilst we've been at work. What a mess!

It must be love, love, love...

Feathers:

We had a visitor in the garden this morning, one of the neighbours hens. She paced one side of the chicken pen and Lucky paced the other. She certainly made an impression on him, he completely ignored Beatrice and Gladys!

We're in our hay day...

Fur & Feathers:

Not everyone will understand the excitement of our surprise present from our lovely neighbours, but we now have our first ever hay bale. We almost feel like farmers! Puddles is enjoying a good sleep on some of it right now.

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow...

Fur & Feathers:

Well wasn't quite expecting snow this morning when I looked out the window. Quite odd for 11th March!

Attempted to protect Lily and Puddles from the snowfall today by propping up bits of wood. Think it helped a little.

Opened the chicken pen door this morning and they stuck their heads out and clearly thought there is absolutely no chance we are going out there and wouldn't come out! When I got home from work they were still in their house! Don't worry they had been out as all the food had been eaten. Let them in the garden for ten minutes this evening however when our fingers and toes started going blue we thought it was time to go back inside.

Whilst cooking tea tonight I remembered about saving egg shells and crushing them up to feed back to the chickens. Apparently it's a good calcium source for them so that's there breakfast sorted!

Heigh-Ho, Heigh- Ho, it's off to work we go...

Foliage:

At 10.30 this morning 1,250kg of slate was delivered on a pallet to the front of the house. After building up some energy with a bacon and egg sarnie we made a start carrying them to the back of the house where we could then put them in the wheelbarrow and wheel them up to the top of the garden.

As you can see the weather wasn't great it was very misty and damp today and quite chilly but we soon warmed up!

Once we had moved it all to the top of the garden we screwed together the second rasied vegetable bed and put it in place.

Then the fun started, each bag we opened and poured out magically transformed the area into an actual garden! Remarkable!

We then couldn't resist the urge to bring the handmade benches out of the garage and postition them at the top of each bed. Once we had finished it was definately wine 'o' clock and we enjoyed a nice glass of vino whilst sitting on our new bench. Perfect.

The weather forecast says it is going to rain tomorrow so not sure we will get much done. When we can the next job will be filling the raised beds with top soil and clearing the weeds from the slope on the right handside. It's so exciting now it is all coming together.

Waste not, want not...

Foliage:

We headed in Stamford today and stocked up on seeds, seed trays and more poison for those naughty mice. Also after seeing on the moneysavingexpert.com email yesterday that Lidl had fruit trees for sale this week only at £3.99 each we made a little detour and bought an apple, pear and cherry tree. I do love a good bargain!

We also build our slot together wooden composter (hence the post name!) and dug a section out of the bank to the right hand side of the vegetable garden so that it slotted into the slope. All the soil we dug out me sieved so that we can use it to fill the raised beds. Only took a couple of hours but gosh we do ache now. It was all the stone that made it hard work and the ridiculous amount of twitch we came across. Here is how it looks now.

Anyone seen Mike? Seemed to have lost him!

The cat that got the cream...

Fur:

Well I'm not sure I agree with Ellie's choice of toy this morning but she is very happy with her piece of cat litter! She is very impressed with herself.

Quiet as a mouse...

Fur & Feathers:

Just come across a rather large mouse nest in the garage. Unfortunately for them i've had to put some poison down. Really didn't want too but they have been in all the animal feed and this according to my bible Haynes Chicken Manual it can kill chickens and ducks so they've had to go. 'Tiger' as i have called her, the big moggy from next door was very patiently waiting at the garage front door. She obviously knew exactly what was going on!

Foliage:

Have put weed killer on the slope in the soon to be vegetable garden. I figure that if i can clear it we would grow cucumber, courgette and butternut squash plants at the top so they can trial themselves down the slope. In theory this seems logical but we'll just have to wait and see.

Good news...

Foliage:

Gosh slate chippings are more expensive than expected! After some serious research on the internet managed to get 50 x 20kg bags for £115 from http://decorativeaggregates.com/mm5/index.php. The cheapest supplier by far. Some were going to charge getting on for £250! It's arriving Friday morning and luckily Mike has got the day off work. Phew... didn't fancy moving all those by myself. This is what we have gone for.

What a difference a day makes...

What a good day we've had!

Fur:

Ellie and Isla had a big adventure today as they heading up into the garden. Ellie was definately the adventurer with timid Isla trailing behind.

Feathers:

We let Lucky and the girls out of their pen for a good dig and scratch around in the garden. All three of them really enjoyed it so much we had trouble getting them back in! They also enjoyed some corn for their afternoon snack apparently it is the best thing for them to eat in the afternoon as it sustains their appetite throughout the night. Even after having them for two years I am still learning. They also enjoyed a strawberry split into three this morning. Who would have thought chickens liked strawberries but they do. No eggs today thought i'm afraid. Think they might have been a little pre-occupied.

Foliage:

Well after an initial trip to the garden centre we managed to rake over the land and get it as flat as we could. Put down all the weed liner and place the railway sleepers where we want them. One bed has been screwed together the other one hopefully will be done in the next couple of days. The next step is research and cost up top soil for the beds and slate for the pathways. Next job after i've writing this post. This is how it looks at the moment. Unfortunately Mike is back at work tomorrow and I thought I might have a wander around the shops so doubt there will be much to report tomorrow night but you never know.

So far, so good...

With the sun shining we couldn't resist a countryside walk into the estate land to the front and side of our house before starting on the jobs of the day. I also got a little sidetracked bottle feeding our neighbours orphan lambs (so adorable). 

Feathers:

First job of the day I turned over some of the ground in the chicken pen so the trio could enjoy a sun bath in the mud. I think they thought it was Christmas they were that excited. We got one beautifully formed egg today from Beatrice to say thank you.

Puddles had an adventure today and came up the top of the garden with us whilst we were having a breather. He was quiet as a mouse while he looked round and took the new sights in.

Foliage:

Eventually the work actually began on the vegetable plot at lunchtime and we headed up the garden with all our tools and two beers in tow! Gosh we worked hard today. Firstly we started trying to roll up the turf from the plot of land which very soon become a tedious job. As we found most of the top to be covered in moss we had a re-think and raked it off instead. This may sound like an easy thing to do but we came across so many stones we could have started our own pebbled beach! Still got some more work to do tomorrow but here are the before and after photos from today.

  

The story so far...

Welcome to Fur, Feathers and Foliage...

So not only have I managed to actually set-up my own blog which proved incredibly tricky at times and made me feel a little dizzy going round and round the same pages on the internet but I've also learnt how to write my first blog post. Not bad for 3 days work especially when you consider that i'm not particularly skilled in the world of technology. Mike and I have only just invested in a microwave, seems we may be a little behind with the times...

Anyway getting slightly sidetracked we moved into our first very own home in July 2012 and this year the aim is to create a garden from scratch and build suitable homes and runs for all the animals. Just wanted to start off with a little update on where we are with all our furry and feathered friends and what we've got planned going forward.

Fur :

Ellie and Isla - Our beautiful kittens are 7 months and sisters. They will soon be getting ready to start venturing into the big scary world. Ellie is mainly black with white bib and paws and Isla is long haired with a lots of white and black patterns. Both have a white belly with a big black spot! Must be a family trait. These two were bought from a fenland farm and we've had them since they were 8 weeks old.

Lily - Our placid and patient rather large lopped ear rabbit is desperately hoping to have her house back to herself soon for a bit of peace and quiet. Lily's palace is a little crowded these days during 9am-5pm. Will explain all later. We rescued Lily from a family that didn't know anything about rabbits and how to care for them. She was in a pretty poor state when we took her in. She now looks the picture of health and at 7 years old she is doing very well indeed.
                                    

Feathers:

Puddles - Our very own duck is now 8 months old and has got a little lively now Spring has sprung! That hunt for a girlfriend must start soon. He was another rescue, found when he was a tiny yellow duckling by a stream side,  we took him in and settled him on a hot water bottle. Neither Mike nor I expected him to make it through the first 24 hours but here we are 8 months later with an adult duck that thinks he is a human! The quest for 2013 is to build him his own run - currently he shares with Lily in the day and sleeps in an old hutch at night.

Lucky - Our very wimpy cockerel is full grown now and incredibly handsome. We love his early morning calls! Lucky was found after he escaped from a local chicken farm in the village we used to live in. He obviously didn't fancy being turned into a pukka pie! After running around with our lovely neighbours for what felt like forever we managed to get hold of the young pullet and put him in a cat carrier to calm down. He was hand-reared by myself and was quite regularly found fast alsleep on my knee in the living room while i watched the soaps. A real character!

                                              

Beatrice and Gladys - Our lovely laying girls are now 2 and a half years old and are extremely happy Spring is here. They love nothing more than a good bath in the soil with the sun on their backs. The girls have just started laying again after their winter vacation. In the next couple of months we hope to fence the garden in so they can roam around freely once again as they did where we lived previously. 

Foliage: 

The big project for 2013 - turning the waste land we seem to have at the minute into a lovely garden where we can grow all of our own vegetables, fruit and herbs. This quest starts tomorrow when fingers crossed the weather will allow us to start digging the top section over and level it out. It's a 17 and a half foot by 20 foot space that we've allocated for the growing garden. The beams, benches and composter are all ready and waiting to go in the garage. This evening starts my week off work so we'll see how much we can get done in the next 9 days.