Hill Top Tails

Narnia

2011-07-17T01:24:00.000-07:00

Hello! Two week's ago Ross and Roy went up to Bristol to pick up the new addition to Hill Top. He is named Narnia and is a beautiful baby snowy owl. He was just two week's old when we bought him and is now four week's old. He was a ball of fluff when we picked him up, but is now losing his fluff, and his feathers are beginning to come through. Narnia is absolutely gorgeous. Ross is hand rearing him and as he is on his school holidays he is able to spend a lot of time bonding with him. He is very tame and even passing a ball backwards and forwards. He is a real joy to watch and is changing every single day. We hope you enjoy the pictures. More Hill Top Tails tomorrow!

The Finished Thing!

2011-06-28T12:58:00.000-07:00

Hello! Following on from my previous blog, I'm now posting some pictures of the finished lake. It has been a brilliant experience from start to finish. It was such a muddy mess to start with and we just really couldn't imagine how lovely it would be when it was finished, but believe me it has been fascinating to watch it change every single day. The Canadian Geese are lovely and we have been so lucky to keep them all. It looks so perfect, as if it has been there for ages! Hope you've enjoyed the pictures, we'll post a few more over the next couple of days. All the animals are good. Rossi has been flying Mars this evening and the pgymy goats are enjoying being out in the sunshine, in the field again.

More Hill Top Tails tomorrow. Goodnight!

SHE IS BACK!

2011-05-16T01:35:00.001-07:00

Hello everyone! We are sorry that we haven't written our blog for such a long while, but as you will see things have been really busy here at Hill Top. In January we started digging our conservation lake.

It was finished and had filled up by the end of February - it was just amazing how quickly it filled, but we had drained the field into the lake and before we knew it the landscape had changed for the better! But the most exciting thing of all, was that as soon as the lake had filled we had a pair of Canadian Geese come to live on Owl Island (named after the island in Beatrix Potter's Squirrel Nutkin, and very appropriate as the two owls fly around it every evening).

Even better than that, six week's ago they had five little goslings. It's just wonderful to watch them every day. They are really growing now and are even getting brave going out onto the lake on their own. We hope you like the attached pictures of the lake being constructed. Tomorrow I will show you picutres of the completed lake and the geese. Thank you for reading - it's great to be back!

Mars - Flying beautifully again!

2010-08-01T11:09:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone! We hope you are all enjoying your summer holidays. We have been really busy here at Hill Top. Following the event the with fire engines, Mars was not a happy Harris Hawk and it has taken him quite a while to want to fly again. However, he is fully back to normal now and flying beautifully. He's such a beautiful bird and it's a real joy to watch Rossi flying him.
Back more tomorrow with more Hill Top Tails. Take care till then.

Anyone for Camping?

2010-07-12T14:54:00.000-07:00

Hello and welcome back! Hasn't the weather been great - we have been busy here, but thought it was time I posted you another blog! Our oldest son Dave is going camping with his girlfriend Jess and they are taking Greg and Jess's sister Jo. They had a trial run at putting the tent up, which had us in hysterics, but once they had managed to get the tent up (which was no easy task), the next mission was to get it back in the bag! Dave, Jess and Greg were determined to get the tent back into the bag it came in! Greg as usual had to include his unicycle and he was struggling not to tip over backwards with the weight! Perhaps you can pick up some tips, just in case you go camping! Greg really looks the part.

More Hill Top Tails tomorrow. Thank you for reading our blog. Goodnight.

Unicycle Mad!

2010-06-30T14:52:00.000-07:00

Hello, welcome back to Hill Top Tails. You will be pleased to know that Mars has settled down again after his episode on Saturday! Our Greg is just Unicycle mad. He rides his unicycle absolutely everywhere and has done so, since he had it as a Birthday present,almost two years ago. He was so determined to learn to ride it. He practised constantly until he got the hang of it and hasn't stopped unicycling since. He goes miles on it and is even talking about doing a unicycle ride for charity. Whatever he does and whatever he is doing he uses his unicycle to do it. This evening he was collecting the broom to go and sweep out the pgymy goat area and I caught him on the video! I thought you might like to see it.

More Hill Top Tails tomorrow. Thank you for reading our blog.

Large Elephant Hawk Moth

2010-06-28T14:12:00.000-07:00

Hello! Firstly, thank you to Dan Holdsworth for giving us the following information about the moth Rossi found: -

"That's a Large Elephant Hawk Moth; there's nothing else in the UK that looks at all like that species. They're not at all uncommon; the larval food plant is rose bay willow herb, and the caterpillars have a curious trick for dissuading predatory birds from attacking them. What they do is stand up on their back prolegs, open up a pair of large eyespots on the front end and sway about, looking very like a particularly convincing snake-mimic that looks even more snake-ish than a real snake does Most of the time a bird is going to be so disconcerted by this display that it leaves the harmless caterpillar alone."

Ross has been busy looking after his new baby canaries. He has been breeding canaries for some time now.They really are very pretty - they are crested canaries and at least two of them seem to have a crest coming. We'll try and take some photos for you later in the week.

Thought you might like to see one of our regular squirrels - they really are very clever - they even hang from the bird table upside down if there is a bird on the nuts! Perhaps we should set up some kind of a squirrel assault course to get to the nuts!

More Hill Top Tails tomorrow. Thank you for joining us.

Pink & Green Moth!

2010-06-27T14:25:00.000-07:00

Hello again. It's just such a shock to have so much lovely weather, long may it continue.

We have had a really busy weekend here, so this morning it was nice to go down to the service at St.Anne's Church in Bucks Mills (just down the road). The service is held here fortnightly and whilst we only have a small congregation, the service is always special, and the Church is just so lovely inside. It's magic sitting in the Church on a Sunday morning that I know so many of my family have also shared over the many decades.

I need some help here - Ross has found a really pretty green and pink dead moth. Does anyone know what kind of moth it is? We would be really pleased to know, as we have never seen a moth like this. Hope someone knows.

Thank you for reading. More Hill Top Tails tomorrow.

Fire Engines at Hill Top

2010-06-26T14:27:00.000-07:00

Welcome back to Hill Top Tails!

Well this evening has certainly been unusual. For those of you who have been following our stories about Rossi training Mars, his Harris Hawk, then something very different happened this evening.

At about 6 pm, as usual, Rossi took his Hawk out to fly him. Mars is off the creance now and so he was flying freely up into the trees and returning to Ross, but he went up into a tree and could not fly down. We realised that he was caught up in the tree. His jesse had got caught on a piece of snapped branch and his foot was trapped. Mars was about 25 to 30ft up in the tree with very thin branches and we had absolutely no way of getting him down. After trying everything possible for about an hour and a half we rang the RSPCA and asked for their advice. They suggested we ring the Fire Brigade, which we did, as in a couple of hours it would be dark. They were fantastic!

First of all the Fire & Rescue Unit arrived from Bideford, but they couldn't put their ladder up to the tree, as the branches were too thin. They called for the Fire Engine from Barnstaple which had a ladder platform. Within about half an hour or so both teams were at Hill Top working out a plan of how to rescue Mars. Ross (who is scared of heights) was so brave and went up into the platform with a Fireman. By now, Mars was hanging by his leg and Ross managed to grab both legs and release him, so after about half and hour or so, Mars was rescued. We want to say a big thank you to all the Firemen/woman who helped - they were great.

Greg was thrilled with the fire engines and took many photographs, as you can imagine, so here are a few for you to share with us.

Rossi is the happiest boy to have his Harris Hawk back.

Thank you so much to everyone who helped.

Join us for more Hill Top Tails tomorrow. This story will be a hard one to follow!

Pygmy Goats

2010-06-21T14:25:00.000-07:00

Hello again! Today I thought you might like to see how the Pgymy Goats have grown in the last couple of months. They get so excited when Greg comes home from school, they can't wait to see him! They are really enjoying the big field now the weather is nicer and they love playing. The boys have put logs and tyres in the field and they have a large mound in the middle. They skip and jump around very playfully and you could watch them for hours, they are such fun. Pygmy goats make great pets, but you have to remember that they are herd animals and need company, so you should always keep at least two.

More Hill Top Tails tomorrow. Thank you for reading.

Beautiful Moths

2010-06-18T13:57:00.000-07:00

Good evening!

Another glorious day. There are so many bunnies around, they really are lovely, great to have so many Peter Rabbits and Benjamin Bunnies running around at Hill Top.

With the nice evenings we are thinking about having another moth trapping night. Last time we had a super evening identifying the moths. I thought you might like to see a few more of the pictures we took last time.

Tomorrow I'll update you on the pygmy goats, Bracken, Brando and Sasha. You'll be surprised how much they have grown.

Hope you can join me tomorrow. Goodnight!

Mars - Free At Last!

2010-06-17T14:07:00.000-07:00

Hello Everyone! We have some wonderful pictures of Rossi with his Harris Hawk, named Mars. Ross has been training Mars and he has now taken off the creance and Mars is flying freely. It's wonderful to watch and great to see how he flies back to Rossi. Mars is a really beautiful bird and Ross is so enjoying him, it's lovely to see them together. We thought you might like the pictures as much as we do!

It's absolutely lovely weather here, we just hope you are enjoying it as much as we are. Back again tomorrow with more Hill Top Tails.

Flying Chinese Lanterns

2010-06-04T14:55:00.001-07:00

Hello!
What a fantastic half term week it has been. We have had a super family from the Bristol area staying with us over the holiday. This evening their lovely children Travis, Dexter and Freya made their wishes as their authentic flying chinese lanterns were released into the sky. It was magic!! Great fun and real family entertainment.

Our redfoot tortoise has been poorly (seen here on the left). She stopped eating and has had a runny nose. She was seen by the vet today and has been given antibiotics so we are hoping she will soon be well again. We will let you know how she progresses.

More Hill Top Tails tomorrow. Take care.

Brontosaurus

2010-05-28T14:39:00.000-07:00

Good evening! We are having a really busy couple of days. It's half term now and so we are busy with the holiday lets.

Yesterday Jon from the CFZ (Centre for Fortean Zoology) sent me the attachaed clipping and said "Wouldn't this be a brilliant addition to Hill Top Holidays?"

Just in case you cannot read the clip at the bottom, it says, "Dinosaur park manager Ashford Price leans on Bronto, who is being given away free - to anyone who can get him home. The National Showcaves Centre for Wales near Swansea is dropping the 2.5 tonne brontosaurus in favour of a huge flesh-eating spinosaurus".

Roy, Dave, Ross and Greg have already measured up and yes, it would be a good addition to the woodland play area. Because it's in Swansea, we were thinking that perhaps we could swim it across - anyone got any better ideas?

Thanks for thinking of us Jon, we are working on it!

Back tomorrow with more Hill Top Tails.

BEAUTIFUL BUNNIES!

2010-05-26T14:16:00.000-07:00

Hello! The weather has continued to be warm and dry until this evening, when we had quite a bit of rain. It's strange, but when it has been dry for a while, we don't like the rain! Bracken, Brando and Sasha (our pygmy goats) certainly don't like the rain. They disappeared straight into their house - no problem shutting them up tonight, they were happy to be in the dry.

This morning Roy took this photo of the tiniest little rabbit we have ever seen here at Hill Top. You can see how small this litte bunny is, as he is next to a dock leaf! There are lots of rabbits in and out of the hedgerows at the moment, they really are lovely - or is it just that they remind me of Peter Rabbit and Benjamin Bunny!

Two more photos of Ross and Mars (his Harris Hawk). We all enjoy watching Ross train Mars in the evenings.

Tomorrow we will show you the new houses Roy and Ross have made for the guinea pigs. Join us for more Hill Top Tails.

Summer at last!

2010-05-23T14:09:00.000-07:00

What a fantastic weekend! We have been so busy here at Hill Top, getting ready for the holiday season and making the most of the fantastic weather. We have enjoyed every meal time this weekend, sitting in the garden, looking out to sea - it has been just wonderful - the one down side being the hayfever!

Everyone has been working hard - all the animals have had their cages cleaned, Beth came to help put new jesses on the barn owls, the fields have been cut, driveway strimmed, pygmy goats walked on their leads for the first time and Rossi has been continuing to train Mars etc. etc. We thought you might like to share some of our pictures.

We hope you had a great weekend too - we just hope the lovely weather will continue.

Back with more Hill Top Tails tomorrow.

Bluebell the Badger Cub

2010-05-21T13:31:00.000-07:00

Welcome back. As promised, I have some pictures of Bluebell the badger cub. We work with Beth of the Hartland Wildlife Rescue and she was called out four weeks ago to rescue a badger cub in distress. Beth took the badger to the vets to have her checked over and she has been living with Beth ever since, having the run of half her house. Bluebell loves playing with her Yorkshire Terrier and her Husky - they get on really well. Bluebell eats scrambled egg, kitten meat, raisins , mealworms and cake!!!

On Tuesday Beth is taking Bluebell to a safe badger sactuary, where she will live with other badgers. Badgers need to be in a family group and the sanctuary can offer that.

Whilst Beth will be really sad to see Bluebell go, she knows it is in her bests interests. Beth rescues so many wild animals and nurses them back to health, and if she ever needs an extra bed for a hedgehog, dove, pigeon etc. then Hill Top always tries to help out. We are very lucky to have such a kind, caring person as Beth in our area. Long may her good work continue.

We hope you are all enjoying the wonderful summer weather today - it's great!

Thank you for reading. We hope you can join us again tomorrow.

BRACKEN & DREAMER

2010-05-20T14:05:00.001-07:00

Hello again! I was hoping to bring you some pictures of Beth (from the Hartland Wildlife Rescue) with her baby badger, Bluebell, this evening, but as yet I'm just waiting to hear from Beth, so I will post those on tomorrow evening.

You may well have followed our stories of Bracken & Dreamer, the Barn Owls. They are absolutely gorgeous and we thought you would like to see our most recent photo. They are real soulmates. We have had some eggs, but no owlets yet!!

The pygmy goats, Bracken (Mum), Brando and Sasha seem to be really happy in their new home. They have enjoyed themselves out running around today, as yesterday it was a bit wet and they hate the rain - a bit like me!

Join us again tomorrow, for more Hill Top Tails. Take care.

Mars

2010-05-18T13:24:00.000-07:00

Welcome back. As promised, here are some pictures of Ross with his Harris Hawk, named Mars. Ross completed a falconry course and is currently training Mars. We thought you would enjoy some of the pictures. Mars is a really beautiful bird of prey and as you can see Ross is thoroughly enjoying training him.

Back tomorrow with more updates at Hill Top and the story of Beth and Bluebell the baby badger.

Thank you for reading our Blog.

Millie's Babies

2010-05-16T13:36:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone - Welcome back to Hill Top Tails! Last time I wrote I promised to tell you more about our hedgehogs. Millie's babies, born last year - seven of which survived (not sure if this is some sort of a record for the number of baby hedgehogs in one litter!) are all doing really well. Roy and Ross have built them a new home in the woods - providing them with a safe, natural habitat. If we go down to the pen around dusk then you can hear and see all the hedgehogs out in the leaves, eating and drinking. The hedgehogs are really special here at Hill Top as Millie was hand reared by Ross & Greg and came from the Hartland Wildlife Rescue. We'll keep you posted with their progress.

Ross completed his falconry course in February and has had his Harris Hawk, named Mars, since the 30th of April. He has been working hard traing Mars and tomorrow we will introduce you to him.

Thank you for reading our blog. We'll be back tomorrow, best wishes from All at Hill Top.

Welcome Back!

2010-04-25T14:50:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! We are so sorry that we have not written our blog for a long time. Nanny Braund was very ill last year and very sadly died just before Christmas and we hadn't the heart to write our blog again until now. We all miss her terribly and she will always have a very special place in our hearts.

So many wonderful things have been happening at Hill Top. If you remember Millie had baby hedgehogs. Well eight were born, one died and the seven remaining have all survived. We will post some pictures of the hedgehogs tomorrow evening and tell you all about their new pen.

Today has been a really special day for our youngest son Greg (aged 11), as his Pygmy Goats have at long last arrived. Bracken the mother, her whether Brando and kid Sasha have all come to live at Hill Top. Roy, Ross and Greg have been working really hard over the Easter holidays building a home for the pygmy goats and fencing and concreting their penned area ready for their arrival today. They are absolutely lovely - really friendly and skipping and jumping around.

We'll keep you posted with their progress.

Back again tomorrow - All at Hill Top.

Millie the Fox

2009-08-12T14:27:00.000-07:00

Hello again.

I promised an up-to-date picture of Dodo, but every time Rossi has fed him today, I've been busy doing something else, and forgot to get the picture, until Dodo was fast asleep in his bed tonight. I'll try harder tomorrow!

No sound from Millie at the hedgehog's nest, but that is a good sign, so we'll be patient and keep waiting.

Our friend Beth from the Hartland Wildlife Rescue has a pet fox (one which was rescued) and she is called Millie. I thought you would all like to share this lovely picture.

Work still continues at the CFZ, preparing for the start of the Weird Weekend which kicks off with a Cocktail Party tomorrow night. For more information on the Weird Weekend visit www.cfz.org.uk or simply type Weird Weekend into Google and all will be revealed.

More news tomorrow.

Millie's new hoglets!!

2009-08-11T08:55:00.000-07:00

Yes, Millie is a Mum again! Frantic collecting of hay etc. on Sunday and today Millie definately has baby hoglets, but we shall not disturb them, we will wait and see how things progress. We will keep you posted.

We are really busy here at Hill Top. The shippen conversion is going well. Roof completely off and new floor well on its way etc.

We had a real surprise today as cousin Eva from Evesham called in to say hello. The boys were keen for her to try out the new woodland play area and as you can see, she's a dab hand at the monkey bars! She also met all the animals, including our redfoot tortoise.

Everyone at the CFZ is working really hard preparing for the Weird Weekend. Dave, Ross & Greg are all at Jon's this afternoon helping. The annual Weird Weekend starts this Friday - it is an event you should not miss!

Dodo is really growing and doing so well. We will post a new picture up tomorrow.

Bye for now.

Curly Carrots!

2009-08-04T13:18:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone!

Following our last blog (and apologies for the delay in writing), Angel the baby pigeon died today. It's always an ongoing battle with the wildlife, but the boys keep the animals warm and fed and persevere to give them the best chance. Angel had done so well this last week but yesterday went very quiet and sadly she died today. However, Dodo is doing really well - his feathers are coming now and we'll post another picture in a few days.

Greg has grown some carrots of his own from seed this summer and at the weekend he pulled them up. Greg wanted you to see his curly carrot!

Work has started on our new holiday let - once a shippen, at the rear of Walland Farm. As you can see all the boys (only two pictured here) are helping Roy. The roof and floor have been totally demolished in a few days.

Greg says a special message for his cousin Eva in Evesham: - "The carrot isn't as nice tasting as the maltesers at Christmas Mrs.Santa!"

Watch out for another update tomorrow. Thank you for reading.

New Addition at Hill Top

2009-07-28T14:33:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone!

Sadness on Saturday as our last surving hoglet named Angel died. The boys had done everything they could to save her, but it was not meant to be.

On a happier note, Beth of the Hartland Wildlife rescue rang yesterday to say that she had another rescue baby pigeon, about 2-3 weeks old (older than Dodo), and would the boys like to look after this one too! Well, they are thrilled with the new edition, who they have named Angel (after their little hoglet).

Angel loves to sit on Rossi's finger and both she and Dodo are really doing well. Angel is pictured above and Dodo below.

It's fascinating to watch how Dodo is turning into a lovely pigeon - we keep thinking of the Ugly Duckling story! When they go into their nice warm box, they cuddle up together, it's really lovely to think we're helping these little creatures.

The Weird Weekend is getting closer. It's set to be another great weekend for all.

More news tomorrow.

DoDo

2009-07-23T15:08:00.000-07:00

Hello. Today has brought sadness and happiness to Hill Top. This morning the boys were up at the crack of dawn feeding the hoglets. They were both girls and were named Lucky and Angel. They have fed really well during the day, but this evening Lucky began jumping, almost like fitting, and then sadly she died at about 9pm. Angel fed again tonight, but these first few days are the most difficult and we just pray that Angel will survive.

On a different note, Roy came home from work with a baby pigeon that someone had given to him. He was rejected from the nest and had been rescued by some children.

He is really small and at first glance he looked like a duck, but Beth confirmed that it is a baby pigeon. He is feeding really well and is kept with the hoglet in a warm box by the aga. Ross and Greg have called him DoDo!

I don't know if you remember the story of the seal spotted off Lundy Island on my blog of the 18th of June - we were appealing for help. Apparently this picture is now on the front page of today's North Devon Journal. I haven't seen it yet, but let's hope someone can help free him from the fishing net.

More great updates tomorrow. Goodnight from everyone at Hill Top.

Millie's Hoglets!

2009-07-22T14:58:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone.

Early evening, around 6pm there were horrible, loud, hissing noises coming from the hedgehog nest. A hedgehog had been seen out late this afternoon collecting hay etc. but had gone back into the nest. We took the lid off and realised that Millie had given birth to three hoglets. One was already half eaten by one of the males and the others were being attacked. We managed to rescue two - both having been bitten. In the past we had put the pregnant mum in a separate cage to have her babies, but this time there had been no time. It was a case of leaving them in the nest, where they would undoubtedly have been eaten (as one of them had already been) or rescuing them and hand rearing them. We chose the latter.

The hoglets were very cold and Ross and Greg have been holding them to keep them warm this evening. They have just now had their second feed tonight. They have warmed up beautifully and are currently in a cardboard box, in a lovely soft warm bed, beside the aga. It seems we have two girls.

Ross and Greg are thinking of names and will let you know tomorrow. We shall continue with regular feeds and hope they make it through the night, as they were very cold and in shock.

There's never a dull moment here at Hill Top. More Tails tomorrow.

Goodnight!

Woodland Playground

2009-07-20T14:14:00.000-07:00

Hello again. We thought you might like to see the completed woodland playground.

This is just where the moth trapping took place last week with Jon and Max from the CFZ.

Today the weather has been brighter and we are still really busy.

Today Ross and Greg have been moving Scratchy (the Russian Dwarf Hamster or Winter White as they are known) to a much bigger cage, so now Scratchy thinks he's living in a castle, with lots of rooms!!

Any one for Tennis!

2009-07-19T13:51:00.000-07:00

Hello.

We have been really busy here at Hill Top over the last few days. We have had some wonderful guests from the UK and from Sweden and Austria.

Ross has been really busy in the Mini Zoo, it is looking lovely now, with the new fish tanks completed.

We thought you might like to meet Hattie.

Hattie belongs to my sister Lorraine - who lives just around the corner - and she is a twenty-one month old Sprocker (a cross between a Springer and a Cocker Spaniel). She has a really loving, gentle nature about her and she is very friendly. She loves to catch the tennis ball and when she

ran off with Greg's racket, we just had to catch her on camera!

Heavy Rain Again

2009-07-16T14:26:00.000-07:00

Hello and welcome to Hill Top Tails. Following the enjoyable evening moth trapping, the weather has been really miserable, with very heavy rain. The animals are all fine, the birds all in the indoor aviary and the hedgehogs are all content (as you can see from the picture), snuggled up in their box.

Dave has been up with Jon at the CFZ. Everyone at the CFZ is really busy preparing for this year's Weird Weekend, to be held on the 14th, 15th and 16th of August. An event certainly not to be missed. We'll catch up more tomorrow night.

Goodnight.

Beautiful Moths

2009-07-12T14:07:00.000-07:00

Following my blog last Tuesday, and the Moth Trapping evening with Jon and Max from the CFZ, we would like to share a few of the photographs with you. It was a fantastic evening, and we plan to repeat it again, very soon.

I supplied everyone with jacket potatoes at about 11.30 pm, and then it was a busy evening, which wound up at just after 3 am. A great time was had by all.
Everyone was hoping the Beast of Bucks would raise its head, but only the sheep in neighbouring fields were heard.

Moth Trapping

2009-07-07T16:11:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone. Whilst we have had dreadful weather for the last few days, today has really brightened up. This evening it is so calm and peaceful that Jon and Max from the CFZ (Centre for Fortean Zoology) have come down to do some moth trapping this evening. It really is great fun and you get to see some fantastic moths, which you never even knew existed!

Firstly the mercury vapour lamp, which attracts moths, was set up in our woodland area, near the wooden playground.

Then Greg mixed up treacle in warm water, and as you can see in the picture, he then used a paint brush to paint some on the trees near the moth trap, again to attract the moths. It wasn't long before the moths started to arrive in swarms. Max and Greg were busy catching them in the nets, they were then identified by Jon, and Rossi kept a notepad and recorded the times, species etc. Then each moth was photographed and released.

What a fantastic experience - unbelievable to see all the activity around the mercury vapour light.

The first moth to be caught was a Swallow Tail, followed by a Devon Carpet.

We'll give you a full report tomorrow night. But for now, we'll continue to watch and record the happenings of the night - this will no doubt go on into the early hours of tomorrow.

Thank you for reading our blog, we'll be back tomorrow.

Broad-bodied Chaser Dragonfly

2009-07-03T14:14:00.000-07:00

Hello!

Sad news today I'm afraid. Mrs.Tiggywinkle's hoglets were all found dead this morning just outside the nest. There were in fact four hoglets, but they have all died. We'll never really know the reasons why.

Following my blog entry on the 30th of June, which showed a picture of a dragonfly, which had been in our conservatory. We asked if anyone knew what kind of dragonfly it was.

Peter of The British Dragonfly Society kindly emailed us and said: -

"Your dragonfly is a female Broad-bodied Chaser (Libellula depressa) - the male has a blue abdomen. They spend about two years as larvae in still water and then live for a few weeks as adults. Apart from when breeding the females tend not to visit water very often".

Thank you for that Peter. We shall continue to look out for Dragonflies, and will no doubt be in touch again.

More Hill Top Tails tomorrow.

Meet Fungus the Roborovski Hamster

2009-07-01T13:56:00.000-07:00

Hello and welcome back to Hill Top Tails.

Everything is quiet with the hedgehogs/hoglets today. It has been really hot, so the hedgehogs have been peaceful and sleeping all day, but the canaries have been singing non-stop in the outdoor aviary.

Meet Fungus, our Roborovski Hamster. She is approximately four months old and was adopted from a local pet store. She is really tiny and is a joy to wach on her wheel. She runs so fast that she is thrown out of the wheel and she does it again and again and again!!

Roborovski hamsters are the the smallest and fastest of all hamsters. They can live up to 2 - 3 and a half years.
They are curious hamsters. Although their suitability as pets are further diminished by their size and speed, Roborovskis are extremely affectionate towards each other. Their social nature means that when housed together at an early age, they sleep in one place and indeed eat, play etc. together.
Roborovskis grow to about 4 - 5cm long, have bullet shaped bodies and very long hind legs for fast running. An ordinary hamster cage is no good for a Roborovski, they need a cage with really narrow gaps between the bars, or they will escape.

Fungus is fascinating to watch and a really enjoyable.

The British Dragonfly Society are going to identify our Dragonfly (see yesterday's blog), so we will let you know all about it tomorrow. They have a great website, see www.dragonflysoc.org.uk for more useful information.

We'll be back again tomorrow.

Three Hoglets!

2009-06-30T14:42:00.000-07:00

Welcome back. This morning there are three hoglets outside the nest. They're really gorgeous, small and plump, lots of spikes and their eyes closed. They're all tucked up in the nest with Mrs.Tiggywinkle tonight.

Today a large dragonfly came into the conservatory. We don't know much about dragonflies. Does anyone know what kind this is? We'd like to know.

The weather has again been really nice today, but the pollen count must be very high, as the boys are suffering from their hayfever badly tonight.

We received a lovely email from Jan Whittington, who has the baby bat which Ross rescued from school, she says, "My goodness how she has grown! She has got very used to me handling her and although she shouts at me when I first pick her up, she settles very quickly and eats like there is no tomorrow! She does get m/w juice all over the place, so when we have finished feeding (about 3 times a day) I wet a tissue and wash her face. She seems to enjoy this pampering and finishes up looking really good. I found she had difficulty cleaning round the places her tongue wouldn't reach!She stretches her wings every day so I shall have to start flying her soon so she gets the proper exercise. I have just (yesterday) picked up another baby just like she was and am feeding that one every 3 hours. It just has goats milk at the moment. It looks like a Whiskered too but it is difficult to be sure, it's so small. If it is, then I shall introduce them when they are both weaned properly and they can share their home and talk to each other!"

More tales tomorrow. Thank you for reading.

Mrs.Tiggywinkle's Baby

2009-06-29T10:43:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone. Apologies for not writing our blog for a few days, but we have been visiting Nanny Braund daily at Exeter Hospital, so we have got rather behind, but the good news is that she has come home, back to Walland Farm, with us all today.

Great news, on Friday Mrs.Tigglywinkle, one of our four hedgehogs, started to make a nest. Rossi and Roy moved her from the Barn Owl aviary into an area on her own and on Saturday and Sunday we heard or saw nothing of her. This morning I went to open the Mini Zoo door and to my great excitement, there just outside the nesting box was a hoglet, really tiny, eyes closed, just wandering around. With some hay, we carefully picked up the hoglet and put it back in the box with Mrs.Tiggywinkle, keen not to disturb them. The hoglet was really healthy and everyone here at Hill Top can't wait until the baby surfaces in a week or two, but how many are there? Can't wait to find out - we'll keep you informed. Here is a picture of the little hoglet - thought to be between 24 and 48 hrs old.

On another note, a barn owl note, part of an egg shell was found outside Bracken and Dreamer's nesting box. Are there any owlets? Dreamer is very aggressive, so it could be. We will not disturb them, we will let you know as soon as we see anything.

We'll be back to our daily blog now Nanny Braund is home, so keep reading.

Spot the Squirrel!

2009-06-22T13:54:00.001-07:00

Hello again.

Did anyone know the name of the flower we found yesterday?

Today the weather has been really hot and the canaries have been enjoying their new indoor/outdoor cage.

We've had several squirrels on the front lawn. One of them is a really small baby squirrel, but it was much too fast to photograph. Can you spot the squirrel in this picture?

Still no sign of owlets. We keep listening, but as soon as we hear or see anything we will let you know.

Cool Canaries

2009-06-21T15:13:00.000-07:00

Welcome back. Today started very early for us. At 3.10 a.m. Rossi woke up to notice that the fish tank in his bedroom had about an inch left of water in it. His bedroom floor was flooded and so was the small lounge below his bedroom. The tank, for some unknown reason, produced a large crack in the bottom. It was a rush to rescue the fish and put them in another tank and then clear up all the water.

It's been a really busy day, with the usual cleaning out of the animals, but today we opened up the new small aviary for the canaries. They can stay inside now, or go outside, the choice is theirs. They were certainly cool today. They all decided to explore and come out, so it was really nice to see them enjoying the fresh air and singing with a neighbouring Robin.

We have been busy planting the teacups and then we discovered a small purple flower, with a yellow centre. Does anyone know the name of this flower? We would like to know.

Much more news tomorrow. Thank you for reading our Blog.

Rossi's Whiskered Bat

2009-06-20T13:15:00.001-07:00

Hello everyone.

We thought you might just like to see how Rossi's rescued Bat is getting on. Janice, who is looking after the Bat sent this picture. She says, "It is dinner time and she is covered in mealworm juice. She spent the next few hours licking it all off and grooming."

It's lovely to see that she is doing well.

Back tomorrow with more stories.

Can Someone Please Help This Seal?

2009-06-18T12:28:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone and welcome back - sorry we have missed a couple of days, but Nanny Braund is still very ill in Hospital.

Firstly, great news on the Bat which Rossi rescued from school last week. Janice Whittington of Tarka Ecology who is looking after our bat, with others which she has rescued, has said today that "The little bat is doing well so far. She won't feed herself yet but is eating about 3 - 4 squeezed out mealworms each feed and has goats milk also. She gets m/w juice all over her face but washes herself and is always clean again next time I feed her." This is great news. We will give you further updates, as we receive them.

Secondly, Beth at the Hartland Wildlife Rescue sent me this picture of a seal which has been spotted around Lundy Island, over the last 2-3 years. The RSPCA have been informed, and apparently did not know where Lundy Island was and said they would send a driver out to check it out!!! (We wonder which road they will take!) Someone needs to help this seal to free it from the net. Can anyone help?

Everything is good here at Hill Top. We have some wonderful American visitors staying for a few days, they are lovely people and really enjoying North Devon.

Dreamer is still sitting on three eggs, so we are all getting excited - probably about another two weeks to go!

Speak to you again tomorrow. Bye from all at Hill Top.

Sign of Spring

2009-06-14T12:10:00.000-07:00

Welcome back to another good day at Hill Top.

Today everyone has been really busy. Rossi has been cleaning out the Mini Zoo and today we have moved Millie back into the cage with the other three hedgehogs. The lawns have been cut and the driveway strimmed and the weather has been fantastic. The view across the bay is really stunning.

The Bat Rossi rescued from school is doing fine. Beth from the Hartland Wildlife Rescue took the Bat to see a Bat expert called Jan near Torrington. She said the Bat was a girl and that it was a Whiskered Bat and so the Bat was left with Jan, to be with other bats of the same kind. The Whiskered bat has shaggy fur that can be a dark brown, greyish brown or light brown on its back and a dark or light grey on its underside. The nose, ears and wing membranes are all a blackish brown in colour. The Whiskered bat is very similar to the Brandt’s bat in appearance but tends to generally be slightly darker.

Really exciting news about the The Barn Owls. When we found the empty egg shell on the floor we felt really sad as we thought there were no more, but today we had a look and Dreamer is stitting on three eggs. We will keep you updated.

Keep watching our Blog for more stories of life at Hill Top.

Bracken & Dreamer's Surprise!

2009-06-13T01:18:00.000-07:00

Welcome back again!

Yesterday when Rossi went into the aviary to feed the Barn Owls he discovered a cracked egg on the floor. Now we are wondering if there is an owlet or even eggs in the nest. It is cleaning day for the owls today, so maybe we will have more news tonight!

Today we are moving Millie back with the other hedgehogs and it's cleaning day in the Mini Zoo.

It's beautiful weather here at Hill Top Holidays - Roy is putting the last piece of equipment into the playground. Dave has been busy at Rosemoor Gardens doing the lighting for a charity performance by Elkie Brooks, which was said to be a fantastic performance last night.

Back again later.

Millie's Hoglet Dies

2009-06-11T14:00:00.000-07:00

Welcome back everyone. We apologise for not writing our blog for a few days, but Nanny Braund has been really poorly.

Firstly, some really sad news. On Sunday Millie was out and about, but there was no sign of her hoglet. We listened, but there was nothing. We decided that we ought to see if the hoglet was alive, or not, and so we asked Beth for some advice. Beth came over (see picture) and sadly we found Millie's hoglet in the bed, and it appears that she had been squashed/suffocated by Millie, which apparently is quite common. Everyone here at Hill Top was really sad, as we had so wanted Millie's hoglet to live, but it was not to be. At the weekend we will move Millie back in with the other hedgehogs again.

Today has been quite exciting with Rossi bringing home a baby bat from school. The baby bat had been found by one of the teachers in a room and was on its own and helpless. Ross kept the baby bat warm and we took it to Beth at the Harltand Wildlife Rescue. Beth had a nice warm box (see picture) and this evening she confirmed that he has been eating - we will keep you updated on his progress.

We'll be back again tomorrow with news about Bracken and Dreamer, our Barn Owls - thank you for reading.

Cucumber Green Spider

2009-06-06T14:31:00.000-07:00

Hello again. Today the weather has been miserable - raining all day. Rossi has spent the morning cleaning the animals out in the mini zoo and Greg has been helping Roy with the woodland playground. This will soon be finished now.

Today we saw Millie out and tomorrow we hope to see her baby for the first time. We are hoping to have some pictures tomorrow.
Jon at the CFZ says that the spider in this picture is a Cucumber spider.
The Cucumber green spider (Araniella cucurbitina) is a spider of the Araneidae family. Females grow up to 8 mm, males only up to 5 mm. The spider is mainly found on forest clearings, where it weaves its orb-web between leaves and flowers. These webs are only about 10 cm in diameter.
This spider does not use a hideout, because it is camouflaged by its green colour. Adult spiders first show this colour in spring. Freshly hatched spiderlings are red and change to brown until autumn. On the end of the abdomen there is a red mark in adults.
These spiders occur in the Palearctic, although it can be found in parts of North America, where it was probably introduced.
Yesterday, when Greg was coming home from school, a roe deer ran across the driveway, into the small woodland, but we didn't have a chance to take a photo. The camera is ready and waiting for when it shows its face again!
Thank you for your lovely comments on the Winter White hamster - much appreciated.
More updates on Millie and her hoglet tomorrow. Thank you for reading.

Meet Scratchy

2009-06-02T13:32:00.000-07:00

Hello and welcome back to Hill Top Tails. Again it has been a great day weatherwise - the view here at Walland Farm is quite breath-taking.

Beth from the Hartland Wildlife Rescue called in today. She had four baby hedgehogs, which were rescued and she is now hand rearing them - all less than a week old, and she also had an injured baby housemartin. It's spring, all the young are arriving, and this is the time of year when she gets really busy.

Introducing you to Scratchy - another member of the Mini Zoo. Scratchy is Greg's Russian Dwarf Hamster or Winter-White - he/she is grey in colour with a dorsal stripe during the summer and turns almost entirely white in the winter.

Dwarf Winter White Russian Hamsters are approximately 8-10cm in length when full grown with males being larger than females. They have expandable cheek pouches. Russian Hamsters have furry feet and are sometimes referred to as the Furry or Hairy Footed Hamster.

Scratchy is fascinating to watch, especially as he changes colour - we all thought that perhaps he was getting old and that was why he turned white, but this spring he turned back to his grey!

Scratchy will take food from you and likes to climb upside down on the bars of his cage.

Work on the woodland playground is still continuing and hopefully it will be finished at the weekend.

Does anyone know what the spider is that was on our blog of Sunday the 31st of May?

Thanks for joining us, we'll be back with more stories tomorrow.

Harold of Hill Top Holidays!

2009-06-01T14:26:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone, and what fantastic weather we have had today.

Update on Millie - she is doing well, coming out for her food and we have heard noises, so we are pretty certain that everything is going well with the baby hoglet.

John at the CFZ was really miffed, as yesterday Greg had caught on camera a Devon Painted Lady butterfly - he's been trying to capture one on camera this last week and Greg (Jon's Godson) beat him to it!

Now, to introduce you to Harold. Harold was born on the 25th of July, 1962. Harold was a necessity and we purchased him on the 27th of June, 2007 and the following day he was christened Harold of Hill Top Holidays!
Yes, you've guessed, Harold is our 1962 Fordson Super Dexta Tractor. Harold has been great fun, we couldn't manage without him. We had him taxed and number plated up last year and he has been delivering logs in the winter, he tows the caravans in and out and Harold is used for cutting the fields. Harold is pictured here with Dave driving him and cutting the grass yesterday. As you can see, Dave is dressed for the occasion! Rossi was also cutting the grass yesterday - probably chasing Dave and Harold - Ross coming up the rear on Mervyn the ride-on-mower!

There really never is a dull day here at Hill Top.

Back with more updates tomorrow. Thank you for reading our Blog.

Butterfly Mania!

2009-05-31T13:11:00.000-07:00

Welcome back to Hill Top. We have had a couple of days off, so apologies for not updating our blog, but we are back!

The weather has been so warm this weekend that we have had lots of butterflies here at Hill Top. Greg decided that he wanted to catch some of the butterflies, identify them and then release them. He filled a pop up cage with various greenery and some stones and then set out with his butterly net and book. He had great fun and caught two different species.

Later Greg discovered a green spider - if anyone knows what kind of spider this is please let us know.

Work continued on the woodland playground and tomorrow we will introduce you to Harold.

Inky and Patch

2009-05-27T13:39:00.000-07:00

Welcome back to a wet and windy day at Hill Top. It's been really damp and miserable today. Dave's away helping some friends with some painting in their new Pub. Ross and Greg were up early checking on the animals and Ross gave the two guinea pigs, Inky and Patch, their early morning cuddle (see photo) Inky is the black one - guess which one is Patch!!

We have seven baby canaries, four are seven week's old and three just five and a half week's old. They are really pretty and vary in colour - yellow, white, black and brown. At the moment three have little crests on the top of their head (a bit like a mushroom hair cut!) and they are really cute, but some of the others may still get a crest. Some of these will probably be moved into the big aviary with the other five canaries in a week or two.

Work continued on the Woodland Playground again tonight and things are starting to take shape. We're all hoping for some better weather tomorrow.

Update on Millie - today we have heard our hoglet squeaking, so things are looking good.

Further updates tomorrow.

Millie Is Eating Again!

2009-05-26T15:46:00.000-07:00

Welcome back. Today has been a nice day weatherwise. The boys are all home on half-term and first thing this morning Ross and Greg were out checking to see if Millie the hedgehog had been out during the night, to eat some food, as she had eaten nothing the previous night.

The best news this morning was that yes, Millie had been out and eaten during the night, so things are looking good on the hedgehog front! (See picture of Millie and Mrs.Tiggywinkle last summer - hand reared by Ross and Greg). No sign of the baby hoglet yet, but it is very early days. We'll keep you posted.

The boys went down in the fields collecting trimmed trees for logging and then Ross and Greg spent some time cleaning out a new fish tank and getting it ready for the Mini Zoo.

Dave went on an errand for Uncle Jon (at the CFZ) to collect a bath for housing some turtles. Matt (also a member of the CFZ) accompanied Dave, as he's learning to drive, and took his van (named Boris), to get some extra lessons in!

Going back to Bracken and Dreamer (our two barn owls) - after spending the winter in their cage, which was attached to the house, we thought it would be nicer for them to be more in their natural surroundings. So, in April, Roy and the boys spent a whole week dismantling Bracken and Dreamer's old cage and building a new, bigger cage, at the entrance to the woodland walk, which is surrounded by trees, birds, squirrels etc. This larger cage also houses the hedgehogs and gives them plenty of room to run around, with plenty of grass as well, and the hedgehogs get on fine with the Barn Owls.

Once Roy was home from work this evening, it was all hands on deck for work on the woodland playground. Work halted on a few occasions, as a visitor kept appearing to see what was going on - a cute little shrew! We'll show some pictures of the playground's progress tomorrow. The bluebells are still out and they look so lovely in the woods.

Bracken & Dreamer

2009-05-25T14:42:00.000-07:00

Welcome back to Hill Top Tails.

Today (Bank Holiday Monday) has been busy at Hill Top. Caravans have been returning for storage, after their weekend trips out.

Guests leaving and some staying for an extra day, and whilst the weather has been dull and damp, it hasn't stopped work at Walland Farm!

Today work has started on the woodland playground. Dave, Ross & Greg helped their dad Roy finish clearing the site, and carry timber poles down into the small woodland area, in readiness. More to follow on this story as things progress.

Millie and her new hoglet have been quiet all day, but this is a good sign, and we don't expect to see Millie's new offspring for a few weeks, but we will certainly keep you posted.

Today we thought we would introduce you to Bracken and Dreamer, our two Barn Owls.

Last August we received a call from Beth at the Hartland Wildlife Rescue, who desperately needed a home for a baby barn owl. He had been ejected from the nest at only a few days old and Beth had hand reared him. Because he was unable to be returned to the wild Beth needed to find a home for her young Barn Owl.

Well, this is where a great chapter at Hill Top began, as it was all hands on deck and a cage was built within a couple of weeks. Roy, along with Dave, Ross and Greg worked hard to make a home for the young Barn Owl, who I named Bracken.

Bracken lived in a cage in our conservatory whilst the outdoor cage was being built and he was absolutely adorable. As you talked to him he would listen intently and if you turned your head to the right he would do the same and similary if you turned your head to the left, he would follow you. He is absolutely charming and is loved by us all. At the end of last year Beth asked us if Bracken would like a companion as she would like a bigger cage for her own Barn Owl, and so Dreamer came to live with Bracken.

The pictures show Roy and Greg starting on the cage and then Beth, Ross and Greg looking at the finished project, with Bracken in the top right hand corner.

As you can see from the picture Bracken and Dreamer are now best mates and spend all their time together. But the story didn't end there. We'll tell you more tomorrow.

Hoglet at Hill Top

2009-05-24T14:17:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone and welcome to Hill Top Holidays. Roy and I (Kaye) and our three sons, Dave 17, Ross 14 and Greg 10 (pictured with a rescued hedgehog), purchased Walland Farm, in North Devon in June, 2007 and we are all working hard together to make Hill Top Holidays a really pleasant and peaceful place to come and stay. We are so lucky to enjoy an absolutely fantastic view around the Bideford Bay and the beautiful countryside around us.

Ross and Greg love animals (probably due to their Uncle Jon at the CFZ encouraging them to help with his own animals over the years) and we have set up our own mini zoo here as a small attraction for our visitors. We work with Beth of the Hartland Wildlife Rescue and last summer Ross and Greg hand fed and reared four rescue hedghogs. Runty, Harvey, Millie and Mrs.Tiggywinkle. These hedgehogs were too low weight to hibernate for the winter and so Ross and Greg looked after them all winter in the zoo. In April when the weather was warmer the hedgehogs moved into their new home, which was in the aviary with the Barn Owls.

Yesterday (Saturday) in the morning, Millie was seen out of the hedgehog's bed, wondering around the aviary, collecting bedding. Ross and Greg kept an eye on her and we realised that she was making a nest. The boys were so excited and rang Beth at the Hartalnd Wildlife Rescue who recommended that Millie be moved into a cage on her own to protect herself and any new babies from the other hedgehogs, who may well eat any baby hoglets.

Ross and Greg moved Millie and all day long she came in and out of her bed collecting straw etc. and making a nest, she was very busy. Last night there was great concern for Millie as she was lying in the doorway of her house and looked tired and helpless, but the boys left Millie to let nature take its course.

This morning Ross and Greg were up and out early, but to their great disappointment there was a dead hoglet in the cage. All day the boys kept listening out to see if they could hear any squeaks, but there has been nothing. Ross rang Beth late this afternoon, as he was so worried that Millie might have died and Beth called round. We opened the lid on the house and there was great joy to see that Millie was alive and bright-eyed, but that there were three other dead hoglets in with Millie. Beth removed these and then much to everyone's surprise we discovered that there was one live hoglet. Millie was carefully left with her baby hoglet and now we will have to wait and see if the hoglet shows it's face to the world in four or five week's time.

Everyone here at Walland Farm is highly delighted and Ross and Greg are already thinking of names!

Over the next couple of weeks we will introduce you to the animals.