Lilly Bug

Welcome Lilly!  She is our newest addition to the farm.  And what a cute little bug she is!  Last September, when my sister and I attended the second Mother Earth News Fair in Seven Springs, PA, she purchased two Silver Fox does and one buck.  Lilly is their offspring from earlier this summer.  She is the blue variety, but they are often seen as black with the silvering developing as they grow.  They are an endangered breed of rabbits primarily grown for meat.  When I explain this to people, the most common response is, "Then why do you eat them?"  Well simply put, if they're not being bred for meat, then they are not being bred at all.

On our farm, we are working to be as sustainable in our food production as possible.  It is a process, and currently we can only produce a small portion of our own food.  But each year we are adding more and more.  Starting a rabbitry for meat is our next step.  Lilly is still a youngster though, and we're not planning on eating her.  She will be one of our breeding does once she is old enough.  She's just barely two months old.  In the mean time, I am phasing out of raising angoras.  While I love the fiber, they are a lot of work.  I have four at the moment, and plan to rehome three, keeping one.  Four is just too much for me right now.  Their fiber is fantastic being 3/4 English and 1/4 French.  If anyone is interested, please contact me.  Here's my girls.  They all have wonderful dispositions.  Especially the sisters.  And an angora or two is a great way to produce and harvest your very own fiber for spinning!

Mrs. Buns - 3 years old (mamma to Grey and Ginger)

Grey Baby - 1.5 years old (sister to Ginger)

Ginger Snap - 1.5 years old (sister to Grey)

This has been a tough decision for me.  I love all my rabbits.  But my initial intention was to sell Mrs. Buns offspring.  A few I did.  Three I kept.  And I still plan on keeping their brother, Runtdungus Fletcher.  He's my baby!  As I mentioned above, angoras do take a bit of maintenance, so please only serious inquires.  =)

Summer has gone fast!  I'm back to work full time now, which leaves a lot less time for the farm, garden, and shop.  Perhaps one day I will have more time, but for now we do what we have to do, and plan for future change.  It's all a process.  I'm enjoying the cooler nights (and sometimes days), but can't wait for the frosts of fall!  Autumn is my favorite time of year!  I much prefer the cooler weather.  Most of the garden vegetables have been exhausted, though we've still got a few things growing.  I planted some cabbage, onions, and cilantro earlier this month for (hopefully) a fall harvest.  I'm still trying to figure out what I can grow into the fall to extend our season.  Again...process.