Parky’s Park Hobby Farm

04/09/2026

All penned and loaded 👌

03/09/2026

The rollercoaster of newborn foster care.

Newborns in foster care are a whole different kind of rollercoaster.

We don’t always get a history. We may not know if Mum was vaccinated, whether she received the care she needed, or most importantly, whether these tiny babies ever received the colostrum they needed in those first precious hours.

So we start from where they are.

For the first 72 hours, it can mean 2-hourly feeds around the clock, encouraging that tiny sucking reflex, making sure they’re hydrated, monitoring every 💩 and trying to help bodies that are still learning how to regulate their own temperature.

And then there’s the feeding yoyo.

One feed they absolutely nail. The next they struggle. Then they refuse several in a row and your heart sinks.

Is this just a tired baby?
Are they warm enough?
Is it time for the vet?

Knowing when to intervene, when to fight and when to simply let a little body rest is one of the hardest parts.

And when you have a bigger group, there is never a feed where everyone is perfect.

Someone has a mucky bum.
Someone hasn’t finished their bottle.
Someone looks just a little flat.
Someone refuses the bottle.
But amongst the stress, there is SO much joy.

The sleepy baby snuggles.
The little squeaks.
The laughter when they finally figure out how to use those ridiculous little legs and start pottering around on the wooden floors.

And then the chaos begins…

The frustration when someone decides your phone charger is delicious.
Or the wall.
Or your houseplants.

And then… they discover their voice.

That’s when the screaming starts.

The feeding. The changing. The washing. The bottles.
SO. MANY. BOTTLES.

Your entire day starts revolving around feed times, and suddenly you’re calculating how long you have between bottles just to duck to the shops.

It’s exhausting. It’s stressful. It’s messy.

It’s also incredibly rewarding.

Because every little suck, every extra mL, every healthy 💩, every wobbly step and every tiny milestone means they’re getting stronger.

And for these little babies, that’s what we’re here for.

One feed at a time.

01/09/2026

Come do laundry with us 🤪🫣😵‍💫

Before the Karen’ comment - this is a 5 minute part of our day when I let them loose, they play outside on the lawn without nappies, and also have a secure pen indoors… we don’t let them run riot through the house at all times…

01/09/2026

💔 It’s with very heavy hearts that we share that little Raph has passed away. 💔

Raph was one of the surrendered goat babies who came into our care. He had spent over a week in hospital, showing little glimmers of hope here and there, but sadly never made the breakthrough we were desperately hoping for. When the vet went to do his scheduled check, they found that he had passed away peacefully.

And just a few days later, we lost little Oscar too. Oscar had moved to another foster home, where he was deeply loved and cared for.

Both boys had ongoing and feeding issues coming into rescue and had both been under repeat vet care. We may never know exactly what their little bodies had been through, or why they couldn’t make it.

We are absolutely broken that we couldn’t save them.

The hardest part of rescue is that we don’t always get the whole story, and we don’t always get the happy ending.

But what we do know is that when they are with us, they get the very best we can give them.

Advocacy, warmth, vet care, comfort, love and someone fighting for them every step of the way.

They may not have had long lives, but they knew they were safe. They were loved. They mattered.

Run free, little Raph and Oscar. 🌈🐐 🐐

You were loved, and you will never be forgotten.
Til The Cows Come Home

31/08/2026

Foster care is a tough gig.

Amongst the cute photos, the funny personalities, the little wins and the beautiful success stories, there are also the moments that break your heart.

We’ve learnt that you can give them everything you’ve got. You can advocate, fight, spend sleepless nights worrying, put your own life on hold for days, weeks or sometimes months,and still not be able to save them all.

And those moments are hard.

The suffering. The last breaths. The waiting. Holding your breath and wishing for a miracle.

We’ve had a couple of really tough breaks this last week, and while we’ll share more when we’re ready, for now, our hearts are heavy.

This is the part of fostering people don’t always see.

The heartbreak amongst the happy endings. It’s opening you heart to love again while still grieving, and that little doubt that always sits there… did we do enough ???

30/08/2026

Foster full is a bit like dessert full… 😂

You can be completely full, but somehow you can always make room for dessert.

When we got the call that 3 little lives could be saved, we did some foster pen Tetris and made space.

Welcome, babies.

Hopefully, once they are settled and stable, they may move to another foster carer.

But for now, our pens are full, our days are full and our hearts are very, very full.

And now for the important part…

These three little boys need names!

We’ve just finished our last A–Z theme and, after 122 calves (now 125!), names are starting to get a little tricky. We’re not keen on starting another A–Z, so we’re going to need some creative suggestions!

Because apparently, foster full means there’s always room for one more. ❤️🐮

29/08/2026

We moved the 3 bigger moos down to the front paddock with a round bale. It’s getting expensive feeding out squares of hay and they needed more room to move around. As we moved them out of the foster nursery, we also are preparing the small pen to welcome some new rescues tomorrow. Cattle Clobber halters 👌

28/08/2026

The HEAVIEST round bale we have had to roll EVER 😅! A prime lucerne second… it was heavy as hell. We even tried to push it with the ranger bull bar, but the ranger kept trying to climb it as it was so solid! One day we’ll own a tractor or a fork lift, but for now … we are the machines 👌🤪😅🙏

26/08/2026

25/08/2026

The surrendered 6 … how it’s going ….