Kicking the bag habit...

Pepi and I are now friends, and I'm showing her the ropes in the Big Wild. I had been concerned as she was reluctant to give up the comforts of our foster home and really wasn't getting on with being a proper wombat. As this video shows, she was - until last week - still trying to get into a makeshift pouch - one the size of a pillow case! I've now got her in hand, and she is suitably muddy and rugged. Hello earthy burrows and grass - bye bye carrots, cuddles, and soft pouches.

The sweet taste of freedom

This is an image of Pepi taken today after her first night of freedom aged 16 months and weighing approx 10kg. Her Mums found her this morning in a favourite hollow tree a couple of hundred metres from her pen. She was not shall we say looking her best, but then again I'm a fine one to talk as I sport a muddy look most of the time - it goes with the territory. Pepi gladly followed her Mums back to the pen for a good day's sleep, ready for the excitement of another night.

I'm not sure it's such a good development as Pepi was straight round to my pen last night to raid my grass pellets. Guess it's time for those to stop anyway, as I've been out and about since mid June. Initially it was scary, but now I'm really at home in the wild and move from burrow to burrow as the mood and the weather takes me. No doubt I'll be seeing Pepi on my travels, and who knows, maybe one day we'll have a romantic liaison....

Into the big wild ... and back

Sunday was a beautiful calm sunny day. I felt wild and wanted to be free, so when I was taken for my early morning walk I dashed into a thick patch of bracken and laid low. I heard my Mums calling me throughout the day, but I was enjoying myself so I ignored them. When night fell I got scared and hungry so I snuck back to my enclosure and found a new flap which allowed me to get to my food bowl and my cozy bed. Since then I've decided to stick close to Mums, and even try to get on to their laps for an extra cuddle - perhaps I'm not quite ready yet for the big wild.

Who's the cutest?

Excuse me Chester -this is Pepi by the way - I see you've posted a threat on your blog. Well I have to ask your followers if that's deserved or fair, and whether in fact I am the cutest of them all?

My gutsy little friend

For a while now my foster Mums have also been raising a baby girl wombat, Pepi. I haven't seen much of her as she has been inside until recently, when she joined me in a neighbouring pen. She is 2 months younger than me, and because she had a really stressful time before she was fostered, she is somewhat smaller than I was at her age. However, you wouldn't know it as she is healthy, and well gutsy.....in fact, I think I feel a little jealous, so I might just try to give her a nip on the bum when no one's looking.

Dag Man

A month ago I discovered that if I moved my "pouch" into the litter tray immediately after I'd used it, then I got a lovely warm feeling coming through, and the smell was great. Don't know why, but next day I found that I was moved into my new enclosure...

Love is....

...deceptive. By striking up this cutesy pose with Chino, I thought I had the perfect cover for creating a large puddle under the dining room table. However, when we got up, for some unknown reason he didn't get the blame.