We have Guernsey & Ayrshire cows as they are renowned for their gentle and quiet behaviour, which is essential when we have so many young people and in-experienced handlers attending the Farm.

Patsy, our current milking cow, is milked twice a day, at 10am and 4pm. Everyone is welcome to have a go!   The milk is usually fed to the calves, the pigs or any orphan lambs or kids we have at the time.

The horses at the Farm are selected for their quietness when being handled and good behaviour under saddle. These horses are used to provide Pony Rides for our Hosted Birthday Parties, our monthly Family Days and to teach Horsemanship in our Young Farmer's Program.

These horses include Maggie and Annie (both thoroughbread mares, Tealeaf, a chestnut Arab mare, Charlie Benson, a Clydesdale cross gelding, Tyson, a chestnut Pony, Smurf, a palomino Appaloosa gelding and Mega, a bay Waler mare.

Mega the Waler is on lease to the Farm from the Waler Horse Owners and Breeders Association Australia Inc.

The Collingwood Children's Farm currently has Berkshire pigs, a breed no longer kept by Commercial Piggeries.  This is due primarily to their colour. The Berkshire is black with white points, (tail, feet and nose/face).  The Berkshire has been introduced to the Farm as part of the Federation Rare Breeds Display Project, as they were popular at the time of Federation, but are now rare. Pigs are able to be bred all year round.

We have a small herd of goats, consisting of pure bred Anglo Nubian goats and Anglo Nubien x Saanen goats.

Anglo Nubian goats originated in England from breeding English Does to African and Indian bucks, to produce a milking goat that could tolerate and thrive in hot, tropical conditions.

Despite popular opinion, goats do not eat everything, rather they will try anything within reach.  The Farm goats are very friendly and love being scratched behind the ears.  Like the English Leicester, the female goat is only fertile for a short period of the year, from late summer to early winter.  Consequently, the adorable kids are born five months later, with the majority born late August to mid October.

The Farm keeps a small flock of English Leicester Sheep.  The English Leicester is a British long wool breed, which first arrived in Australia in 1838 and are kept for their lustrous wool. Because they are a British breed, the ewes are only fertile during autumn, resulting in the lambs being born in late Winter to early Spring. So, August and September are the best months to visit if you want to see these cute lambs.

At the Farm, we have a small flock of Chinese Geese and Sebastapol Geese. The Chinese Goose is an elegant bird, which closely resembles a swan in body shape, in fact, they used to be called Swan Goose in earlier times. Chinese Geese are not as aggressive in their breeding season as other breeds of geese, but nonetheless, they are quite good guard animals. 

Peacocks 

Wandering around the Farm, we have a group of Blue Indian Peafowl . Our peacocks look their best in late winter to early summer, this is when they are displaying to all and sundry, whether they are peahen, chicken, duck, goose, rock, child or bush! Those people who are interested in having their own peacock feather/s, should come to the Farm in January when we sell the feathers that have been dropped, when the peacock is moulting!

The Farm keeps three main breeds of duck - the Pekin, Muscovy and Fawn & White Indian Runner. The Pekin resembles the classic farmyard duck, being white with either yellow or cream beak and legs. It is widely believed that Donald Duck was modelled on the Pekin duck. They are quite good egg layers and have good table qualities. Whilst a very common breed, our Pekins are well bred and of a Show standard.

The Muscovy, is unrelated to all other domestic breeds of duck, as it is descended from the Musk Duck of South America while the other domestic breeds were developed from the Mallard.  Muscovies are well known for their abilities in incubating eggs and looking after their babies. Muscovies are unable to quack, instead they hiss or squeak weakly and are probably the only breed of domestic duck that can still fly (females only, as the drakes are too heavy).

Like the Leghorn Chickens, the Fawn & White Indian Runner ducks are part of our Rare Breed Display.  These ducks look very different compared to other ducks as they are shaped much like a wine bottle and are able to run rather than waddle. They are champion egg layers but they are quite nervous animals, with quite high-strung personalities.

We have five breeds of chickens at the Farm. They are the Light Sussex, Salmon Favorelle, Black Orpington, Brown & Black Leghorn and Chinese Silky.

The Chinese Silkys are kept at the Farm because of their quiet and gentle temperaments, as well as their exotic appearance.

The Light Sussex is an ideal farmyard breed, as they lay an adequate number of eggs, are docile with good mothering skills and have excellent table qualities, though the latter is not emphasized at the Farm. 

 

The Black Orpington fowl are active but docile birds. They are steady, though not exceptional layers. Being a 'heavier' bird they do tend to go broody and are good mothers. These birds are part of our Federation Rare Breed Display. This display features breeds and varieties of farm animals that were popular at the time of Australia's Federation, but are now considered to be rare and in need of preservation.

The Brown & Black Leghorns are rare colour varieties of the Leghorn chicken, which was developed in Italy as an egg-laying breed. These chickens are more highly strung than the Sussex varieties. The rooster is a splendid bird with magnificent plumage.

Faverolles were bred to be a dual purpose bird: both meat and eggs. The best known variety is the Salmon Faverolle. The birds are alert and active and can be inclined to apparent panic when, because of the bird and muffling below and behind their eyes, they lose their flock. In general though they are placid,  inquisitive and tame.

We have six  cats at the Farm.  They are Maggie - Black and White female, Oompala - tortoise and white female, Toki - grey and white female, Pebbles - tabby female, Tom -Black male and Spud a new Grey and White  Tabby kitten. Their main job is to keep the rodent population down to a manageable level!

Oompalah

Pebbles

The guinea pigs at the Farm are kept for their small size, unique appearance and gentle temperament.  They like to have a quiet chat and a cuddle.  Remember to take in some freshly picked grass or dandelion leaves for them to nibble on!

The bees are housed in their hives in a specially designed enclosure near the Convent which they use, as well as the bountiful gardens of Kew, to harvest the pollen, which is then made into honey. This honey is collected by Apiarists from the Melbourne Apiary Club, during the months of late Spring and Summer. The honey is then bottled and sold at our monthly Farmers Markets.

The earthworms are of the red and tiger varieties, and are housed near the pig pens in their own worm farm. They are used to process our food scraps and to develop worm castings, which we then use on our gardens and to sell to the public, for their home gardens.