🌙 Meet Pixie: The Brushtail Possum Who Started It All.
From roadside orphan to rafter-swinging rascal, Pixie’s story is the inspiration for Gumleaves and Grass.
It was a typical call among wildlife rehabilitators: too many orphans, not enough hands. Pixie had been found roadside, huddled on top of her dead mother — traumatised, alone, and still so tiny. Another rehabilitator had taken her in, but with so many little ones needing round-the-clock care, she reached out. That’s how Pixie came to us.
Pixie was frightened, and understandably so. I popped her pouch into my jumper immediately, so that she could become familiar with my scent, and to hear my heartbeat. Every time I went near her pouch in that first week, she’d cower. She’d just lost everything familiar — and now she was learning to trust again. I fed her specialised formula, designed for varying possum weight ranges - sometimes every three hours, on demand - day and night. Slowly, with time, warmth and consistency, the walls began to come down.
As she grew, Pixie became my “back baby.” We’re strong believers in free-raising wildlife wherever possible — no cages, no forced confinement, just a safe base from which they can explore, grow, and return when they choose. This has been my way since I was a toddler myself, living with Australian wildlife. Having said that, I appreciate that not all rehabilitators have that option. You need the space and environment for such a luxury.
Pixie would ride on my shoulder, or hang on to my leg, as we took our sunset walks. After waking from her daytime slumber, she’d climb out of her tree log, ready for our stroll down to the river. Along the way, she’d snack on fresh gumleaves, plucked straight from the trees, with a little possum sass. These outings were a great confidence booster for Pixie.
In time, she outgrew her pouch and started living up in the trees. But she hasn't gone far. Some nights, Pixie comes back — to help me hang the washing, torment me from the rafters, or just to sit and watch, and protect.
That’s the thing about female brushtail possums — they tend to stay close to home. And Pixie, in her own way, has never really left.
Pixie’s story is at the heart of Gumleaves and Grass — from our Brushtail Possum Collection to the real-life videos we share on our YouTube channel. Each design, each clip, and every word is a celebration of wildlife raised with love — and a quiet reminder of what’s at stake, when we share our roads and our environment with creatures like her.
Australia has one of the highest mammal extinction rates in the world — and far too many species are slipping away in silence. At Gumleaves and Grass, we believe awareness is the first step. By making native animals part of everyday life — through stories, clothing, and conversation — we hope to spark more appreciation before it’s too late.
Because the wild deserves more than our regret. It deserves our attention, while we still have time.
🌿 Want to meet Pixie on screen?
Watch her earliest moments, her sunset walks, and her cheeky antics on our YouTube channel
🛍️ Or explore the full Brushtail Possum Collection:
https://gumleavesandgrass.com/collections/pixie-the-brushtail-possum-collection
Thanks for being part of Pixie's story. And ours.
If this moved you, please share it — you might just help save a life.
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