New Dairy Goats and some Giant Rabbits have arrived!

Well In this day of little extra money to spend more folks are going the bartering rout. I don't think that's such a bad thing, folks have been bartering since the beginning of time. I have just recently been a party in a bartering deal. I have traded my Arabian gelding and received a pair of Checkered Giant rabbits, palamino doe rabbit, and a pair of dairy goats. The Dairy doe is a Oberhasli yearling and the buck is an Alpine. And it appears there will be another trade soon, a mare for a few more dairy goats. Its a good way to get something you want and can use and get rid of something that you don't, its a win win situation.

I bred the checkered Giants today and it went well so cross your fingers in about 30 days Ill have little bouncing baby buns! My English angora is due April 19th so I'm crossing my fingers for that litter. New pics of the goats will be up soon!

My husband and my FIL finished my goat pen today and we let them out, that's one more job down and only about a billion more to go.

Will more people garden? Will they be able to?

So the Obamas now have a garden. Kudos for them. Although I did not vote for him nor do I like anything he has done yet I do think its great that Michelle is putting in a garden. Even if staff will tend to it I think it will wake people up to the fact that having a garden is not "hick". I personally think this country really needs to wake up and people need to take more responsibility for their own food. Anyone can have a couple tomato or pepper plants on the balcony and a few rabbits or quail in the garage. I also think more towns and cities need to allow small livestock I mean seriously a small milk goat or 2, or a flock of 5 hens would be less a nuisance than most peoples dogs. And not as smelly normally.

I have been reading up on the new bill HR 875 this sounds kinda scary to me. You can read the bill for yourself here http://www.govtrack.us/congress/billtext.xpd?bill=h111-875
The way I'm reading is that even a couple tomato plants in the back yard or your 2 pet chickens would be affected by this. I cant believe they are really trying to pass this and think it would be "good" for the US. People need to be able to grow their own foods, we should not have to rely on GM foods or big Ag business to ruin our health. There is nothing better than tasting the chicken that you have grown naturally on your own farm that met its demise in a quick human way. The cow you bought to butcher that has spent its whole life on grass in a big pasture. Or biting into that huge juicy tomato you just picked from your garden 5 minutes ago. The bill is way to broad and can be construed so many ways that's its not even funny. Please contact your senators and tell them respectfully how bad this would be for the US.

I did get 2, 50ft rows of potatoes and 3, 30 ft rows of peas planted today. I will be able to till up the rest of the garden and plant some snow peas, spinach, kale and cabbage and broccoli tomorrow.

Is She Pregnant???

So today was the first day of spring and I started tilling the garden. I need to get my potatos and peas planted however I ran out of gas in the tiller. Will have to finish tomorrow, oh well hubby will be home and I can make him help, Im still shaking from the darn tiller..lol.

I did get my English Angora a hair cut today, wow thats a whole lotta wool. I was thinking about tring to sell or trade her off for a couple meat rabbit does so I could get my meat rabbits going but then decided I would just breed her to my Silver Fox buck and butcher the babys, they wount be as big im sure but we can start geting some meat on the table and I get to keep my angora. The buck has never bred before and Bonnie is a maiden doe so It did not go as planned. Im not sure if he got her or not. I get off work early in the morning and will put her with him again and then just wait the 30 days and see. I am still keeping my eyes open for a breeding age doe of any meat type breed but hopefully cross your fingers Ill at least get some from this cross soon.

My Menagerie

Went down near Witchita last weekend and picked up another Black Silver fox doe and a trio of Blanc de Hotots. The Hotots are very pretty, not as nice as the Silver fox but with a bit more handling they will be fine. They are all adjusting well and every one is eating and drinking well. I am planing on breeding my Blue Silver Fox pair first part of May, cant wait to get some baby buns around here.



I am also beginning to think about what fruit trees Id like to put out on the farm, I'm thinking apple, peach and pears. Would also like to start some raspberries and blue berries this spring but I'm not sure I will start those till we move out there. Our plans are to be out living on the farm by next summer. Seems so far off but I hope it will be here before I know it and in the mean time there is plenty of work to be done, more pens to fence, trees to plant, trees to clear out, and lots of stuff to burn. Will also start building some movable chicken coops to start housing the separate breeds of chickens in. I have decided that most of the breeds I'm getting from the hatcheries will be put into my mixed flock, anything I want to breed and hatch will be from breeders with quality stock. I will however raise some RIR and Barred Rocks for hatching and selling to local folks for meaties and layers. I will have a nice pen of Blue/ black Orps, Salmon Favorells, Buckeyes, Speckled Sussex, will work on Lavender silkies and Lavender Orpingtons.



I should get in the mail tomorrow my doz of Midget white turkey eggs and Jumbo quail eggs so Ill be adding them to my list of Breeds to raise. Yes I'm getting quite the poultry menagerie. But they are all use full animals with a purpose on my little homestead.



Here Is my new Hotot Buck
Pretty Little guy isn't he? The Hotots are all only 10 weeks right now but will be breeding them in the Fall.

I've got embryos!

I candled some of my eggs tonight and out of the 2 doz I checked all where growing right on schedual. Looks Like I will have lots of peeps before to long. I also placed an order with Ideal hatchery for some black astrolorps and buff brahmas. I have also added some OEGB eggs to my incubator in the colors Self blue and Spangled. Wow those are tiny eggs. I will begin working on some coops here in the next couple of weeks. I am planing on having individual pens for selling hatching eggs of the variouse breeds and also have plenty to hatch out myself.

My worms are growing like weeds and Im hoping the Africans will be big and fat for fishing soon. My plants are growing like weeds, we will have TONS of tomatoes this year. Im ready to plant outside. The weather keeps teasing me though.

I will be planting some fruit trees and berry plants on our 3.5 acre lot in the fall and get them started. This lot will be used only for growing food. We have decided just to wait anouther year and build our house out on our 15 acres.

Hatching eggs, im geting spring fever!

Update I just added a doz blue turkens (naked Necks) to hatch with whats already on its way. So I should have if all goes well blue turkens and marans for my 2 pens of purebreds. and then of course Ill have my mixed flock, not sure yet if I will keep a pen of RIR and bared rocks also or put them in my mixed flock. Just depends how much time and funds I have to make new pens.

So I wanted to hatch some eggs and get ready for spring, I was only going to pull out one of my Little Giant incubators but you know how that goes, I had to pull them both out. I use the basic LG modle no fan and no tuner so its all by hand but I have pretty good hatch rates in them. So I am geting a doz B/B/S marans eggs, a doz Cuckoo marans eggs, 18 barred rocks, 12 RIR, and 2 Dz heavy breed mixed eggs. Im going to be buisy here. They should all be ariving in the next couple of days so I hope to have them all set by Mon. The count down is on! Over 6 doz eggs I should end up a 3-4 doz chicks with in the next month. Also I decided I want some Buff dewlap Toulouse geese eggs so when they become available around March or so I will be tring my hand at hatching goose eggs.

I also got my order placed with Cackle Hatchery so Ill be geting some Naked Necks, Easter Eggers, Blue sweedish ducks, toulouse geese and Narragansett tukeys. They will be here in April so I have plently of time to work on my waterfowl pen and get a big kiddy pool for them. I will also make a sepret pen for the turkeys. Any extra males will go in the freezer so It looks like Goose and Turkey for christmas.

Trip to sutherlands

Today I went to sutherlands to spend my gift card, only ended up spanding part of it, still got $35 left for when they get in more planters. I did get gobs of seeds, even got a bunch of flowers this time to spruce up my yard. Seeds were.05 cents a pack and I think I got almost $5 worth. Also got some gardening knee pads and about 150 jiffy pots. Got 2 more shoplights and some growlite bulbs and some chain to hang them with, that is this weekends project. Going to clear out the spare room!! OhMy what have I got myself into!

I did get some broccli, spinich, and cabage started, cant wait to plant outside.