Hooves & New Pics 08/06/2011
 Went to see the herd last week. The kids are getting so big! Sophie and Faye's hooves were horrible! With my sisters help I was able to get them in somewhat good shape but I will be heading down once again at the end of this month to do everyone's hooves again. I've noticed that the sheep's hooves need a lot less maintenance and are less prone to foot rot and fungal infections. More pics after the jump.
Add Comment  What these people's nightmares are made of. I received a package in the mail the other day from the Town of Plattsburgh with all the complaint letters they received pertaining to our attempt to start a small sustainable farm on my families property on Cumberland Head behind Champlain Park. So I'm going to uploading each letter and writing a response. So without further adieu here is the first post in my "People Be Stupid" series.
Sometimes All You Need is a Bucket 06/11/2011
 When we went to load the pigs for the second time we figured everything would go a lot better then the first. We had a bigger trailer that's lower to the ground so the incline on the ramp was significantly less. We figured now that the ramp's incline was shallower Toony would just walk right up into the trailer... not. So we once again were chasing around a pig in my dad's backyard while I desperately held the rope tied to her back leg and then it began to rain.
How NOT to Load a Pig 05/20/2011
 You really think I'm gonna cooperate? Ha! 2 Fridays ago things did not go as planned, which wasn't a huge surprise, but I didn't think they would go so spectacularly wrong. Everything started out well enough, Jeff had finished the boxes to transport the pigs in and we had my dad and our friend Yvonne to help us load them up, and then we let Toony loose. Boy was she happy to be our of her pen and because we figured she would just fallow us we didn't restrain her (not that you can really restrain a 500lb pig). She romped around for a bit and then followed us into my dad's backyard, so far so good. Then came time to go up the ramp... ya not so much. Toony would take three steps up the ramp and then jump off the side and start rooting around my dad's backyard.
FU Plattsburgh! We Are Out of Here! 05/06/2011
 Jeff just got hired as a full time Engineering Technician at GE Transportation in Erie, PA! So it’s bye bye Plattsburgh! Jeff still has to finish a rehab house that he’s fixing up and sell our house that we live in so, I will still be in Plattsburgh for a while but the animals should all be moved to Jeff’s aunt and uncle’s property by July. The pigs are actually the first to make the trip and we are hauling them down there tomorrow. We are holding off on the goats and sheep because both Sophie and Faye are pregnant the latter being due within the next week or so. It’s an 8 hour trip so we don’t want to subjugate them to the stress while they are pregnant. Jeff’s aunt and uncle have been nice enough to take the animals for us until we can get a place of our own. They are going to breed the pigs together and keep the piglets as payment, and if they want I will probably offer Sophie and Faye’s kids to them as well – I don’t plan on keeping them. To transport the pigs Jeff has built two big wooden hutches that will second as movable houses for the pigs after we get them to his uncle’s (I am so HAPPY they are going to be out of their disgusting, muddy pens and onto pasture!). I’m super paranoid about the trip, but a pig farmer that we talked to said they should be fine just to make sure the hutches are well secured. (2 pigs running loose on I-90 would not be funny). I plan on taking lots of pictures of our trip and tweeting (Twitter ID ImpulsiveFarmer) as we travel (except for one area where there is no radio or cell coverage). We are loading up the pigs tonight and leaving first thing on Saturday morning. I really need to invest in a video camera because us trying to load the pigs is probably going to be hilarious. We are hoping that if we throw a bunch of apples into the transport hutches they will just walk right in, but of course nothing ever goes as planned. Also there is a butt load of flooding in this area right now and Lake Champlain is at a record breaking high, please keep all those that have lost their homes and have no place to go in your thoughts. Misinformed, Mismanaged and Miffed! 04/12/2011
 I was going to write about slaughtering roosters and moving Flower and her lamb to the pasture with the rest of the girls, but instead I find myself needing to write about what is happening in our Battle with Plattsburgh.
Misinformed, it’s what the people that oppose our farm are and no matter what we say they refuse to let go of their preconceived notions. Recipe: Crockpot Irish Stew 03/31/2011
Here is the recipe for the Irish Stew I made for St. Patties Day, it turned out pretty good. I listed at the end what I changed about the recipe. Where I found the recipe: http://homecooking.about.com/od/soups/r/blss32.htm Let your crockpot do the work on this hearty Irish stew made with lamb and vegetables. This recipe may easily be converted to oven or stove-top methods. Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 10 hours Total Time: 10 hours, 15 minutes Ingredients: •2 pounds boneless lamb cubed, browned, and drained •2 teaspoons salt •1/4 teaspoon pepper •2 cups water •1 small bay leaf •2 medium carrots, peeled and cut in 1/2-inch slices •2 small onions, thinly sliced •4 medium potatoes, peeled and quartered •1/4 cup quick-cooking tapioca (optional - see Note) •10 ounces frozen peas Preparation: Sprinkle browned lamb cubes with salt and pepper. Place lamb in the crockpot along with water, bay leaf, carrots, onions, potatoes, and tapioca. Cover and cook on low for 10 to 12 hours, adding peas to the stew during the last hour. Yield: 6 to 8 servings Note: If you do not wish a thickened gravy, omit the tapioca. What I Changed: First I didn’t add any peas because I HATE PEAS! Unless they are uncooked, fresh from the garden. Instead of using tapioca I used corn starch mixed with some water that I mixed in a couple hours before the stew was finished cooking. I also added an extra carrot because 2 didn’t look like enough. I then added about 1/4 to 1/3 cups of cooking sherry and a sprig of rosemary to give it some flavor. Eggs, Flower, & Irish Stew 03/17/2011
 This week the chickens resumed laying, I found out that hay is not a good bedding to use when keeping sheep in your basement, caught a funny video of Flower and Sheena, and made Irish Stew after spending a week trying to find lamb and/or mutton.
Flower Had a Little Lamb! 03/09/2011
Last night Flower went into labor just before 10pm and just after 10:30pm she gave birth to a healthy and rambunctious little ewe lamb! While I found a lot of video's of sheep giving birth there were very few of an ewe in the first stages of labor. So I took a video of Flower in the first stages of labor prior to her water breaking. Video and pictures of Sheena (Flower's daughter) after the jump.
THEY'RE OUT!!! Woohoo! Yesterday I finally moved all of the chicks from the basement out to the coop with the rest of the chickens. Normally it's a bad idea to just plop a bunch of unknown birds together, but I did it during the evening when everyone was getting ready to sleep. Dumpling fought a little bit with some of the hens, but our older rooster Zorro didn't even care, and let Dumpling take over as head rooster without a fight. Now tonight I will be cleaning up the basement so the furnace people can come and fix it - cause I think all the dust has gotten into the furnace and it needs a good cleaning. After that we will be setting up a bigger pen to put Flower in so I can keep and eye on her. Yes, Flower is most definitely preggo and I'm a nervous mess over it. She is probably due within the next few weeks so I want to get her over to our house asap so she has time to settle in before she gives birth. The only place we have to put her that is quite and secure is our basement - I can't wait until we move and have a barn - basements are not built for this kind of use! As she gets bigger I grow more neurotic. I have a list of supplies that I need to get from Tractor Supply and I'm hoping that everything goes smooth so I don't have to call my veterinarian friend over in the middle of the night. For anyone else that is a first timer at this whole lambing thing here is the list of supplies I need. Lube (i.e. Vaseline or you can buy the livestock stuff at TS, or KY if you have some lying around) ~ just incase the lamb gets stuck in the birthing canal. Gloves ~ because it's gonna be messy - I have some regular gloves but I may need the ones that go up your arm just incase. Iodine w/cup ~ to disinfect the umbilical cord area on the lamb. Feeding Tube w/ syringe ~ just incase I need to force feed the lamb. Electrolytes ~ another just incase the lamb is dehydrated. Nutrient Drench ~ incase the lamb needs a pick me-up, it’s like a multi-vitamin. Pritchard Nipples & Bottles ~ for feeding the lambs if Flower can't. Colostrum ~ Just incase Flower doesn't or can't nurse. Milk Replacer ~ If either I decided to put Flower back with the rest of the herd and keep the lamb(s) at the house, or if Flower can't or won't nurse. |
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