Recently dipped candles Sometimes there is a plan behind things that go on here at our little farm. If the plan is Sally’s it is probably straightforward and rational. If it’s mine it will always be convoluted. I have a plan or two that are in the works right now and I suppose, in time, I’ll record them.
Our development as farmers has been a lot like I'm sure it was dipping these candles. You take a string and dip it into the melted wax. Lift it and let the wax cool, then dip it again. Some of those dippings can be relatively easy but others can be quite painful. The experience with the sheep was painful and the experience branded me as “not ready for prime time” or a "faux farmer."
Our development as farmers has been a lot like I'm sure it was dipping these candles. You take a string and dip it into the melted wax. Lift it and let the wax cool, then dip it again. Some of those dippings can be relatively easy but others can be quite painful. The experience with the sheep was painful and the experience branded me as “not ready for prime time” or a "faux farmer."
American Blackbelly sheep with twin offspring We responded to an ad on craigslist selling Barbados sheep. That is a hair sheep (little or no fleece) that originated in Africa via Barbados. It seems that most hair sheep originated in Africa with some changes made here and elsewhere. In this country the Barbados were bred with Mouflon and Rambouillet. The proper name is now American Blackbelly but they still are called Barbados by the old folks. They are mostly raised for meat but we needed them for their lawn mowing and land clearing expertise.
I quickly found that barbed wire was not ever going to be the answer. Perhaps 4 or more strands could be quasi effective but was never to be trusted. To my surprise range fence by itself did not work either. I finally determined that barbed wire (3 or more strands) combined with range fence did very well. Without the full combination I would frequently hear one of the sheep bleating (always after dark) and have to run it down to let it back inside. Trapping them in corners is great strategy but one must do something. You cannot leave them outside the fence for two reasons. You will never get any sleep for all the racket and they will not survive. I found that I could not tame the sheep but the ewe did warm to me before she died.
The aforementioned Ewe turned out to be pregnant. There was a young ram that ended up getting sick, then died. A younger ewe also became sick but did not die. After being sick she never grew to full size. Then the ewe added twins to the mix. One was born with a problem and did not survive past 2-3 days. The other became a handsome young ram.
I quickly found that barbed wire was not ever going to be the answer. Perhaps 4 or more strands could be quasi effective but was never to be trusted. To my surprise range fence by itself did not work either. I finally determined that barbed wire (3 or more strands) combined with range fence did very well. Without the full combination I would frequently hear one of the sheep bleating (always after dark) and have to run it down to let it back inside. Trapping them in corners is great strategy but one must do something. You cannot leave them outside the fence for two reasons. You will never get any sleep for all the racket and they will not survive. I found that I could not tame the sheep but the ewe did warm to me before she died.
The aforementioned Ewe turned out to be pregnant. There was a young ram that ended up getting sick, then died. A younger ewe also became sick but did not die. After being sick she never grew to full size. Then the ewe added twins to the mix. One was born with a problem and did not survive past 2-3 days. The other became a handsome young ram.
Eeyore We got the sheep in July and knew that we needed a pasture guard. A donkey seemed the most logical fit so we picked up Eeyore in August. In fact Eeyore came on August 1st. He was my anniversary present to Sally.
Eeyore was an agreeable jack. Except for biting me a couple times he just didn't present any problems at all when he was the only donkey. The day the ewe delivered the twins Eeyore came running up to the back porch braying and calling us over. The animals acted almost human a lot of the time.
Unfortunately Eeyore also bonded with the dogs. Sally was admitted to the hospital. It was a serious illness and she eventually spent more than six weeks as an inpatient. Life became chaotic for me. It was even more so for the animals. One night I came home from the hospital about 8pm and found two of the dogs killing the remaining sheep. It was too late for the sheep and I continually am amazed that I did not kill the dogs. Eeyore was kind enough to tell me that something was happening but he did nothing.
Eeyore was an agreeable jack. Except for biting me a couple times he just didn't present any problems at all when he was the only donkey. The day the ewe delivered the twins Eeyore came running up to the back porch braying and calling us over. The animals acted almost human a lot of the time.
Unfortunately Eeyore also bonded with the dogs. Sally was admitted to the hospital. It was a serious illness and she eventually spent more than six weeks as an inpatient. Life became chaotic for me. It was even more so for the animals. One night I came home from the hospital about 8pm and found two of the dogs killing the remaining sheep. It was too late for the sheep and I continually am amazed that I did not kill the dogs. Eeyore was kind enough to tell me that something was happening but he did nothing.
Indy and Skittles (Eclectus parrot). He is very cautious with her. The leader of the dogs was an old one named Pooh Bear. She was the first or second pet that Sally named after Winnie the Pooh characters with the other being a quaker parrot named Piglet. Pooh died soon afterwards and I am sorry to say I was not unhappy.
The second guilty party was the pup that became Indy. We had trouble at first but once he was fixed he became much more calm. Now I trust him with livestock and I’m very happy that I did not kill him. He destroyed a couple ducks before his surgery. Once he was fixed he became very peaceful. He ignores birds and just about everything else and is afraid of the stubby tailed cat that lives next door. If he is tied out I have seen him chase chickens to the end of his rope when we return home. Bob does the same thing. I guess they want us to know they are on watch.
The loss of the sheep was a very big deal. While I can only speak for myself I know the devastation I felt was shared by Sally. The good thing was that about the same time we became convinced that she would recover and subsequently she came home from the hospital. That was worth more than a couple sheep.
The second guilty party was the pup that became Indy. We had trouble at first but once he was fixed he became much more calm. Now I trust him with livestock and I’m very happy that I did not kill him. He destroyed a couple ducks before his surgery. Once he was fixed he became very peaceful. He ignores birds and just about everything else and is afraid of the stubby tailed cat that lives next door. If he is tied out I have seen him chase chickens to the end of his rope when we return home. Bob does the same thing. I guess they want us to know they are on watch.
The loss of the sheep was a very big deal. While I can only speak for myself I know the devastation I felt was shared by Sally. The good thing was that about the same time we became convinced that she would recover and subsequently she came home from the hospital. That was worth more than a couple sheep.
Blue and Princess I wanted to get more but Sally put her foot down. Couldn't help but agree since we didn't do a very good job protecting them.
Where next? Well if a jack was no good at protecting livestock where should we go next. Craigslist had no geldings but we did manage to find a yearling Jenny. Guy said we could have two for a good price so we bit.
Well Eeyore proved better at being a Jack than protecting sheep. In a short time we had three more donkeys. The third one is shown above with her mother. Then we bought an adult mini gelding as a gift for our granddaughter and two Llamas. I hate to even think how we shot ourselves in the foot. I wanted smaller critters and there were too many big ones. One more candle dipping is that they are all good livestock for guarding pastures.
One of the llamas was sold after the two of them had a spitting contest and I was hit as an innocent bystander. One of the two jennies (the one in the picture) died for reasons that remain unknown to me.That brought us down to five donkeys and one llama for about four acres of pasture. I have a lead for a good home for two of the donkeys so it was time to branch out.
Where next? Well if a jack was no good at protecting livestock where should we go next. Craigslist had no geldings but we did manage to find a yearling Jenny. Guy said we could have two for a good price so we bit.
Well Eeyore proved better at being a Jack than protecting sheep. In a short time we had three more donkeys. The third one is shown above with her mother. Then we bought an adult mini gelding as a gift for our granddaughter and two Llamas. I hate to even think how we shot ourselves in the foot. I wanted smaller critters and there were too many big ones. One more candle dipping is that they are all good livestock for guarding pastures.
One of the llamas was sold after the two of them had a spitting contest and I was hit as an innocent bystander. One of the two jennies (the one in the picture) died for reasons that remain unknown to me.That brought us down to five donkeys and one llama for about four acres of pasture. I have a lead for a good home for two of the donkeys so it was time to branch out.
Beau and Jack making acquaintance with the herd. Every year there are several births at Calico dairy. They always keep the females and sell the males. I managed to get two wethered (fixed) males, virtually for the price of one. They are predicted to top out at about 170 lbs and prove to Sally and I that we can safely raise goats. She resisted them but after I introduced her to them she could resist no more. I am sure that a 170 pound goat is easier to lead then a 700 lb. donkey.
Sally has made yogurt and from what I can read cheese and soap are easily made. This all coming from goat milk. Obviously these two boys are not going to produce the milk I need but I needed to learn about goats somewhere. I am a member of Goat World on Facebook and have learned a lot. The goats will teach even more.
Sally has made yogurt and from what I can read cheese and soap are easily made. This all coming from goat milk. Obviously these two boys are not going to produce the milk I need but I needed to learn about goats somewhere. I am a member of Goat World on Facebook and have learned a lot. The goats will teach even more.
The nursery which contained goats, guinea fowl, and muscovie ducks at the time. I have raised them like puppies but there are a couple hurdles to clear. The first one is the fence. I don't recall any reason to believe that goats will dig under a fence but otherwise I think I need to treat them like dogs. I will use some of the hard won knowledge gleaned from the sheep.
They are currently housed like this. They get feed and as often as I can swing it I take them out to browse. Failing that there is a new limb with leaves every day. I think their diet is ok and now I am working on making a goat proof fence and splitting the property so that I can rotate fields. I have a couple articles coming up that will cover that. I'm pretty sure there will be more blunders so I will have more confessions to make. The next article will be on how to make a cheap fence that will do the job. Then we can explore the effectiveness of rotating pastures.
I think the trial and error process is going to eventually work. I just wish that the errors were proportional.
They are currently housed like this. They get feed and as often as I can swing it I take them out to browse. Failing that there is a new limb with leaves every day. I think their diet is ok and now I am working on making a goat proof fence and splitting the property so that I can rotate fields. I have a couple articles coming up that will cover that. I'm pretty sure there will be more blunders so I will have more confessions to make. The next article will be on how to make a cheap fence that will do the job. Then we can explore the effectiveness of rotating pastures.
I think the trial and error process is going to eventually work. I just wish that the errors were proportional.
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