About Our Blog

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Our blog is to inform and entertain you as we pursue our goal of starting a farm. Here we plan on recording thoughts, projects, farm additions and other note-worthy happenings. You may even see us on a magazine or two. If you would like to comment on our blog or just say "Hi" feel free to do so on our CBOX to the left.  Just enter your name and a message, then click the 'GO' button.  We were using shout-box, but had poor luck with it.  We enjoy your emails too, so don't be afraid to email us a note. Yahoo users: feel free to contact us...our profile is mn_nice_couple.  Just because we don't appear online, doesn't mean we're not.  When you send us an IM, please identify yourselves... and let us know why you're contacting us. Put yourself on the map! CLICK HERE to show us where you are in the world.

Madison on a magazine cover.

The Blog 

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March 31, 2008
- More snow... great - 9:30 am

3 inches and counting.  We're in a storm watch until 1 am Tues.  Freaking fantastic.  Madison's school day lasted about 30 minutes.

We'll be at the farm most of the day.  It looks like we may have two of our does going into labor.

- More snow... great - the rest of the day

Nope, no baby goats.  We stayed out at the farm most of the day, and I remained there throughout the night... getting up every hour or so to check on the expecting mamas.  AND... still nothing.

March 30, 2008
- No more new babies - morning

Madison and I spent the night out at the farm, making sure Ginger (the new doeling) was doing fine.  As soon as we put her with mom, she started sucking.  Remember the problem I had, getting her to suck right after I found her yesterday?  Well, again... you can't feed a goat that has a full belly.  I really should stop trying.

Another reason for being out there was that we were waiting for Jackie to go into labor.  In classic goat style, she didn't do so.  We're starting to think that the rule-of-thumb for predicting the birthing of goats is this... STOP TRYING!  Not that you can't try to predict it, it's just that you will most likely be wrong most of the time... lol.  They simply have them when they have them.

We're in town now, getting a little grub, a shower and some clean clothes.  Yesterday, I got all the necessary plumbing hooked-up at the trailer, thinking we could have water.  But when I turned the main valve on, water started to spray from behind the water heater.  Crap!  It seems there was a dip in the water line and it froze over winter, causing it to split.  It'll be a cheap, quick fix... but what a nuisance. I was sure we would have hot water by now.

Oh yeah... here's another ray of sunshine for us in west-central Minnesota... we're inline to get up to nearly 6.5 inches of snow tomorrow.... crap, crap, crap!  The last dumping of snow finally left us... and here comes more.

Smile, be happy.

- Back again - afternoon

Carol had me run out to the farm again to check on Jackie... which I did.  Jackie was the same as when Madison and I left earlier... still pregnant.

I wasn't going to the farm for nothing, so while I was there this time, I did a couple things that need to get done.  The first thing I did was toss an old stock tank into the cow yard for the goat kids to climb on.  Next to that I set a 55 gal barrel half.  Now the little ones can jump from the tank to the barrel... I guess it's fun.

I then focused my attention on removing the burst pipe from behind the water heater of the trailer... that took all of 5 minutes... what's next?  I'll go out back and see if clean-up some of the junk we didn't get to last year.  For the most part, it was thawed.  So I cleaned up what I could in the amount of time I had. before heading back home.  I got about an hour's worth done before I figured it was chores time.

As I finished feeding the animals, Carol called, asking when I was coming home.  The real reason she called was because somebody surrendered their rabbit to us (Carol runs a rabbit rescue) and the folks also dropped off a hutch.  No big deal right?  Well, Carol said they set the two halves at the end of the driveway and didn't want anyone to take it.  She mentioned that it must be heavy because it took 3 people to get it off of the trailer.  OK, yeah right...

When I got home, there it was.  The hutch (for lack of a better term) was separate from the roof.  The structure looked more like a small building than a hutch.  Carol thought it was built with 2x4's.  She was close.  The construction was heavy.  The main frame and legs comprised of 4x6's and 2x6's.  It was nicely built... and newly shingled.

I think we can get it to the farm, but we'll need the loader to set the roof on.  The roof is heavier than the hutch.  Who wants to help?  LOL

Rich

March 29, 2008
- Good news, bad sad news.

After "helping" my friend Mike recover a used silo unloader that he bought at an auction and stopping in Kerk. for a quick lunch (thanks Mike), I went straight to the farm to get a jump on the chores.

I walked into the barn and immediately I saw a baby goat, dead on the floor.  I whispered, "oh no." as I wondered what happened to our little Peaches.  Booger came running to greet me as if there was nothing wrong.  I quick searched for the kids' mother, Mary, to see if she knew her baby had died.  When I located Mary, I also saw Peaches... who was quite alive.  I then took a closer look at the dead little goat and saw he was somewhat covered in birthing fluid.  My next thought is who had the baby and are there any more of them.  I soon found another. 

The live kid looked fine and felt warm... good news.  After locating the correct doe, I tried to get the little one to nurse.  That didn't work.  I felt the belly of the baby and it seemed full... I guess you can't feed a full goat. 

I rechecked the deceased baby.  In its mouth was slippery fluid.  My guess is that she was either born dead or he drown (for lack of a better layman's term).  Either way, I felt bad and wished I was there when they were born.  The good news is that it wasn't Peaches.

A couple hours later, Carol & Madison made their way to the farm to help out with the baby.  It turn's out we lost a buckling.  The doeling seems to be OK.  After watching the new mom (Martha) and the doeling, we noticed that we never saw the little one nurse.  After several attempts, we discussed what we should do.  We decided to we'd bring the little girl home to make sure she could [at least] suck from a bottle.

Before we got ready to go home with the new baby goat, Carol noticed one of the does in the big pen was acting a wee bit odd.  She was displaying classic signs that labor was in her near future.  OK... great!  So, we took Cooper (the sheep) out of his pen and let him run free in the barn, then took Martha and her new baby out of the pen I put them into earlier... and put them into the pen Cooper was in (which is also the pen that Mary, Peaches & Booger called home for a month).  Carol and I then grabbed Jackie (the one who is showing signs of labor), who I put into the pasture last week.  We pulled her through the mud to the gate... past the gate and into the milk house and finally into the barn.  Once in the barn, we put her in the pen I just had Martha in.  Got that?

Carol and I decided we should milk the colostrum milk from Martha and take it with us, in order to feed the new baby.  We'll head back to the farm around 11 pm tonight, with the new doeling in tow.  Hopefully by then, we will have gotten some milk into her stomach. 

I'm not sure if we're going to stay the night, but we want to make sure that if Jackie is laboring, somebody will be there with her.  We don't want to lose any more kids.  Right now, the baby is in the dining room, sleeping in a box... so we're assuming she had gotten milk at some time.

March 28, 2008
- Getting ready for spring.

I started to demo the inside the future chicken coop (old truck box) so we can get chicks in there as soon as weather allows.  Once we have the supplies, it shouldn't take but a few hours to get it in shape.

I also checked the water line to the house.  It was fine... there was water.  I quickly connected it to the pipe that goes into the house.  When I get the new toilet installed, I'll turn the main valve on and we'll have water flowing for the season.

March 27, 2008
- Young goats are cute, but they ain't smart.

Today, Sunny was in the cow-yard when I got to the farm (good news)... and so were the younger goats.  I'm thinking they must have gotten zapped by the fencer and learned their lesson.

Before leaving the farm, I wanted to check the fence.  You know... just incase...  Anyway, while I was walking the perimeter, I looked back to see where the young goats were.  That's when I saw it.  The young doe trotted up to the fence, put her head down and crawled under it.  Halfway through the fence, she gets zapped.  I could hear the "SNAP" of the shock she received.  I saw her flinch, then take off out of the pasture.  Then, a few minutes later, nearly the same thing happened as she came back into the yard... this time she let out a little yell.

Again... she's cute, but she ain't too smart.  I bet you anything, this happens on a daily basis.

Rich

March 26, 2008
- A new recipe

Carol added a new recipe.  It's called Special Lemonade.  It's pretty good, but WAY different than any lemonade you've ever had before.

- New photos.

Carol uploaded some new pics to the photo gallery, make sure you check them out.

- Animals missing

After feeding the llamas and goats, Carol sensed that something wasn't quite right.  She then asked me if I had seen Sunny, our Shetland sheep.  I paused for a moment, trying to recall if I had, in fact, seen him.  I replied to her question with a curious "no." 

Carol was thinking worst case scenario (the coyotes drug him away).  I thought that maybe he was snagged in the barbed wire fence, like the hook-n-loop of Velcro. 

Carol was the first to climb into the pen and look through the door for our missing Sunny.  Crap!  They were outside the fence.  As soon as Sunny and Jack & Jill (the adolescent goats) heard her voice, they came running.  She said that the fence didn't even slow them down.  Crap, crap, crap!

Maybe my great fence isn't so great after all.  Maybe we will have to invest in woven wire fencing... or maybe I can add more strands to the one we have.  The problem with that is:  I'd really hate to build the best fence ever constructed by modern man... and still have the goats find a way through it.  Wouldn't that be a blow in the shorts!

I'll think about it.

Rich

March 25, 2008
- Com'on already.

We're bound to have spring weather pretty soon, right?  Maybe not.  The weather dudes are predicting snow for tonight and perhaps in another few days.  I'm sure if you read the blog entries from a week or so ago, it'll show we were having spring weather then, but now seems as though it were a dream.  I walked the cow-yard perimeter, to make sure the electric fence was not grounded out.  As I was doing so, I couldn't help but notice the 4-5 inches of snow I was trudging through.

Spring weather or not, Carol and I made our list of Must-Do's for spring.  We then made a short list of priority projects.  Topping our list was fixing the floor and ceiling of an old insulated truck box that was once the farm's tack-shed, over 2 decades ago.  Over the last couple of years, we kept an eye on it.  We wanted to know if it leaked or not... it always seemed dry.

Last fall, I leveled the old beast, as it was 6-8" low on the east end.  I did that more for esthetics than anything else.  Well, with it level, it seems the water from the melting snow is now dripping inside.  Plain & simple, we need to tend to the roof before we dare put chicks in it.  And, if we're going to spend the time on fixing the top of the unit, we might as well as lay-down a new plywood floor at the same time.  The measurements of the truck box is 8'x12'x6½'.  This will be a very nice size for a small chicken coop.  On paper, it would appear that $150 worth of supplies will give us what we need to give this once forgotten fixture, new purpose.  Reduce, reuse & recycle.

March 24, 2008
- Lucky's new home.

A few days ago, I mentioned that we found a chicken alongside the road.  Well, with a little food and water... and Carol tending to its sores, it is now acting like a healthy chicken.  We're calling her lucky... because she seemed awfully unlucky.

Carol and I brought our newest chicken out to the farm today.  At first Lucky seemed a little skittish with her new environment, but soon was making cooing sounds... much like the ones Clara makes when she's happy.

Since she didn't know where everything is, we moved Clara's food pan into the unused pen, we set-up for Jumper & Sunny, before they joined the llamas outside.  We then put Lucky in the location of the pan.  This way she could become familiar with her surrounding without worrying about food & water.  If she can get through the night, we're pretty sure she will be quite content with her new farm home.  Right now, we're considering her our 2nd successful rescue.

March 23, 2008
- Easter Sunday.

Happy Easter all!

- Our new sheep.

Yesterday, we put our new sheep into a pen with our two baby goats - Booger & Peaches.  Normally we wouldn't try weaning goats that are only 5 weeks old, but mom was already limiting their sucking time.  The doe would only let her goats nurse for a few seconds before she would walk away from them.  So this situation worked out well for Cooper the sheep, who would otherwise be lonely.

Our fear was that the goats wouldn't eat or drink enough. What if we were wrong about them being weaned by mom?  Well... when we went to do chores today, the goats' little bellies were full and they seemed as content as Cooper the sheep... which by the way, must have been crying most of the night.  His little "bah's" sounded a bit more squeaky than they did yesterday.

Rich

March 22, 2008
- Katahdin sheep at Fox Lake Farms.

This morning we drove out to Fox Lake Farms, near Faribault, MN to meet with Theresa & Lance, owners of the 10 acre farm.  Their farm ideas and goals are similar to ours: if an animal doesn't serve one or more purpose, it shouldn't be on the farm... and yes... you can name your food.  Case in point - they have a Scottish Highlander named T-Bone.  Fox Lake Farms doesn't have a website yet, but hopefully soon will.

After a quick tour of their cute little farm, we took care of the real reason we were there... to buy a Registered Katahdin ram.  We took care of the transaction, said our good-byes and we were back on the road.  Imagine a 2½ hr car ride home with a screaming lamb in the back seat.  It was as pleasant as it sounds.

FYI: Katahdins (kah-tah-din) are a hair sheep... so there is no shearing.  Our interest in this breed is their overall parasite resistance, low maintenance costs, high fertility/prolificacy, good mothering ability, and the ability to flourish on lesser quality feed/pasture (little or no grain).

Rich

March 21, 2008
- More snow.

The second day of spring and we have nearly 6" of new snow... and it's still snowing.  Carol just mentioned that the snow isn't suppose to let-up until 7:00 tonight.

- Even more snow at the farm.

When I got to the farm, it way easy to see that we got more snow than at home; my first step out of the car made it obvious.  The car has a 6-7 inch clearance.  When I looked back at the tracks of the car, I could see that I scraped 2-3 inches off the surface.

Ah... the 300 Farm-All.  I was waiting to use this all winter for snow and it ain't until spring when I get to move snow.  Without hesitations, the old girl fired up.  As she warmed up, I looked for an old feed bag to use as a seat cover (yep, you guessed it... I forgot to tip the seat the last time I used the tractor).  I soon had snow moving in front of the tractor.  The pile was getting bigger and bigger in the bucket... It looked like I would be able to go straight across the road with it... then I saw headlights through the snow flurries... CRAP!  I had a bad feeling.

Once the car passed, I released the clutch of the tractor.  Sure enough, she was spinning the tires.  Oh great!!  I bet this looks good.  A huge pile of snow and a beat-up tractor sitting at the end of the driveway.  Car after car went by... I swear I could the laughter of each passer-by.  Of course I just waived as if to say, "Yeah... I meant to get stuck here... I bet when you do it, it's by accident!"

Ok, no problem.  I have a 4x4 pickup. I can hook a chain to it and the tractor and pull her out somehow.  CRAP!  The keys are at home.  No biggie.  I have the big tractor (it's like a 4166 International or something).  A 100+ horsepower should pull it out easy.  I'll just unhook the disk, pull the hydraulic lines and jump into the cab.  CRAP CRAP!!!!  Just two days ago, I pulled the key and put it on the PU key ring.

Again, I'll call Carol.  She can bring the keys and the van... in addition to the keys I need, I'll also have help.  I make the call... then she calls back.  The van is stuck in ice and it only spins. CRAP! CRAP!! CRAP!!!

Hey wait a minute.  I remember seeing tire chains in the box of the old Chevy PU.  Sure enough, under 8" of snow, there they were.  After getting them out of the truck, I drug them to the highway, giving the now busy highway users a nod as if to tell them this is they way I always do things... how about you?

Know I have never put tire chains on any kind of vehicle, but I'm pretty sure it's easier to lay the chains on the ground and drive onto them.  I have to admit, if I could move the tractor, I would try the approach... but being stuck, means just that, one is unable to move or drive forward or backwards.  Hmmm.  Let me tell you that shoving the chains under the tires and spinning one side - then the other works.  It doesn't work very well, but it does work.

Finally, the chains are on.  I jump back on to the tractor and settle into the seat.  The same seat that is now wet and full of snow.  Yep!  I forgot to tip the seat again.  Screw-it.  Wet ass and all, I finally get enough snow removed to kid myself on the great job I did. 

I was soaked, dirty and tired... but damn proud.  Another farm milestone - snow removal with the tractor... cross that one of the list.

March 20, 2008
- What not to do with a pet chicken.

WOW!  What a difference a day makes.  Yesterday was was so doggon nice [for MN] and today was freakin cold. I don't think it hit 32°F. 

After getting milk at Mike's, Carol took off for home, leaving me to hitch a ride with Mike and his son.  They were going to a machinery consignment sale in a nearby town and asked if I wanted to tag along.  Mike had his eye on a couple of pieces and got them at a really real good price.  Shortly there after, we headed back to Mike's farm, where I waited for Carol to pick me up.

Half way home, Carol orders me to pull over at the location of an old country school, which I do.  As I'm turning, I see why Carol wanted me to stop... there was a chicken running around in the cold... well, it was more like limping.  Madison and Carol bail out of the car and I follow.  The chicken quickly hops under the school's old porch.  About 10 seconds later, the chicken goes to Carol and it is in the hands of its new owner.  It's a fancy... I think Carol mentioned [on her blog] that it was a White Crested Black Polish.  Carol notices that the chicken has feathers missing from its head and has what appears to be a large bump near its leg.  After handing the bird to Madison, we take-off for home.

When we got home, Carol and Madison cleaned the hen in a big wash tub (it smelled very bad)  Once cleaned up, they noticed that the bulge is more like a growth or tumor.  Unfortunately, the growth won't stop bleeding.  Carol wrapped the lesion with some sort of first-aid bandage to control the bleeding. 

The poor bird must have been starving.  When food and water was set in front of it, it ate and ate and ate some more.  It was obvious that this poor chicken was a pet at one time.  It was so comfortable being handled.  To bad the owner/owners left the poor thing to fend for itself in the elements.

Over all, the chicken now seems comfortable and content.  We're hoping the tumor doesn't cause too much discomfort.  If Carol is OK with the condition of the tumor, we'll allow it to live out its days at the farm.

March 19, 2008
- What a sloppy mess.

I went out to the farm early today, thinking I would sort through the pile of scrap lumber and misc. junk, and move what is work keeping to a shed.  For years there was stuff piled under the hay loft on the south end of the barn.  Last year (or was it the year before) Carol and I removed most of it.  It was mostly old pallets, scrap iron and rotted God knows what.  It is our goal to remove this one last pile before spring.  Anyway, today was the day to do just that.  But due to the slop from the thawing, I decided this is a job for another time.

Instead, I worked on tearing down the old chicken barn.  The lean-to part of it was pretty wet with slush and snow, but the main part (where I was working before) was somewhat dry.  Within a few hours, I had all the remaining tin off, the east wall down and some of the home-made trusses on the ground.  Another day working on it and main building will be completely dismantled... only about 25% of it worth recycling.  The rest is rotten.  Sometime after that, I/we will teardown the lean-to.  Our goal is to have everything gone before May 1st... scrub-brush and nuisance trees included.  We need this gone before the building movers come out to survey the area for the new barn.

Temperature wise, it was a pretty nice day for working.

Rich

March 18, 2008
- Good news!

We didn't get the 6 inches of snow we thought we were going to get.  We got about two total.  And things are melting rapidly now.  I would reckon, by tomorrow, all the new snow will be gone.

To the left, you will notice a webcam shot of the front of our house.  I am testing the cam to see how this type of thing works for the site.  I suspect, we will eventually create some type of chicken cam or maybe a cam for the barn.  We'll see how it goes.  For now, it is simply a single frame capture, but I do have plans to make it an auto refresh type of thing.

Rich

March 17, 2008
- Crap!

More snow.  Crap!  Carol mentioned that we're suppose to get a couple inches of snow today and a few more inches tomorrow.  Crap, crap crap! 

Good-bye spring... it was nice knowing you for a week or so.  See you next year.

March 16, 2008
- Wilbert!  NO!

Again, not to much excitement at the farm.  Carol, Madison and myself went out and after some quick chores, the three of us spent some quality time with the animals.  Madison played with Jumper and Sunny and Carol bonded with Mary's babies... at the same time, trying to teach Wilbert that humping a person's leg is inappropriate behavior.  Every time Wilbert jumped up, Carol place her hand on his head, then pushing his head down, she sternly told him "NO!" 

While Carol played with Booger and Peaches (and Wilbert), I decide to clean the llama beans from the barn.  From time to time, I looked over at Carol to notice that the lessons with Wilbert were not going over so well. I believe Wilbert did eventually stop jumping up on her, but it may have been because he simply tired himself out.  If nothing else, he become familiar with the word 'no'... I'm not to sure if it means anything to him though.

Ellie learned a lesson - goats and puppies don't play well together.  Ellie was her usual prancy self... jumping, hopping and barking around inside goat pen.  It was obvious she wanted to play.  Once she picked Mary to play with her, Mary butted Ellie until she was cornered... then for good measure, Mary butted her a few more times.  Ellie slipped between two boards to get away.  For the rest of the day, the dog wanted nothing to do with the inside of the barn or the goats.  She was pretty comfortable, waiting for us at the car.

Rich

March 15, 2008
- Another day.

Not too much happened on the homestead today.  I let another doe and kid into the cow-yard pasture... and yes, all of the other goats were still in.  lol.  With so few goats left in the barn, we decided to let Mary and her two little ones (Booger & Peaches) out of the nursery pen, we had for them.  At first, the kids were a little cautious, but within minutes they were jumping and running like Springbuck Antelope though the Savanna Deserts of Africa.

I was a little worried about Wilbert the pig and if he would be a threat.  I watched him and the baby goats for 15-30 minutes.  It appeared as though he could care less about these two.  I'm pretty sure that if he got too close to the babies, Mother Mary would be sure to butt him away.  That's what she did to the other adult does that wanted to sniff her little ones.  It's clear that Mary is the alpha female - for now.

On another note, I am having trouble with one of our hydrants.  A few days ago, it was working fine... but the last two days or so, I get no water from it... not even air.  What gives?  The hydrant by the house is working fine and the gauge on the well shows that it still has strong pressure.  What's frustrating is that we just installed the water line and hydrant by the barn late last summer.  Hopefully, I won't have to dig it out by hand to install a new one.  We'll need to figure something out, because carrying water from the driveway to the barn is really starting to suck.

Rich

March 14, 2008
- Goats, sheep and more goats!

I never get tired of patting myself on the back... especially when I deserve it.  The ultimate fence tester (aka Slick-Willy) was still inside the fence today.  brb...*gotta pat myself on the back again*

Although she isn't Willy's favorite goat babe, I decided to put Gunnie and her kid outside with the others today.  Gunnie is the alpha female and most of the time, her and Willy don't see eye-to-eye.  She's the only gal-pal that Willy can't intimidate.  When Willy butts her for food, she backs up and butts him back.  If all the the livestock stay in within the fence until tomorrow, I'll add another of Willy's girls... maybe one he likes.

Around the farm, I did a little pre-spring clean-up in the grove.  The farm's old 300 Farm-All started right up, from sitting all winter long.  I thought this would be the perfect time to run the old girl through the wooded areas.  Since the ground is still quite frozen, I really didn't need to worry about digging the bucket into the dirt.  I simply put it down and drove forward... knocking down and carrying away all the brush in my way.  Hopefully, it will be easier to keep ahead of the weeds once things begin to grow.

I also decided I couldn't wait for the debris for the chicken barn roof to thaw, before continuing to move forward with the removal of the roof tin.  I grabbed a pitch fork (a four tine) and slid it under the frozen roof junk, breaking up the sheet of icy, snow muck (sticks, leaves & dirt).  Once loose, I shoveled it off of the roof.  Hopefully, during the next nice day, it'll be ready for me.

That's about it for today.

Rich

Incase anyone was wondering, Gunnie got zapped twice with the fencer.

March 13, 2008
- SNAP - SNAP - SNAP - SNAP!!!!

As I was heading north to the farm, I couldn't help but notice... a Bald Eagle.  These birds are incredible.  I watched it soar for several minutes after I reached the driveway... not once did it flap it's wings... it just glided.  This is the second time I spotted an eagle near the farm... what a sight!

When I finally got to the farm, both Sunny and Jumper were still in the fence... fan-freakin-tastic!  So far, this is the longest a goat has stayed inside a fence since Carol and I took over the farm.  I was so sure that I finally had adequate goat fencing in place, I decide to add another animal... one I thought would be the real test of my fencing abilities.   The next critter to go in would be Slick-Willy.  He's our Boer buck (Booger & Peaches' big daddy).

My thinking on this one was simple.  Willy is stubborn and he loves the ladies.  I figure he is going to try just about everything to get back to his little goat harem. 

I read someplace that an electrified fence is most effective if the animal knows that it is 'hot'.  If they don't know about the spark, many times (especially for goats) the animal will be half-way through the fence before s/he feels the shock.  If the animal thinks they may get shocked, the will approach the fence cautiously.  With the slow advance, they will most likely get zapped right away.  OK... that makes sense to me. 

I caught Willy, put a tether around his neck, and dragged his stubborn butt through the barn, through the milk-house and about 60' to the fenced area.  SHEESH!!!!  I was shot.

After shutting the gate, Willy wanted out.  He put his head down and was about to go under the fence.  SNAP!  Ha-ha!  He got a good shock.  He bolted away from the fence.  But stopped quickly when he reached the end of the tether.  We then headed to the other side of the cow-yard to an area I knew he was familiar with.  This is where he led the herd several times last December.  With his head down, he started going through the fence... SNAP!!  This time he nearly jerked the tether out of my hand.  I gave a little tug and he came with me without too much of a fuss.

I wanted him to go into the barn so he could become used to the setup... and he could see his hot little goat babes.  Before reaching the barn door, he decides to test the fence.  SNAP!!!  WOW!!! that was a loud one.  I snickered, thinking - what a Maroon. 

After a few minutes in the barn, Willy and I headed to the north fence.  By this time he was leading quite nicely.  Once near the fence, he eyed the grass on the other side and SNAP!!!!  YIKES!!!  That one I felt through the tether.  This time, he wanted to get back to the barn.  He was squawking, twisting and nearly dragging me to the barn. 

When he settled down a bit, I took the tether off of him.  I figured I could leave him alone.  I decide I would start taking the tin off of the old chicken house.  From the roof, I could keep an eye on the fenced area to see if Willy wanted to play with the fence.  Heck, he didn't leave the barn for an hour or so.  By the time he came out to eat hay, I had the south side of the old barn stripped of tin and all of the roof boards off as well.  Once the snow leaves the other side, I'll take care of that too.

All-in-all, it was a pretty productive afternoon.

Rich

March 12, 2008
- Oh.... SNAP!!!!

Carol and I ran a few errands in Willmar before going out to the farm.  We picked-up some feed for the goats, as well as some fencing supplies.  I figured I might as well have a few items on hand incase I get the urge to add another strand of barbed wire to the pasture... Yeah, right!  We made a point to get the things for the farm mainly to check out the new Running's Farm & Fleet store.  WOW!  It's even bigger than the Mill's Fleet in St. Cloud, MN.  We were impressed.

Once we got to the farm, we did the chores.  Carol played with Booger & Peaches as I tried to figure out why the barn hydrant wasn't working.  Although I have no idea why it didn't work right away, it did start to produce water after 5 min. or so.  With the chores done, I mentioned to Carol that if we didn't need to get home for an hour or so, we could let Sunny & Jumper back out in the newly re-fenced cow-yard.  I was sure it was working correctly.  Before getting them, I noticed I didn't hear the clicking noise of the fencer unit.  I went around the barn and noticed it was unplugged.

After plugging it back in and hearing that it was working again, it was time to try the new 5 strand barbed-wire and re-grounded 2 strand electric fence combo out.  We let Sunny and Jumper follow us out of the barn and through the milk house to the fenced-in area that I was kinda, sorta, maybe, pretty sure was going to keep these rascals in.  We closed the gate behind us... part one of the multi-phased operation was complete.  Now we needed them to test the fencer (that would be part 2).  They seemed too busy eating hay to care what we wanted them to do.  I told Carol that yesterday, they ate some grass on the north end.  Maybe if we walked over there, they would follow. Sure enough, Jumper the goat was first, followed by Sunny.  It didn't take long before Jumper eyed the grass.  Then.... SNAP!!!  He touched the wire, jerked really fast (I mean really, REALLY fast), grunted a little and ran away from the fence.  OK... now the question is, "Will this fence keep these two in if they want to get out?"  There was one way to test it.

Carol and I left the penned area, with the goats still inside.  We then walked to the SE corner of the pen where I earlier notice some wool hanging in the the strands of the bottom barbed wire.  We couldn't get them to walk in our direction, so we figured we would just leave the farm and hope for the best.  On our way to the car, Jumper headed to the fence corner and again... we heard a very loud SNAP!!!  He quickly jerked away.  I was satisfied that I now have a working fence capable of keeping livestock.  I can die now.

March 11, 2008
- More fencing, less snow

What a difference a day makes.  I got allot more done, with less effort.  It's safe to say that spring is in the air for this week.  Next week it's back in the cellar, with colder temps reportedly in the single digits and maybe a day or two of sub-zero temps.

Back to the fencing... I know, yesterday I mentioned that I was going to add another strand of electric wire, release Jumper & Sunny (our goat and sheep) and then watch them as I worked on stringing another strand of barbed wire.  Well, of course I was way to impatient for that (a VERY poor quality for somebody like me, who makes wine).  Having faith in what I did yesterday, I let the two animals out shortly after arriving at the farm.

I first put the sheep on a tether and led him around the perimeter of the old cow-yard, showed him the hay, then brought him inside so he could get familiar with the layout of the barn from this side of the gate.  I then did the same for the goat... with the sheep following us.  After letting them explore a bit and become acquainted with the llamas, I decided I better get started on adding yet another strand of barbed wire to the fence.  I retrieved the little sled that I used yesterday (my fencing sled) to carry tools, wire stretcher, and other odds & ends.  The goat and sheep were making noise, as if to tell me that I had forgot them.  They greeted me at the gate when I entered the yard with the sled.

After stringing two small rolls of wire, I went to get another roll for behind the old grainery.  Instead of walking around to the gate, I decided to hop over the fence wire on the east side... it was shorter.  I wasn't more than 30' away from the fence and here they come.  Sunny & Jumper were right behind me.  How or where they got out, I have no idea.  Crap!  Crap, crap, crap!

OK.  That's not so bad... these two animals are tame (unlike the goats we were chasing last December).  I grabbed my roll of wire and simply walked around the barn, to the gate (Sunny & Jumper in tow).  I opened the gate and all three of us were back inside.  Looking around at the fence, I figured they must have jumped out where I was still short a strand of wire... fair enough.  I deserved that one... expecting them to stay in before the fence was done.

It wasn't long before I finished adding the final strand of barbed wire to the area that the goats will have until I can put-up more fencing once spring arrives and the ground is soft enough to drive posts into it.  It felt good to finally finish the fence.  Since it was getting kind of late, I thought it best to wait until tomorrow to let the other goats out into the half acre pasture that is now secure.  I then noticed Ellie's tail touching the electric fence... and she wasn't getting shocked.  WHAT THE HECK?!?!?!

I looked at the time and figured I still had a couple of hours of daylight, so I grabbed my roll of electric fencing wire from the garage.  I thought that part of the problem of my fencing woes AND the critters getting out last year, might be that the fencer isn't grounded as well as it could be.  I know, Mike mentioned that I should install a ground wire around the cow-yard, close to the 'hot' wire already there.  The theory being, if the animals touch the hot wire, they may be close enough to the new ground wire to get the shock they were missing out on before.  Hmmm... he might have something there.  How about if I use the barbed wire fencing as the ground... and add another 'hot' wire to the mix.  Sounds good to me.

As I'm walking back to the garage to get some insulators and wire... here they come... Sunny & Jumper again.  THIS SUCKS!!!  They followed me into the garage and back out again.  I put down my handful of supplies and lead these two silly, (and thankfully, friendly) idiots through the milk-house and back into the barn with the other goats.  Regretfully, today I am handed another fencing defeat.  Before I head home for the day, I thought I might as well add the second electric wire.  I do so with daylight to spare.  After plugging the fencer in... click, click. click... I hear that it's working. 

I walked around the fence to make sure there isn't any snow or wet grass grounding-out the new wire.  When I see what looks to be a potential trouble spot, I clear it by trampling the snow down or flattening the grass... then BLAM!  OH SH*T!!!  It felt like my leg blew off.  OK... NOW the fencer is working.  I must have gotten to close to the fencer wire.  I haven't felt that sensation in decades.

Almost done... Ellie and I are making our final round, again checking for any likely shorts in the fence.  As I'm removing grass from near the fence, I hear loud yelp from Ellie behind me.  I quickly turn around to see her running away from me at full speed, while giving me a look like she can't believe what I just did to her.  Poor dog.  Again... I think it's safe to say, the fencer is working.  Tomorrow... we test it on goats and sheep.

Wish me luck.

Rich

March 10, 2008
- Fencing in the snow

Today was the first day we Northerners would classify as seasonably warm... at least warm enough to start believing that spring weather is nearly here.  I heard reports that the temp was near 40°F.... about where it is suppose to be.  Tomorrow and the next day should give us even warmer temps.

With a bit of spring fever pulsing though my body, it seemed like the perfect day in which to start modifying our barn-yard fencing.  Hopefully, with the addition of two more strands of barbed wire, we'll be able to keep our mid-sized critter from walking straight through the fence... like last fall.  I think I might add another strand of electric fencing as well, but as a ground wire instead of a 'hot' wire.  My friend Mike suggested that idea.  That way, the critters that touch the hot wire will, with a bit of luck, touch the ground wire too, giving them a little reminder as to the purpose of the fence.

My thinking is this:  The multiple strands of barbed wires will stop the sheep for sure (then again... I was never really worried about the sheep).  It should also stop - or at least slow down the goats.  In doing so, I'm under the illusion that the electric 'shocker' fence will do its job at this point.  If the goats feel the tickle of the fence, perhaps, from that point on, they will not try to go all the way through it.

That brings me to what I consider sound advice.  If one is to do fencing in the snow (other than simple repairs), get somebody else to do it... or at least have help.  Where I'm working, there is snow... about 6-8 inches on the high ground and approx. 14-16 inches in the lows.  Wearing big pack boots and pulling a red plastic child's sled, I'm tramping from one end of the fence to the other, then back again.  It was kind of fun last fall, but with a heavy jacket on and snow to walk through, it kinda sucks.

The good news is that I was able to put one strand of barbed wire up.  Tomorrow, I'll add the electric strand, then let the sheep out.  I'll be watching him as I work on adding the other strand of barbed.  Only after the time of completion of this project, will I let out a goat (maybe Jumper or Mary and her kids).  If they seem to be contained, I'll let one or two more goats into the yard, each day.

Rich

- ICU for chicks?

Yesterday, our little layers arrived, from the McMurry Hatchery, in great condition.  I ordered 34 chicks and ended up with 38.  I think they pack extra for warmth.  Madison couldn't wait to see and kept peeking in the box on the way home.  She wanted to see her 'fro' (aka afro) chicks.  She wants to show White Crested Black Polish chickens at the fair.

Everything was going great.  The chicks all got their first dip (drink) of water and were let loose in their new home (a clean 2'x2' box).  About 2 hours later, Rich went to reset the light and found a chick "almost dead."  So... down I went to see what I could do.  A little Red Cochin Bantam was laying on its side, its eyes closed, jerking and with its little mouth open.  I gently grabbed the little chick and it was so cold.  I knew the first thing it needed was heat or it didn't have a chance.  Closed eyes on a cold baby chick are very bad signs.

So we set up a Chicken ICU.  Madison's reading light was the 'warmer' and a cool whip container with a pink towel was the 'hospital bed/cradle'.  We tried to find the heating pad, but it wasn't where it was suppose to be... so the light would have to do.

Madison, the little animal doctor that she is, made sure that Chickie got a beak dip every 5 minutes for the next hour.  Soon, Madison was telling me that Chickie was standing, chirping away and kept jumping out of its bed.  Time to go back with the other chicks.

Chickie is now doing fine.  In fact, all of the chicks look great this morning.  I still have to change the newspapers and check for pasted butts before noon (yeah, that's about as fun as it sounds). 

To see pictures of the new arrivals click here.

~ Carol

March 09, 2008
- Chicks man, chicks.

Just after 8AM this morning, Carol got a call.  Looking at the caller ID before picking up the phone, Carol felt a little uneasy.  It was Sunday, it was fairly early and the caller ID had a number we didn't recognize.  She said her first thought was that someone in the family (probably an old person) had died or was close to doing so.  Expecting the worst, she picked up the phone.  The gentleman on the other end identified himself as a postal worker from Willmar.  He told Carol that her chicks were in and she could pick them up today or she could wait until tomorrow and pick them up at the Kerkhoven post office (the office serving the area of the farm).

Of course Carol wanted her chicks at home ASAP.  It wasn't long until we were in the car, on our way to Willmar to get the heritage and rare breed laying poults... all 38 of them.  In the mix, Carol ordered a few chicks for Madison to show in 4-H.  More later... or check out Carol's Blog.

Rich

March 08, 2008
- No worms in those apples.

Check out this AP article about a Flint Mich. apple producer gone organic.  After trying several natural approaches to control insect damage to his orchard, he settled on Berkshire hogs with astounding results.  read more...

- Another fine day.

Those of you in Minnesota, I don't think I need to mention that it is still winter, but for those of you who can't see across the MN state line, consider this a Minne-snow-ta weather update.  As far as most of us are concerned, the weather has been fairly nice the last few days.  It feels much warmer than what the thermometer shows.  Yesterday, we woke up to sub-zero temps... and it didn't get much warmer as the day continued.  But it really didn't feel that cold.

Around noon today, it started snowing and looks to be coming down quite nicely.  Tomorrow is suppose to be a near duplicate of today, with lows around 5°F and highs in the 20's.  The weather dudes are saying we are approx. 15-20 degree below normal... and have been for nearly a month.  So be it... I guess. this photo was taken at 1:55PM →

Rich

March 06, 2008
- You do the math.

ROMANCE MATHEMATICS
Smart man + smart woman = romance
Smart man + dumb woman = affair
Dumb man + smart woman = marriage
Dumb man + dumb woman = pregnancy

OFFICE ARITHMETIC
Smart boss + smart employee = profit
Smart boss + dumb employee = production
Dumb boss + smart employee = promotion
Dumb boss + dumb employee = overtime

SHOPPING MATH
A man will pay $20 for a $10 item he needs.
A woman will pay $10 for a $20 item that she doesn't need.

GENERAL EQUATIONS & STATISTICS
A woman worries about the future until she gets a husband.
A man never worries about the future until he gets a wife.
A successful man is one who makes more money than his wife can spend.
A successful woman is one who can find such a man.

HAPPINESS
To be happy with a man, you must understand him a lot and love him a little.
To be happy with a woman, you must love her a lot and not try to understand her at all.

LONGEVITY
Married men live longer than single men do, but married men are a lot more willing to die.

PROPENSITY TO CHANGE
A woman marries a man expecting he will change, but he doesn't.
A man marries a woman expecting that she won't change, and she does.

DISCUSSION TECHNIQUE
A woman has the last word in any argument.
Anything a man says after that is the beginning of a new argument.

HOW TO STOP PEOPLE FROM BUGGING YOU ABOUT GETTING MARRIED
Old aunts used to come up to me at weddings, poking me in the ribs and cackling, telling me, "You're next." They stopped after I started doing the same thing to them at funerals.

March 05, 2008
- From their home to ours.

This morning, meeting in the parking lot of a small town Holiday Station like some kind of black-market rare animal dealers, a newer, dark colored mini-van parked bumper to bumper with our big, silver/gray Ford Econo-line.  Within moments of exchanging pleasantries, the switch was made.  We were now the new owners of Sunny the sheep and Jumper the goat... and they were in our van.  It was a win-win situation. 

Their names were David & Laurie and they felt that they and their daughters wouldn't be able to give their beloved farm pets the attention they once did, due to their many travel plans this year.  They were looking for a good home for the boys (Sunny & Jumper) and they felt we could provide them with just that.  David & Laurie's girls (ages 9 and 11) must really love these two critters and they must have felt some connection with our Madison (nearly 10).  Each of the two girls wrote Madison a sealed note, to be read by her only, about the pets they have taken care of for the last two years. <inset oooo's & ahhhh's here>

For intrusting us with their daughters' pets, we thought a nice bottle of wine would be a gesture they would remember.  They thanked us, we thanked them... and both parties were on their separate ways.  Sunny is a two year old wethered male Shetland sheep with wool of the likes we have not seen before.  Jumper is a wethered Pigmy goat with a very nice demeanor.  These two are buddies for sure.  We were told that they like to take long walks together.

Some of you may be asking why we would accept these two animals onto the farm.  And NO, we're not planning to eat them.  Other than being able to provide a good home for them, like David and Laurie wanted for their pets, we believe the farm has more pasture to develop/recondition than our little herd of Boer goats can handle.  From our point of view, these two will not only become pets to our family, but they will also have a job to do.  One of our policies for the farm is this: If you don't work or have a higher purpose (like to provide us with food) you cannot stay on the farm... this goes for able bodied humans as well as animals.

Rich

March 04, 2008
- Plum wine... so fine.

Tonight I thought it was time to bottle some wine - thinking it was going to be my 6 gal. carboy of American Concord... but I was wrong.  That wine was still fermenting.  I then turned to the plum wine in the 5 gal. carboy next to it.  No bubbles.  That's an encouraging sign.  I couldn't tell if it had cleared or not, since it is such a deep color of red.  I pulled it out of the closet to get a better look. When I brought the carboy into the kitchen, I still couldn't tell if it was clear.  I guess it was time to get our the clarity tester.

The method I use to gauge the clarity is simple.  I place my LED flashlight on the backside of the secondary.  If it's clear enough to see the individual LED lamps in the light, it's clear enough to bottle. 

Usually I don't do this until after bottling, but I had to taste it. I wanted to know if it was worth bottling or not.  It was freakin fantastic.  It smelled great and it tasted great, add in the fact it has an incredible color... and I have something I'm super proud of.  I might drink a bottle or two, but this is a wine I'd rather give away as gifts.  It's that good.

My American Concord should be ready to bottle in a few weeks... now I need bottles.  Lots of them.

March 03, 2008
- Home made automatic dishwasher detergent

Do homesteaders use automatic dishwashers?  Of course they do.  There are probably just as many of us who do as those who do not... at least among those who read and/or write these silly blogs.

The dish washers of 30-40 years ago were WAY different than those today.  Now they make them in a factory in a matter of minutes.  Many of the old models we made by accident, some on purpose.  Either way, they took about nine month to build correctly... and women were ALWAYS responsible for pushing them out of the factory.  Even after that, they didn't work correctly until they were properly broke-in, years later.  I'm talking, of course, about kids. 

Years ago, when most folks talked about dishwashers, the were referring to their children.  And that's the way it was when I was growing up... unless we went to Grandma's house.  That woman did everything... and she did it by hand.

Anyway... Carol found a super easy recipe for home made dishwasher detergent.  It compromises of equal parts Borax and washing soda.  That's it.  It cost us nearly the same to make 8 lbs of this stuff as it did to buy a 20 tablet box.  I'm not exactly sure how many loads of dishes we can do with our homemade detergent, but I'm guessing we'll get 60-90.  But how does it work?  We tried it yesterday, and it worked great!  All the dishes and utensils came out spot-free and squeaky clean.

An off topic question asked by some may be, "Why are you using an automatic dishwasher in the first place?".  We use a dishwasher for a couple of reasons.  1) it fills the hole where the old worn-out dishwasher used to sit;  2) we want clean dishes.  Kids nowadays who use dishwashers feel they need them (ours sure do);  3) most newer automatic dishwashers use less energy and water than if you did the dishes in the sink, by hand... so it make sense; and finally 4)  we got our new Energy Star dishwasher for free... so there!  Did we really get it for free?  No, not really.  Well actually... not even close to free, but it would have been cool if we did.  LOL

Rich

March 02, 2008
- Exploding mailboxes

I didn't notice it when I drove up to the farm, but something told me to look at the mailbox when I was leaving.  That was weird... the mailbox was gone.  WHAT THE HECK!?!?!

I parked the car and got out to look at the area that was once the location of our box.  There were pieces all over.  Some of the parts were nearly 30 feet away from where the iron post was suppose to be standing.  After surveying the premises, I conclude that the mailbox must have exploded... lol, like when things spontaneous combust... but with out the fire... or the heat.  I gotta say, I bet it sure looked cool when it happened.

I envision that there had to be some destruction to the car's windshield... as our once perfect mailbox was, now, well damaged. I'm assuming it hit the windshield, since it didn't have any paint on it.  Who ever hit it, hit is so fast that even the iron post that held everything in place was looking more like a shredded tin can than a thick piece of steel pipe.  Part of the post was all ripped-up and knarly looking.

I can only imagine how this Saturday night drunk son-of-a-*#!@% had to explain away the damage to his vehicle to his wife this morning, before church.  The poor bastard.  I bet she wasn't in the best Christian frame of mind after listening to that account of events.

March 01, 2008
- A new era for the farm

Some time ago, Carol and I bogged about our interest in hair sheep, more specifically, the St Croix. 

Recently, we were contacted by a fellow homesteader who has offered to sell us a registered Katahdin ram.  At first, she wanted $100 for the little guy, which of course, we turned down.  We mentioned that we felt that was a little on the high side, since we really have no intention of becoming Katahdin breeders and that the primary purpose of this animal would be to help develop/redevelop some neglected old pasture land.  The secondary purpose would be to become a 4H animal for Madison.

She reoffered the lamb for $50.  We quickly said yes.  In approx. 3-4 weeks, the Coyote Ridge Farm will see it's first sheep.  We will not be able to get him right away, since he's so young.  His name is Cooper and he is a bottle baby... and will continue to be so, until weaning time.  It looks like Madison will have a VERY friendly little lamb. For a larger photo of Cooper, click the thumbnail   →

Way back in the day, my sister and I had goats as pets... but never sheep.  To be honest, I've never thought of myself as a sheep guy, but hair sheep make sense.  Katahdin sheep (who draw from the St Croix breed) are hardy, adaptable, low maintenance sheep that produce superior lamb crops and lean, meaty carcasses.  They do not produce a fleece and therefore do not require shearing.  They are medium-sized and efficient, bred for utility and for production in a variety of management systems.  The breed is ideal for pasture lambing and grass/forage based management systems.  They are also quite resistant to common parasites.

But the real advantage of hair sheep is the taste of the meat.  It has a proven superior taste over wool sheep.  Unlike wool sheep, which was once developed primarily for fiber... and then for meat; hair sheep were originally bred for meat.  In fact, the Katahdin and St Croix numbers are relatively low, due to cross-breeding programs.  Purebred hair sheep are often used by wool sheep producers to influence the taste and meat quality of their wooled flocks.  That's gotta tell you something, right?

Well, I guess that's enough nagging and bragging for now.  Enjoy the weekend.

Rich

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