Chick Photo Shoot

I love new chicks. I love the peep, peep, peep sounds they make. I love how they are awake one second and sound asleep the next. I love to cuddle their fluffy goodness. Smack in the middle of doing the work I was supposed to accomplish today, I had the unquenchable urge to take pictures of the little balls of fluff.

Since they bring me such joy, I want to share them with you, too. I dare you not to "awwwwww".

 

After a few minutes of posing, a rest was in order.



Thanks for visiting!
Sonja ♥

 

Inspirations and misplaced memories

Sean here.

     For those of us who choose the seemingly never-ending uphill battle that IS a farming life, it is probably a good idea to look back every once and again at where this desire really originated in the first place.  Yes, yes, we all wish to know where our food comes from and avoid GMO's and save the environment and the joy of working the land and ladidadidadida......and I'm OF COURSE not putting any of these reasons down. All excellent justifications for breaking one's back and bank account; howsoever, many of us could probably jump into our way-back-machine and discover that our desire to "live on a farm" reaches into our roots of mental development.  Back when we were bodies of energy and skulls full of mush, this idea was implanted.  Thus, it has always been sitting there, deep in the back, while we lived out our normal, boring, non-farming lives, waiting for a chance to leap out at us again, full of teeth and adventure.  It grips us with a tenaciousness that will not be sated by any sort of ration or reason because there's no grown-ups to tell us, "Sean, we don't have the land to have a farm", or "Sean, chickens are smelly and where would we keep them?" or even "Sean, goats can't just live in the basement you know..." Au contraire.

     I spent the majority of my first decade of life in a little spit of a town named Waldo, Maine.  And don't even try, I've heard it all my life.  If you need to ask "Where's Waldo?" check google maps.  Smartalec.  In a little house in the woods,  I had it all.  Acres of dark forest to explore, a local pond to catch bullfrogs, and a Nintendo Entertainment System when the weather wasn't aggreeable to either exploring or bullfrogging.  However, in my six to nine-year-old (skull of mush) brain, it was nothing compared to my friend Billy's homelife.  Because Billy "lived on a farm."  One with all the bells and whistles.  Barn, silos, tractors, hay lofts, sharp pointy implements that could skewer you at any moment - a young boy's Xanadu.  Every chance I had, I would be over at Billy's place.  Weaving amongst the cows, burrowing through the hay, chasing the chickens through the yard -  this was the life I was meant for.  Of course, Billy, knowing the Truth of "living on a farm" that being that no one just LIVES on a farm, sought out every opportunity to come to my boring old non-farm house to play on my NES.  Why is it that children are typically so desirous of a change to their daily routine, where as adults, a small change can lead some to a nervous breakdown?  That sense of discovery and adventure in children sometimes transfers over to a nastier adult situation called "wanting what we can't have."  And it's a much less desirable trait after the bloom of youth has passed.

     This, I believe was my first conscious exposure to the lure of the farm.  It was not the last though.  Through the years, whenever it was encountered in the wild through a random barn on the side of the road or the unsmistakeable smell of a cowfield, that farming memory would awaken and tweak the rest of my brain.  Not a big tweak, but just enough to let me know that the child inside of me that still didn't want to listen to reason was still alive and kicking.  And he wanted to chase chickens again.

Also shared at:
the-backyard-farming-connection-hop-23

Black Fox Homestead Home Acre Hop

Coop Hop #4

The Birds and The Bees... Chicken-Style

I think it is time we had "The Talk". You've kept chickens for a while. You know that the roosters fertilize the hens. You know that when a hen goes broody, those fertilized eggs might just hatch out into little fluffy chicks if you let her set on them a while. Perhaps, you have even hatched chicks yourself in an incubator environment. But, have you ever wondered how that process takes place? If you were one of my children, this talk would start with, "When a Mommy and a Daddy love each other very much..." but, I think we'll skip that part and begin with some important definitions for you to know. Pay close attention, there might be a quiz later.

Definitions You Should Know:

Ovary: is a cluster of developing yolks. It is fully formed at hatching, but it remains very small until the hen reaches maturity at about 5 months of age. Hens are hatched with all the potential yolks of the eggs she will ever produce during her life time.

Oviduct: is the long tube that is divided into 5 major sections: infundibulum, magnum, isthmus, shell gland, and vagina.

Infundibulum: is the first part of the oviduct. The yolk is enveloped by the muscular infundibulum for about 15 minutes. Fertilization takes place here.

Magnum: is the second part of the oviduct. The yolk stays in the magnum for about 3 hours while the thick white albumen is attached to the yolk.

Isthmus: is the third part of the oviduct. It is here that the inner and outer shell membranes are added to the yolk. This takes about 75 minutes.

Shell Gland (Uterus): is the fourth section of the oviduct. The shell is placed around the egg here and pigment is applied. The egg remains in here for about 20 hours.

Vagina: this last section of the oviduct does not really play a part in creating the egg, but it hosts the muscles responsible for pushing the egg out of the hen's body.

Sperm Host Glands: These are located near the junction of the vagina and the shell gland. Sperm can be held alive for up to 2 weeks in this gland. When an egg is laid, if there is sperm stored, some of it will be squeezed out of the gland into the oviduct. From there, the sperm "swim" towards the infundibulum where fertilization takes place.

Albumen: is the "white of the egg". It's full of protein and provides nutrition for an embryo.

Shell Membranes: a pair of membranes lining the inner surface of an egg shell. They are designed to allow easy entry of oxygen but to prevent evaporation.

All put together, it looks like this:

Image used from http://geauga.osu.edu site.
Original image from John Anderson, Dept. of Animal Sciences, The Ohio State University

If you have a rooster in your flock, chances are you have seen them perform their mating dance for the hens. If the hen is willing, she will crouch down and allow the rooster to mate. It is common for roosters to bite a hen's comb or neck feathers to maintain his balance during this momentary balancing act. This does not usually injure a hen, though multiple matings in a short period of time can cause problems. Our rooster, Sebastian, will also fan out his feathers like a cape around the hen he is courting. Sometimes, the hen is not willing. I have seen my hens chase off a rejected rooster, occasionally puffing up and going toe to toe with the lad she has deemed undesirable until he gets the point and retreats. I have also seen roosters unwilling to accept rejection, sneak up on an unsuspecting hen and have his way, regardless of her preference.

University of Kentucky Fact Sheet

However the mating occurs, the rooster's sperm remains in the hen's sperm host gland, alive and viable for up to 2 weeks. If sperm is stored here, any eggs produced will most likely become fertile. When a fertile egg is laid, if it is kept warm, it will begin its development into a chick. If an unfertilized egg is laid, it will never develop into a chick. Hens lay eggs approximately every 26 hours. In this way, a typical hen will lay an egg every day for about 6 consecutive days and then skip a day, laying the eggs later and later in the day, as the cycle progresses. 

 

How does an egg develop inside the hen?



http://www.geochembio.com/

First, a yolk is released from the hen's Ovary. It travels through the Oviduct. The first stop is in the muscular Infundibulum where it is surrounded and any fertilization takes place. Next, the yolk moves on into the Magnum, where the white albumen is attached to it. The inner and outer shell membranes are attached in the Isthmus. This takes about 75 minutes to occur. Then, the egg travels to the Shell Gland (Uterus) where the shell is placed around the egg and any pigment (the coloration of the egg) is applied. The egg remains there for about 20 hours until the Vagina contracts and expels the egg out of the hen's body.

 

I found tons of useful information for writing this post from the University of Kentucky Fact Sheet. It is a very informative 5-page document with excellent pictures. I highly recommend it to chicken- keepers, home-schoolers, and 4-H clubs. You might also be interested in this post: Marvelous Creation, which discusses the process of how fertilized eggs develop into chicks.

Thanks for stopping in for a visit with us today.
Sean and Sonja ♥

Check out the Hops: Home Acre Hop #5 and Farm Girl Farm Fest #19

Miss Orpington's Update: Day One

The house dropped to 40 degrees overnight, but Miss Orpington did not seem to mind. Compared to the forecast of negative 30 degrees with the wind chill outside, I am sure it seemed a bargain to her. She was alert when Sean awoke the girls for school this morning at 5am and stoked the coals back to life. He offered her water and she drank a good amount before she decided that she'd had enough.

After this morning's chore of feeding the animals- as quickly as our frozen fingers would work- was completed, Sean dragged the frozen water containers into the bathroom to begin the hour long process of thawing them. I know it is necessary, but it seems so futile in the light of how quickly they refreeze upon going back outdoors. I spread some extra hay around the inside of the coop and outside along the ground. The silly, impervious ducks still insist on laying outside, despite the frigid air. I suppose if I had a down covering nearly head to toe, I would have minded the temperatures better, myself.

The goats did not budge from snuggling together in the corners of their stalls and even Jasmine decided to stay inside for the morning. The barn is notably warmer than the air outside, but without heat, it cannot be called warm by any stretch of the imagination. We decided to leave the doors to their stalls closed today and fed them their hay inside, instead.

Back inside, while the water containers were thawing, Sean and I offered Miss O. more water and some pieces of apple. She declined to eat, but drank with some appetite. Her eyes were still gummed closed, so we took her back into the bathroom and I dripped drops of warm water over them to help to loosen the dried crust of blood. I do not want to pick it off in the fear that the crust is not simply dried blood from her comb injuries. I don't think that she has damage to her eyes, themselves, but I don't want to take the chance of opening up any wound that has begun healing. After a few minutes of soaking the skin and gentle blotting and wiping, one eye was freed and opened slightly. I worked on the other for a few minutes, but it did not open, yet. We'll repeat wetting the area and wiping gently again this evening. At least, she can see out of one eye. We rinsed the healing cuts on her neck near her ear and her damaged comb with more topical antibiotic solution. Miss O. was not as stoic with our vetting today, but she did not appear to be in pain, either. She clucked at us and moved her head away from my fingers, but she did not thrash about or cry out in alarm. We are trying to be as gentle about helping her as we can. It would be so convenient if she could speak and tell us how she is feeling and where it hurts.

I took some pictures of the injuries when we had finished with this morning's ministrations. And, since so many of you have commented asking about an update on facebook, I took video, too. I will post more pictures as she heals, but probably not every day- only as there are noticeable changes.

 

I took this video this morning... Machias and Tasmanian wanted their 15 seconds of fame, too.

By lunch time, Miss O. had settled in for a nap. I am sure that she is not pleased with her small pen, but we feel that it is best to keep her confined to a small area to avoid lots of moving around on her part. I am not keeping food or water inside the pen, but am offering it to her every few hours. I think that since she is not able to see very well, she'd most likely dump it and make a wasteful mess right now. As she recovers and can see better, I will have dishes of both available. Miss O. won't be returning outside until she heals. Chickens will cannibalize one another, especially when they see bloody bits.

At least, she'll have some company in the form of lazy cats. When we first brought her inside, smelling of blood, all the kitties contemplated whether she'd make a fine meal or not. Now, they have taken to napping beside her. I'd rather think of it as "them keeping her company" instead of "them guarding their dinner". As long as she stays on the inside of the pen and they remain on the outside, I think it will work out just fine.

Despite the temperatures, Sean got an idea while he was carrying the ice pieces freed from inside the water buckets. I thought it was interesting enough to brave going outside again to take a few pictures of it. What do you think?

 

  

I think they look really cool.

Thanks for stopping in for a visit today. I'm glad you did. Sonja ♥

Miss Orpington Falls Victim: WARNING GRAPHIC PHOTOS

It is cold outside. And, it looks like that cold is staying for a little spell. On days like this, I sometimes question our choice to live in Maine. When the snow melts and our rainy mud season begins, I question anew our residency. But, then summer comes and for about 2 weeks, the sun turns its face towards us and I forget all about the cold and mud. Born and bred in Maine, one would think a person would get used to the weather, but somehow I find myself always caught in surprised amazement that it is THAT COLD outside... again.

It is hard to be in a good mood with the wind howling in an arctic fury and worry for the animals facing it's bitterness in their barn stalls, hijacking my thoughts. It is difficult to keep the house warm in this kind of weather, even with the wood stove pumping out heat full tilt. The unheated barns provide some relief for the animals, but not enough to ease my thoughts. And, if dealing with prolonged cold snaps were not enough to contend with, we've had a bit of a terror this morning.

While freeing the chickens from their house and feeding them their warm breakfast, I discovered the huddled mass of a cold and bloody Buff Orpington hen laying, barely breathing, in the corner of the hen house floor. I called Sean to scoop her into his arms and carry her into the kitchen. While he headed that direction, I made a bee-line for an empty metal crate folded and tucked away in the barn. It didn't look good for Miss Orpington. Her head was covered with blood. Her eyes were crusted closed with it and she was having difficulty breathing through the blood in her nostrils and throat. It was hard to tell if she was coughing up blood or trying to clear her nasal passages of blood that had run down her beak and clotted around her nostrils from her mangled comb. I wanted to clean her off to assess the damage, but my first priority was to staunch the flow of blood so she wouldn't bleed to death on us before we could even get her warmed up. Sean went to finish the morning chores, while I held her in my lap and carefully used a clean cloth to put pressure on her comb areas until they clotted and stopped bleeding. With her head and shoulder feathers soaked in blood, I was uncertain that Miss Orpington could live through this and considered for a moment whether we should try. If it wouldn't be the kinder course to end it and be done. But, that thought was fleeting. Miss O. may yet die of her wounds, but it won't be because we didn't, at least, try to save her.

Sean returned from feeding the other animals and we discussed what to do. Topical and oral antibiotics were going to be a MUST- thankfully we had some on hand. But, the immediate needs of getting her body temperature up and assisting her ability to breathe came first. Antibiotics to fight any infection that might start are sorely wasted on a chicken what cannot breathe. I swabbed away the blood from inside her mouth and around her nostrils and Miss O. began breathing more regularly from her nose. She also stopped shaking violently as I held her. We decided to settle her in a nest of hay beside the wood stove to warm up. Now that she was breathing more normally and the bleeding had stopped, we thought it best to allow her some rest before we cleaned her up and attempted to bandage her properly. Miss O. slept a while. Around noon, she stirred, stood and gingerly poked her beak about in the hay some. I offered her some water by dipping just the tip of her beak into a cup of warmed water. She drank a few drops, but not much. She remained standing for some time and was alert to my movements around the kitchen and she slept off and on through the afternoon.

It is 3 o'clock as I write this. Miss O. swallowed a few drops more of water and she walked a few steps around the inside of her pen. I just took her out and held her gently in one arm while I dripped a few drops of water over her eyes and softly blotted the area. I am hoping to soften some of the caked on mess, so she might be able to open her eyes to see. I am leery of prying them apart and won't do that. The drops did clean away some of the dried blood, but not enough for her to open them. Or, at least, she didn't open them- so I assume that she cannot yet. I don't want to stress her more than necessary, so after a few minutes of gentle cleaning around her eyes, I stopped to allow her to rest more. When Sean gets home from work tonight, together, we'll work on cleaning her wounds properly.

So what caused this? I am certain that it was the simultaneous attention of several roosters. It looks as if they ripped her comb open, grabbing it to hold her steady. With 10 randy roosters strutting about, this conclusion seems the most probable. I have been looking for good homes for our lads, but the time has just run short for them. We CANNOT and WILL NOT allow them to reign terror over the hens, injuring our young layers. So, they will be going- one way or another. I hate to see them end up as dinner. Mating with the hens is what roosters instinctively do. But, when you have a young group of them, fighting over mating rights happens more frequently and when they start causing injury, enough is enough.

I did not pause to snap pictures of Miss Orpington when we first found her or while we were working on her for obvious reasons. I did capture a few shots of how she looked at mid-afternoon before I cleaned her up a little and after that, while she was resting. I will update on her progress later tonight and through her hopeful recovery. But, it is now time for afternoon meals and to thaw the water for the chickens, piggies and goats for the 4th time today. Sometimes, I don't think I will ever be truly warm again.

Thanks for stopping in for a visit today, friends.
Sonja ♥

A Look Back at 2012

2012 Goals and Accomplishments:

As I sat down earlier in the week to get down in writing what we want to accomplish for next year (and the one after), I began to get a little overwhelmed. There seemed like SO MUCH to plan, purchase, construct, and make work to make this small family homestead move from a hobby that pays for itself (mostly) to a small family FARM that realizes a modest income.

Eventually, the ultimate goal is for Sonja to work here at home (within a few years), for her to have the time to devote to home-schooling our teenage girls through the rest of their high school years, to be able to offer our family the best nutrition for our bodies, to be more self-sustaining- living closer to the land as a family, and to possibly prayerfully add a new child to our family in the years to come. To get THERE, we have so much to do HERE.

How will we ever be able to get this all done? As I started the list and my head began swimming, it suddenly dawned on me to look back on this year to see all that we had accomplished working together. As I reviewed all we had done, the thoughts of what we had coming changed from a worried, "Can we do this?" to a litany of "I think we can. I think we can." And, I do. I think we can.

There is so much to do to make this farming venture profitable. You can see our goals for the years ahead HERE. But, based on the hard work we put in this past year and our determination that our family will be better for it, I am growing confident our goal is attainable. Here is the list of what we have accomplished thus far in 2012 and some blog posts about them:

Build new 1st floor 20x30 Barn
Part One April 2012
Part Two April 2012
Part Three October 2012
Part Four October 2012
Part Five November 2012

March 2012
Add Vietnamese Pot Belly Pigs to Farm

April 2012
Add Ellie's Kids to Lally Broch Farm

May 2012
Build New Chicken Coop Nesting Boxes
Add New Ducks to Flock Via Incubation
Add Chinese Buff Geese to our Flock
Add Guard Llama to Farm
Add New Ducks to Flock Via Incubation
Add Chinese Buff Geese to our Flock
Add Guard Llama to Farm
Expand Goat Pasture

June 2012
Build Chicken Tractors
Add New Hens to Flock Via Incubation
Learn How to Milk Goats

July 2012
Plant & Harvest: Tomatoes, Peppers, Watermelon, Cukes, Herbs
Learn How to Make Cheese

August 2012
Learn How to Make Soap
Increase Chicken Coop Yard
Repair Horse Pasture

September 2012
Plant Garlic for 2013
Install Wood stove in Kitchen

October 2012
Add Registered Oberhausli Does to Herd

November 2012
Build New Duck/Goose House
Add Hay Mangers to Fields

Additionally, Daddy Dale and Momma Twombly helped us power wash the homestead, repair the soffets, level the stairways, paint the trim, replaced some doors, installed cat and dog doors, install an electric water heater, and stained the deck over the summer.  I think it's a good idea to actually write this sort of thing down, just so we can really appreciate how full and busy this year has been.  It's the encouragement we need to look ahead to the promise of a new year, waiting right around the bend.

How do you remember all your accomplishments? What goals do you have for 2013?

Thanks for visiting tonight, friends. We're glad you came.
Sean and Sonja ♥

Also shared at: Farm Chick Chit Chat

Waste Not~Want Not

 

This is one of my favorite sayings. 

Around here, nothing goes to waste. Not food, not materials, not supplies, nothing.

• 80% of our new chicken coop was built with reclaimed lumber. (You can read about it HERE.)

• Our compost enclosure, our goats' field shelters, and the bunny yard are all constructed from wood salvaged in whole or in part from wood pallets.

• An old parrot cage has been repurposed for use as our chick brooder (works GREAT!)

• Manure from the horse, goats, or chickens gets added to the compost pile or directly to fields which will lay fallow to decompose and enrich the soil before the next planting.

• Tin cans are rinsed and scrapped for money. Glass jars are recycled.

The list goes on and on, but you get the point.

 

Today's project was born out of my having finally finished shaping all the bars of fresh goat's milk soap I made HERE. I still have to cut pretty paper sleeves to wrap the bars in for storage, but I think that will be a project for this afternoon. I ended up with several bars of soap, some sample sized pieces and a whole bunch of soap shavings. "Was there something I could do with these?" I wondered and then, set myself to searching for ideas.

 

I found a post on Lisa's blog Fresh Eggs Daily for DIY Homemade Antibacterial Hand Soap HERE. I did not have all the ingredients, but I thought I would try it anyway substituting what I did have on hand. I liked the look of the hand soap dispenser created from a blue Ball mason jar. 

My Recipe:

4 1/4 cups water
4 oz goat's milk soap shavings
1 tspn liquid glycerin
1 tspn almond oil
1 tspn safflower oil

My Method:

 1. I poured the 4 cups of water into a stainless steel pot, stirred in the soap shavings, and brought the mixture to a gentle boil until all the soap is melted.

2. I removed the pan from the heat and added the glycerin, almond oil and safflower oil. Stir thoroughly.

3. Pour into pint sized mason jars.

4. Let the soap cool overnight. The end result is supposed to be a gel hand soap. Because I didn't follow the recipe exactly, I am not certain what I will end up with, but I was in the mood to experiment a little. As for the antibacterial aspect, mine is not- at least, it is not any more antibacterial than any other hand soap made with borax and lye. It smells heavenly, though and it only took about 20 minutes to make the hand soap from start to finish.

 

I do not have the pump to add to the top of the jars, but I am going to look around to see what I can come up with. I think that rather than buy one of these, I will simply wait until the soft soap I am currently using at the kitchen sink is empty and either refill that container or cannibalize the pump for parts. I like the idea of using the soap directly from the mason jar because I like the country chic feel of the jar. I also think the color of the hand soap in it is a quite pretty butter-cream yellow. And, I will definitely be using it to refill the bathroom handsoap dispenser when that is empty.

How do you reuse or repurpose things at your home?

 

Sonja ♥

 

Also, shared with Wildcrafting Wednesday Hop

 

Ready or Not... More Chicks

 

I found the Americauna chick (larger one to the front right) this morning before I left for work. When I got home, he/she had a brother/sister. I think the new chick is a Rhode Island Red.

 

 

Taking pictures of chickens is a lot of trial and error- mostly error. They do not sit still for long, always busy with something and easily distracted from the task at hand. I took about 30 shots on my digital camera to get 3-4 that were usable. I loved this picture. It looks like they are talking with each other.

2 more chicks hatched- 4 more possibilities waiting in the nest. :) With these successfully hatching, that brings the ratio for this clutch to 14 hatched /20 eggs or 70% success rate. I like those odds. I will like them even more if the other 4 eggs cooperate and hatch chicks this week.

Now, it is time to get off my duff to start the morning chores. I wonder if I will have any surprises waiting for me. . .

Have a great day!
Sonja ♥

P.S. No new chicks hatched, but the ones from the coop came inside to their new home.

Vastly underwhelmed with their digs, they began searching the paper at once for better living quarters.

 

"It's upside down!"



 "This one looks nice. What do you think? Shall we go to see it?"

"Hmmm... Fireplace... good, good. Will our couch fit here?"

 "I love the bay window and all the light in this Kitchen... and parquet floors!"

Sonja ♥

 

Weekend Update

It was a busy weekend here on the farm, which should come as no surprise. It is a farm and farms are always busy with something needing tending to most days. Perhaps, I should have written that this weekend was accomplished here at Lally Broch. On Friday night, after work, I put up 6 jars of dilly beans (That post and the recipe for making them can be read HERE.)

Saturday morning started out rough, with the loss of Edith. We didn't get home to dig into the regularly scheduled chores until after 10am. I was happy that Daddy Dale had come in our absence and was prepared to help Sean with some work on the barn, since I was in no mood for it. But, work around here waits for nothing and being busy is sometimes the best band-aid on a sad heart. By the time the afternoon rolled around, we were all working on some project. In addition to adding more sheathing to the roof (which will actually be the floor of the second story of the barn next year), Sean sheathed the outside of the milk room with OSB and framed the doorway. I mowed the small field in front of our house- full of garden spiders!- with my new lawn mower. I kept trying to avoid them, but they were everywhere. I don't want them dead, but words in the English language do not contain the feeling of horror, fear, and ickiness, this task was for me. After I finished mowing, I made Sean check me over (just-in-case *shudder*). I told him how many I had counted while trying to avoid them (8), he revealed that he counted no less than 30 of them while he was walking the perimeter to remove the fiberglass poles and wire fencing and thought to himself  "there is no way Sonja is going to be able to stand mowing for longer than a few minutes" and mentally added mowing to his growing "to do" list. I was and still am proud of myself for soldiering through the ordeal.

And, I will NEVER do that again... just so you know.

In the early evening, our daughter, Caitlin and our son-in-law, Justin came for a visit. I was still mowing when they arrived, so they made themselves busy and useful. Justin started raking up the field grass I had drying in neat rows the back yard for Jasmine to munch on. The goats like the new fresh cut grasses and brush I was mowing down. Justin grabbed them several baskets of this and fed the does a treat of it in their stall. The chickens, geese, and ducks in the main pen got a pile of green clippings, too. They were in hen-heaven playing and scratching in it and eating choice bits. So, we spent a little time watching "chicken TV" and catching up with each other. Caitlin had been missing Jasmine and wasted no time in brushing her and taking her for a short walk down the road.

 

On Sunday, we released the young pullets (Rudy's siblings) from their pen beside the barn and introduced the 3 Cochins into the tractor with the others living in the back yard and the 4 mixed breed pullets into the main yard. There was some discontent at the new additions, but when I checked on everyone this morning, they had all settled in quite nicely. With the barn as finished as this round of purchasing material allowed, Sean moved to working on the tiling for the wood stove for our kitchen. This brings us full circle to the post yesterday about canning salsa HERE.

Whew! A busy weekend for sure. I am looking forward to harvesting more veggies for another batch of Salsa this weekend. The 6 eggs still being sat upon should be hatching out this week (we hope). And, we have tentative plans for raking some blueberries at Staples farm in Stockton on Wednesday. Stay tuned!

Thanks for stopping in for a visit today. I hope you have a great day.
Sonja ♥

Despite the Best Efforts of Mice or Men

Edith

Born 2011, Died August 25, 2012

 

It is with a sad heart that I have to report that Edith died this morning at Dr. Layhe's office.

 

She seemed to be doing better last night. We got her to eat some romaine and some more pineapple juice. She spent the night on a heating pad to help keep her comfortable. Sean and I went to bed at 2 am, hopeful that she was on the road to recovery. I awoke at 6:30 am and couldn't get back to sleep. I did not want to disturb Sean so early, so I went upstairs to check on Edith and enjoy the stolen moments of solitude while they were mine to have.

 

Edith did not look good, but she did not look a lot worse, either. I gave her a gentle tummy massage, rubbed her ears and left her to rest while I checked my email. She startled me around an hour later when she jumped violently down from the top floor to the 2nd floor of her pen. While I watched, she jumped again into the bottom level and lay on her side in the litter pan. She didn't look good and I feared that despite all our efforts and care, she might die, anyway. I rushed downstairs to wake Sean. He agreed that Edith needed to visit our vet again immediately. With her so dehydrated, we felt at the best course of action was to have some sub q fluids infused. Edith was a young bunny. She had only come into our care within the last year and had been adopted only months before by her previous owner. The situation was certainly serious, but as I posted yesterday, bunnies do sometimes get these impactions and usually they can be helped. Our hope was that the infusions of fluids would rouse her and get her stabilized to the point where we could start her on a course of Reglan to help get her digestive tract moving. (This is the standard in treatment when the problem is located in the upper GI track, but it would do no good to try to dose her, limp and clearly sick. Think: inducing BM while completely exhausted and you get my point. No fun and certainly dangerous for a 5 lb bunny to suffer through.)

 

We did not wait for Dr. Layhe's office to open. Sean and I were there by 8am. It was too late, though. Just after bunny was examined and before an IV could be started, she was gone.

 

Even though we did not have her long, she will be missed by us all. I am dreading having to tell the girls what happened when they return from their Dad's house this evening. No matter how inevitable the eventual passing of a pet is, it still hurts when they leave us. We love them. Provide for them. Talk to them and they hold our hearts in ways words fail to express. Why do we (people who love animals and keep pets) put ourselves through this almost certain loss time and time again? The only reason I can think of is the unconditional love, joy, and devotion they give us while they are alive to do so.

 

I am glad that we met Edith. She was a good bunny. ♥

A Trip to the Vet

At the beginning of this week, we noticed that Edith had been eating very little of her food.  We were concerned that perhaps her ever-growing teeth were causing problems. Sean trimmed them for her, but that did not seem to help. Her food bowl remained suspiciously full. Over the next few days, her water intake diminished to next to nothing. A check in her pen showed very few waste pellets in the litter tray. She began acting strangely, leaning on the corners of her pen and being very listless. We became very alarmed when she started to grind her teeth loudly, which is a sign that a bunny is in real pain. Sean checked her belly and thought he felt a mass there. A visit to the vets was needed- immediately.

We called Dr. Layhe and rearranged our schedule so Sean could drop Edith off for examination and doctoring before going to work himself today. I had scheduled 3 interviews for potential new crew members and an orientation class for today, so I could not rearrange my morning. I am very grateful that Sean was capable of taking charge of this dilemma for us. He called me later to relieve my worried mind with Edith's update. She has an impacted cecal. We thought the blockage might have been in her bowels, but it was higher up in her digestive tract. Dr. Layhe administered an enema to relieve the blockage and using a syringe fed her some pineapple juice for both it's benefits towards hydration and it's diuretic properties and some kale. The course of action is to offer fibrous greens and pineapple for food, a warm heating pad for her to rest on, gentle tummy rubs, and exercise to help get things moving. Edith has not responded to the intervention as of yet. Though this is very serious condition and can be fatal, it is also a very common problem with bunnies. We are hopeful for a full recovery. Since, Sean went in late to work, I complimented his effort at juggling all things, by getting out of work in time to help retrieve our bunny and take over "nurse" duty for the evening. I love this team that I am part of- it just works. ♥

When I checked the main coop today, all 6 eggs were in the nest box, but no additional chick hatchings. Broody Wyandotte was off the nest picking at food in the yard. I will have to keep an eye out for this. If she has decided to be done with her sitting duties, then back to the incubator the eggs shall go. ♥

I checked the bag of tomatoes and though they are beginning to show signs of wanting to ripen, none of them have obliged us with doing so- yet. I really hope they will cooperate before Sunday, so we can get some salsa canned over the weekend. ♥

In anticipation of our work day tomorrow, I had some plywood sheathing, OSB, and 2x4's delivered. The roof of the stable section of the barn will be completed and the walls to the milk room will also get sheathed tomorrow morning. When those projects are done, it is our intention to finish setting the tile for the walls behind where the wood stove will live. If we can set the tile tomorrow, we might be able to get the grout applied this weekend, too. I am really excited about that prospect, despite the temperature still reading a steady 80 degrees each day. Winter will be here for it's yearly visit in just a few months, after all. Tomorrow's post will have picture updates of the barn and kitchen.

Remember the most romantic gift I posted about HERE ? Well, I finally got the time to take some pictures of my beauty. I am in LOVE with my new toy. ♥  This was the absolute best anniversary gift I could have been given. Every day when I drive into the yard, I stare hard at our yard, just willing the grass to hurry and grow- so I can mow it again! Color this country wife, happy!

Thanks for visiting!

The Twombly Family ♥

Pickles, Soap, and Chicks

Problem: Our garden is producing enough veggies to eat for meals, but not enough to can in vast quantities all in one day.

Solution: We preserve just a few mason jars at a time.

Exhibit A:

I pulled 5 cucumbers from the garden yesterday. Not nearly enough for traditional canning methods. I created my own recipe last year and our family LOVES it. Besides tasting delicious, it is sooo easy to make and there is very little cooking involved and no canning necessary, either.

I heat 3 3/4 cups each of vinegar and water and dissolve 3/8 cups of canning salt into it and remove it from the heat. I like crunchy pickles, so I don't want the cucumbers to cook in the brine. Meanwhile, I slice my cucumbers into 1/4 inch slices. I add these, 2 heads of dill, 2 cloves of garlic (sliced in chunks), and 1/4 tsp Cayenne (to taste, really) to a mason jar. I pour the luke-warm vinegar mixture to cover the contents, leaving about 1/2 inch head room in the jar and cover with a lid. Most of the time, I find that these lids seal without any further processing. Even when they don't, the pickles are preserved in vinegar and salt, I feel that mine are safe to eat. (If you prefer to process them in a canner, you should.) The pickles are ready to eat in 2 days, but get better the longer they sit. What I love the most about these is that they start out tasting like garlic dill pickles and finish with a little spicy kick. The pickles stay nicely crisp. It is so simple, I can easily preserve just a few jars at a time as our cucumbers are ready to be picked. ♥

 

Sometime in the next few days, we will tackle our first batch of canning ♪ Salsa ♪ of the season. I am excited about this prospect. It feels like I have been waiting all summer for this... because. I. have. Spicy, delicious, home made salsa. Oooooh yeah. Sean and I spent a little time last night to pick the tomatoes and peppers we are going to use. We decided to pick some of the tomatoes even though they were still green on the vine because it seems lately that if we wait for them to fully ripen, the various bugs spoil them or they split open. I placed our pickings into a brown paper bag and stored them in a cool, dry, dark place to ripen over the next few days. When the tomatoes ripen, the salsa making will commence!

 

The soap came out really well. I love that it leaves my hands feeling soft for a long time after I have used it. I am definitely going to purchase two more soap molds because I think I prefer the clean, shiny, finished look of the ones that were molded in them. I like the homey look of the bars I cut and shaved into the traditional shape and size of soap, but I am not sure there is a market for these. The four bars in the top left corner are what the raw cut soaps look like. The lower two on the left are bars that I carved and smoothed out with a knife. I wrapped one in handmade paper and sealed it with a sticker. "E" to mark those with the eucalyptus scent. The four bars on the right were made with the soap mold. These are cucumber melon scented and look much more "finished". I would love your feedback on these.

Specifically:

 

1- Do you prefer the unfinished or finished bars?

2- Are the simple paper wrapping attractive?

3- How much would you expect to pay for a bar of hand made, goat's milk soap like the ones pictured?

 

I would love to get your opinion on the finished product. The soap needs to cure for 4 weeks so that when it is used, it doesn't melt away. The soap I will sell, will be aged for the full time recommended. But, I have 10 sample sized cubes of the eucalyptus soap, which I would love to send out for some of you to try out. If you are interested in receiving one, please request one via a comment on this post. I will honor the first 10 sample requests received. The samples will be provided free of charge and mailed to you, but I do respectfully ask that after you try the sample, you will share your honest opinion on the product. I will create a post on the blog specifically for you to leave your comments and improvement suggestions. ♥

 

Broody Wyandotte is proving to be as good a mother as Broody Barred Rock hen and better than the incubator! We now have 12 fluffy, peeping chicks living in the brooder inside the living room. I think I wrote you about checking the eggs inside the incubator already; how they are alive and developing, but seem to be younger than the ones from the nests outside. After 2 more chicks were hatched today, Sean and I candled the remaining 3 eggs in the outside nest. They are also alive and look suspiciously similar to those in the incubator. That being the case, Sean and I returned all 6 developing eggs to under Broody Wyandotte with the hopes that she will hatch the remaining chicks safely and naturally. The hens have a 12/20 hatch rate or 60% hatch rate as things stand now. If the other 6 hatch, that would increase the hatch rate to 90%- really Excellent, by any standards. ♥

How Cute Are THESE ????

 

I'm glad you stopped by for a visit.

Sonja ♥

 

 

Mazel Tov!

Instead of 8 little fluffy chicks, we now have 9 of them. In the nature versus nurture debate, I think nature wins.

Broody Wyandotte was not interested in my checking on her nest this morning and puffed up to scare me away. But, Sean had already told me that their was another chick in the box and I wanted to see it for myself.

I am glad I perservered and intruded for a moment to capture this picture. It immediately reminded me of the passage in the Bible recorded at Luke 13:34- "Jerusalem, Jerusalem... how often I wanted to gather your children together in the manner that a hen gathers her brood of chicks under her wings..." Look at how Broody Wyandotte moved to protect her chick from my disturbance.

We were up and at it early this morning, so Sean could take my car to work, since his needs to go to the car doctor today. I wanted to get to the store before Sean left for the morning to pick up the borax and lye needed for soap making. Sean wanted me to be happy, so he obliged me in this matter. Before we headed out, Sean checked the nest box and discovered another newly hatched chick. This one, less than 12 hours old- was still very tired and covered in little specks of eggy membrane. He brought the chick inside both to present me with his treasure and because it was only mid 40 degrees outside here this morning. I love this picture. It never stops amazing me how such strong, working hands can be so gentle when they hold mine or how safe and protected I feel in Sean's very capable hands.

We thought the warm brooder would be more toasty for the new chick. And, it was, but the chick was soooo newly hatched and tired that all it wanted was to curl up and sleep somewhere. Hard to do with 8 curious siblings determined to say "welcome" via pecking and walking on you. So, the stay inside was short lived; we returned the new chick to underneath Momma's warm and sheltering embrace.

Can you spot the new chick?

When I checked the chick later in the morning, it had fluffed up and was doing grand. I'll retrieve it before it gets too active to avoid the chance of a mishap.

Current Tally for this Hatch:

We have 9/20 eggs hatched. That is almost a 50% success and we have 8 more still cookin' away inside their eggs.

Now, to post this update and get on with my first attempt at the making of some soap! I have all the ingredients ready. Be sure to check back to see how that goes!

Thanks for visiting this morning. Have a great day, friends. ♥

Sonja



One at a Time?

Count the number of chicks:

Sean went outside before me today for the morning chores, but he quickly came back inside with a delightful present for me. A NEW Chick! Day two of waking to the happy surprise of another chick born from nest #2. I give up; just when I start to think I might have some clue about what I am doing- I get thrown a curve ball. A happy, fluffy, peeping curve ball, but still...

Broody Wyandotte and Broody Barred Rock are taking turns sitting on this nest and apparently, this is working out for them. I do not understand why the chicks are hatching one at a time, but they are. On the bright side- at least, they are hatching. Maybe we are just going to get one each day until the eggs are all hatched? Maybe the hens in question are practicing Judaism and they are like Hanukkah Chicks- one gift each day for a week!?!?! Has this happened in any of your hatchings? I would be very curious to know.

Critter Update: we are still on the search to buy a registered Oberhausli doe and a registered Lamancha buck. Our girls are all in season and should be for a few months still. We still want to breed Leah, Rachel and Pepper this year in anticipation for lots of milk come Spring. The piggies are as ornamental as ever and grunt at me regularly. Jasmine is looking well- though Meg is definitely going to need to see to her stall today. I discovered Brighid hiding in the wood shed amongst the wood while I was out mowing the lawn this morning. The cats are not pleased with Daddy Dale locking their door while he painted the area, but once it dries and I let them in, I suspect they won't hold a grudge for long.

The house has been getting some maintenance and work done on it. Daddy Dale was here today and painted the trim he replaced for us earlier this week, which looks wonderful and is much appreciated. And, Sean started tiling the cement board where the new wood stove is going to live in preparation for a homey Maine winter this year. I am almost looking forward to the frigid temperatures, just to try it out. And, I love how wonderful the house smells by keeping a iron pot of yummy smelling oils simmering on the wood stove. Our next step is to set the tile on the walls and then, all the tiles will be set with grout. I love the hue of the tiles and how it compliments the color of the kitchen walls. We will have to replace some floor trim, too, but that is an easy fix.

I planned on making some soap today and may before the day is out, but I still have to pick up borax and lye at the store to be able to do that, so that project might be on hold until tomorrow.

Thanks for dropping by!

Sonja ♥