Drstratton - My Backyard Journey Journal

[drstratton]

I’m 5 pages late to the party! Welcome to BYH! We retired 5 years ago and moved to 8 acres. We have chickens, 2feeder Pigs, Sheep, horses, dogs and a garden. The farm is our job now and we love it. Congratulations on the upcoming retirement and the decision to become more self sufficient. Your family will appreciate the good food that you raise!

Thank you and welcome, I'm so glad that you found my journey! We've lived on our 5 acres for 25 years and have raised chickens (Banty's), had a horse, dogs & cats, saltwater fish tank, fresh fish tank and other various animals! We've always grown a large garden and will now continue to do so! With these changing times we've had to change our focus, as you've read! I really was looking forward to a different lifestyle, but that's okay, we are truly blessed by everything we have and that we have the ability to provide for ourselves and help our children and their families as needed! I'm looking forward to having large eggs and the provision of meat from our own labor! I'm sure you've also had plenty of adventures and hard labor on your 8 acres in the last 5 years. Congratulations to you too and I'm so glad that you're happy with what you decided to do in your retirement! Wishing you good health and looking forward to getting to know you and the others who are following my journey! Do you have a journal?

 

[drstratton]

Good morning!

We are still making progress on the rabbit hutch! I come up with ideas and my husband implements & improves them! Last year we purchased a 4'x8' pallet of miscellaneous doors from a cabinet makers overstock store for $25. We have used them for many projects now including the ones seen on our hutches...we have gotten our money's worth!

Hutch with 1st door & Partial Trim.

Small Door Between Sections, so that I can block them if they aren't being cooperative...lol!

This is the door to the left side with a built in hay feeder! The panel in the door will be replaced with wire!

 

[drstratton]

I did a search through my phone...here is a picture of the doors that we bought! I still can't believe that we got all of these for $25!

 

[frustratedearthmother]

That's an awesome score!!!

 

[drstratton]

That's an awesome score!!!

I know...right! We could not pass it up! They had a couple of more pallets of them, but we just barely had enough room in the back of our pickup for these, plus this place is 3 hours from where we live!

 

[farmerjan]

Good thing it wasn't in Tx and @Baymule had seen it first..... she is one of those "BARGAIN HUNTER" people.....
Great buy for you.

 

[drstratton]

Good thing it wasn't in Tx and @Baymule had seen it first..... she is one of those "BARGAIN HUNTER" people.....
Great buy for you.

There was some there for her too!

 

[drstratton]

I decided to change my breeding stock! The rabbits that were given to us came out of a colony and I had no idea what their relationship was to each other! My husband found an add on Craigslist for purebred New Zealand's! She had two different litters born a day apart! I was able to get to beautiful bunnies! We will be keeping the original gray rabbit (Chloe) as she is calmer than the other doe, although still quite skittish!

The Trio! As soon as we finish our new hutch, they will each get their own space!

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Our first Doe - Chloe

Our Buck - Buck (I know original...but I like it!

Bucks Parents:
Sire

Bucks Mother & Siblings

Our Doe - She needs a name! Sweet Face!

Back markings!

Her Sire

Her Mother & Siblings!

 

[Baymule]

Your bunnies are beautiful. I don't keep a journal. I start a new thread for each event. I chronicle my feeder pigs each year, same with lambing.

 

[drstratton]

Your bunnies are beautiful. I don't keep a journal. I start a new thread for each event. I chronicle my feeder pigs each year, same with lambing.

Thank you! I will look for your threads!