greenfamilyfarm's Journal - Nubian Kids are HERE! Pictures Up

[greenfamilyfarms]

I've pretty much decided to take Penny to the auction barn when she's weaned. She's a pretty goat, but something is just not right. She's awfully... dingy... acting. Hubby keeps asking, "Is she stupid or something?" I'm starting to think so.

The garden is progressing - we have lettuce and garden peas coming up now. Nothing from the beets and carrots yet.

Isabella has learned to turn over on her belly by herself, but can't figure out how to turn back over on her back yet. She has been trying to tuck her knees under and scooch. Things are about to start to get interesting!!! Time to get some child proofing things and find somewhere to put my fish tank. Right now it's on a metal stand that is not very sturdy.

 

[greenfamilyfarms]

The first set of hatching eggs are being shipped out today! A lady in Fredericksburg, Texas is getting a set of 8 Ameraucana eggs this week. Speaking of eggs, we will not be listing them in our General Store on the website this year. We'll be incubating a large portion of eggs this year, so eggs will be have available for hatching will be limited. If and when we have hatching eggs, they will be listed on our farm's Facebook page. We'll have heirloom, non-hatchery Buff Orpingtons and blue-egg Wheaten/Blue Wheaten Ameraucanas available this year. I would like to add one more breed to our farm, but I'm undecided about which one quite yet. (I would like to add a dark egg layer breed, but still... undecided.)

The goat kids are growing like weeds. They are 4 and 5 weeks old this week and are grazing with their mama's. It won't be long and they will be ready to go to their new homes.

The garden is doing well. The garden peas are coming up and the lettuce mix I ordered is looking great. In the lettuce mix, I see dark purples, dark green, lime green, and some reds sprinkled in. It should be a nice, colorful mix of greens for my salads. The Black Tartartain cherry tree I planted about a month ago has a few leaves and a cluster of flower buds already. It must like our NC soil.

Here's Isabella with one of our newly hatched Ameraucana chicks. My youngin' is 5-months-old!

 

[jodief100]

What adorable babies!!!!!

 

[elevan]

 

[greenfamilyfarms]

And I had to add some pictures of our critters since I haven't posted much lately.

 

[greenfamilyfarms]

Our 2 new additions will be here any day! We had reserved 2 Nubian doelings. I requested spots; hubby wanted solid brown. Silly man.

Their Sire:
http://www.adgagenetics.org/PedigreePrint.aspx?RegNumber=N001528914

 

[Queen Mum]

I LOVE the baby picture. Isabella's smile is beautiful!

 

[greenfamilyfarms]

Well, we haven't gotten our 2 new doelings yet but they should be arriving any day.

News: Flo, our 75% Alpine 25% LaMancha, doe is bred. I didn't witness the breeding, so this one is going to be a surprise... along with the type of ears the kids will have. She's bred to our Nubian buck, Pee Dee. Should be interesting. She's getting a little bit of udder development, but I think she still has a ways to go.

Bunny's kids are doing very well. They are still nursing, but are now grazing well and eating feed. I picked them up yesterday to give them a quick heath check and they have really put on some weight. The disbudding on both "took" and the scabs have fallen off and hair is starting to grow back. I disbudded them young (2 days old) and I was afraid I wouldn't get them well, but I must have.

Penny's disbudding, however, didn't take AT ALL. She has full blown horns coming in. Oh well. She is still clumsy and has trouble walking. I think what she has is something neurological. Could she have banged her head hard after birth? Whatever happened, she is still "not right in the head."

The garden is coming up. The peas have tendrils and the lettuce has real leaves now. I started 8 types of heirloom tomatoes yesterday and 1 type of cucumber before I ran out of soil. Types of tomatoes: 2 reds, 1 pink, 1 orange, 1 yellow (cherry), 1 white, 1 green, 1 black. The Pink Lady apple and the Black Tartartain cherry tree have leaves. The 2 Bing Cherry, 2 Granny Smith, 2 Yellow Delicious, 2 Red Delicious, and another Pink Lady haven't done anything. That will the LAST time I mail order trees. That's 2 out of 11 trees that made it.

Yesterday, I also started the coop renovations. My Grandpa and I made this coop when I was still living at home out of scrap materials. The tin was starting to rust and look rough, so I primed it with Rustoleum Rusty Metal Primer and coated the roof with Alumimum. I'm letting it cure for a little while until I put the final paint on it. I'm going with Barn Red for the sides and the accents (wood, door, etc.) will be white. Classic colors were easier and cheaper... and I like red. So far I've got about $80 invested in it. More than I wanted to spend, but hopefully it will last a while.

Eariler in the week I picked up 2 young BO roosters from a guy who hatched them from Green Fire eggs. They have a nice color, but they are not perfect. Our hens are large and fluffy, so maybe the resulting chicks will inherit the fluff from the hens and the rich, golden color from these guys. Midas, our current roo, has gotten lazy on the job. I had thought it was the cold weather, but I'm still having issues with fertility with him. I tried plucking feathers from around his vent, adding more protein and greens to their diet, and letting the Ameraucana rooster out in the yard to make him jealous. Nothing worked. So, Midas is going to a new home as a pet rooster tomorrow.

The Ameraucanas are laying eggs faithfully everyday. Their eggs are also hatching like popcorn in my incubator. Here's a neat picture I took of our roo's feathers:

Piper out with the goats. She has already shed most of her winter coat. Trolley keeps his longer, but still sheds some of his out. Most of the time, I have to give him a trim around his neck so he can cool off some in the heat.

 

[greenfamilyfarms]

Video of our Buff Orpington Chicks (plus a Wheaten Ameraucana) from Today.

Enjoy!

 

[autumnprairie]

Love the pictures, I need to get more myself. on the new kids