Luvmypets Journal: A New Season

[NH homesteader]

Sorry to interrupt the conversation here but I have a question... Maybe a dumb one. @luvmypets could you tell me about FFA? Like, is it hugely different from 4H? Is it for an older range? I'm just thinking of future things my daughter might like to be involved in to get her out and involved and I can't find a ton of information about it and had never heard of it until I saw it on this site!

 

[Latestarter]

I believe It's actually a full time schooling like a traditional school, but geared specifically toward agriculture. https://www.ffa.org/home

 

[NH homesteader]

Ah I found it. It's a program in public schools. Well that doesn't help me! Lol thanks @Latestarter

 

[luvmypets]

Ah I found it. It's a program in public schools. Well that doesn't help me! Lol thanks @Latestarter

Yup, basically you take an agricultural class and you are asked to join. Last year I took Intro to Agriculture, this year I am taking Honors Animal Sciences.

 

[NH homesteader]

Do you enjoy it? It sounds pretty awesome!

 

[luvmypets]

Do you enjoy it? It sounds pretty awesome!

Absolutely love it!

 

[luvmypets]

So every year my agriculture class makes fresh pressed apple cider in an antique(1869 I believe) cider press. Well if you have ever pressed apples before you know there is a lot of leftovers. So I was thinking my pigs love apples, so we took a 20ish gallon bucket and filled it up with the leftover crushings. We also get leftover greens and vegetable matter from a local restuarant. So needless to say the pigs had a field day! We filled up a feeding trough with a mixture of the greens and apples and the pigs were soo happy. We have been giving our pigs grain twice a day, but it really wasn't doing it for them. Those pigs turned from animals I was wary to even go near, to animals I wanted to cuddle. Patricia is seriously the sweetest girl ever, she let me rub her belly and scratch behind her ears, under her chin, and on her head. She would grunt softly, and she left my run my hand along her snout without even trying to chomp me. Tubby was so calm as well, and Kevin, well he was Kevin, calmer but still attempting to chomp at me. However, he did listen to a little slap on the nose which in the past has made him worse. Today was really an eye opener, now all I want to do is snuggle Patricia I know the boys are for market, so I am glad they aren't the nicest. But patricia will be our breeder, I guess almost the founder of our mangalista stock, so she gets to stay!


Unloading the greens(Dont worry they didn't get that whole thing!)

They were very grateful

Tubby iis so well... TUBBY!



And of course my little man Ras. I have this thing where I go up to him and I lean down towards him and he puts his muzzle up so I can give him a kiss on the nose. There is no ramming behavior involved in it at all, it is literally the cutest thing.

 

[samssimonsays]

Tubby. Be still my heart! He's smiling lol! And I love that ras does that! My little rebel does that too!

 

[NH homesteader]

Um I think Tubby is the cutest thing ever!

 

[Bruce]

Those are some HAIRY pigs! You probably have to count twice to make sure all your animals are there. X pigs, Y goats. Wait, X-1 pigs and Y+1 goats??? Pig, get back with your porcine buddies!