mysunwolf - four acres and some sheep

[Baymule]

I recently built a couple of A frame chicken tractors for growing out chicks. They sure are handy!

Your pigs sure are pretty. What do they weigh when you slaughter them?

 

[mysunwolf]

Those pigs look super healthy and I like that shelter idea.

I recently built a couple of A frame chicken tractors for growing out chicks. They sure are handy!

Your pigs sure are pretty. What do they weigh when you slaughter them?

Thanks all, I love raising pretty pigs. These ended up a little small, maybe 225lbs or so live. I prefer at least 250-300lbs live.

Also love the A-frames. I've never built one this big with these kinds of materials before. Primary objective: heavy enough that it can't blow away.

 

[mysunwolf]

Been busy here with pottery, and the weather has been all over the place. Some mornings it's 28 and frosty, others it's 55 and balmy. The grass is very confused! I'm even more excited about my regenerative grazing plans for the property now that winter is coming on. I can see where I've done things wrong and where I've done things right and how to improve for next year (hint: raise more chickens is a big improver!). And went out and took a bunch of photos on this warm, drizzly day.

Down to 11 guineas in the fields (3 froze at various points during bad weather the last few weeks). I have 5 more in the brooder still, off the lamp, but scared to put them out in the field in case the weather turns bad again. So they sit in the brooder, making more poop and spilling good gamebird feed everywhere!


Puff napping on the stairs.


Meghan caught a fat house mouse and devoured the whole thing, starting with the head.


Photos of the A-frame on the field! The sheep broke in and ate all the chicken feed yesterday right before I had to leave for a Drs appt So I put out baking soda for bloat and dolomite for copper and said "good luck." They were fine yesterday evening and fine today, so hopefully that's the end of that. Better latch will go on the door soon, plus I'll plan to only feed the chickens scratch when the sheep are in that particular field.


Just some photos of the basic "strip grazing" setup, plus some happy sheeps.


And some photos of my little butterballs.

 

[Latestarter]

Gosh... look at all that table meat on the hoof/foot! I know there's some beef hiding in and around there someplace too... Wouldn't that make a great BBQ? Beef/chicken/pork/lamb... Lookin' good there!

 

[Baymule]

55 is balmy? Girl, down here we call that WINTER.

Love your pastures! So beautiful! What lovely, healthy animals you have. Your hard work is showing.

 

[Bruce]

And down your way it is closer to freezing! We had 60 something today, will be mid 50s overnight. I've seen quite a few Texas plates lately, I guess those are the ones that figured out where the warmer fall weather is

 

[Baymule]

It is freezing!

 

[Baymule]

How is your grandmother? You were so worried about her being in the hospital with a hurricane roaring in.

 

[mysunwolf]

Gosh... look at all that table meat on the hoof/foot! I know there's some beef hiding in and around there someplace too... Wouldn't that make a great BBQ? Beef/chicken/pork/lamb... Lookin' good there!

How'd you know I go out and stare at the field and drool thinking of all the meat! I talk about cuts to family and friends while the animals are still alive and standing right in front of them, they don't usually appreciate it... so I cross them off the BBQ list

 

[mysunwolf]

55 is balmy? Girl, down here we call that WINTER.

Love your pastures! So beautiful! What lovely, healthy animals you have. Your hard work is showing.

Whaaaaatt? 55 IS balmy! Winter is COLD!

@Bruce we are having colder weather than usual too, and it's driving a lot of locals up... north?? My sister lives in Chicago and they have been consistently warmer than us all season. And here I thought Virginia and I had an agreement about our winters that we would NEVER get colder than Chicago.