rachels.haven's Journal

[rachels.haven]

Those men can't take a joke!

Pilgrims are sex-linked in color. Ganders are white, while females are gray. My friend has br=een breeding Pilgrims for several years and has a really nice line of them now. He is going to give me 5 males and 5 females for our pond. They will help to clear the weeds both in the pond and around the edges. Eventually I would like to set up a solar panel to power an aerator in the pond to help it stay healthy.

DH had a pair of Chinese geese. The female was fairly docile but the male was a terror. He was pretty territorial and didn't like any strangers. He had a particular hatred for one of our friends. She was a heavy woman with bright red hair. When she came to visit it was a contest to see if she could reach the door before he reached her and bit her on the butt.

DH made the mistake of putting them in the small pen where we were keeping the hogs. The hogs killed and ate the hen. The male survived for a while before a coyote got him. This was before we got our LGDs.

Pilgrims are GREAT and the autosexing is icing on the cake. You will most likely love them. They are quieter and more laid back, but still geese, which is perfect. They do have a lower hatch rate on the eggs. Also, at least ours lay many more eggs than advertised and will have a spring and fall season, so you may have to figure out what to do with them or have a goose-plosion and keep an eye on those females. This year I couldn't take anymore mega-eggs so I let them nest, hence our mutts.

 

[Ridgetop]

I will only be keeping Pilgrims. I had a couple many years ago, before I realized how many coyotes were hiding in the brush around our place just waiting for an easy dinner!

 

[Bruce]

Congrats to the future couple.... If you get bored, give me a call and I can come visit for an afternoon (not to the wedding obviously)....It's near Louisa if I am not mistaken....

Other side of Lake Anna. I will post "highlights" in my journal.

Not these days with the medicine and technology that's out

True, but *I* personally have no desire to become an old lady!

 

[rachels.haven]

Breeding season started yesterday...a slow start. So the does had been Cidr'ed. And yesterday morning, day 9, I noticed Betty, the Nubian, had lost her cidr. Betty likes to let Riker the LGD lick her tushy. Cidr strings get all yucky and nasty and dog appealing. I'm 99% sure Riker pulled it and ate it. I was concerned it maybe just slipped inside and took it's sting/tail with it, but by afternoon Betty was inducing pandemonium over at the buck pen, so...THANKS RIKER (I hope he feels very feminine about now). Mark's out of town for the week and I am THE PARENT so always short on time outside, so I grabbed my biggest nubian buckling and Betty and...I'm pretty sure no cradles got robbed and Mr. Buckling spent the entire day and night announcing how he wanted to be a next year buck. And poor Betty was infatuated with him but could not get him to do anything no matter how much she rode him.
...so this morning Pete, ever the long courting, patient romantic lamancha got a date with Betty the frustrated, "I WANT IT QUICK AND NOW (BEFORE I FORGET)" Nubian. Betty is beating out our saanen milking yearling for production so very nice, productive La'Nubes on the way. Pure Bred Blasphemy. If they have nubian ears, the Junior buck pulled his emotions together and tagged her. Elf ears=Pete. If it were earlier in the season I'd AI until she settled, but while I'd take December kids, I don't want March kids. They need all the growth they can get before the parasites turn on. Oh. And also, that I have three kids and I'm the only parent on call at the moment. Speculums up goat tushies is not what I want to be doing with my children on a weeknight when they should be in bed.

Official Cidr pull date is Saturday after Mark gets back.

 

[Ridgetop]

but while I'd take December kids, I don't want March kids.

December kids are a big NO NO! A December born kid shows with other goats born in that year which means that she would have to show as a yearling at 2-3 months old! January kids are good - the earlier the better, but never breed for December kids.

 

[rachels.haven]

They definitely sound like a "no show" age group. If we ever have them, I'll probably skip showing them.

 

[rachels.haven]

This lady has the prettiest cows.

 

[Ridgetop]

Jerseys are my favorite breed of dairy cow. Richest milk, small cows with those big dark eyes in darling dished faces. However, Jersey bulls are some of the most animals around! Dairy bulls cause more injuries than any other breeds, and those darling Jersey bulls are the worst. DS3 raised a registered Jersey replacement dairy heifer from a bottle calf one year. We had her almost 2 years - until she started bulling and needed to be bred. LOL He sold her to a 4-H girl from northern California whose family owned a Jersey dairy. Those northern California Jersey dairies are usually contracted to the ice cream industry due to the richness of Jersey milk and the amount of cream they give. The girl was just starting her own herd in 4-H and this heifer was a beautiful Jersey with excellent pedigree. They were thrilled to get her because the girl wanted to show her as well as breed and milk her.

It was a fluke how we were able to buy such a nice calf and I got her pretty cheap. There was an ad at the feed store about a bottle Jersey calf. The college girl selling her was at Pierce College in the dairy department. This little heifer calf was an AI calf and the student had bought her as a project when she was born. HOWEVER, she was living in a rental guest house and had the calf in the back yard. The owners and neighbors were unhappy about the calf's constant bawling because it was alone all day. The main house owner's bedroom was right next to the calf stall. LOL She sold it cheap (which meant DS3 could afford her) because she had to get rid of it fast! I called, went over to see her with DS3 immediately, and brought her home that same day. She was thrilled that DS3 wanted to show it and we had experience with bottle calves. We were lucky to get such a pretty little calf. DS3 did very well in showmanship and took all conformation classes.

So much fun with my kids raising, breeding, and showing their animals.

 

[Mini Horses]

@rachels.haven does this mean your son might get the cow he's been wanting? A jersey calf is so cute! IF ever I got a dairy cow, I'd be looking at a jersey.

But, I don't have to tell you -- goat milk is great! Animals are smaller. Pellets are easier to clean up

 

[Baymule]

Exactly what I was thinking! Is Dan going to get his cow?

Get some feeder pigs and give the extra milk. Best pork ever!