Ridgetop - our place and how we muddle along

[SageHill]

Dang - sorry about the ram lamb. Seem like everyone out there is having trouble.
Love the idea with the 50 gal drums, I'll keep that one in mind as I grow. I'm just using metal garbage cans - only ~150# of pellets/can.

 

[Ridgetop]

DS1 thinks our 50 gallon metal barrels may have rotted out over the past 35 years. Have to find some in Texas.

On good note, DS1 found the spot where our fence is vulnerable to dogs getting out. Ozel has gotten out twice. She ends up on the driveway by the gate to the field. In the far back of the field behind the pond there is a channel where the field behind us drains into our pond. The bad rains we have had have washed it out there. Both times hapened after a bad storm and she was muddy, but now where the ground is lower it is dry and there is a path leading under the fence.

DS1 is going to block off the drainage spot with a section of chain link turned sideways to drape like fabric over the bottom of the fence and into the drainage area. That should block the hole. Hopefully that will prevent her from getting out and anything else from getting in. DS1 thnks tht the water will be able to contnue to drain through the chain link. I think we will have to watch it and possibly put some concrete blocks over the bottom of the chain link to prevent debris from pulling it off or up.

 

[Margali]

@Ridgetop There is a place local to me that has food graded lined 55gal drums with clamp lids often for $25. They were used for coconut milk and have the food lot label still on them. Let me know if you need some and can't find anywhere closer.

 

[Baymule]

I have 3 of the drums with lids, they hold 6 bags of feed. But I still prefer the metal trash cans because they are easier to reach the bottom.

So sorry that you lost that ram lamb. That sucks. I got the fuel leak fixed on my truck yesterday so hopefully I can get my lambs and cull ewes to auction this week. Then I have to run ewes through the chute and worm for tapeworms. I saw some yesterday in poop. Those things gross me out.

Lots and lots of rain, sun is out, heating up and all I can think about is ‘effing worms. Some unhappy ewes are gonna get a gloved finger up their butt. Digging for doo-doo!
Got to get lambs out first. I opened the chute to them for a less muddy place to be.

 

[Ridgetop]

@Ridgetop There is a place local to me that has food graded lined 55gal drums with clamp lids often for $25. They were used for coconut milk and have the food lot label still on them. Let me know if you need some and can't find anywhere closer.

Thanks. I probably will ask you to send me particulars where to get them.

But I still prefer the metal trash cans because they are easier to reach the bottom.

I can put the bags of feed into them wothout opening instead of emptying them into the barrels. That will take care of the problem with getting the feed out of the bottoms. The metal cans will keep rodents from chewing through the bags. Told DS1 that we should have kept our old freezers when they went bad to store bags of feed in.

The Oncor man came out today and said no problem putting in another meter. They will put in 300' of wire to the meter for free. The plan is to run thwe wires underground in the field behind the fence where the septic sprayers are. Then they will cross where the driveway ends and put the meter at the corner behind the propane tank. From there DS1 can run wires to the tool shed, the well, and the barn. I sent him the name of the septic people so he can find out where the septic line runs to the sprayers. The electric guy said that if they don't know where the line is and hit it they are not responsible for repair. DS1 will contact septic and mark where the lines are before Oncor starts digging. By next year hopefully we will have lights in the barn and tool shed!

DH has been mowing all the goat weed. he has almowst finished with that. The Bahia is very high and the sheep are not eating it. So DH mowed the high Bahia in the pasture behind the barn. Ozel would not let the sheepstay in that area to graze. She kept bringing the sheep back up to the barn. I figure that Ozel did not like the accessible areas into the yard so she brought the sheepback away from those areas. It also may be why she got out - to chase a predator away. DH said he saw the area under the fence where it had washed out in the channel from the field behind us into the pond overflow. He also saw another possible future area of washout. They are going to put chain link down over those areas.

PT again today, last session. Surgeon has authorized 20 more sessions, waiting for insurance OK to set more dates. Therapist says he is pleased with the amount of bend I have as well as the straightness of the knee. I am using my cane now. Need to get stronger in the leg. I have a machine that will help strengthen theleg muscles once I can use it. It is coming to Texas with me. Hopefully I will be able to get back to Texas by the end of November. Once there I can start stripping the wallpaper from the master BR and bathroom.

BTW, anyone in the Rutherfordton, No Carolina, area that is interested in Maremma LGDs, I know of a litter born 6/26. Both parents are on property guarding small goat herd for past 5 years. They are on a small farm owned and run by the Benedictines of Mary abbey. Not sure how much $ they are, but can give contact info if interested.

This rehab is getting really boring. LOL Last time I at least had my sheep and dogs to look at.

 

[Ridgetop]

Got a call from DH today. He is trying to register the vehicles in Texas. He needed the paper from the TXDMV when we registered our brown car in May or June. He wanted to know where I had put it. (When we came home from TXDMV he said that paper was not important and tried to toss it.) I NEVER toss that sort of paperwork, because we always need it so I rescued it from the trash. DHdid not remember that and wanted to know where I put it. Told him to look in the office and it should be there. DS1 found it for him.

One year DH went through our paid bills and shredded all of them. The following month we got another bill for a bill that had been paid. He had to go to the bank to get a copy of the cashed check they said they had not received! I warned him not to shred anyting for at least a year from the date of the documents. Since then I collect anything like that, make files, and put them in the file drawers. He still can't find anything because he doesn't alphabetize his files. Oh well.

I have to check every day for an email from Oncor with the plan for the required size and shape of the rack for them to install the meter. Then I have to send it to DS1. DS1 also fond 4 ear tags that he needed to identify to retag sheep. 2 were flock tags and 2 were scrapie tags. I looked them up. One was from a ram I had registered and we had put in the ram pen. DS1 insisted that it was a ewe and in the field. Finally he checked the ram pen ans sure enough R12 was missing his R12 ear tag. Luckily they all have their other tags still in their ears.

DS1 and DH will run all the wethers into the trailer and tske them to the Emory auction Saturday morning. Any other rams will be sorted and put in wth the rams. Any ram lambs without flock tags can go to the auction with just their scrapie tags. Ewe lambs will be separated off and the new ram can get his harnes and crayon and go to the ewes. Need then bred for December lambs.

 

[Ridgetop]

DS1 sorted out our lambs today. He said the youngest ones that were born just before, during, and after transport look smaller than usual. They are 3 months old and need to be weaned so they have to go. We are sending some of the late ewe lambs to auction because they don't look good enough to keep. I don't think we will get much for them. Called Emory and they said lambs were going for $30-100 depending on size and condition. Also found out that they charge by head according to sale price instead of a percentage. Yardage is $.50 day per head. We have about 20 going and DH wants to take them Friday night for the Saturday auction. We want them off the pasture and off feed. Next week DS1 will sort out the ewes for breeding. He needs to replace some ear tags too.

We have 42 ewes to be bred. I was planning to use the new ram on all of them, but might decide to split them up nd use Junior again on some. He has grown into a beautiful ram.

I am considering buying one of the Codon punch kits and testing my rams and the ram lambs I kept. Depending on the results, I might go ahead and test some of the ewes. By using the punch system I can avoid drawing blood and cut down costs.

PT is going well. The day after PT when the therapist works the knee and does the measurements the knee and leg seem to stiffen and I have trouble putting weight on it. However, after exercising the stiffness works out. I am using a cane now instead of the walker and can get into the cr and out semi-easily. LOL

Still bored though. I'm considering asking DDIL2 if she wants me to strip the wallpaper in the hallway so they can paint the walls. LOL Today I had to go through my sheep paperwork to get numbers for DS1. At least that gave me something to do.

 

[Baymule]

Prices at Emory don’t sound all that great either. I dumped my scrubby culls and was glad to get what I got. It sucked but so did my lambs. You have enough ewes to make going to Waco worthwhile once you get breeding going in the ewes new location.

Raise your cup of coffee and imaginary make a toast ( clink sound) Here’s to next year!

 

[Ridgetop]

Taking a trailer full would be much more economical than just a few, and driving to Waco would be worth it. Emory said tht the best prices are around Ramadan, but that was also around Easter this year. Next year the month of Ramadan ends March 30 which is when the big parties take place. So aim for mid March sales. Easter is the end of April, so aim for mid April sales. I hope to have lambs for both dates. Also hope that the parasite problems will not be as bad next year. If possible I hope to take a load to Waco for both dates. Any larger culls can go to Emory since larger animals bring more money there and single head sales on culls is ok with a 20 minute trip.

 

[Margali]

The other ethnic calander is Jewish. We eat a lot of lamb for Passover. It also floats around due to lunar vs Gregorian (standard) calendar. Next year is sundown April 12 - 20th.