SillyChicken
Loving the herd life
- Joined
- Oct 3, 2011
- Messages
- 189
- Reaction score
- 124
- Points
- 148
Well, it's more about me than a silly chicken, but I do have a few of those too!
1. What state/province/country are you in and what is your climate like?
I live in Michigan, we have cold, wet winters and hot, dry summers... about 17 tornadoes on average per year. Luckily we haven't had one... yet.
2. How many people are in your family? Marital status?
I'm married and its just my DH and I in our home built in 2005... though I had the property for 25 or so years prior.
3. How would you define your farm?
Small but slowly growing. We made attempts at buying property surrounding ours but things don't always work out. So for now we have to work within our 11 acres. The land is grassy and hilly, and "L" shaped. We put the house in the center facing our 2 acre pond, and the back to the livestock area. The house is a cape cod style with a large garage. We have a dog kennel in the back area of the garage. We have Cane Corso Mastiffs... they've proven themselves to be great guard dogs and really good with the livestock. We have 2 small chicken coops and a shed that we built. We also just added a run in shed for the goats in one of the pastures.
4. What would you do with your spare time if you had any resources you needed?
I'd like to fence in my property, create a couple more separate pastures, and build a barn.... and have a small art studio. And buy up all the land around us so we could do more!
5. Have you ever built a house, barn, or other types of building? Do you want to?
I used to work in the construction business, so yes, I've built and repaired a lot of things. Most of the work I did was on farms, straightening barns, rebuilding stone foundations and tuck pointing the stones.. lots of roof work on barns as well. Though I am glad I'm not doing that anymore, the experience and knowledge gained was worth it! So yes, I have.
6. Can you weld? Steel, aluminum, MiG, TiG, stick, Oxy-Acet?
Yes I can! Forge too. My college degree is a BFA where I studied metalsmithing, blacksmithing and know enough to be dangerous!
7. Who or what inspired you to be a farmer/rancher, hobby farmer?
My father. I grew up on a small hobby farm on 40 acres. I am actually trying to aquire his farm and we've talked about moving there to live where we would have more options.
8 Is it a hobby or an occupation?
Hobby, but a large source of our food supply.
9. In what areas are you knowledgeable and in what areas would you like to learn more?
What I have learned so far is that I have a lot to learn! Jack of all trades, master to none...
10. In what types of farming will you never choose to do?
peacocks.....and the guineas are pushing it! I am on ag zoned land, but very close to a small town, I don't want to upset neighbors with too much noise or smell. Though I have tossed around the idea of a few mini feeder pigs.
11. Are you interested in providing more of your own food supply?
This is the main reason we have the livestock, I wouldn't mind making some money off it, but it's mostly for food for us. We will be starting to milk our goat this spring.. (I should say I will be).. so I'm looking forward to see if we can drink the milk.. or cheese it will be. I cannot drink processed milk so I was hoping the goat milk would work.. if that fails, we'll be getting a mini jersey cow.
12. Where do you end up when you sink into yourself, away from the outside world?
At my drawing table.. or out in the woods hunting.. I try to do things to escape.. rather than think about it.
13. Can you drive a farm tractor or a semi?
Tractor yes, semi, haven't had the chance but I know I could do it.
14. Do you make crafts or useful items? Would you want to teach others how to do these?
I make things if I need them.. like a fodder growing rack on my own... but I don't think I'm cut out for teaching others.
15. Can you legally have all forms of livestock where you are at? Do you have any? What kinds?
Yes we could have what we want.. today we currently have 4 goats, 20 chickens, 10 turkeys, and a fluctuating number of rabbits, 15-30 at any given time.. and mastiffs. I would like a couple beef cows, a couple more goat does and maybe a few sheep, I'd like to have wool and to learn to make and use the yarn.
16. Can you operate a lathe? Metal, wood?
Yes, and a mill, and band saw, drill press, spot welder.. I can cast metal... forge.. all sorts of fun stuff.
17. Do you like to garden? If so, what do you enjoy growing?
Yes, I love gardening. We grow flowers because we've started an apiary and I love them, and we grow veggies to can, so we can get the best yield. Plus, we both work 40-50 hrs on a regular job with DH doing a lot of traveling. So lots of the work falls on myself.
18. Do you fish? Bait or explosives? Whoa.. no explosives, to me that is a bit over the top. I bait n hook, more fun to me. We stocked our small pond with fish one year, only to have the driest summer ever and lost them and the pond, at least till it fills in again..Oh well, I have a big river and lots of lakes near by so it's not a big deal.
19. How much space/land do you have or rent? City farm? Country?
Country, we own 11 acres.
20. Are you a Novice, Technician, degreed?
Degreed in art... but a Novice in everything else!
21. What is your farm specialty? Or what one would you like to learn?
I'd like to learn more on animal husbandry and aquaponics.
22. If you could create a degree and curriculum, what would you major in and what classes would you take?
Hobby farm management and making a profit of it! Or, a farm veterinarian.
23. Do you do wood work? framing, finish, cabinet?
Yes, my DH and I build all our coops, sheds and out buildings. If we had time, we would build our own barn but I think that job may be too big for the both of us given our schedules. We built our own bee hives and did all the fine work in the basement when we finished it.
24. Are you interested in herbal animal medicine?
Yes, and for people too, but not a priority.
25. If you could live any place you chose, where would it be?
Somewhere remote and far removed from people and cities and noise. I would love to be off the grid and free to hunt and raise what I want... and where winters would be a little milder, since I'm not getting any younger!
26. Do you use a wood stove for heating or cooking?
That is one thing I would love to get, we wish we had a stove installed when we built the house, but we'll add one some day.
27. What would your ideal super hero/villain be?
LOL, Super hero.. Healthystockman would eradicate the evil villain "Crud" and his side kick "W.T.funk".. ... you asked!
28. Are your family or friends also interested in animals?
Yes, DB and DSIL have a farm down the road, my DS wishes she could but married to a city boy. My DFand DM and a friend take care of our critters when we go on vacation. I have one friend though that I cannot convince to eat anything that doesn't come wrapped in plastic from the store... more is the pity!
29. Do you like to cook? Are you interested in whole foods and natural foods? raw milk? farm fresh eggs?
Yes, though not very well. We raise and grow or hunt most of the food we eat. Just about everything gets canned, all the meat and veggies!
30. What was your best animal experience? Worst?
When the livestock raises their own offspring.. that is fun to see, and saves us money! Worst is when one dies, like we just put down one of our dogs during the Christmas holiday..these are the things that are the worst.
31. Do you forage or hunt for part of your food needs?
I hunt, mostly deer.
32. What skills do you have that help you be more a self sufficient farm?
We pretty much try to build or make what we need.
33. Do you process your own meat? Can or preserve?
Yes. We process, rabbit, chicken, turkey and deer... though I would really like to get some equipment to make that work quicker. We have so much to do, and little time to do it all in. We can all our food.
34. Do you use alternative energy sources on your farm? Would you like to?
We've talked about getting solar panels and wind turbines, but we're just not in a good area for it.
35 What is on your to do list?
The list is long! We need to build another walk in shed for the other goat pasture, this is going to also serve as a rabbitry. We need a regular larger barn for storing hay/straw, equipment, maybe a cow or two .. We would love to get a mid size tractor for digging post holes, scraping the drive etc. We would like to install fencing around the whole property, but we have to have the land resurveyed due to a possible discrepancy
rolleyes. We need a separate pen for the turkeys with a shelter for them. I would love to put roofs over my chicken runs to make them easier to manage. We just have a ton to do! We also need a couple more goat does!
36. Have you ever lived completely off what you produce? Would you like to?
We would like to as much as possible. We have plenty of canned meat and veggies, but some things are tougher for us, like sugar and flour and coffee! We may be able to reduce some sugar needs when the bees start producing and I think someone can live off coffee... somewhere.
37. In what do you trust?
Myself... sorry, can't always trust the DH to remember to do all his chores or to pay attention to much outside his tunnel vision... as much as I'd like to include him in that.
38. Do you make and fix things yourself to save money?
Yes
39. Has the experience with animals changed your attitude or habits?
Yes, I've not been able to be lazy.. it's a hard habit to break, but everyone suffers for it if you are. I've also tried to be a bit more industrious, like building my milk stand out of scrap pallets. DH doesn't like any junk to lay around, which is good to some degree, but if you want to be using scraps for making things, it's kinda hard to do without collecting some "junk".. but then he doesn't want to spend money on things either... makes it hard to do what needs done sometime.
1. What state/province/country are you in and what is your climate like?
I live in Michigan, we have cold, wet winters and hot, dry summers... about 17 tornadoes on average per year. Luckily we haven't had one... yet.
2. How many people are in your family? Marital status?
I'm married and its just my DH and I in our home built in 2005... though I had the property for 25 or so years prior.
3. How would you define your farm?
Small but slowly growing. We made attempts at buying property surrounding ours but things don't always work out. So for now we have to work within our 11 acres. The land is grassy and hilly, and "L" shaped. We put the house in the center facing our 2 acre pond, and the back to the livestock area. The house is a cape cod style with a large garage. We have a dog kennel in the back area of the garage. We have Cane Corso Mastiffs... they've proven themselves to be great guard dogs and really good with the livestock. We have 2 small chicken coops and a shed that we built. We also just added a run in shed for the goats in one of the pastures.
4. What would you do with your spare time if you had any resources you needed?
I'd like to fence in my property, create a couple more separate pastures, and build a barn.... and have a small art studio. And buy up all the land around us so we could do more!
5. Have you ever built a house, barn, or other types of building? Do you want to?
I used to work in the construction business, so yes, I've built and repaired a lot of things. Most of the work I did was on farms, straightening barns, rebuilding stone foundations and tuck pointing the stones.. lots of roof work on barns as well. Though I am glad I'm not doing that anymore, the experience and knowledge gained was worth it! So yes, I have.
6. Can you weld? Steel, aluminum, MiG, TiG, stick, Oxy-Acet?
Yes I can! Forge too. My college degree is a BFA where I studied metalsmithing, blacksmithing and know enough to be dangerous!
7. Who or what inspired you to be a farmer/rancher, hobby farmer?
My father. I grew up on a small hobby farm on 40 acres. I am actually trying to aquire his farm and we've talked about moving there to live where we would have more options.
8 Is it a hobby or an occupation?
Hobby, but a large source of our food supply.
9. In what areas are you knowledgeable and in what areas would you like to learn more?
What I have learned so far is that I have a lot to learn! Jack of all trades, master to none...
10. In what types of farming will you never choose to do?
peacocks.....and the guineas are pushing it! I am on ag zoned land, but very close to a small town, I don't want to upset neighbors with too much noise or smell. Though I have tossed around the idea of a few mini feeder pigs.
11. Are you interested in providing more of your own food supply?
This is the main reason we have the livestock, I wouldn't mind making some money off it, but it's mostly for food for us. We will be starting to milk our goat this spring.. (I should say I will be).. so I'm looking forward to see if we can drink the milk.. or cheese it will be. I cannot drink processed milk so I was hoping the goat milk would work.. if that fails, we'll be getting a mini jersey cow.
12. Where do you end up when you sink into yourself, away from the outside world?
At my drawing table.. or out in the woods hunting.. I try to do things to escape.. rather than think about it.
13. Can you drive a farm tractor or a semi?
Tractor yes, semi, haven't had the chance but I know I could do it.
14. Do you make crafts or useful items? Would you want to teach others how to do these?
I make things if I need them.. like a fodder growing rack on my own... but I don't think I'm cut out for teaching others.
15. Can you legally have all forms of livestock where you are at? Do you have any? What kinds?
Yes we could have what we want.. today we currently have 4 goats, 20 chickens, 10 turkeys, and a fluctuating number of rabbits, 15-30 at any given time.. and mastiffs. I would like a couple beef cows, a couple more goat does and maybe a few sheep, I'd like to have wool and to learn to make and use the yarn.
16. Can you operate a lathe? Metal, wood?
Yes, and a mill, and band saw, drill press, spot welder.. I can cast metal... forge.. all sorts of fun stuff.
17. Do you like to garden? If so, what do you enjoy growing?
Yes, I love gardening. We grow flowers because we've started an apiary and I love them, and we grow veggies to can, so we can get the best yield. Plus, we both work 40-50 hrs on a regular job with DH doing a lot of traveling. So lots of the work falls on myself.
18. Do you fish? Bait or explosives? Whoa.. no explosives, to me that is a bit over the top. I bait n hook, more fun to me. We stocked our small pond with fish one year, only to have the driest summer ever and lost them and the pond, at least till it fills in again..Oh well, I have a big river and lots of lakes near by so it's not a big deal.
19. How much space/land do you have or rent? City farm? Country?
Country, we own 11 acres.
20. Are you a Novice, Technician, degreed?
Degreed in art... but a Novice in everything else!
21. What is your farm specialty? Or what one would you like to learn?
I'd like to learn more on animal husbandry and aquaponics.
22. If you could create a degree and curriculum, what would you major in and what classes would you take?
Hobby farm management and making a profit of it! Or, a farm veterinarian.
23. Do you do wood work? framing, finish, cabinet?
Yes, my DH and I build all our coops, sheds and out buildings. If we had time, we would build our own barn but I think that job may be too big for the both of us given our schedules. We built our own bee hives and did all the fine work in the basement when we finished it.
24. Are you interested in herbal animal medicine?
Yes, and for people too, but not a priority.
25. If you could live any place you chose, where would it be?
Somewhere remote and far removed from people and cities and noise. I would love to be off the grid and free to hunt and raise what I want... and where winters would be a little milder, since I'm not getting any younger!
26. Do you use a wood stove for heating or cooking?
That is one thing I would love to get, we wish we had a stove installed when we built the house, but we'll add one some day.
27. What would your ideal super hero/villain be?
LOL, Super hero.. Healthystockman would eradicate the evil villain "Crud" and his side kick "W.T.funk".. ... you asked!
28. Are your family or friends also interested in animals?
Yes, DB and DSIL have a farm down the road, my DS wishes she could but married to a city boy. My DFand DM and a friend take care of our critters when we go on vacation. I have one friend though that I cannot convince to eat anything that doesn't come wrapped in plastic from the store... more is the pity!
29. Do you like to cook? Are you interested in whole foods and natural foods? raw milk? farm fresh eggs?
Yes, though not very well. We raise and grow or hunt most of the food we eat. Just about everything gets canned, all the meat and veggies!
30. What was your best animal experience? Worst?
When the livestock raises their own offspring.. that is fun to see, and saves us money! Worst is when one dies, like we just put down one of our dogs during the Christmas holiday..these are the things that are the worst.
31. Do you forage or hunt for part of your food needs?
I hunt, mostly deer.
32. What skills do you have that help you be more a self sufficient farm?
We pretty much try to build or make what we need.
33. Do you process your own meat? Can or preserve?
Yes. We process, rabbit, chicken, turkey and deer... though I would really like to get some equipment to make that work quicker. We have so much to do, and little time to do it all in. We can all our food.
34. Do you use alternative energy sources on your farm? Would you like to?
We've talked about getting solar panels and wind turbines, but we're just not in a good area for it.
35 What is on your to do list?
The list is long! We need to build another walk in shed for the other goat pasture, this is going to also serve as a rabbitry. We need a regular larger barn for storing hay/straw, equipment, maybe a cow or two .. We would love to get a mid size tractor for digging post holes, scraping the drive etc. We would like to install fencing around the whole property, but we have to have the land resurveyed due to a possible discrepancy
rolleyes. We need a separate pen for the turkeys with a shelter for them. I would love to put roofs over my chicken runs to make them easier to manage. We just have a ton to do! We also need a couple more goat does!36. Have you ever lived completely off what you produce? Would you like to?
We would like to as much as possible. We have plenty of canned meat and veggies, but some things are tougher for us, like sugar and flour and coffee! We may be able to reduce some sugar needs when the bees start producing and I think someone can live off coffee... somewhere.
37. In what do you trust?
Myself... sorry, can't always trust the DH to remember to do all his chores or to pay attention to much outside his tunnel vision... as much as I'd like to include him in that.
38. Do you make and fix things yourself to save money?
Yes
39. Has the experience with animals changed your attitude or habits?
Yes, I've not been able to be lazy.. it's a hard habit to break, but everyone suffers for it if you are. I've also tried to be a bit more industrious, like building my milk stand out of scrap pallets. DH doesn't like any junk to lay around, which is good to some degree, but if you want to be using scraps for making things, it's kinda hard to do without collecting some "junk".. but then he doesn't want to spend money on things either... makes it hard to do what needs done sometime.
And I need to get supplies gathered. Got a list to work from.. but I also need milking supplies too! I love doing this, but it sure is hard working a full time job too... but then I need the job to do this. I'm doing most of the livestock care myself. DH will feed and water in the morning for me so I can get ready for work.. but other than that, most of it lands on me. DH does most all the food canning and he's good at it too!
