Squirrelgirl88 - Double G Farm

[Squirrelgirl88]

Tried the first batch of homemade yogurt from goat's milk....................................EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEWWWWWWWWWWW. It was so sour I couldn't even swallow it. I have no idea where I went wrong, I used powdered yogurt culture, followed the directions to the letter, loaded the whoel batch into my new yogurt maker, and the consistancy looks good.

It tastes terrible. I have not found any recipe that said to add sugar, but even with fresh raspberries it is not edible.

I'm throwing out the whole batch. Back to the drawing board.........................

 

[Squirrelgirl88]

Lost one of our young hens this morning. 8 month old golden comet, no signs of injury or illness. Last night she was not right, I knew she'd be gone by morning. she just laid down and gave up.

I hate not knowing why or if there was something we could have done.

 

[Squirrelgirl88]

Decided I should revive the journal. Goats are doing well, Miss Emma is five months old and is such a sweetie. She is Dam raised, but likes scratches and cuddles, and does not understand why I don't pick her up anymore.

Miss Ellie - our bottle baby is three months old now. She still doesn't understand why I kicked her out of the house and into the barn.

Miss Lily and Miss Lucy just turned two a few weeks ago. We have plans to breed them both this fall. Lucy is Emma's Mommy, Lily never settled even though the buck was here for three months.

Our chickens are laying well, 7 of the 8 anyway. One hen retired this year. I'm setting a whole batch of Buckeye Eggs in the incubator tomorrow. Our Rooster has been relentless about pursuing the ladies so I'm pretty sure the eggs should be fertile. The last batch was a 100% failure. I think they humidity was too low. So, toss them out, try again.

Actually the poor guy has developed a cold/respiratory issue. He sneezes at night, and seems to be breathing a little hard. I gave him Tylan 50 today and treated him with VetRX. He's not quite a year old, so I'm hoping he can fight this off.

DD has started going to a Day Place to get her out of the House. She's always been active, I hated seeing her sit around all day and not even get dressed. They exercise and cook healthy meals, and will work on some of her money skills and things too. It's hard to believe she'll be 21 this year. With Downs Syndrome, she still seems so much younger most of the time.

DH and I are about to celebrate our 14 year anniversary, and 1 year wedding anniversary. I think I'm going to buy him a new apple tree to replace the old one in our yard. Maybe by our 10th year he will have apples

 

[autumnprairie]

Welcome back, it is so great to hear from you. I am glad everything is going well

 

[Squirrelgirl88]

I'm not cut out for this "farming' thing. I can't leave my heart at the door. They are not "just livestock". I've spent the last two hours sobbing over the body of my dead rooster. He seems to have had a heart attack and literally died in my arms earlier. I can't pull myself together.

So many people on BYH have these losses everyday, I know this happens, I've lost three hens in the last year, and our barn cat died just a few months ago. But this one hit me hard.

I set an incubator full of eggs last month - 0% hatch. I'm disappointed, but ok. I just set a new batch last weekend. Eggs from my girls and my poor rooster. Now all I can hope for is a couple of chicks to try and fill a gaping hole in my heart. This is nuts. A Rooster. I'm losing it over a Rooster.

I can't even let DH dig the hole. I feel like I have to do it myself. Like I'm the one that let him down and I need to see it through.

Wow, this is too much.....I'm going for a glass of wine.

 

[BrownSheep]

Not going to lie it isn't for everybody. I cried when my big ewe Bertha died. I was at school at the time.
There's nothing wrong with being attached and in the end you need to be able to tell yourself you did everything you could, wash your hands of it, and keep on going.

Sorry you lost your boy but these things happen to everybody

 

[Four Winds Ranch]

Sorry about your roo!!!
With farming, I like to think that the good times out weigh the bad!! Some days/weeks/month seem harder than others! Hang in there!! It is worth it!!!

 

[autumnprairie]

I am sorry about your roo, I am right there with ya when it comes to losing it over my animals

 

[Squirrelgirl88]

Well things are slow around here. DH and I both have bronchitis and sinus infections, so nothing is getting done inside or outside. Hopefully by the weekend I can get started in the garden. I don't even have the potatoes in yet! This is terrible.

Still missing my Roo terribly. I would say things are quiet in the barn, but my 6 month old Nigerian is in heat for the first time and half of the county knows it! Why do they have to scream? So while I miss my boy crowing in the mornings, he would have been drowned out by Miss Emma's constant screams.

It's a good thing she's cute.

 

[jodief100]

An old farmer told me once, when loosing animals stops bothering you, quit farming. It happens and it is tough because we care about them. if we didn't care we shouldn't have them.