Stony Garden. Buns and Chicks

[stonygarden]

Hello. New to this journal thing but maybe it will help with keeping my thoughts straight.


1. What state/province/country are you in and what is your climate like?
- South Central Virginia. Hot, humid summers. Usually mild winters though this past 2013-2014 winter was brutal

2. How would you define your farm?
- hobby

3. Who or what inspired you to be a farmer/rancher, hobby farmer?
- I always wanted a farm having grown up in suburbia. Now I'm living it

4. Is it a hobby or an occupation?
- hobby

5. In what types of farming will you never choose to do?
- I don't think there is anything I wouldn't do if I was physically capable to do it

6. Are you interested in providing more of your own food supply?
- yes

7. Can you legally have all forms of livestock where you are at? Do you have any? What kinds?
- yes as long as my landlord approves. I have chickens and rabbits

8. Do you like to garden? If so, what do you enjoy growing?
- YES! I can grow the easy stuff (tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, herbs)

9. How much space/land do you have or rent? City farm? Country?
- maybe an acre. Rent

10. Are you interested in herbal animal medicine?
- yes

11. Do you use a wood stove for heating or cooking?
- no but I would love to

12. Are your family or friends also interested in animals?
- my in-laws have chickens. I have a friend who's family raises chickens, rabbits, and cattle

13. Do you forage or hunt for part of your food needs?
- I try to but time limits due to school/work prevent me from doing more

14. What skills do you have that help you be more a self sufficient farm?
- critical problem solving, good with feed management

15. Do you process your own meat? Can or preserve?
- yes. So far just rabbits.

16. What is on your to do list?
- fence around the rabbit hutches, finish prepping the raised garden beds, plant cucumbers at the end of April/beginning of May, build second chicken coop, grow out coop, and brooder box

17. Do you make and fix things yourself to save money?
- yes most definitely

 

[stonygarden]

Here are a few pictures from last year of my chickens


The back side of my coop. That fence is going to be taken down today and used to fence around the rabbit hutches

 

[stonygarden]

Here's my rabbit hutch. Total of 8 separate cages. 4 on each side

 

[Hens and Roos]

Nice, what breed of rabbits- Cali? Looks sunny there by you

 

[stonygarden]

I have 5 cali does, 1 mixed breed doe, a NZW/cali/Flemish giant buck, and 2 harlequin mixed breed bucks (were supposed to be does).

I am raising them for meat so I don't mind the mixed breeding. I am selling my first litter as pets and will probably sell a few here and there.

It is finally spring here. We had a brutal winter for this part of the country. I'm so glad its over.

 

[stonygarden]

Got the fence put up last weekend around the rabbit hutches. Got my single rabbit hutch moved over next to big, multiple rabbit hutch.

I got another hose connected to the hose I already had so now my water source for my chickens and rabbits is right there. No more lugging buckets!!

2 does are due any day now. 1 doe has been hopping around with hay in her mouth. The other keeps flipping her nest box over. 3 more does are due early next week.

I have a horrible habit of collecting eggs from the chicken coop and just setting them on the ground until I grab my egg basket from the house. Well yesterday I went out to collect those eggs outside the coop and I saw a raven carrying off an egg. I get to the coop and 3 more eggs were busted open and the yolks eaten. Luckily today I gathered eggs and immediately brought them in the house.

 

[stonygarden]

2 does kindled within the last couple of days. 1st doe (#3 Cali doe) kindled sometime during the night of 4/11-4/12. She had 10, all on the wire. 3 have died so far. 2nd doe (#2 Cali doe) kindled sometime last night (4/12-4/13) and only had 2.

#3 doe never pulled fur. She was the one that kept flipping her nest box before she kindled. #2 doe with the 2 kits pulled fur and actually made a nest.

I'm thinking I might give the remaining 7 kits from #3 doe to #2.

Any thoughts on that?

 

[Hens and Roos]

Congrats on the babies! As long as you think Doe #2 can handle all the babies it could work. We have yet to foster kits to other does so we don't have experience in this. Are the babies roughly the same size or are some smaller, that would probably be the deciding factor for us as to if they were all put together

Good Luck!

 

[luvmypets]

Congrats

 

[stonygarden]

The babies are roughly the same size. I think I will put the remaining kits in with the other doe. I'll keep this post updated.