Too many Animals?

[VStillman]

Hello! My family and I are FINALLY moving to a little place with some acerage where we can start a small farm! After many years of prayers and anticipation we are going to be moving next month. I have been browsing this site for quite a while, trying to learn all we can. My husband and I are pretty new to farming. Where we are at now, we have a few chickens, meat rabbits, and a small garden. My husband raised goats when he was younger, so he has some experience with them. That is our experience so far...

But here is my question...we r going to be able to use 2 1/2 acres for animals and a garden. The house is not included in the acerage as the house is across the street. So we were thinking of keeping 1/2 acre for the garden (we want to grow for farmers market) and on the remaining 2 acres we want to eventually have 4 goats, a breeding pair of pigs, chickens, (our rabbits will be up by the house so they will not be on the 2 acres) maybe a sheep or 2 and a cow, for meat (and maybe eventually a milker too...for butter). We have access to 4 more acres around the corner...I was thinking that could be for the cow if there is not enough room...There is a barn on site where we will be keeping the majority of livestock.

We were thinking of setting up a rotational grazing plan, if needed. I read somewhere too that pigs and smaller livestock shouldnt be together so we would keep them seperate from the rest. So...is that too many animals to keep on 2 acres? Thoughts? Ideas? Thank you!

 

[pridegoethb4thefall]

Check into your city zoning to make sure about how many animals can be kept on that amount of land, first.

I dont think you could have that many animals on 2 acres- the decimation to the land would be too great to recover. IF you use the extra 4 acres, then I would say yes, but no way on just 2. Unless you are planning to bring in ALOT of feed for all of them? Plus the worm and parasite load will be heavy, and without rotational grazing of the other 4 acres, you wont be able to let the land rest, recover or absorb some of the copious amounts of dung that many animals will create, even if you do use some for the garden, it will be ALOT of poo, and bedding.

They all need shelter too, and have different feed needs as well as pasture needs.

I would say start very slow, and see what happens. Find out just how much land each breed needs and consider all the requirements and poo creation and how you will deal with it.

 

[VStillman]

Thank you! I agree with you on starting SLOW! We dont want to burn ourselves out or not have the correct space for the animals. The extra 4 acres are around the corner and we would prefer not to have to use that. But we will if we have to. Maybe the pigs and cow over there and the goats, chickens, and sheep on the 2 acres...hmmm....

Oh, and zoning is fine...already checked that...

 

[Shayanna]

Google self sufficiency on an acre. You can do alot, if managed properly.

 

[pridegoethb4thefall]

Thank you! I agree with you on starting SLOW! We dont want to burn ourselves out or not have the correct space for the animals. The extra 4 acres are around the corner and we would prefer not to have to use that. But we will if we have to. Maybe the pigs and cow over there and the goats, chickens, and sheep on the 2 acres...hmmm....

Oh, and zoning is fine...already checked that...

concerning the zoning- some cities have regulations regarding 'animal units' per acre. Meaning a horse may be 1 animal unit (allowed per acre, or half acre), 2 goats may equal 1 animal unit, 4 sheep may equal 2 animal units, etc. I wasnt clear about that, but thats why I mentioned zoning.

 

[SheepGirl]

In the mid atlantic region, you can get by with 1 AU per acre. 1 AU = 1,000 lbs of livestock -- and it's based on estimated forage consumption.

So 1 AU can mean:
5 mature sheep w/ lambs OR
6 does w/ kids OR
1 cow/calf pair

Call your local extension agent to ask what the stocking rate in your area is.

 

[VStillman]

I saw that article on self sufficiency on one acre...I really enjoyed it...I think that as long as I rotate them for grazing and maybe take the goats over to the the other 4 acres as needed to let the pasture grow, it could work. I am going to start with goats and then add my pigs...(not counting the chickens and rabbits we already have.)

We are planning to seed the pastures to make them more lush.

I am aware of the zoning u were talking about, but thanks for clarifying!!!

Thanks everyone!

 

[Bossroo]

Being in the " Golden State" where it is noted that the gold part these days is the grass turns into a golden dormancy state come late spring/ early summer and doesn't turn green untill the late fall ( late Nov.) rains ... just how much irrigation water ( very expensive ) do you have available to keep the fields in green grass? What is the soil type and how deep is the top soil ( how far down is the hardpan)? Is the land flat or hilly ? These will be your limiting factors. I would concentrate on your garden where you more than likely have enough domestic water to irrigate it. I would find a friendly horse person (s) to get as much horse manure as you can to cover at least 6" deep and work it into the garden area for at least 3 years to make for great soil to grow a profitable garden to sell produce at a farmer's market. Rabitts and chickens will require you to purchase feed, but doable if you provide a predator ( coyotes, racoons, possums, hawks, eagles, as well as loose dogs ) proof housing. Your best choice for livestock will be hair sheep that shed their wool in the spring such as the Dorper ( wool types require sheering, where the sheering costs [ if you can find a person to come out to sheer just a handful of sheep]) FAR outwiegh the price of wool) with suplemental purchased feed during the dry period. Goats would be doable if you can provide very secure tall fences as they like to take exploratory gourmet field trip on a whim to places other than their pastures. Sheep and goats will also require protection from predators.( coyotes, dogs, etc.) I would forget the breeding pigs ( those will turn into a nightmare in short order, just buy piglets and feed them ( commercial feed as well as garden scraps) in secure pens out to slaughter size. If you want to keep any large animals such a beef cow/ steer ... be prepared to buy very expensive hay and grain for the majority of the year and forget the sheep, goats, pigs, horses. Just too expensive an enterprize. I hate to be a downer, but I am talking from experience for umteen years on 5 acres in N Cal. as well as 20 acres in C Cal.. Enjoy the farming life.

 

[VStillman]

Thanks for your input Bosroo!!! It is very much appreciated!

We have plenty of water to irrigate that we can use, for free. So that wont be a problem. The garden area has already been used for gardening, so we arent exactly starting from scratch. The land is all flat, so that is a plus.

We r trying to to raise all our own meat, so the pigs r a must...but will take into consideration what u said and do more research on them. There is a big market where I live for livestock, we sell chickens and we run out ALL THE TIME! We make at least $200 a month selling chickens, March- November, which more than pays for there cost and upkeep. And we always have people who want more...hence the need for more property. Sheep we want for meat too so not to concerned with trying to sell wool and whatnot. Horses r not in our gameplan, so that is an extra expense we wont have. People are wanting to eat healthier food and therefore are looking to buy meat from local sources. I know quite a few people who sell pigs, goats, cattle and there is a market for them. They always sell out. I know that it takes a while to get a customer base...sooo excited though!

 

[finns&fjords]

I think what you're planning is very doable on 2 acres as you are aware of the need for planting, watering and rotating pastures, and the fact that you'll need to purchase feed in addition to pasture. I do agree that a pair of breeding pigs is a handful. Much more difficult to manage than other livestock. We have 2 sows and a boar. When it's time to move them into the birthing area, we literally make it a family event to move fence panels etc. If possible incorporate an area into the pig barn section so that it's easy to move/control them. Buying weaners to raise up is a MUCH easier alternative.