Worming lambs and moms

[Cornish Heritage]

The thing is is that we can blame anything for our problems, but it really comes back to us: we're at fault here. It's so easy to blame commercially- and conventionally-produced meat and milk for causing our health issues and for being responsible for creating superbugs and this and that, but us humans are the ones that have caused these problems.

Absolutely WildRoseBeef! And conglomerates/pharmaceutical companies are owned by humans most of whom are only concerned about the money they can make. I totally agree that we all need to be responsible. And yes of course not everyone is going to move to the country! I realize that too and if more folks can produce local grown produce etc for city folks to buy that is great. That market is definitely growing but there are also many folks living in the country that are totally unprepared & not using their land to grow anything.

Again, it's about your priorities in life. Having a farm was priority #1 for us. Some people live in town with three stall garages and new cars parked inside. It's all in what you want really.

Right on Southdown! Everyone is different & if we/you want to make farming/self sufficiency work we/you will. The life we have personally chosen to lead is one of choice. We were not forced into it. We could still be living/working in the rat race but we have chosen not to.

Farmland does not have to cost $10,000+ an acre but you have to be prepared to move to maybe get what you want. Land down here is $1,000 an acre. more for cropland.

Multiple brand new vehicles? Hah! Those days are long gone & I don't miss them one bit - quite happy to not have any car payments. (We only ever had one car payment & that was more than enough.) The reality of many people's lives is not a happy one. Many. many folks are up to their eyeballs in debt having to work their butts off in order to pay for things they really do not need but think they have to have. It's like a hamster on its wheel - going around & around getting nowhere.

Liz

 

[Southdown]

On a side note, does anyone know a natural way to treat chicken lice?

 

[Cornish Heritage]

On a side note, does anyone know a natural way to treat chicken lice?

No! LOL! We give our chickens & all critters big bowls of DE (food grade Diatemaceous Earth) but I don't see the chickens using it very much. They seem to prefer the dirt to bathe in! When we butcher we do notice that they have lice.

BUT the chickens keep our pigs lice free - never a louse on them which is wonderful. Now what critter can we get to delouse the chickens? Maybe add monkeys to the farm

Liz

 

[feed grass]

Farmland does not have to cost $10,000+ an acre but you have to be prepared to move to maybe get what you want. Land down here is $1,000 an acre. more for cropland.

Did not know we had someone from a 3rd world country on here... Show me 1k land- I'm interested to see it.

If you have to move across the world- what enjoyment would you have from 'owning your own FARM'? which btw: What is a farm- 1 acre, 10? 20 plus???

 

[Royd Wood]

Did not know we had someone from a 3rd world country on here... Show me 1k land- I'm interested to see it.

What ??????????

 

[Remuda1]

I really enjoy reading ALL of the posts here. The only thing I don't understand is why some folks seem to feel that condescension and superiority are what are going to sway everyone else to their way of thinking.

BTW, I'm not suggesting you come here.... But there is plenty of $1,000.00 and under land here in Texas. Interestingly though, pasture/crop land goes for less than treed property.

 

[WildRoseBeef]

Farmland does not have to cost $10,000+ an acre but you have to be prepared to move to maybe get what you want. Land down here is $1,000 an acre. more for cropland.

Did not know we had someone from a 3rd world country on here... Show me 1k land- I'm interested to see it.

If you have to move across the world- what enjoyment would you have from 'owning your own FARM'? which btw: What is a farm- 1 acre, 10? 20 plus???

Actually there is land that can go for less than $10 k/acre up here, especially further north than where I live, and Canada ain't a third world country. Right Royd?

You mentioned about inheriting land, FG, so apparently you don't have capital gains to worry about when it comes down to inheriting land. Up here if there's someone who's "within arm's reach" and wants to inherit or buy farmland off a father or mother or some close relative, the government wants a piece of that, and the person buying has to pay capital gains in addition to purchasing the farmland. Then when selling land to someone who is not "within arm's reach" it's the seller that's gotta take a big chunk out of his/her wallet due to capital gains when selling land to a non-relative. I don't know the exact details of how it all goes and what the floor price is that a person can only sell or buy at, nor do I have enough time this morning to do so, but that's the way things work up here in Canada. I doubt, from the sounds of it, that the US gov't uses capital gains on taxpayers that have to or want to buy or sell land.

 

[bonbean01]

Remuda, I also have found this an interesting thread and land here also goes higher for treed areas than pasture...we have 6 acres here and with rotational pasture grazing and lime and fertilizer on rested pasture, find that having 10 sheep (that includes lambs) is very doable with enough left over for a large yard, a one acre catfish pond and room for chickens, a large garden and fruit trees. Not bad I'd say...we do grow much of our food and yes, there is something to doing it with your own hands for sure!!! I get a huge satisfaction from that and enjoy it...it is hard work. When we're out there in hot temperatures pitching sheep or chicken poop and sweating, that's not easy...but would not trade any of it to be back in the city working in an office. We are semi retired and working harder now than when we both worked full time. Less money, more work, more peace and enjoying life and always thinking of how to improve our little operation all the time.

Organic growing is something I'm really interested in and do much reading and am finding ways around not using chemicals. Yesterday I started 20 pounds of sauerkraut ... loaded with probiotics and we happen to love it...and found that the cabbages were only bug damaged on the very outter leaves, leaving the average 7 pound cabbage bug free, juicy and perfect. Really don't mind the bugs eating the outter leaves I wouldn't use anyway...plus we have a rooster who patrols the cabbage patch just looking for those tasty little worms....LOLOL...to me it is a win=win.

We are all different in our approaches to all of this...and respecting each other and learning different ways of doing things really is interesting...always learning, but I am very stubborn about using chemicals

 

[Cornish Heritage]

Did not know we had someone from a 3rd world country on here... Show me 1k land- I'm interested to see it.

Excuse me?!

As to what size is a farm? Exactly whatever size you choose to make it & can afford! Some folks are doing really well with just a few acres, others have 40+, others are farming on thousands of acres. The size isn't the issue, it's what you do with it that counts.

When we're out there in hot temperatures pitching sheep or chicken poop and sweating, that's not easy...but would not trade any of it to be back in the city working in an office.

Love it! Good for you bonbean & I hope you enjoy every spoonful of that sauerkraut I was out at 6:30am this morning picking blackberries which are absolutely delicious & just canned up some wild plums. Got to go move some cows in a few minutes to fresh pasture.

Liz

 

[Southdown]

I'm going to look into the diatomaceous earth some more. I'm going to try it with the chickens and find out more for using it on sheep as a wormer.

Yes, it's what you do with your land and not how much you have. My husband's cousin has a small acreage (I believe 7 acres total) and I am just amazed at how much he fits into his property. He uses the land efficiently and probably gets more done on his plot than on mine. I'm thinking about how to re-organize our land so that I can be more efficient.