Summer-izing Chicken Tractors

As is typical for us, the weather is quickly becoming summer like, with temperatures in the 80s and 90s expected for the next few days. So, I hauled the shade tarps out of the barn to put on our "chicken tractors".

I suppose it would be more proper to call them range houses now, since they don't move anymore. In our old chicken tractor system, we would hook them up to our 'big' tractor and move them a full length forward every day, or every other day. This meant that the chickens inside were on completely fresh pasture all the time, leaving behind an even amount of manure. It was great for a while, but over time we realized that driving across the pasture so much was compacting the soil. Another disadvantage was that it took a long time to do the chores-you have to move these things s-l-o-w-l-y, and it required two people-one to drive the tractor, and one on the ground to watch chickens to make sure no one's toes got caught under the runners.

So, now they stay put, and they have movable fence around them to put them on fresh ground when they wear out what they're on. The chickens seem to prefer this set up. They are really quite habitual-they like to dust bathe in the same place every day, have their mid day siesta under a particular tree, etc. It's much easier to do chores and only requires one person. The disadvantage now is, the chickens stay where they are, and we have to move the manure! We fill the houses with pine shavings, and clean them out, which is a drag, but once composted, it makes a fabulous mulch/fertilizer.

As you can see in the above picture, the houses are covered with greenhouse plastic. In the winter, this provides them with extra warmth and light, and in case of particularly severe weather, the sides roll down for extra protection. In the summer though, they need the shade. I found these excellent 'sunblocker' tarps at tarps.com. They really work, are super quality, and very affordable. If you need a good tarp, this is the place, and they will ship it to you so fast you won't believe it.

In other news, Steve and crew have finished fencing off the first of our large pastures. It is ginormous.

On one hand, it is a little bit of a shame to have more fence impeding the 'view', but this fencing will enable us to improve our multi-species rotational grazing system. That is a beautiful thing.

Achillea-I will miss you

When bad things happen to nice critters

It's yet another drizzly, gray and soggy day, so I decided to clean and organize my Emergency Kit. I expect some of you folks with livestock may have something similar. We have found that it is best to be prepared to handle any critter emergency as best we can, ourselves. We have only recently had access to a vet that will see goats, for example, and we do have a bird vet that is happy to see chickens, but he ain't cheap!

I like to keep all of my first aid items together, so if anything happens, I can just grab it and run! It is better, in my mind, to have all this stuff and not need it, than to need it and not have it. Also, our dear critters seem to like to have any emergencies on Saturday afternoons and Sundays, when the stores are closed and the vets charge double, or worse, are not available at all. So, here's what I got:

A variety of scrubs, disinfecting solutions, my own calendula salve, and antibiotic ointment. Not pictured, but also helpful, is Swat, a fly repelling ointment made for horses. It is especially helpful in the summer for superficial wounds when maggots can become an issue. Ewww, Yeah. Vetwrap self adhering bandage material, a fantasic invention-I can even bandage little bird toes with this stuff, gauze, non stick dressings, tape, etc. Scissors that stay in the kit! Seriously, when you are in a panic because your precious boo boo is gushing blood you do not want to be running around the house looking for your scissors.

Scary stuff! A variety of syringes for flushing wounds, giving water or medications; the one with the little cup attached is for gentle irrigation. Sterile syringes and Penicillin G, which actually lives in the refrigerator, is an excellent injectable broad spectrum antibiotic suitable for a variety of species. I don't use it much, but is invaluable for preventing infection when someone has been bitten or scratched by a wild animal. Cat bites are the worst! All cotton thread and gut for stitches. Hemostats. Lubricating jelly and latex exam gloves. I am glad I did this, it reminded me that I really need a thermometer. I am also lacking activated charcoal in case of poisoning. I am making a mental note-there.

Other things we keep on hand:

B vitamins-the miracle goat cure. Anytime our goats have had stress or trauma, we give them a B-complex vitamin, I don't know why, but it always works.

Bach rescue remedy

homeopathic Arnica montana 30 c. A treatment for bruises and muscle soreness, but also incredibly helpful in the case of acute shock and trauma. I gave Gladys six pellets under her tongue while we were waiting for the vet to arrive, and she was on the ground convulsing. She visibly relaxed and calmed down.

Sorghum, honey, or molasses. A spoonful of sugar makes the medicine go down. All of these are also rich in trace nutrients and very healthful. A weak animal will typically have low blood sugar-it gives them a little energy boost.

A plant everyone ought to know about. Cranesbill, or Wild Geranium. The whole plant works as a hemostat, internally and externally. I have some dried and powdered, and I made a tincture. When one of my old roosters broke his spur the other day, and was bleeding fairly profusely, I tried applied direct pressure first, and that wasn't working. A cranesbill was nearby, so I simply chewed up a few leaves, applied them to the wound, and dang if it didn't work like a charm. Plants are your friends.

It is very sad when something happens to beloved animals, but as a farmer, it is inevitable that something will happen sometime. Best to be prepared.

Turkey Time

It is time to start hatching little turkeys in preparation for Thanksgiving. They will spend 28 days in the incubator, then a few more weeks in a cozy heated brooder room, then out to pasture.

Finding eggs to hatch, to start with, can be like an "Easter egg hunt" a couple of times a day, for several weeks. This is particularly true of the orchard turkeys.

I love that they have so much savannah like space to romp and play and forage, but when it's time to look for eggs, it's a lot of ground to cover! I also have to compete with the crows, who love turkey eggs, and have keener eyes than mine, or at least, a better perspective.

With a regular pencil, each egg gets marked with a code of its origin, this one came from the "barn" turkeys, and the date which it was collected. This helps us keep track of fertility rates.

The eggs go into a regular box cooler as they're collected. You can store them before hatching for up to two weeks, but I prefer to keep them for no more than seven or eight days before we set them in the incubator.

The incubator gets fired up a full 24 hours before setting the eggs. This gives it time to warm up to the correct temperature, and we can make sure the turners are working right, and all systems are go!

Dandelion Wine

Hooray, hooray, it is time once again!

Due to rather extended illness that left us wimpy and respiratorily challenged, we are way behind on farm work. This time of year for us puts me in mind of the Red Queen from Through the Looking Glass-"Now, here, you see, it takes all the running you can do, to keep in the same place."

However, the dandelions are Prime. That means it is time to Act. We had a perfectly beautiful day to pick, too! The bees are all out now, warm sun, cool breeze. Lovely.

The first step in making dandelion wine is to pick dandelion blossoms until you just can't stand it anymore. So, Steve and I got to work, along with Maybelle, our special dandelion sniffing dog.

Maybelle is learning to be a good girl off the leash now-she is making me proud.

We picked about 10 quarts, which will produce around 3 gallons of wine.

They get all wilty as you pick them, but that's okay, because the next step is to pour boiling water over them, cover tightly, and let them steep for a couple of days. Then we will boil them gently with some orange and lemon peel, add the sugar, some golden raisins for body, a few cloves and the yeast, and let the fermentation begin!

To celebrate, naturally, we opened a bottle from last year.

The flavor is incredible. Dandelions taste the same way they look-warm and cheery. This batch is unfortunately on the sugary side, something that will likely change the longer it ages in the bottle, but I think we will try to produce a drier wine this year. We'll hold back on the sugar a bit, and cheer on the yeast to ferment more vigorously.

With any luck, I hope to put up several batches this year. You can't have too much dandelion wine!

Life! It's happening..

The first blush of new buds appearing on the trees...

Apple and pear blossoms...

Mercy, the violets...

Even the pastures are alive with color. Hooray for April!

Bad Chickens

As I have said before, each season presents a unique set of challenges. One spring it was aggressive bluebirds-they would attack anything reflective. All day they would furiously thrash the shiny flashing of our chimney pipe. The side mirrors of our cars also felt their wrath. We had an invasion of skunks one year, theiving eggs and burrowing under the sides of buildings to munch on our youngest birds. Last fall, we had to keep all the chickens in lock down, because the hawk predation was so fierce, and we had a family of Bald eagles in the mix, they would kill four or five chickens at a time, and carry them off into the air, kicking and screaming, with us on the ground looking helplessly on! This year, the hawks seem to be downright friendly. There are several pairs nesting nearby, and I hear and see them every day. Steve and I have both seen them perched on the fence around our henhouse, BUT, nary a feather on a little head harmed. Go figure.

So, this, my friends, is the season of chicken anarchy. Normally, those with moveable paddocks have been content and cozy with our four foot electronet (not electrified) fence from Premier. Something's gotten into them now, though. Fence, shmence, they say, I can see greener grass over there! And away they go.

I suppose I feel sort of flattered, in a way, to have raised such a flock of free thinkers and go getters. It can be irritating, however, when it is time to close them up for bed at night, and I have to trek far into the pasture to round up strays.

Perhaps they are telling me that they need yet more room to roam. Perhaps the total lack of predation this year has emboldened them. Maybe our resident herd of 17 deer are a bad influence.

Ms Wiley definitely goes where she likes, she frequently ambles along behind the tractor when I am doing the chores.

When she comes to visit us on the porch, Farmer Steve says: Chicken on the porch-chicken in the pan! This makes her laugh.

What does one do when one's chickens go "wild"?