Chicken Scraps Blog

I finally got around to making this short video of how we milk our cow.  Bo was the camera man for most of it, and the music came from Internet Archive.  Enjoy!

Anybody who knows anything about math will tell  you that 1 x 1 does not equal 3.  But then, most people don't raise goats.  For, you see, in the goat world: ONE Ritz.  (See "Our Family Farm Animals" page for more info about Ritz.) ONE X ONE Nelly.  (See "Our Family Farm Animals" for more info.) = 3!    Yesterday, around noon, I put Nelly in the stall, as she was full-term on her pregnancy, and looked like she might be going into labor.  The day dragged on, and I could see that she was definitely in early labor- laying down, getting up, pawing the ground, walking around the stall, then laying down, getting up again, etc.  Night came, and still no kids. We (Farrah, Savana and I) sat in the stall for a long time last night, and even considered sleeping in the barn so we wouldn't miss out on the birth, but to no avail.  We finally went inside for the night.  I checked on her...

Perhaps this should have been part one in this series, because this should happen before the calf is born if possible.       This primarily applies to a first-timer, that is, a cow about to calve and/ or be milked for her first time.  The goal of training her is to get her used to the idea of being milked, and teach her to stand quietly for you in the stanchion (or wherever you milk her), and to let down her milk.  Before I go any further, here are a couple definitions of terms I'll probably use quite a bit. Stanchion:   A structure which restrains the cow by holding its head between two boards or pieces of metal tubing, and possibly also includes a sort of chute to keep it from moving its back end around too much.  (I will explain our model of stanchion later on.) Blossom in the stanchion.  The board in front is her feed tray- this isn't a necessary part for all stanchions, but she is short, and had a hard time reaching her f...

So, here's a short update post on the puppies... Here is Boanerges... Boanerges has found a new family, near his brother, Kong, and will hopefully get to see him often.

Dairy Cows Series: 1 (This is the first post in a series devoted to dairy cows.  I have had a few years of experience with all the basic phases of naturally raising and milking Jersey cows.  At least part of it will be in a question/ answer format.  Hopefully someone will find this series helpful!) Separating Mama from JR.      Since we got our first milking cow, separating the cow from the calf has been an important part of farm life.  The routine is simple- or so it seems.  During the first part of a cow's lactation, when she's giving the most milk (for a very good cow, this could be up to a year or more) she needs to be milked out every 12 hours or so.  The calf also needs milk to grow.  There are two basic methods to accomplish both feeding the calf, and yet get enough milk for one's needs.  The first is the approach taken by the dairy industry, and also many small farmers.  This is to permanently separ...

Late last year I got my ewe, Winnie, bred to a large Suffolk ram.  Early this spring she lambed- giving birth to a very large single lamb, which we named Anak.  He weighed 12.5 lbs at birth.      We had been watching Winnie for several weeks, as we didn't know the exact date she was bred, and therefore had only a general idea of when she would lamb.  Finally, on April 27th, 2012, we noticed that she was acting a bit differently- standing in the pasture with her head down, not wanting to eat her feed.  We caught her, and put her in the stall, where she stayed the rest of the day.  That evening she went into hard labor.       The lamb was very large, and she couldn't push him out by herself, so I had to pull on his front legs for quite some time before he was finally born.  In the video, it is difficult to see how hard I was pulling, but for a while the action was rather intense.  I was a bit exhausted whe...

Looking for a good family dog?  Need one who will be friendly with your animals?  We are offering Inez's puppies for sale/adoption to good homes.  As stated in other places on this blog, the sire is a beautiful, purebred Chocolate lab who lives near us.      Inez is a full-blooded Great Pyrenees.  We used to lose chickens to the many predators which live all around us (foxes, raccoons, opossums, hawks, and coyotes, etc.)  But since we got her, we have lost hardly any poultry at all.  In fact, we no longer even need to shut or lock the coop door at night.  (Note:  We do not guarantee that the puppies will be as good at protecting as she is- simply that they come from a dog who is excellent at it.)  She is also super sweet to people and our farm animals.  She is gentle, and enjoys being petted, and although she is slightly reserved with strangers, she has never been at all aggressive.  Little children l...