Lifes been pretty crazy as I'm sure you can tell. Alot of time and energy has gone to the farm, but I was also hired as an apprentice at a large jewelry company. I'd only been there for 9 months when I got promoted to a full time bench jeweler. My skills have improved dramatically...though there isn't much creativity. Unfortunately I have very little energy and time left for my own personal jewelry.
Hopefully as I get more settled and set up at the farm I can reorganize my jewelry studio and start making my own work. Until then: please wait for me.
Tuesday, February 4, 2014
Saturday, April 13, 2013
A Day in the Life of Me
Did I mention I got fired?
Yeah, it didn't work out at the last place. Politicy stuff, ya know? So I moved back to the farm and focused on that stuff and got a call from a big jewelry company that they needed help and heard my name from someone I buy supplies from. Coolio. So I'm working that job as an apprentice jeweler. Last week I learned the "real" way to rip-tip stones and then I rebuilt some broken prongs and set stones. cool stuff.
So my morning starts around 7:30 feeding the animals, then milking the sheep. By 8:15 I am back making breakfast and getting cleaned up for work. If I have time I will run an errand like picking up more feed. Then I'm off to work by 9:20, work until 6:30. Pick up free veggies for the pigs from a grocery store, get home, feed the animals and try to muster up the energy to feed myself. Since my day typically doesn't end until 8:30 I haven't been putting much time into the bench.
This will change one day. One day I will be back here more frequently. Until then, forgive me for I am tired.
Yeah, it didn't work out at the last place. Politicy stuff, ya know? So I moved back to the farm and focused on that stuff and got a call from a big jewelry company that they needed help and heard my name from someone I buy supplies from. Coolio. So I'm working that job as an apprentice jeweler. Last week I learned the "real" way to rip-tip stones and then I rebuilt some broken prongs and set stones. cool stuff.
So my morning starts around 7:30 feeding the animals, then milking the sheep. By 8:15 I am back making breakfast and getting cleaned up for work. If I have time I will run an errand like picking up more feed. Then I'm off to work by 9:20, work until 6:30. Pick up free veggies for the pigs from a grocery store, get home, feed the animals and try to muster up the energy to feed myself. Since my day typically doesn't end until 8:30 I haven't been putting much time into the bench.
This will change one day. One day I will be back here more frequently. Until then, forgive me for I am tired.
Sunday, March 3, 2013
Farm Blog!
I decided it was time to start a blog focused on my farming and return this one to jewelry. That means, yes, there WILL be less baby animals pictures here. BUT fear not, for if you come over to http://farmerista.wordpress.com/ there will be plenty.
In jewelry news I have decided not to do a booth at the CMAG spring show this year. I may get around to putting some pieces in the gallery, but I don't know if I will have time to make something new. I don't know if I mentioned the bench jewelry job i got in december didn't work out? Yeah, various reasons i don't need to go into but I did just land a new one with the official position of "apprentice." Thats great: that means the other jewelers KNOW I'm supposed to be learning. It will mean 40 hours a week so fitting that into the farming and all...well, good thing I have lots of energy!
Anyway, I'll leave you with a picture of my bottle baby lamb, Blaze. She is totally sleeping on the couch right next to me at the moment. (If you want to know her story follow that link)
In jewelry news I have decided not to do a booth at the CMAG spring show this year. I may get around to putting some pieces in the gallery, but I don't know if I will have time to make something new. I don't know if I mentioned the bench jewelry job i got in december didn't work out? Yeah, various reasons i don't need to go into but I did just land a new one with the official position of "apprentice." Thats great: that means the other jewelers KNOW I'm supposed to be learning. It will mean 40 hours a week so fitting that into the farming and all...well, good thing I have lots of energy!
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
Training
Got my studio half put back together: I had many comings and goings over the last few months that left the space in disarray. Unfourtunatly, some of the ex's cats took to peeing in my studio and I can't sit at my bench without to the distinct smell of cat urine.
Despite the stench I trudged on (with the help of a scented candle). I had the neighbor girl over tonight to learn the basics of jewelry making. I started her on just hammering metal, then onto sawing. By the end of the evening she had made a cute copper dragonfly.
So I have a jeweler in training...hopefully she'll will help me battle through the cat stank by actually WANTING to be in the studio.
(dogs rule, cats drool. :P)
Despite the stench I trudged on (with the help of a scented candle). I had the neighbor girl over tonight to learn the basics of jewelry making. I started her on just hammering metal, then onto sawing. By the end of the evening she had made a cute copper dragonfly.
So I have a jeweler in training...hopefully she'll will help me battle through the cat stank by actually WANTING to be in the studio.
(dogs rule, cats drool. :P)
Sunday, February 17, 2013
Farming and stuff
Well my friends, I have been up to alot. I moved back onto the farm and have been working non-stop to get it fixed up. among the happenings: I picked up a new sheep named Polly. She is and East Friesian x Lacaune which means another milker. She is a month or two younger than Ash, which seems to mean she is about a month behind in her pregnancy.
The ram was REAL excited to get to meet her, so I tried locking him up for a day to let him cool his jets while the girls bonded. This was him trying to crawl under the barn door.
She's spotted, so I'm hoping I'll get a good color when I cross her with a Jacob. Check out the cool spots on her ears: they are ringed like agate!
The adorable friendly piglets were so curious about the newcomer! She was interested in them...not so interested in Rosie (who walked over to say "Hello.")
Good ol' Rosie. Being a mom is hard sometimes: I guess she needed a pick me up when she tried to drink my coffee.
The piglets are getting big fast! I built a creep feed to help let some pressure off Rosie. They are starting to root around and eat worms and such, but they harass mom nonstop in the barn for more food while she eats pulling at her teats...puts her in a bad mood fast. So at breakfast time I give them a small amount of pellets with milk. They enjoy that while mom eats in peace. Then we all play. I feel like with giving them a little extra food they've been growing even faster...I already had to lift up the bottom electric line on the feed so they could get in. I am disappointed that she sheep haven't lambed yet and the piglets arn't getting the sheep milk: that was the plan. Didn't happen...guess they get powdered milk instead.
In the less than two weeks ive been back I have: repaired the barn walls Rosie punched out, replaced the rotten/broken board on the barn door, got it to open and close again, and reinforced it. The wood piled in the barn is mostly cleaned up, I built a creep feed and a simple pen for the sheep at night. Painted 2 rooms in the house, cut 1/4 a cord of wood (burned most of it already, too), cleaned up the front and am now getting the gardens ready. I need to build a self-feeder for rosie so the sheep stop stealing her food, then I am on to fencing. I am also about to start reorganizing my studio and working on my jewelry again. yay!
On that note I will be moving my farming stuff to a new blog soon and focusing back here on jewelry. I hope you guys have enjoyed reading about the animals, but its time to move this content onto its own site. I'll let you know the new blog as soon as I come up with a proper name. Any ideas? ;)
She's spotted, so I'm hoping I'll get a good color when I cross her with a Jacob. Check out the cool spots on her ears: they are ringed like agate!
Good ol' Rosie. Being a mom is hard sometimes: I guess she needed a pick me up when she tried to drink my coffee.
In the less than two weeks ive been back I have: repaired the barn walls Rosie punched out, replaced the rotten/broken board on the barn door, got it to open and close again, and reinforced it. The wood piled in the barn is mostly cleaned up, I built a creep feed and a simple pen for the sheep at night. Painted 2 rooms in the house, cut 1/4 a cord of wood (burned most of it already, too), cleaned up the front and am now getting the gardens ready. I need to build a self-feeder for rosie so the sheep stop stealing her food, then I am on to fencing. I am also about to start reorganizing my studio and working on my jewelry again. yay!
On that note I will be moving my farming stuff to a new blog soon and focusing back here on jewelry. I hope you guys have enjoyed reading about the animals, but its time to move this content onto its own site. I'll let you know the new blog as soon as I come up with a proper name. Any ideas? ;)
Wednesday, February 6, 2013
Two Weeks!
As of yesterday the piggies pasted a milestone: two weeks old! And what a happy, healthy, energetic bunch.
And what little trouble makers! They knocked over a glass pane and broke it, then they found this plastic and have been playing with it. Any piece of trash they find they put in their mouths (i guess how piglets learn is through their mouths). This property was covered in trash when we bought it and I had thought I did a decent job cleaning up. Nope, not enough for babies!
They started going outside when they were 5 days old...seems early but I guess not!
Now they are starting to root around like mom.
Rosie looks very satisfied with life.
Lots of joy, energy and jumps with the piggies are outside.
This is the only one I dare name: Peppercorn has lots of spunk! She might become a breeder in fall.
Look at those pretty piggy lashes!
So now we have our piglets out of the most dangerous age. Only lost one the first night. While I had hoped for 10, 7 healthy lively piglets is still pretty good for a first time 'round.
Now on to the lambs! I think Ash is going to drop anytime. She is uddering up and laying down alot. I've been pretty nervous because no one is there to keep an eye on her during her first lambing. Shawn has been trying to move out so he hasn't paid much attention to the sheep. I am moving back in today so hopefully she has put off lambing until I'm back. We will see. I don't know when I am going to get my sheep from our shared Jacob flock, so I went ahead and bought another sheep. She is a milker like Ash so it seems we will have a mini dairy going. hopefully I can pull off this milking thing. We shall see!
Either way I'm excited to be moving back "home," living next to my animals and getting back to *my* personal bench. Yes! that means jewelry will happen again!
So now we have our piglets out of the most dangerous age. Only lost one the first night. While I had hoped for 10, 7 healthy lively piglets is still pretty good for a first time 'round.
Now on to the lambs! I think Ash is going to drop anytime. She is uddering up and laying down alot. I've been pretty nervous because no one is there to keep an eye on her during her first lambing. Shawn has been trying to move out so he hasn't paid much attention to the sheep. I am moving back in today so hopefully she has put off lambing until I'm back. We will see. I don't know when I am going to get my sheep from our shared Jacob flock, so I went ahead and bought another sheep. She is a milker like Ash so it seems we will have a mini dairy going. hopefully I can pull off this milking thing. We shall see!
Either way I'm excited to be moving back "home," living next to my animals and getting back to *my* personal bench. Yes! that means jewelry will happen again!
Sunday, January 27, 2013
2013 Seed Order
So Shawn was to be the gardener. Alas, now the task falls to me. To be honest neither of us really got any beds in order. By now the pig should have rotto tilled the garden space, then amendments and cover crop should have been added. However, only one small cool crop bed has been prepared...everything still is covered in grass. The pen the pigs were in during the summer had cover crop seed, but it never took. I'm hoping to muck Rosies pen out and put all her dirty straw back there, but im not sure if i can: she jammed the door closed while puncturing a hole in the bottom of the door. So pigs can use the door, just not humans. This means I have to throw everything over the fence and climb in. Thanks girl.
2013 looks like it wont be the most successful garden year, but I can learn alot regardless. I'm trying to follow the advice of Steve Solomon about high yield growing in Cascadia and eventually move towards more Sepp Holzer style permaculture. (Assuming I can afford to keep the place)
My soil is very rocky clay which is not ideal for many plants. Over time one can build up humus by mixing in organic material...but that takes time. One of Holzer's methods is to build 4 to 5 foot hills hills, rather than raised beds. The hill may have a log underneath to add stability and slowly rot to release nutrients. The hill has greater surface area than a raised bed, and plants can be placed so they don't block each others sun. I won't get to building any hills this by summer, but I can use this method to combat clayey soil buy creating a loamy hill on top. It will also help with drainage.
I just got a bunch of sample sized packets from Territorial Seed. Shawn said they arn't as good as they used to be and their germination rates are down from what they used to have. I figure I'll give them a shot since most their seeds are grown in this bio-region, but next year I may try out Victory Seeds out of Mollala.There are a couple other seed companies I hear good things about like Johnnys Seed Co. and Fed Co...but both are from the East Coast which means the plants that fruit seed well there may not do as well in the West Coast weather.
Of the more interesting things I will be planting: I am going to give quinoa a try. The leaves are apperently edible, too. After reading how international popularity of quinoa has made to too costly for the poorest Bolivians I would like to see how it grows in Oregon.
Other plants I will grow will be Japanese favorites like edamame, kabocha, Japanese cucumbers, and edible crysathamum. My old Japanese Restaurant said they'd buy from me if I could produce enough for them. That means I'll meed 40# of cucumbers twice a week to keep sushi supplied. I'm starting out small this summer to see what I can handle for them, but that may be my niche. We'll see. I'm excited to get started, though. Luckily the animals are keeping my farming bug satisfied.
2013 looks like it wont be the most successful garden year, but I can learn alot regardless. I'm trying to follow the advice of Steve Solomon about high yield growing in Cascadia and eventually move towards more Sepp Holzer style permaculture. (Assuming I can afford to keep the place)
My soil is very rocky clay which is not ideal for many plants. Over time one can build up humus by mixing in organic material...but that takes time. One of Holzer's methods is to build 4 to 5 foot hills hills, rather than raised beds. The hill may have a log underneath to add stability and slowly rot to release nutrients. The hill has greater surface area than a raised bed, and plants can be placed so they don't block each others sun. I won't get to building any hills this by summer, but I can use this method to combat clayey soil buy creating a loamy hill on top. It will also help with drainage.
I just got a bunch of sample sized packets from Territorial Seed. Shawn said they arn't as good as they used to be and their germination rates are down from what they used to have. I figure I'll give them a shot since most their seeds are grown in this bio-region, but next year I may try out Victory Seeds out of Mollala.There are a couple other seed companies I hear good things about like Johnnys Seed Co. and Fed Co...but both are from the East Coast which means the plants that fruit seed well there may not do as well in the West Coast weather.
Of the more interesting things I will be planting: I am going to give quinoa a try. The leaves are apperently edible, too. After reading how international popularity of quinoa has made to too costly for the poorest Bolivians I would like to see how it grows in Oregon.
Other plants I will grow will be Japanese favorites like edamame, kabocha, Japanese cucumbers, and edible crysathamum. My old Japanese Restaurant said they'd buy from me if I could produce enough for them. That means I'll meed 40# of cucumbers twice a week to keep sushi supplied. I'm starting out small this summer to see what I can handle for them, but that may be my niche. We'll see. I'm excited to get started, though. Luckily the animals are keeping my farming bug satisfied.
Saturday, January 26, 2013
3 Day Old Pigglets
Rosie seems to be picking up on this mothering thing.So without further ado: lots of pigglet pictures:
Everyone seems to be doing well with their appetites
This little girl, though, as a big nasty cut on her leg. Luckily the straw is clean and the weather is cool so hopefully it won't get infected. Just gonna have to wash it every day and keep an eye on her. She's the most energetic of them all.
Rosie looks very happy and contented.
Looks like a few are getting daddy's floppy ears!
Yum yum yum
Bouncing around being happy babies. Looks like 2 boys 5 girls. Turns out Rosie did have 8, but it died the first night and got buried in the hay. Next time I'll change the pen so I can get into both sides and grab any injured babies. Other than a few with scratches they all look pretty good. They went outside for the first time yesterday. it is really amazing how quick they develop. I swear each time I look at them they are bigger.
Also, why arn't you people following Rosies twitter account? The more people follow the more "she' will tweet https://twitter.com/RosieDaPig
Also, why arn't you people following Rosies twitter account? The more people follow the more "she' will tweet https://twitter.com/RosieDaPig
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Piggies!
It finally happened! Rosie had her first litter yesterday. My mother had to go to the farm in the morning and Rosie seemed to be acting funny. She gave her some fresh hay and Rosie immediately started to try and make a nest with it and seemed to be having an occasional contraction. I got a call from her at work "Rosie seems likes shes gonna pop!" By some chance I got off work early that day and decided to go up to see how she was doing.
I went in to find Rosie like this:
Breathing calm, but pretty clear contractions. I didn't know how long she had to go, so i got her to flip over so the piggles could get to her tits. Look and her boobies! Ay, I can't imagine how bad its got to feel to have 14 sore boobies!
Regardless, she seemed calm and I think happy to have me there. I encouraged here and gave her some space for a little bit. I came back with some water mixed with raw apple cider vinegar: she loves to drink that! Its good for digestion and she gulped it right down.
After she had her water and she flopped down again I noticed he water had broken. About 15 minutes later she started really heaving. I looked back and there were little feet!
Then with a little push it came out a little further....
Then went back in. The little feet see-sawed back and forth for a few minutes and I considered the possibility her first on might be breech so I decided to time it. If it took longer that 15 minutes....just as I looked at the clock *POP!* out it came! Rosie's very first baby!
I got one shot with the flash when Rosie heard it squeal and jumped up and turned around. That's when I realized I was in a bad spot: in order to possibly help her with a breech (okay, okay, and to see the first one happen~!) I had gotten in her pen and was boxed in to the sides and even ceiling and the only way out was by Rosie and her new born. Any other pig would have killed me. Rosie gave me the stink eye, but was also confused by the squirming and squealing thing.I managed to slip by her by making it clear I wasn't going to touch the little "thing." I tossed my camera aside because it looked like I might need to get in and grab one if she decided to flop down one.
The next three popped out in fast succession. I was really surprised: maybe five minutes between each one? Rosie still wasn't sure what was going on and now she had 4 things squiggling about trying to nudge her. A few times she nearly trampled them to death. One of them kept screaming bloody murder whenever he fell over which would terrify Rosie so she'd hop up and start spinning around and everyone else would start screaming...She was having a very hard time of it. She was lying on her stomach wide eyed keeping an eye on the little things. She was so upset and the piglets were all over the place. It was below freezing and they were trying to find something warm: one got buried deep in the hay pile.
I finally decided to intervene. I got back in the pen with her and started petting her. She of course rolled over for a belly rub...and finally one of her piglets got to her nipple and latched on! THAT is what she needed! She started calming down and eventually the other piglets found their way over and latched on. You could see her relaxing with the situation and she started rolling over to give her teats to her babies.
As she relaxed then next few piglets came out of her. We still had one in the hay. I was afraid to move it because anytime she heard a piglet squeal she jumped up and started freaking out. She seemed relaxed, though, so I gently uncovered it and moved it out into the cold. Of course it squeaked and Rosie saw it. Once again a panicked look came over her face, but this time she looked down at the piglets suckleing by her side, then at the straggler slowly moving towards her, then at me-then, unlike before, she stayed calm, looked at me, then at her baby and called to it without bothering her her other babies. He stumbled over to her, nearly going behind her, and Rosie stretched her head out to meet him and guide him gently to her belly. Rosie became a mother.
I left after she had #7...she seemed to be getting the hang of this mothering thing and I was freezing! I was dressed in my work clothes not knowing I'd be spending the evening in the barn. Shawn was finally back so I left him in charge. He did a nice job creating roll bars out of logs!
Not living back at the farm yet means I don't get to see Rosie until I have time off work, but I guess she didn't have any more. My mother went by in the morning and she was protective of her new brood, but let her get a peek. Today they were running around, apparently. Can't wait to see who has floppy ears and who just has giant ears!
I went in to find Rosie like this:
Breathing calm, but pretty clear contractions. I didn't know how long she had to go, so i got her to flip over so the piggles could get to her tits. Look and her boobies! Ay, I can't imagine how bad its got to feel to have 14 sore boobies!
I finally decided to intervene. I got back in the pen with her and started petting her. She of course rolled over for a belly rub...and finally one of her piglets got to her nipple and latched on! THAT is what she needed! She started calming down and eventually the other piglets found their way over and latched on. You could see her relaxing with the situation and she started rolling over to give her teats to her babies.
Not living back at the farm yet means I don't get to see Rosie until I have time off work, but I guess she didn't have any more. My mother went by in the morning and she was protective of her new brood, but let her get a peek. Today they were running around, apparently. Can't wait to see who has floppy ears and who just has giant ears!
Sunday, January 13, 2013
WAHOO!
Great news: Rosie is pregnant! Mr.Pig did his job just before he left, apparently. I assume the summer heat disrupted her cycling or made her miscarry...either way once things cooled down she must have finally taken. I was the one saying she wasn't pregnant when everyone else said she was, and thoguht she was pregnant when everyone else gave up. I guess thats what I get looking at her anatomy ALL THE TIME. Plus, she's been acting CUH-RAZY since early October. So fellow first time pig breeders take heart: it is hard to tell with some pigs if they are pregnant. Some people say look at their back end and if their vulva is pointed up, she is pregnant.
Well, not with Rosie. My clues were: stopped having heavy mucous breeding cycles, nipples were still small but pointed funny directions, wanted LOTS of grass, wasn't as interested in being friendly, and her attitude was just...a little crazy? But her vulva looked pretty much the same the whole time.
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| BOOBIES! This means BABIES! |
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| Thanks Mr.Pig, I'm sure your babies will be crazy cute! |
So the farm is really a farm!
Saturday, January 12, 2013
Update
Hey everyone! Things kinda changed for me recently. The whole "fiance" thing didn't work out, so I moved out for a while and got me a real job as a real bench jeweler. Or, at least they are training me to be one. It is a very high end shop in the area and they are great people. So I work 5-6 days a week there...thus, I am not getting much of my OWN jewelry done. And I guess I get to be a weekend farmer.
Now, the farm. We got the farm by buying through my mother (she applied to the banks) and we paid the mortgage. The ex is being kind enough to move out peaceably by the end of the month (this whole thing has been stretching on for a few months, mind you). I, personally, am ready as all hell to be back on the farm. LAMBS!!! I SHOULD HAVE LAMBS SOON!
I have this dream of creating an Oregon milk sheep by crossing the highly productive East Friesian breed with the hardy, old, goat-like Jacob breed. This will take many, many years and alot more land and alot more sheep. This will be my first generation and I am very curious what physical traits will come out: Ash's black wool is a recessive gene: will her babies come out white? Spotted? Will they come out with horns or no horns (I personally like horns because I feel like it gives them a leg up in chasing coyotes)? I believe the polled trait tends to be stronger, but Ash looks like she nearly has horn buds.
We'll see what happens, but my goal is to create a breed that produce sheep more productive milk wise with less health problems. As the average conventional sheep produces 100-200 lbs of milk vs East Friesian which produces 900-1,100 lbs of milk in a lactation. Big difference, eh? If I could breed a hardy breed that produces 700 lbs a lactation I'd be very happy. Interestingly, I am discovering this is not a NEW idea...lots of places use crossed Friesians...but I am looking to make an actual breed. We'll see how it goes in about 25 years. (I'm sure in 25 years I'll be laughing at my naivety....or rolling in dough from my brilliant idea! hahaha!)
It will be an interesting experiment. Now my other Jacobs are still stranded at another farm. Luckily, being Jacobs, they don't typically have birthing problems. So all those pure breeds are on their own for now. Not ideal, but it is what it is. Wish I could have all of them at my farm as I want as many babies as possible...but I guess I just have to settle with what Ash gives me.
Looks like our pig didn't breed. She had 3 months with Mr.Pig. I assume she is broken somehow. :( Very sad, I gave her a little extra time to walk this earth because her teats looked funny....but while they are going every which way if she doesn't drop some babies in the next week she's done for. Oh well. She guarded my sheep well so I don't regret having her stick around for an extra while.
Now, the farm. We got the farm by buying through my mother (she applied to the banks) and we paid the mortgage. The ex is being kind enough to move out peaceably by the end of the month (this whole thing has been stretching on for a few months, mind you). I, personally, am ready as all hell to be back on the farm. LAMBS!!! I SHOULD HAVE LAMBS SOON!
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| East Friesian X Jacob....what will it look like? |
We'll see what happens, but my goal is to create a breed that produce sheep more productive milk wise with less health problems. As the average conventional sheep produces 100-200 lbs of milk vs East Friesian which produces 900-1,100 lbs of milk in a lactation. Big difference, eh? If I could breed a hardy breed that produces 700 lbs a lactation I'd be very happy. Interestingly, I am discovering this is not a NEW idea...lots of places use crossed Friesians...but I am looking to make an actual breed. We'll see how it goes in about 25 years. (I'm sure in 25 years I'll be laughing at my naivety....or rolling in dough from my brilliant idea! hahaha!)
It will be an interesting experiment. Now my other Jacobs are still stranded at another farm. Luckily, being Jacobs, they don't typically have birthing problems. So all those pure breeds are on their own for now. Not ideal, but it is what it is. Wish I could have all of them at my farm as I want as many babies as possible...but I guess I just have to settle with what Ash gives me.
Looks like our pig didn't breed. She had 3 months with Mr.Pig. I assume she is broken somehow. :( Very sad, I gave her a little extra time to walk this earth because her teats looked funny....but while they are going every which way if she doesn't drop some babies in the next week she's done for. Oh well. She guarded my sheep well so I don't regret having her stick around for an extra while.
Monday, October 22, 2012
Oh Rosie
Fall has come, rain has started and the pig pen has turned into a mud pit. I built a pen for the pigs i the bar, but it really wasn't enough room for both pigs to spend all winter. Rosie was making it clear if I did't fix up her digs, she would take matters into her ow hands (cloven hooves?). Feed costs are also a problem as the pigs are not yet on pasture. My fiance prefers to overfeed animals rather than underfeed, Mr.Pig was happy to eat whatever came his way at a cost of $35 a week. Aint happening.
On Wednesday we said goodbye to Mr.Pig who has moved on to Farmer Gord's. He has 3 sows and 30 acres. Its a better space for Mr.Pig. Of course, it was a adventure load Mr.Pig. I had to feed my piggies a little that day because Rosie was in a mood. She kept trying to tear open the fence, so I feed them in hopes of placating her...but them mr.pig wasn't as hungry as he should have been. So Gord had a family emergency and shows up a 9 pm. Luckily I had hooked up electricty to the barn...but it was just a single lightbulb. Everywhere else was pitch black. I untied some of the cattle panels to let out Mr.Pig and Rosie decided to make a break for it, them Mr.pig decided to take a hike too. So we chased the pigs around in the dark, got them back in the barn then focused on mr.pig. once we had him infront of the trailer he went in.
So Rosie has lots of room and food to herself now, all is good, right?
no. Wrong. I suppose I should have taken pictures as proof but believe me: she tore her pen to shreds and tried to run away. I sat down at my bench finally and started working on a new ring when Shawn looked out to see Rosie escaping into the neighbors Our permimeter fence is only a fraction complete and Rosie would not be contained any longer. We had to discuss the future of Rosie as we don't know if she is pregnant or not. She *might* be, but the again has always had trouble taking....I was fit to be tied and ready to turn her into dinner, however Shawn did not agree. As you can see our little flow chart:
You see the corner of the crossed out one: "dead pet." Oh Shawn, you might want to stick with being a vegetable farmer. So Rosie lives. We did call a vet to try and get an ultrasound to see if she is preggers, but alas the vets weren't able to sedate her and we couldn't. THAT was a horrible experience chasing her with giant needles and trying to stab and drug her up. Was she ever mad.
Throughout the day I babysat her and kept her from running away while Shawn came up with a plan...his plan eventually became "I don't want an ugly, crappy temporary fence next to my house, so lets build a rubbish pile that is too tall for her to climb!" So thats what we did: we cut down trees and piled up brambles all the way across the open fence line and I got the section of electric fence powered up. I personally am not sure it looks any better than a janky fence but it cost $0 and we did it in 2 days, so thats great. Did it work? No. The next day Rosie climbed right over the logs.
.....
The brush pile was meant to be a mostly visual barrier, but it wasn't quite enough. So Shawn put up a line of temporary electric line in front of the brush aaaaaaand tada! it worked! Rosie is now free-range as are the sheep. I got her a new bale of hay for her bed so she is sure to come home at night.
I really hope this girl is pregnant. With all we have been through with her we need some payback. And adorable babies. Oh yes, and since she IS a pet offically she has a twitter account. Follow her!
Now maybe I can get back to my bench?
On Wednesday we said goodbye to Mr.Pig who has moved on to Farmer Gord's. He has 3 sows and 30 acres. Its a better space for Mr.Pig. Of course, it was a adventure load Mr.Pig. I had to feed my piggies a little that day because Rosie was in a mood. She kept trying to tear open the fence, so I feed them in hopes of placating her...but them mr.pig wasn't as hungry as he should have been. So Gord had a family emergency and shows up a 9 pm. Luckily I had hooked up electricty to the barn...but it was just a single lightbulb. Everywhere else was pitch black. I untied some of the cattle panels to let out Mr.Pig and Rosie decided to make a break for it, them Mr.pig decided to take a hike too. So we chased the pigs around in the dark, got them back in the barn then focused on mr.pig. once we had him infront of the trailer he went in.
So Rosie has lots of room and food to herself now, all is good, right?
no. Wrong. I suppose I should have taken pictures as proof but believe me: she tore her pen to shreds and tried to run away. I sat down at my bench finally and started working on a new ring when Shawn looked out to see Rosie escaping into the neighbors Our permimeter fence is only a fraction complete and Rosie would not be contained any longer. We had to discuss the future of Rosie as we don't know if she is pregnant or not. She *might* be, but the again has always had trouble taking....I was fit to be tied and ready to turn her into dinner, however Shawn did not agree. As you can see our little flow chart:
Throughout the day I babysat her and kept her from running away while Shawn came up with a plan...his plan eventually became "I don't want an ugly, crappy temporary fence next to my house, so lets build a rubbish pile that is too tall for her to climb!" So thats what we did: we cut down trees and piled up brambles all the way across the open fence line and I got the section of electric fence powered up. I personally am not sure it looks any better than a janky fence but it cost $0 and we did it in 2 days, so thats great. Did it work? No. The next day Rosie climbed right over the logs.
.....
 | |
| Do YOU see the sly look in her eye? |
I really hope this girl is pregnant. With all we have been through with her we need some payback. And adorable babies. Oh yes, and since she IS a pet offically she has a twitter account. Follow her!
Now maybe I can get back to my bench?
Friday, October 12, 2012
Pouring the Foundation
Winter is coming up fast and our well needs a house! My mother and I took it upon ourselves to finally start the project for a small 4x4 slab. We dug out the space and when my honey came home he was like, "Uh, no ladies. Thats not how its going to be done." While he nixed our small foundation for a bigger shed that could function as a tool shed or possibly root cellar, we did get the ball rolling. ;)
What we ended up with was a 8x8 foot foundation and footing. He did the framing Wit the help of my mother. Next was the fun part NONE of use had ever done: pouring from a truck. Oh yes, and since lack of time/good weather/money we poured the footings and the slab as the same time for an extra challange.
So next we need to build the actual pump house and then our well will be set for winter. Gotta hurry, though: cold weather in almost here. We had our first rain this morning and first frost last week. After that fixing up the animals better for the rain.
What we ended up with was a 8x8 foot foundation and footing. He did the framing Wit the help of my mother. Next was the fun part NONE of use had ever done: pouring from a truck. Oh yes, and since lack of time/good weather/money we poured the footings and the slab as the same time for an extra challange.
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| Discussing the logistics |
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| The Foreman is on the job. |
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| Evening out the concrete |
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| Still level! |
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| This part of the job is done! |
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| Taking off the forms revealed a few air pockets were missed, but overall a decent job! |
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
Ash
Meet Ash, an East Fresian sheep. She is a 8 month old dairy sheep.
I agreed to buy her hoping to cross her with my Jacob sheep for a lower maintenance dairy sheep. Her mom made about half a gallon a milking, which would make almost a gallon a day! The day before I received her tragedy struck: her small flock was attacked by coyotes and only Ash and a goat survived. Then the goat turned on Ash and started beating up on her! When she came to my place she was really scared and sad. I wasn't quite ready for her so her first few days she was on a leash.
Now she has a pen around a plum tree where she can see everyone. We haven't gotten one of our other sheep from our old farm yet (they are basically wild sheep this summer), so she is still a bit lonely. But this has given me a chance to get her to bond with me and learn to trust us.
I decided to try giving her a mirror to see if that would help her feel less lonely. Well, she doesn't have much experience with mirrors, right? so I put a mirror up for her and she saw a sheep! yaaay! then she looked around the mirror, and no sheep. sad. Look in the mirror, magic sheep is back! she carefully headbutted it a few times not totally convinced of it....Ash spent a few minutes trying to figure out and talk to the magic 2 dimensional sheep, then decided it was ok....ish. She is certainly calmer seeing another sheep face, but its not the same as a real sheep. Still when she goes into her pen in the morning she runs over to look at magic sheep (or maybe shes figured it out and she is just checking herself out.)
Ash is a real sweetheart and seems pretty sharp. Whoever said sheep and stupid didn't get to actually know them, yes, they flock together, but they really do think. She is already learning some basic commands with clicker training.
Since she is polled (no horns) i didn't feel comfortable taking her to the old farm in Oregon City and leaving her in a new herd of horned sheep. Sounds like a great way for her to get hazed to death. So the plan is to pick someone from the flock of Jacobs up and introduce her to one member of the herd, then when we get the fences up the rest of the herd can come up and since one of the jacobs "knows" her, she will have an easier time joining the the rest of the sheep.
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| The cats arn't to sure of what to make of this newcomer |
Now she has a pen around a plum tree where she can see everyone. We haven't gotten one of our other sheep from our old farm yet (they are basically wild sheep this summer), so she is still a bit lonely. But this has given me a chance to get her to bond with me and learn to trust us.
I decided to try giving her a mirror to see if that would help her feel less lonely. Well, she doesn't have much experience with mirrors, right? so I put a mirror up for her and she saw a sheep! yaaay! then she looked around the mirror, and no sheep. sad. Look in the mirror, magic sheep is back! she carefully headbutted it a few times not totally convinced of it....Ash spent a few minutes trying to figure out and talk to the magic 2 dimensional sheep, then decided it was ok....ish. She is certainly calmer seeing another sheep face, but its not the same as a real sheep. Still when she goes into her pen in the morning she runs over to look at magic sheep (or maybe shes figured it out and she is just checking herself out.)
Ash is a real sweetheart and seems pretty sharp. Whoever said sheep and stupid didn't get to actually know them, yes, they flock together, but they really do think. She is already learning some basic commands with clicker training.
Since she is polled (no horns) i didn't feel comfortable taking her to the old farm in Oregon City and leaving her in a new herd of horned sheep. Sounds like a great way for her to get hazed to death. So the plan is to pick someone from the flock of Jacobs up and introduce her to one member of the herd, then when we get the fences up the rest of the herd can come up and since one of the jacobs "knows" her, she will have an easier time joining the the rest of the sheep.
Thursday, August 23, 2012
Pigs!
We got the pigs moved in a few weeks ago and boy was doing that an adventure. Getting Rosie loaded involved a half days work and many trial and error attempts.
First we tried asking her to go in with food, only to have the trailer fall over and scare her. apperently the small trailer needed a counterbalance for the 500 lb pig climbing in. ok, fair enough, makes sense. After that she was afraid of the thing. Next we tried forcing her in with cattle panel (as suggested in a pig book). she just stuck her nose in the cattle panel and tossed it (and me) aside. Or busted through a wall, or the trailer, or whatever she thought would make us leave her alone. Finally we built a chute (experienced pig farmers know thats what you need in the first place) got her in with food. Still, she wasn't inclined to go in the trailer so I got the hose and sprayed her. Actually, that was a wonderful humane was to get her to move: it was hot, so it wasn't terrible for her to get wet...just annoying enough she moved away from the water. So i sprayed her face when she tried to nose out of the chute which got her to stop trying to break out and then sprayed her backside on up into the trailer. It worked! She went in and stayed calm (thank goodness because she could have busted through that rickety trailer if she wanted).
When we got to the farm the neighbours
came out to watch us unload. Rosie didn't turn around, no she decided to
back out of the trailer which worked for a few steps.....until she stepped off the ramp, tripped, fell on her butt and rolled out. A rather graceless exit, if I may say so. She was okay, though. The neighbor exclaimed, "Thats a pig?! I thought a baby hippo was coming out!"
The next night we went to pick up her new boyfriend. Well, THAT was an adventure coming back up a twisted, steep mountain side gravel road with a 500 lb boar we didn't know in a rickey trailer in a manual S-10 Chevy without 2nd gear. Lets just leave it at that. Oh the adventures of moving farm animals without money.
Anyway, the boars name is Mr.Pig and he is Gloucestershire Old Spot. His breed was designed for running under orchards and picking up fruit that fell on the ground before it rotted and attracted insects. His former owner was chopping down trees and turning it into pasture and used Mr.Pig to tear up the roots of the trees and undergrowth. I think he said they cleared 2 acres that way.
While I had hopped to use Mr.Pig in a similar way and run him under the orchard that we don't have planted yet I'm not sure how long we can keep him and his appetite. But we have two goals with him: a friend for Rosie and to breed Rosie.
Oh yes, did I mention the other thing I liked about his breed? Well, as I understand it modern pig breeds don't necessarily know how to have sex. Infact, the farmer either has to help insert the boars penis into the sow OR just skip the boar and use artificial insemination which means the farmer has to track the sows ovulation cycle and administer 2-3 doses of semen when she is in heat. Personally, I love Rosie but thats a little too friendly for me. I want to be the matchmaker for my animals, but i don't want to be involved in their sex lives.
However, these modernbreeds are MODERN, farmers once upon a time did not have AI, nor the time to stand around and help their pigs breed. The Old Spot breed can breed without human help. Mr.Pig is proven aka. he has made babies already: his balls work and he knows how to use them.
His breed creates alot of bacon. The fellow we got him from recently slaughtered an old spot that gave him 75 POUNDS of bacon, plus hams. Rosies breed (Yorkshire) can be made into bacon, but overall the meat is very white. Instead it makes good roasts, tenderloins, and other white cuts. The fellow we got Mr.Pig from is very excited about crossing York with Old Spot as he says its the best possible mix of breeds. We shall see.
Rosie has mixed feelings about Mr.Pig. He's kinda a dick at feeding time as he pushes her away from all the feed troughs, but he is another pig to hang out with. I remember one day I fed him and he was in the corner chowing down on the slop I gave him. Food was literally flying everywhere and his ears where bouncing everywhere. then at the other side of the pen I had food for Rosie. She ate slowly, calmly, happliy chewing her food, looking around, took another bite walked over to the bathroom, went pee...came back for somemore food...went for some water...lalalala....and all the while in the other corner food is flying everywhere as Mr.Pig was choking it down fast as he could. What can I say? Rosie is a lady with manners, Mr.Pigs a bit of a country bumpkin.
Rosie has cycled, though. Her first few days with mr.pig she was not thrilled. I went to visit them one day and he was asking for backscratches from me, and she was nosing around his balls. At one point he was ignoring her, she stuck her nose between his legs and went *womp!* right into his balls. He went crosseyed, flew a foot in the air and let out a squeal that said it feels the same for all guys. Next day she showed signs on her backend of being in heat. Hopefully he preformed his duty and she took. We may have pigglets in the couple months. Lets hope!
One last thing. The pen they are in is temporary. We want to build a paddock system and run them through the fields and forest rotating the pasture giving it a chance to rest. In some cases we will use the pigs on a very limited space to tear out weeds and rototill, then move them off and plant on the cleared and fertilized ground. If we can time this right we can really make the whole property healthier...if not we can mess things up. Compare the pen from when we first built it to 3 weeks later:
There is alot of bare ground they have opened up and their "fertilizer" is all the the corner and easily spreadable. It is defiantly time to move them before the ground gets too bare and compacted, but its pretty amazing to see how they can clear land so quickly. I am going to try and figure out a way to get up easily moveable fences that keeps Rosie in (thats the key part. she walks right through electric fences, tears through cattle panel is she chooses) and try and use them to clear a path through the woods. Well, its worth a try at least.
That was alot of pig info. I'm still learning about pigs myself. If you have questions or comments feel free to ask and I'll try to answer. More pig stories soon enough.
First we tried asking her to go in with food, only to have the trailer fall over and scare her. apperently the small trailer needed a counterbalance for the 500 lb pig climbing in. ok, fair enough, makes sense. After that she was afraid of the thing. Next we tried forcing her in with cattle panel (as suggested in a pig book). she just stuck her nose in the cattle panel and tossed it (and me) aside. Or busted through a wall, or the trailer, or whatever she thought would make us leave her alone. Finally we built a chute (experienced pig farmers know thats what you need in the first place) got her in with food. Still, she wasn't inclined to go in the trailer so I got the hose and sprayed her. Actually, that was a wonderful humane was to get her to move: it was hot, so it wasn't terrible for her to get wet...just annoying enough she moved away from the water. So i sprayed her face when she tried to nose out of the chute which got her to stop trying to break out and then sprayed her backside on up into the trailer. It worked! She went in and stayed calm (thank goodness because she could have busted through that rickety trailer if she wanted).
 |
| The beautiful lady using a natural sleepmask |
 |
| Yes, Rosie is a big girl. |
The next night we went to pick up her new boyfriend. Well, THAT was an adventure coming back up a twisted, steep mountain side gravel road with a 500 lb boar we didn't know in a rickey trailer in a manual S-10 Chevy without 2nd gear. Lets just leave it at that. Oh the adventures of moving farm animals without money.
While I had hopped to use Mr.Pig in a similar way and run him under the orchard that we don't have planted yet I'm not sure how long we can keep him and his appetite. But we have two goals with him: a friend for Rosie and to breed Rosie.
Oh yes, did I mention the other thing I liked about his breed? Well, as I understand it modern pig breeds don't necessarily know how to have sex. Infact, the farmer either has to help insert the boars penis into the sow OR just skip the boar and use artificial insemination which means the farmer has to track the sows ovulation cycle and administer 2-3 doses of semen when she is in heat. Personally, I love Rosie but thats a little too friendly for me. I want to be the matchmaker for my animals, but i don't want to be involved in their sex lives.
However, these modernbreeds are MODERN, farmers once upon a time did not have AI, nor the time to stand around and help their pigs breed. The Old Spot breed can breed without human help. Mr.Pig is proven aka. he has made babies already: his balls work and he knows how to use them.
 |
| Who's got big balls? I've got big balls! |
His breed creates alot of bacon. The fellow we got him from recently slaughtered an old spot that gave him 75 POUNDS of bacon, plus hams. Rosies breed (Yorkshire) can be made into bacon, but overall the meat is very white. Instead it makes good roasts, tenderloins, and other white cuts. The fellow we got Mr.Pig from is very excited about crossing York with Old Spot as he says its the best possible mix of breeds. We shall see.
Rosie has mixed feelings about Mr.Pig. He's kinda a dick at feeding time as he pushes her away from all the feed troughs, but he is another pig to hang out with. I remember one day I fed him and he was in the corner chowing down on the slop I gave him. Food was literally flying everywhere and his ears where bouncing everywhere. then at the other side of the pen I had food for Rosie. She ate slowly, calmly, happliy chewing her food, looking around, took another bite walked over to the bathroom, went pee...came back for somemore food...went for some water...lalalala....and all the while in the other corner food is flying everywhere as Mr.Pig was choking it down fast as he could. What can I say? Rosie is a lady with manners, Mr.Pigs a bit of a country bumpkin.
Rosie has cycled, though. Her first few days with mr.pig she was not thrilled. I went to visit them one day and he was asking for backscratches from me, and she was nosing around his balls. At one point he was ignoring her, she stuck her nose between his legs and went *womp!* right into his balls. He went crosseyed, flew a foot in the air and let out a squeal that said it feels the same for all guys. Next day she showed signs on her backend of being in heat. Hopefully he preformed his duty and she took. We may have pigglets in the couple months. Lets hope!
One last thing. The pen they are in is temporary. We want to build a paddock system and run them through the fields and forest rotating the pasture giving it a chance to rest. In some cases we will use the pigs on a very limited space to tear out weeds and rototill, then move them off and plant on the cleared and fertilized ground. If we can time this right we can really make the whole property healthier...if not we can mess things up. Compare the pen from when we first built it to 3 weeks later:
That was alot of pig info. I'm still learning about pigs myself. If you have questions or comments feel free to ask and I'll try to answer. More pig stories soon enough.
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