Morning Chores

I have mentioned that we have 9 1/2 acres of land.  On this land we now have 1 dog, 3 cats, 18 chickens, 3 ducks, 2 horses, and 2 goats plus 2 small raised bed gardens.  The homestead is not even close to being self supporting, so I call it my hobby homestead.  Hobbies tend to be expensive and a lot of work, but you continue them for the joy derived.  Because this is a hobby, I help to support our home and homestead with a full time job (as well as being a full time mother).

I am often asked how I can possibly do everything that needs doing, especially in the morning before loading one child on the bus and bringing another to daycare and heading off to work.  So here is my typical morning on the farm:


Fritz says "Put some catfood in that bowl!"


This is Fritz, who has a self dog food feeder with all the dog food he could want, but he would much prefer to eat the cat food.  If I filled the cat food feeder up, he would eat it all.




So every morning I put out a cup of cat food for our indoor cat, Liza (and for Fritz), and a cup of cat food for our outdoor cats, Guess and Trixie, and, unfortunately, for the opossum who cleans up what is left over at night.





 


I also take a cup of cat food and/or table scraps for our chickens and ducks who greet me at the fence clucking, quacking, and fluttering every morning. 



The horses are fed their grain next and are given hay when the pasture is down.  Fritz is enthusiastic to accompany me to the barn where he gets his daily horse treat.  Every morning the horses greet me at the gate, then I open the tack room door to a horse butt facing me, and I have to remind them to get into their stalls for breakfast.

Since this is their routine, I truly think that they feel without this system of gate greeting, butt display, and stall command, they would surely not be fed.  (Horses love routine.)  In the winter I also have to check the temperature and put on/take off blankets as necessary. 


Next come the goats who are fed a small scoop of sweet goat chow - they are always so happy to see me!

I check everyone's water, then give a cup of sunflower seeds to the chickens who once again cheer me on from the other side of the fence.  I fill up the chickens' feeder, check their water, collect beautiful eggs from the nest boxes, then water the garden. 
 


I currently have strawberries in one garden with plans for zucchini, and sugar snap peas in the second with plans for cucumbers.  I will also be making a vertical garden "potato tower" out of field fencing, and I will let you know how that works out!




The whole production takes approximately 20-30 minutes.  Many people would cringe at the thought of these morning chores every day but, as it is my hobby, I usually find them quite enjoyable!  I hope you do, too!

These Crazy Animals! Part 2; My new Chickens

     As I have said before: Chickens are addicting.  This week after my latest fix, my husband uttered the 5 dreaded words no addict wants to hear; "You have too many chickens."

     More than a year ago, I had been Googling Polish chickens when I found out that there is such a thing as a frizzled Polish.  Last week the opportunity came for me to to actually own my own!  Dan and I drove 1 1/2 hours away to the home of a nice breeder who was selling off her Polish - two show quality tolbunt Polish chickens and two roosters - one of the roosters being frizzled!  

Captain Jack, my holy grail of chickens.
Admit it - you want one, too.

     The frizzled has feet issues - when he was young, his feel went through the wire cage bottom when traveling to a show and broke his toes.  She was unsure how well he would get around and unsure if he could mate. However, it turns out he gets around fine.  Although with his hilarious crest blocking his vision and his slight limp, to the amusement of all, he walks like a drunken sailor!  Hence his name: Captain Jack

     I tried pulling his top feathers up out of his eyes, and it worked fairly well, but he hates it.  The tie only lasts an hour or so before he manages to scratch it off, taking off a couple feathers each time, too.

Jack with his crest pulled up in a ponytail.

     The boys had a brief spat to decide the dominant rooster, and although Jack lost (it was close!) I have seen him make more than a few attempts at dancing with the hens.  Here is his rival, Will Turner, who currently catches the ladies' attention:

Will Turner and the ladies.

     As far as I can tell, none of the newbies had ever seen grass or been on a roost before.  Every night I have to round them up and set them on the roost.  Last night I covered them in wood ash from my neighbor's fire pit before setting them in because I believe they may have mites.  I also added DE (diatomaceous earth) to the communal dust bath areas, but those silly noobies don't even know what a dust bath is.

     Will, especially, had the hardest time learning how to roost, and would lose his balance, but clung on with the determination only a rooster can have.  When I checked on them the first morning, he was still on the roost.  Then when I checked around 10:30 am, there he was - still on the roost.  It turns out he didn't know how to get down.