annaraven - more random update stuph

[savingdogs]

Taking a cooking class in italy sounds soooooooooo exciting....have fun and stay safe!

We removed the lawn and put in garden at our last house and I was never happier with it. no mowing and very little water!

I drove by it day before yesterday and the new owners have converted it back to lawn.....

 

[abifae]

Have fun! It sounds fabulous.

 

[AnnaRaven]

Showed the neighbor lady today where to harvest the lettuces while we're gone. Picked off a leaf and there was a big juicy snail. LOL. So I did some snail harvesting and brought them back to the chickens. They looked at them dubiously for a while until one of them finally took a chance, pecked at it, then ran away while the others chased it... They decided then that the snails were actually worth pecking.

In the meantime I put out sluggo...

 

[savingdogs]

Mine don't like snails and slugs and it is funny to watch them wipe their beaks after trying them, they try to wipe off the slime on the ground.

 

[AnnaRaven]

Well this summer has been a no-show. We've been travelling so much that I havent' hardly seen my garden, or my kitchen. And DS ran out of chicken feed while we were gone (and didn't call and ask, so I couldn't remind him we have 50 pounds of it in the garage!) so he let them in the back garden to forage so I have none of the gorgeous kale I was hoping to turn into soup...

I did manage to pick up some sour cherries yesterday and can some sour cherry jam. That's been the extent of my preserving this summer. I'm heading off to the farmers market now to see what I can find.

 

[AnnaRaven]

Well, no luck at the Farmers Market. Just have to watch for the sour cherries next year.

I went to the Youth County Fair yesterday. And, OMG, would you believe I fell in love with a goat! Her name was Flower. And she was a dwarf goat about 11/2 years old and only about knee high! Squeeeee! She was adorable and sweet and kept wanting to be petted. My *dog* is bigger than that goat.

Now I really want a goat.

I did manage to resist. Barely.


See what ya'll have done?

 

[Britesea]

the hard part of owning a goat is that you have to be smarter than the goat, which is not always a given. Goat owners don't wear shoes with laces while they are working with the animals, because the laces will be untied within moments. You can always tell a barn that has held goats, because all the latches are on the OUTSIDE... away from clever little caprine tongues. Fencing can be a problem (note: NEVER lift a goat OVER a fence, because then they know that they can jump over it) Even electric fences may not work. Hubby had a goat that figured out that she could feel the current in the wire through her whiskers, without getting zapped. She also figured out that it pulsed. So she would stand at the fence and wait until she felt a pulse, then immediately push through during the "safe" time.

They are adorable. loveable. and very useful. They also can be destructive, getting into EVERYTHING. I love goats.

 

[Farmfresh]

Even electric fences may not work. Hubby had a goat that figured out that she could feel the current in the wire through her whiskers, without getting zapped. She also figured out that it pulsed. So she would stand at the fence and wait until she felt a pulse, then immediately push through during the "safe" time.

They are adorable. loveable. and very useful. They also can be destructive, getting into EVERYTHING. I love goats.

Ponies can be the same way. I had one pony that could escape from a HOT (with extra ground rods) three strand electric fence! He did the pulse trick and then would dive through the space between the wires - over two and under one. I love ponies too.

 

[AnnaRaven]

Didn't buy a goat. But I did buy a steer yesterday. It got slaughtered and is now hanging at the processor. I've got 1 for sure and 2 maybe takers on the quarters. I'm thinking I might buy a new freezer. One for the beef and one for the pig. At least that way, I'll have space until I can the beef stew and turn the bones into beef stock.

I found a craigslist ad for a freezer (2011 model) for $250. It's a 14.5 cu ft chest freezer. I've been thinking a chest freezer would be a good thing to have. And I don't have to worry about the electric bill now that we have solar.
ETA: Speaking of freezers, I kept hearing about how you can freeze milk. So I bought milk on sale and put it in the freezer. Apparently, I should have opened the top or something, because the jug split! Oops. I managed to salvage most of it...

 

[Farmfresh]

You can ALMOST buy a brand new freezer for that price. My new ones are even Energy Star rated.

I bought mine from Home Depot and used their credit card at NO interest for 12 months. As soon as I got the first one paid off I bought a second. Then I bought one for my D1. They even delivered them.