Quail_Antwerp: Words from the Barnyard...

[Beekissed]

Okay...you topped me! So very cute! Will make some very tender little steaks in the fall and will probably be enough of a nuisance by then to give you a good reason to can him up in a jar.

Sorry to hear about your family....one of the reasons I moved five hours away from mine~too much unsolicited hatred and drama.

I know you have worked blood, sweat and tears into that property and it would be horrible to even think of moving but never a door closes that a window doesn't open. Sometimes unanswered prayers are the best ones~at least it was for me. No one ever thought I would move away from my other home and sell all my possessions and start over somewhere new. I thank God every day that I did. It was hard, but it was very worth it and we have been very happy here.

I will be praying for God's will in this matter and for you and Ernie to have the strength to weather this new battle.

You could always move up here near me!

 

[freemotion]

NOOOO! Near me!!!!!!

 

[Farmfresh]

I would say move near me .... but even I don't want to live here!:/

Yes... The nuisance factor.

Could be just the thing to get that little cutie right on in that jar!

 

[Quail_Antwerp]

So ya'll are going to face off for who gets me as a neighbor, huh? You ladies are so sweet, and your comments made me cry tears of happiness, truly they did. I am so thankful for my friend's here, even if you are online friends. I wish I could meet all of you face to face!

Right now, an opportunity has presented itself, and if we are able to do it, I wouldn't technically be "moving" but we would be moving, if that makes sense. And it would really benefit us as a farm....and it would just fulfill a dream that we've had for awhile (no not Alpacas...tho that would be nice.............did I tell ya'll I found two Alpacas on CL yesterday for $400???????? I'm dying here!!!!)

Oops, got a little off track there.....

Fawn (Bambi) is OK, but we are a bit worried about him as we're having trouble getting him to eat. Does anyone know how long a fawn nurses on Mama? We're pretty sure he'd still be nursing, but we're having a hard time getting him to take a bottle. Ernie managed to squirt some milk into his mouth and he swallowed it, but after a few squirts he was fighting to get away.

Any suggestions?

I set 9 Buff Brahma Bantam eggs in the incubator from my own hen this morning. I'm testing fertility because a BYC'er wants some of Greta's eggs to hatch for herself.

We decided to go ahead with the NPIP Certification of my flock, and Ernie is talking about buying cabinet incubators as soon as we can afford to for my hatchery!! (This all works in with the opportunity that presented itself).

For now, we've decided to just hang tight where we are, go about our business as usual.

And pray.

 

[keljonma]

For now, we've decided to just hang tight where we are, go about our business as usual.

And pray.

Sounds like a good plan to me, QA!

 

[Farmfresh]

Good girl going with the certification of your flock.

It will make your birds that much more valuable.

I would probably force feed the fawn for a few days. I know he is scared and fighting, but you can't let him get in a weakened condition. He will figure it out sooner or later. I would probably feed him very similar to a kid goat. There is not that much difference.

Try to get them most in him early AM and before dark. That is when deer are most active. If possible I would try to keep him with your other small livestock - he may bond with one of those and if he sees them being fed by you he will probably follow suit sooner.

Just my suggestions.

 

[Blackbird]

I would guess its from the taste of the milk and not being used to you guys. What kind of replacer are you using, what kind of nipple, and how warm is the milk? You might need to get a different brand/kind of replacer made specifically for cervidaes if you want this guy to live, since he only knows mamma's milk, but he would be fine otherwise on plain goats milk in my opinion.

Hope you can get something down him.. force feeding some probios might be a good idea since hes probably stressed from all this..

Just my thoughts and expirience (my dad and uncles own an elk ranch).

 

[Quail_Antwerp]

Had a reasonably good day. Didn't really do much, though.

Hand weeded the potatoes and added dirt around them. They came back well after that awful frost that turned them all black. Nice and green and bushy looking now.

Peas are up and blossoming. I was excited to see that.

I have 16 asparagus growing out of 20 planted. I am THRILLED. My first time growing asparagus!!

Blueberry bushes are bright green and thriving.

Corn is up. Green beans are up. Strawberries are turning red. Onions (green scallions) are ready to be picked.

Squash, zucchinni, tomatoes, califlower, broccoli, carrots, and cabbages are all doing well. Only have two cabbage plants left thanks to my goat getting out. :/

Bambi drank half a bottle of milk for us earlier today, but this evening he drank an entire bottle! I was quite pleased. I think he had to get used to the nipple, but we found that if we put his head under Ernie's chin, he would nurse his milk right down! I am guessing it gave him the sense of being under his mama. He loves Ernie! He snuggles up to him and everything.

Who I am kidding? I'm the animal lover here, but it's my husband all the critters warm up to. What's wrong with this picture???

Anyway, we witnessed Bambi have two good poops today....so he's not having any problems in that department as far as we can tell. He is also getting around better on his leg. He walks out in the run with the chickens and is no longer running at the fence. He recognizes that the fence is there, walks around a bit, and then goes back in the shed with Ginger the goat. It's cute.

Ginger seems quite a bit jealous over Bambi, so I'm trying to make sure she gets the same amount of attention as he does.

Emily Update: We didn't have to corner her in the barn today to put the lead on her! She let us walk up to her and pet her! I am so proud of her!

The geese only have one gosling now. Not sure I had posted about it or not, but a couple weeks ago, Mama Goose took the babies into the pasture field...and well, either Chase or Boss stepped on one of them and crushed it. The remaining gosling is doing quite well and growing like a weed.

We had three kits born earlier this week to my buff lionhead lop cross bunny. She has one that is black, one that is white, and one that started out looking silver, but now looks like it will be buff colored like Mama.

The other babies are almost ready to leave their mamas. Our singleton kit, whom we are keeping, is eating and drinking on his own now and is quite the friendly little bugger. The three little black kits born to my other buff rabbit are still nursing on their mama a little bit, but they eat and drink on their own, too.

Turkey poults are growing fast! We plan to keep several females and maybe one male. We were going to sell them all, but thought we'd keep some of the girls for future breedings. I realize that will mean a mixed breed flock of turkeys, but someone looking for a fresh turkey for Thanksgiving dinner might not mind a mixed bred turkey.

Still praying and making plans and waiting on God's decision on an opportunity.

Had a nice visit with an old friend today who came down from Orrville. His wife just passed on June 3 and we think he's taking it pretty hard. He wanted to know when Ernie's surgery is and where it will be at. I wouldn't be surprised if he stopped in at the hospital next week.

Probably going to call it a night soon and catch some sleep. The baby still wakes up in the middle of the night, so I'm not getting uninterrupted sleep. Seriously thinking about moving his crib to the boys' room and letting him sleep in there..........

 

[OkieAnnie]

Wow! From this post looks like your garden and animals are doing well. I am so happy for Bambi! Great improvement

 

[Quail_Antwerp]

I almost forgot!

We've decided on Large Black pigs for our heritage breed! My Hobby Farm magazine came yesterday, and they just so happened to have....yup you guessed it! an article on Large Black pigs!!!

I bookmarked that article for Ernie and told him, "This is your next bathroom material!" He listened to me very well, took it on his next trip, and he is sold on the idea!!!!! I am so excited!!

Now, we're not going to have those by the end of this year, so we plan to just start off with some local mutt pigs to raise and butcher for our own use, and hopefully save some money back and be able to buy a gilt and boar next year of the Large Blacks.

I found it funny, because when I first tried to tell Ernie about these black pigs, he tried to tell me that I was misinformed in my information. Now since he has read the article, he agrees that they will fit for what I want to do!

AND the best part is, if we are able to follow through with the opportunity that I mentioned in a previous post, well, it will just work out well with us adding the pigs and such.

I don't think God's blessings for us have stopped. I think He's just getting started with us, and the idea of what He must have planned for us is just so awesome right now! Several dreams may be realized within the next 5 years, or less, and I cannot tell you how just truly amazing that will be, and that's all God's doing, not ours!

I think what my inlaws tried to pull was just a negative blimp on the map of our life and we're not to dwell on it, or give it reference if at all possible, because it doesn't matter. It doesn't affect or change God's plan, or will, for us and where He is taking our farm.