Savingdogs-Saving the chickens

[savingdogs]

My duck is most certainly still broody!!!!!









I'm not sure what day to count from.....She has been sitting on them continually for two days, should I count from there?

She would NOT let me check out what was going on in there today or even clean the coop! I'll have to find a way to distract her to clean in there I guess. She is very protective. I'm wondering if I should block it off so the other two cannot enter the Taj Mahal? I can make them another shelter of their own. The other two seem extremely mild mannered, I can't really imagine them hurting a duckling.

And what about the pond? I know this sounds dumb but will the ducklings be okay around the big pond? Will the mama duck watch them with the ramp out of the coop and the getting in and out of the pond?

I think we need to put a load of dirt into the duck area before ducklings are born as well. The area is too rocky for baby duck feet. I'm really looking forward to them!

And my bunnys are still on track as well. I hope I can make some "easter" pet money, while still placing them responsibly into homes. I'm going to offer a buy-back for healthy animals if anyone tires of them (course I might eat them....bwa ha ha ha ha) but I can see the benefit of having a half grown animal returned to me with someone else having fed it until processing time or until breeding time. I think I could sell breeding pairs of both the muscovy and the creme d' argents in this area to fellow homesteaders via Craigs List, or sell them to city folk as pets. My rabbits especially are very beautiful. I'm not just bragging, they really are exceptionally pretty buns. I think they will be very appealing as pets as well as being a way for me to raise meat. But if I can get more for them live than what their meat is worth, I'm going to sell them live because Creme D' Argents are rare. :bun

 

[savingdogs]

So I had a friend contact me about the bucklings, she was interested in buying them, so I tried to contact the proposed buyer I had found. He has not responded in three days, so I'm going to assume he found something else sooner, or whatever.

This friend is someone I've known through animal rescue (more of a cat person) who has moved to the country. She is a real interesting gal, and we go way back, always LOVED working with her. She has been following my goat pictures via facebook and fell in love with my babies. She hatched a plan to buy them and have me bring them over on her SO's birthday. They already have a couple full size wethers and some other barnyard creatures, but she is more of a goat newbie like myself. But a wonderful heart and I guess they got brush!

She does want them to arrive on a particular date in MAY however, which would leave them here with me longer. I truly do not mind taking care of these adorable funny little creatures so that is a moot point, but I do wonder what it will do to my milk production. I mean, I realize they will nurse off mom and take some of the milk, but won't I still be able to keep Molly and Ginger going the same amount of time after they are gone? Putting off the time that we are milking twice a day until warmer months actually sounds really good to me. And right now Molly is supplying as much milk as I'm needing to use. It just delays any big cheese making projects. And frankly, I need to work in the garden next. I am going to ask for a deposit however so I can purchase my castrating tools without it effecting our grocery budget.

So I'm contemplating how having them here longer will effect things overall and I think I'm pretty pleased that my friend will have them. I'll henceforth refer to my friend as Cat Eyes because she not only loves cats, but she tatooed my eyeliner on for me about ten years ago, in a "cat eyes" style we selected together.

And yes, I love having my eyeliner tatoo. I'd actually love to have her do more! And I am not one for any other type of tatoo.

 

[ksalvagno]

If you are fine with it, then it should be fine. You can leave the kids on mom as long as you like (as long as mom is not being dragged down too much). You could always separate them from mom at night and milk in the morning to get more milk. Do whatever works best for you.

 

[glenolam]

Dude....I gots ta see that tat.....

So....the boys will be how old when they're ready to go to their new home?

I know your housing situation isn't the greatest, but maybe you can have the goats take turns in a stall; boys/kids during the day, girls/kids during the night or something like that. That way if you continue milking in the evenings you won't have the kids nursing ALL DAY LONG.

 

[savingdogs]

Well I've been milking the one with two kids just occasionally for practice and she seems to be getting easier. At first I was a little discouraged. I know my milking skills have improved but I think she is getting easier to milk as well. I wonder if the longer they nurse the more this happens? I can only milk her when she is quite full.

I note that Molly's "hard-to-milk" side is getting easier to milk. It still isn't as good as the good side (the teat is shaped different) but I can get it emptied now. Today I emptied the "good" side in less than a minute, and got about two cups! It shoots out so fast it is all frothy. The other side is still squirt, squirt, stop and massage, squirt, squirt, wait a little while and then begin again. But I got about a cup from that side today, so today was our milking record. Three cups. I'm drinking some right now. Yum!

Do NOT LAUGH those of you with full sized goats. Molly probably only weighs 70 pounds.

I would rather milk once a day if I can arrange it. Twice a day is just physicaly taxing for me and I would have a harder time keeping up that schedule. So I'm hoping selling the kids to Cat Eyes will work out.

 

[savingdogs]

Dude....I gots ta see that tat.....

So....the boys will be how old when they're ready to go to their new home?

I know your housing situation isn't the greatest, but maybe you can have the goats take turns in a stall; boys/kids during the day, girls/kids during the night or something like that. That way if you continue milking in the evenings you won't have the kids nursing ALL DAY LONG.

I could put all three kids in the same place I kept Donald, the dog yard. They love this area and there is less mud and a RAMP that is the MOST fun thing in the world.

The boys were born Feb 4 and 7 and she wants them mid-May. So three months. They would be pets, never meat. I think she is actually vegan, not sure though.

My eyeliner tatoo just looks like I'm wearing eyeliner. I don't have a before or after. But I have very pale lashes though they are long and fair skin. So having my eyeliner always there and never smeary is really nice. It is just a thin charcoal line on the outside of top and bottom. In my avatar picture I am wearing no makeup, but just my eyeliner tatoo, but of course you wouldn't know what I'd look like without it. I had it done when I turned 40 and have not had it touched up and it needs it. It was not painful like having an artistic tatoo applied, they numb you with a gel. It was like having a teeth cleaning or something. I would not do any cosmetic surgery to myself but would tatoo on more eyeliner. I went for a subtle effect and have always wished I went more dramatic.

 

[glenolam]

That's awesome (both the eyeliner and idea on the kids).

IMO, putting the kids in the dog pen starting at 8 weeks would be a great idea. It would force weaning so you could start milking more while at the same time keeping the boys bucks until 12 weeks allowing their urinary tract to grow (if you want to wait, that is).

You can always give them turns outside, but for 4 weeks I highly doubt anyone would care.

 

[savingdogs]

Well I was thinking of wethering them because of my doeling....won't they try to mate her? It would be simpler if I had all one sex (like all girl! ). But since I have her, I was thinking of keeping her with them but wethering them.

They are already fighting over whom will be her first.....and I really don't intend for it to be at this age with her brother or half brother! I find that rather gross that goats would mate so young with their siblings. It seems counter to nature for them to possibly get pregnant so young.

I don't suppose there is a way to protect her from them without wethering them short of keeping them apart.....?

 

[savingdogs]

And would they try to mate their mom and aunt?

 

[Farmfresh]

Unless they are obvious breeding stock - I would wether them.

Doing it sooner, as soon as things are descended, the easier on them as well.