Savingdogs-Saving the chickens

[FarmerDenise]

We use a ceramic (food grade) pot I found at goodwill for our rabbit and for other critters. I also use the crockpot inserts, which I often find at Goodwill. It is food grade, sturdy and holds plenty of water.
I find those bottles that you put outside the cage, often just don'thold enought water or get green too fast and then they are not that easy to clean.

 

[savingdogs]

Hmmm....well, those dang watering bottles were about ten bucks each and looked like they would freeze up solid in a jiffy in December and January. At least a crock pot insert would hold some heat if I poured hot water in to melt the ice, I would think. Does it freeze where you are? We get down to about 10 degrees sometimes here, but no colder, and not usually below 20 except for a few overnight dips during the coldest days.

 

[savingdogs]

Home with an intestional bug today.....yuck. Lotsa fluids.

Fine drizzle is falling everywhere, making the goats and chickens miserable. The ducks don't give a hoot but even they were in the Taj Mahal.

Most of our leaves have fallen and only a few trees still have their bright orange or yellow colors. At this time of year our forest looks really misty and mossy and well, like the rain forest it is. It feels rather spooky and mysterious and there is obviously a cloud sitting on Dunegan Mountain that covers our whole property. I guess it is as good a day as any to be home nursing a tummyache.

Thinking about the Creme d' Argent bunnies is fun. Computer Nerd's reaction was "More animals?" but Trouble is excited, he loves anything that does not resemble schoolwork and has four legs (or two wings!). Computer Nerd says he is NOT eating any cute little bunny, just like he won't eat cute little duck. Trouble wants to help tan the hides and fry them up.
Trouble had just returned from the grocery store with us, where he just saw his parents spend more than 75.00 filling the meat freezer, and the four breeding rabbits are selling for 65.00. I'd like to have a more sustainable way of filling that freezer and I think Trouble got the point. There are only 1,000 or so of these rabbits left in the world so I'm hoping I could sell some live ones too.

I've been thinking of things to do with those hides, they are such a beautiful white with an orangish sheen. I was thinking first of all to make a bed coverlet for next winter. My hides would be tiny and delicate but have the gorgeous hair. But the "survivalist" in my hubby loves the idea of his wifey tanning animal hides. I've been reading up on the methods, anyone have any thoughts or experience with this, please chime in. See I've got the poor dears slaughtered already and they have not yet even been concieved. What a bloodthirsty carnivore I am. Bwa Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha.

 

[ohiofarmgirl]

What a bloodthirsty carnivore I am. Bwa Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha.

ha ha ha ha ha ha!!! welcome to the club, baby!!

wow i'm just dying to get one of these meats into the frying pan! whooot! we got 5 done today and we had another "volunteer" by crowing as we were shoveling the masses in.. wheeee!

and them pigz.... ah.... i'm just waiting.....

sorry you dont feel good, baby. if i were there i'd give you some chicken broth and a hug

 

[Blackbird]

I'm behind!

You're going to love rabbits!! Yummy!
In the winter we use plastic containers so we can just pop the ice out and refill. We don't do water bottles, not in the winter or summer. They are a pain to clean. They are alright if you only have a couple, but when you get up there in numbers, no way.

Your kid sounds like me. No driving here either. Say, can you tell me about what his job is online? Soap isn't panning out, no one will hire be locally, so I've decided to look at the from home type of work again. I decided tech support might not be my thing, and I don't want to do phone sex. Though that's mostly for women. LOL.

Tanning hides.. We tanned a lot a couple years ago but I haven't a clue as to how we did it.. I have several rabbit hides in the freeze back home.. I really should do something with them... Hm..

Hope you feel better!

 

[savingdogs]

I'm up early with a terrible stomachache, but I probably deserve it, I made tamales with the flu! But I used a recipe from BYC that worked out awesome, What a ton of food that made, cheap! And hubby said it was the best meal I ever cooked. Rather amazing since I have the flu. If anyone wants the recipe it was real easy.

The rabbits....maybe I won't invest in those watering devices then. It seems like the consensus is to use bowls and I already have those. I have tons and tons of bowls of all kinds from doing the dog rescue....people always donate stuff like that, especially after their pets die. So we get too MUCH donated dog supplies. We built our chicken coop from mostly donated supplies we could not find new homes for after trying for about five years.

But Blackbird, I'm glad at least one of my SS pals is a meat rabbit person....I'm buying these rabbits from a show rabbit person, although she knows that they will be for meat breeding. She says one of them actually won a best of show, but now she has a younger one that beats her so she wants to sell this one. She says she does well selling them live as well. I'm going to have her show me what are show qualities. Then I can sell of a few babies each litter that are the nicest ones and eat the culls.
Should I get pedigrees on them you think, Blackbird? They are available. If it costs money, maybe just on the show girl and the better of the two bucks? I was thinking of keeping a kit from that pair.

I actually live a few hours from this person and I'm sending her a deposit for the moment until we can meet. But hubby and I used to LOVE to eat rabbit when we could buy it in Los Angeles. I've never seen it for sale in the market here, but we found rabbit delicious. I don't think hubby will have any trouble processing them either....some day I'll have to tell you all the story of our mean foster rabbit.......

 

[Blackbird]

I think that's a good idea. Heck, in a matter of months you could be a reputable breeder.

For my show rabbits they did have pedigrees, that's important for a lot of show people and can increase the price. Some people sell available without for a cheaper price, and with for a more expensive price. I only showed at 4-H, so I don't know a whole lot about the actual process anymore.
I would suggest getting a Stand of Perfection book for 'Standard Bred Rabbits & Cavies', that will help you determine the qualities each breed should meet for showing.

 

[savingdogs]

That book is a good idea. She said that she needs to improve her line's shoulders, sometimes they are a little "down in the shoulder"...and that she will show me what the good points are so that I know which rabbits to cull, which to try to sell for show or pets. But a book would certainly help. She said the hair can vary, so I will probably also be breeding for the nicest hair. It is an unusual color, pale orange highlights over creamy white, and they get lighter with age.

 

[savingdogs]

Well Happy Wednesday Evening!

Blackbird, my son works online as a website fixer-upper. He tweeks websites for people, usually out of the country. He is very talented at it. He helps people make their websites more interesting and have cool buttons and graphics and stuff. He started his own business from scratch, there were no local jobs to be had around here. He just created a website and the business came to him. I can't tell you how he did it. But he is only 18. He did have a lot of online friends though (uh, kinda like YOU do.....).

The rabbits are coming, the rabbits are coming! I've been sent pictures and I sure wish I could upload them here. I should get Computer Nerd in here to show me how y'all do it. My pictures are always so huge. I'll work on it! But I'm meeting my friend at a chicken show in Chehalis on December 5th to buy my four rabbits.
:bun
:bun
:bun
:bun

I found out my former computer, when it crashed, took with it our entire family photo collection from about six years!!!!!!!!! It included also all my pictures of my fosters that I wanted to post here. I should have backed up that information! When we moved we took the computer apart and it never started up right again after that. Even Computer Nerd has tried. Moral of the story....back up your computer photo collection!

 

[Javamama]

Oh I'd love to see pics - when you upload them here, just checkmark the box that says "resize image?"

I don't think we are going to be eating any rabbits, the ones we have are just for pets and 4-h.