SheriM - Too Stubborn to Stop Dreamin' - SURPRISE!!!

[Quail_Antwerp]

I agree with justusnak.

I am sorry for the loss of the pups. Sometimes that is natures way of taking care of the ones that won't make it.

If you don't mind a little advice, if you decide to do a plan breeding later, I would suggest having puppy bottles and puppy milk replacer on hand. Sometimes if a dog has a large litter, not all of the pups get equal nursing time. Rotating the pups to nurse helps ensure that everyone gets fed. While the first few pups are nursing, bottle feed the others. Then, rotate them. Next feeding, the pups that were bottle fed get to nurse and you'll bottle feed the ones not nursing.

Good luck! No matter what, don't give up!

Of course I don't mind some advice! One of the main reasons I joined this forum was to learn from people with more experience than I. Having puppy formula on hand is a very good idea and with good old 20/20 hindsight, I'm surprised I didn't think of it. I've always got goat replacer (or frozen milk) and colstrum on hand at kidding time. It makes sense to do the same thing for puppies. Thankfully, I won't be having any more pups for a long time now. I don't want them bred on back to back heats and absolutely refuse to breed them in winter again, so I won't have another litter till around June, 2010.

Well, I didn't want it to sound like I was telling you what to do LOL

I have a very good homemade puppy formula recipe, much cheaper than buying replacer and it works great. I'll dig it up for you.

 

[SheriM]

SheriM - A belated welcome from me. I have not been around much lately. Taking a break from the forum and getting ready for planting, etc.

You do have your hands full but sounds like you are up to the job.
Just a little overwhelmed at times. We all get like that occasionally.

Chickens are really easy. (Well, except for those first few weeks in the brooder). Of course the brooder time is also the most fun. Watching them grow and play. As justusnak said. Large waters and feeders would make that an occasional chore. I use a 5 gal bucket with holes drilled in the sides at the bottom and a plastic flower pot tray screwed to the bottom of the bucket for a feeder. I fill mine every other day but then I am feeding 25 birds. It would last for a few birds for a long time.

As for the puppies, you seem to have a handle on that now. So try not to let that worry you. In all animal raising there will be loses. I don't mean to sound callous but its just the way it is. I try to just let nature take its course. I guess that thinking just comes from being a long time animal raiser and it helps me get past the occasional loss.

On the garden - have you considered container gardens for your first attempt? Or raised beds? Since I am not sure exactly what you are wanting to grow its hard to say if containers would work for you. Raised beds would be lots of work in the beginning but less work down the road on weed control. Containers are great for some things but won't work for others. Give us some idea on what you are wanting to grow and before you know it you will have more ideas than you have time to try. LOL

Hi, Wanda. Thanks for the welcome.

I have lost plenty of critters over the years. It truly is a fact of life on a farm. It's just that I worked so hard on both those little fellas and I am feeling guilty for not bringing them in that night when they looked a little off. In hindsight, though, I really don't know if that would have helped. I just feel like I didn't do enough. I always feel that way when I try to save a baby critter and fail.

As for the garden, the previous owners of our property had a great garden area set up. I haven't touched it in 4 years, so I'll have to pretty well start over, tilling it up, etc. but thankfully I have plenty of manure to add. I even have some rabbit manure left over from my bunnies and all of that will get worked in this spring. I'm planning just a small plot to start with, growing the basics: peas, carrots (everyone tells me we have fantastic soil for carrots) corn, tomatoes, lettuce and maybe a few radishes. Eventually I might like to add some potatoes and squash, but we'll see how it goes. There are only two of us to feed, so I won't be planting a great deal of any one thing, that's for sure. We have a very short growing season, compared to some, so that does limit my choices a little bit.

 

[SheriM]

Well, I didn't want it to sound like I was telling you what to do LOL

I have a very good homemade puppy formula recipe, much cheaper than buying replacer and it works great. I'll dig it up for you.

That would be great, thanks! No rush though. The remaining pups are doing great now. The older litter is getting to that unbelievably cute stage...eyes open and just starting to motor around on their bellies. Heaven help me when they start truly walking and then running. There will be NO stopping them!

 

[OkieJonesClan]

Welcome Sheri!

Your place sounds great. I am glad the pups are doing well. Hang in there

edited to add - I love your avatar! So cute!!!

 

[SheriM]

When I need to work things out, I write. I've done this since I was old enough to hold a pen. I do my "thinking" with a keyboard now, but it still works.
Here is what I came up with after "thinking" about recent events.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I Care

My world is awash in the pink glow of the yard light as I trudge through the predawn stillness, my head down, my heart heavy with thoughts of the small souls who left this world after such a brief existence. Beyond the yard lights reach, my flashlight reveals the fresh, unblemished snow, as crisp and white as the fur of the tiny pup I laid to rest just a few short hours ago. I lift my head finally and the yard settles into place around me. The snow is new, pristine, unbroken but for the tell-tale ribbon of yellow in the snow bank to my left. This makes me smile, just a little, and reminds me that, while my thoughts are filled with death, there is life all around me. On a farm, where there is life, theres urine.

Farther on, white light again gives way to red as I step into the shed and into the blush of the heat lamp hanging in the corner. A white cloud surges up from beneath the light and becomes a dog, the newest mother in our little corner of the world. Her movement disturbs her puppies, who squirm and cry. Their limited perceptions know only that the warmth and security of that big furry body is suddenly gone. The sound of their desperate cries pierces my heart. I cannot tell them that their mother will return soon, her own belly full, ready to resume her new role as their custodian.

I am a custodian too. God has chosen me for the bittersweet role of steward, to a man whose mind is slowly betraying him, to virtual strangers who live alone and lonely in their declining years, stubbornly clinging to the last shreds of dignity and independence, and to all of the animals who share this small piece of land God led me to.

Yes, God led me here, to this place, in this time, because this is where I need to be. He created me to care for others, for it is by giving, that I receive, by feeding others that I am nourished, by relinquishing parts of myself that I become whole. Pain is an inevitable by-product of the role I have been given, every time I watch the man I love try and fail at something that was simple for him only months ago, every time I go to work and discover yet another client has been removed from our Home Care roster, their battle to remain independent over for good, and every single time I venture into the farmyard and discover that a brand new or elderly animal has slipped from this world in my absence. I grieve each of these losses, but from the loss, there is gain as well. Every time my heart aches, my soul grows. Each little piece of my heart that goes with the departed creature leaves room for a greater love, a deeper appreciation for the opportunity to touch, however briefly, the wonderful simplicity of the animal soul.

And then, as the mother dog settles again around her pups, they burrow deep and urgent cries fade to contented grunts. Stillness descends once again and peace wells up to surround me. There will be more losses, more souls young and old who will leave this little corner of the world, will leave me, but as each of those souls brushes mine, however briefly, I will come away changed. I stand as witness to the rhythm that is life and death, granted by God the rare and beautiful chance to experience both sides to the very fullest a human being ever can.

Because I care.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

[justusnak]

Oh Sheri! You had me BAWLING. You are an artist with words. I...am not. So, all I can say is....keep strong. You have a great outlook on life...and death. Thanks for shareing that with us.

 

[lorihadams]

I agree Sheri, you definitely have a way with words. I'm sorry about the pups but it sounds like the mama is doing a good job and the remainder are happy and healthy. We lost the runt of the last litter my chocolate lab had and it nearly killed my husband, poor thing. He was raised in the city and isn't used to seeing death with animals. I was raised with quite a bit of country influence and it was not as hard for me. We did everything we could to save her but it just wasn't meant to be.

We are also struggling with my husband's grandmother, Nanny, and dementia. There are lots of times that she doesn't know us or our children and it is really hard to see. We just try to make her happy as often as we can. She is in assisted living now because we just couldn't monitor her all the time. She almost burned down the house several times, was convinced that we were stealing from her, would try to drive and get into fender benders and just drive away, she would get in the car and couldn't remember where she was going or how to get back home, would open up credit cards all the time and then refuse to pay the bills because she didn't remember charging anything, etc. I know it has to be hard taking it all on by yourself but we are all here for you and willing to listen whenever you need to vent your frustrations.

As for chickens, you may want to get 3 or 4 hens that are of laying age to begin, to "get your feet wet". That is what we did and we are getting more accustomed to them and what needs to be done. We got eggs faster and got to skip the baby months. It was a lot easier that way. We may try chicks later on down the road to raise for meat...hubby is learning exactly how commercial chickens are kept and processed and he is thoroughly grossed out now...I'm converting him slowly

You will be okay, just remember that God won't give you more than you can handle! It may not seem that way at the time but everything happens for a reason.

 

[SheriM]

Got a huge surprise tonight when I got home from work. It's supposed to be bitterly cold this evening, so I stoppbed at the barn to check on the older litter of pups. The instant I walked into the barn I heard an unmistakable sound. In the back part of the barn where all the goats bed down at night was a brand new baby goat!!!! You could have knocked me over with a feather because I wasn't expecting any baby goats till May. It took me a minute to figure out what the heck it all meant, but then realized I was much later than usual in getting the buck kids separated last year, due to a lack of pen space. Apparently, one of them...uh...matured more quickly than I thought.

 

[PamsPride]

Congrats on the new baby!! Where are the pictures???

 

[SheriM]

The mystery deepens!

Talk about mass confusion out there tonight. I just couldn't wait to find out what sex the surprise baby goat was, so DH and I went out at 11:00 pm to have a 'quick check', but I also wanted to check the does udder and it's a good thing I did. The doe has virtually no milk. Her udder is just barely there and the teats were capped over. After a huge struggle, I managed to uncap one teat and get a few dropped of milk out of her, but there's no way she can feed a baby. I thawed some colostrum, about 6 oz. and the kid drank the whole bottle without stopping, so she was definitely hungry, but I also got a look at her navel, and she's at least 24 hours old, maybe more. Somebody out there fed her enough to keep her going, but there's no way the doe has enough to keep the baby going. The really strange part is, this is an experienced doe who has never had any trouble raising babies. She has enormous twin girls last year, 13 and 11 lbs. respectively and fed them fine.

So, I guess I may have a bottle baby on my hands...which is absolutely the LAST thing I need right now, but at least she's got a momma to watch over her.

Oh, and notice the prounoun?

It's a GIRL!!

p.s. I promise pictures tomorrow.