A new journey into homesteading "pic heavy"

Chic Rustler

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I see a white dog in one of the pics. Is that the one who disappeared a few months ago -- returned?

Like the coops, too. I do similar with my broodies but use a portable pen of PVC & hardwire plus a big vinyl doghouse. For ME it's easier. Plus I can repurpose all of it. After a couple weeks, the little families are allowed to free range and penned at night as they return to "their" coop. when mom abandons them, the chicks still go back at night. Then, it's a grow out. LOL



No it's a new dog. Free to good home, I took him. He's more of a pet than a working dog tho. He don't bite kids tho


Got any pics? I'm thinking of building some tractors. Pvc is light....
 

sumi

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@sumi - Can you partially dismantle it for the move?
Unfortunately not. It's a solid metal pen, with 3 partitions. We'd have to cut it with a grinder to dismantle it and then weld it together again. It was originally build to house dogs, not chickens, so it's a big, heavy, strong thing. Perfect for everything except moving it lol
 

sumi

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No it's a new dog. Free to good home, I took him. He's more of a pet than a working dog tho. He don't bite kids tho
Even a non-working dog will be some deterrent to predators and if he's good and doesn't bother the livestock and good with your kids, he's an asset :) My DS is bugging me to get us a dog, but I'm not quite ready yet… I'm thinking if/when I do, I'll probably either buy a Bullterrier puppy from a reputable breeder (I LOVE Bullies, grew up with them), or adopt a dog from an animal shelter.
 

sumi

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Well, that stinks! Maybe you can sell it and use the money for a new pen?
I thought of it, but… I don't plan to stay here in this house forever. Eventually I would like to move into my own place and I am not going to find another pen like that easily. It's a great pen for housing broodies, cockerels, breeding pairs… I'm hesitant to sell it if I know I'm probably going to need something like that in future and that one was a once off, made by someone for housing dogs. I've not seen anything similar for sale here yet. My landlord assured me that the pen is not in his way where it is right now, it can stay there for as long as needed he said. So it may… And I need to start thinking about Plan B. Which looks like building something from scratch.
 

Chic Rustler

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well I tried to get some stuff done today.
We are over ran with gophers so I set some traps. I'll let ya k now how that works. Also trying a new grass only compost pile. I'm what will happen but we will see



20170930_153510.jpg
 

Chic Rustler

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20170930_190343.jpg
20170930_190339.jpg



decided to let the chickens in the garden for a bit. They loved it!
 

Joel_BC

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well I tried to get some stuff done today.
trying a new grass only compost pile. I'm what will happen but we will see
I've found that grass-only compost piles (made with green grass) heat up very nicely—and quickly! It cooks down a lot, in terms of mass. After the hot phase, it cools out. And then I find that in my piles made that way, I soon see a lot of red-wiggler worms. So if I leave them undisturbed for some weeks, the pile winds up being mostly worm castings (very rich and biologically active).
 

Chic Rustler

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I've found that grass-only compost piles (made with green grass) heat up very nicely—and quickly! It cooks down a lot, in terms of mass. After the hot phase, it cools out. And then I find that in my piles made that way, I soon see a lot of red-wiggler worms. So if I leave them undisturbed for some weeks, the pile winds up being mostly worm castings (very rich and biologically active).


Sweet. How often do you turn it? I was thinking I'd wait a week
 
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