Recent content by SD Farm Girl

Leta, I'm a great fan of Gamma Lids and store all my dry goods in Vittle Vaults. They are usually on sale online at Pet Smart and I just wait until there is a sale and they have free shipping. They are intended for pet food but are airtight and come in huge sizes or stackable models. Rice...

I, too, would like to see a livestock section. I'm new to the SS lifestyle and learning as I go. It would be so nice to be able to ask questions or read what others have to say about different aspects of owning livestock from purchasing, housing to processing.

Cleaning the cat litter box. Eeeeewww!

Interesting stats. Thanks for sharing. Sugar bags in my area are 4 pound bags. Seems like prices keep going up and the size keeps going down. Remember pre-made salad in the plastic bags? I noticed it's 12 ounces now instead of 16? I grabbed a bag of chicken food last month and noticed it...

I'm a little late in this post but maybe someone could try it for next year. I saved all those bags that chicken feed, horse grain and cat food came in. The new bags are made out of a sturdy plastic that has netting wove into it for strength. Cut some slashes at the bottom of the bag for...

What a great idea!

I have both sizes of Donvier brand ice cream makers. The smaller size is great for a single person, the larger for a family or group. They can be purchased on Ebay for significantly less than say, Amazon, if you watch for a good price. Even cheaper, like mine, if they spell the brand wrong and...

I used to stock up on honey when Walgreen's had their half off sale. Then, my friend gave me two jars of 'real honey'. Funny how you'd never know what you're missing until you have the real thing. There is no comparison in taste, color, consistency, etc. It melts in your mouth and I found...

Gladys is a 'happy' name. I like it!

A good rule of thumb is 2.5% for a dry cow and 4% for a cow in milk. A little more if she is being milked and is pregnant. You might want to call your county Extension Office or a bovine vet and ask where you can get hay tested for free. Someone selling hay should not be offended to give you...

BarredBuff had estimated feed based on feeding Alfalfa, rather than grass hay. Based on the percentage of protien in the alfalfa, it may require less feed than say, my grass hay in SD. Different areas have different nutrient content in the grass. Grass hay in my area is about 12% protien while...

Now, let me ask this . . . there are two of us. Would it be confusing for the heifer if we both do the milking? I'm thinking what if one is unavailable or busy then the other could step in. I'd like to go out of town next March and August. Lee would need to be "known" by her too...

Hello and welcome. I'm in South Dakota. Nigerian Dwarf goats are a great choice if you don't need gallons of milk each day. They don't eat much, are friendly and don't take up much space. They can easily fit in a dog carrier to transport. And goat cheese is very tasty.

A great reminder to grow what you can, use what you have and don't waste anything you don't have to. Now I'm hungry for shrimp.

Sometimes no matter how much you budget and plan, extra expenses always pop up. Winter brings me an extra $200 a month on the electricity bill to run the water tank heaters for the livestock and I just found out my county is doubling vehicle registration prices. Oh, and insurance went up again...