Avalon1984-Chicken, horses, pigs, oh my!

[baymule]

I have just finished reading this journal. Really nice Clydes! I enjoyed reading about the bee keeping......someday......I would like to try bees.

As far as hay goes, ya'll are blessed. At the feed stores here, square bales go for $12. Round bales $80-$130. Last year during the worst drought in 60 years, it was higher. We got lucky and found some "last years" hay and bought it.

This year we bought 100 bales for $7 each and 10 round bales for $60 each. We felt like popping open the champange bottle, but we spent the money on hay.

 

[Dawn419]

As far as hay goes, ya'll are blessed. At the feed stores here, square bales go for $12.

OUCH!!! That will make hubster feel better about the bale he just bought, though...maybe.

 

[Avalon1984]

Quick update from me. Still alive, but my arms are ready to fall off.

Hay time is hitting us pretty hard. We are running out of room to stack and found a nice old lady whose husband passed away last week and she is selling hay. Once she got to know us she told us just how much hay she has, and it is all top quality and she is selling it for a fair price. Now it's only the challenge of stacking it in the barn. We have 1,100 stacked, but I really want to have 1,800 to get a good winter supply for all the pregnant mares. Plus we are selling whatever we don't need at a profit right now. She had some people stop by and busting bales left and right, all that loose hay makes me wish I knew how to profitably raise goats or beef cattle this winter so the hay doesn't get wasted too much. Oh well. The lady has a 300 acre farm and a beautiful old setup for dairy cattle. Been meaning to take pictures for you guys. The old man even had a poop elevator going in behind the milking stanchions. Now that is neat.

Oh well, going off to put the chickens in now.

Have yourselves a good night!

 

[HandledWithCare]

I guess we need to start stocking hay for the goats through winter, but thankfully we won't need the volume you guys have for horses. The goats are dwarf goats and as of now I have two! Hay is a major factor in the livestock market around here and animals are selling CHEAP because people don't want to pay feed store prices. $6 a bale isn't anything compared to $12! I plan to grow some Timothy this fall--I think we can get it established by winter--to ease the need for buying hay--plus the rabbits need it! Alfalfa is common here too but much higher in calcium so I feel iffy about it for rabbits and male goats.

Sounds like you guys will be alright on hay this winter--though I hear it's supposed to be a harsh one!

 

[Avalon1984]

Whew. That was a long time of being gone from here. Sure has been a busy fall and winter though. Hope everybody survived the holidays! The pregnant mares are doing well, we are t minus 3 months before they give birth. Took the little stallion to the horse show and got our butts handed to us, as expected, but certainly gained lots of experience and will be back this year with a different set of horses. Chickens are doing ok, the darkness and increasing age is not helping things. I ordered 55 new spring chicks to be delivered in 2 batches, on the end of the month, the other set in March. That should bring me back to optimum efficiency. I have increased all my garden sizes since we have so much more manure these days anyways. Tomato garden will be double the size after I had lots of success selling my tomatoes, then we will have a big sunflower patch out front and a larger veggie garden for my cabbage. I miraculously was able to grow Brussels sprouts. I dont eat them but wanted to see if I can grow them. Well I guess I can. I also thought myself the finer ways of making blueberry cordials, my batches have been getting better each time, which is a good feeling after our Mead experiment turned into more like rocket fuel than any drinkable alcohol. At least we can use it to gas up our cars hahaha. Getting ready to add our 10 stall barn addition. Weather is not cooperating but well get it done one way or the other. Had my first ever experience of a rotten egg yesterday. After having had animals and their gross endeavors for years, this one brought me to my knees and I threw up on the smell when trying to dissect it. It was a fresh egg so I suspect something is going wrong inside one of my chickens. I havent heard anybody tick yet but there is something with stink bombs inside it in my coop. I will post pictures on the chicken forum to see if somebody has an idea. So thats from our front so far I think. Will probably think of more things along the way. Hopefully everybody is doing well and itching to get started on gardening again or awaiting little baby animals 

 

[Avalon1984]

I knew I forgot to add pictures! Here is our boy at the show, minus the mane flowers, we put those in after picture taking and it turned a bit hectic for a while.

And here is the inside to our newest chicken house #3. We finally did finish it.

 

[Icu4dzs]

I knew I forgot to add pictures! Here is our boy at the show, minus the mane flowers, we put those in after picture taking and it turned a bit hectic for a while.

http://www.sufficientself.com/forum/uploads/3820_253178_802489499427_2003816877_n.jpg

And here is the inside to our newest chicken house #3. We finally did finish it.

http://www.sufficientself.com/forum/uploads/3820_246582_313176642123615_1576444418_n.jpg

That is one handsome critter you got there. Bet he can pull "his weight" when needed!
How do you like the "high tech" nesting boxes?
Trim sends
//BT//

 

[pinkfox]

im forever drooling over your horses, just gotta figure out how to rig the lottery so i can buy one and get it transported to me! i LOVE shires!!!

 

[the funny farm6]

love your boy! missed you while you were gone.

we sold all but our blind pony this fall.

 

[Avalon1984]

I knew I forgot to add pictures! Here is our boy at the show, minus the mane flowers, we put those in after picture taking and it turned a bit hectic for a while.

http://www.sufficientself.com/forum/uploads/3820_253178_802489499427_2003816877_n.jpg

And here is the inside to our newest chicken house #3. We finally did finish it.

http://www.sufficientself.com/forum/uploads/3820_246582_313176642123615_1576444418_n.jpg

That is one handsome critter you got there. Bet he can pull "his weight" when needed!
How do you like the "high tech" nesting boxes?
Trim sends
//BT//

Hahaha! I wish he would Trim! That lil critter just won't grow. He was supposed to be my breeding stallion but he is sort of half the size he should be despite a phenomenal pedigree. I will give him one more year and if he doesn't grow decent I will say "Off with his nuts!" I do love those plstic nesting boxes. I love wood in my chicken coops but I was positively surpirsed by those things and the chickens love them. Can't complain so far.