Preparing for fall and Growing the Farm

     Yesterday we got about 50 or 60 meat chickens from our friend and her dad. I know we have no room for them all but if we can get the roosters of the bunch to slaughter stage it will help us food wise for the winter.  The hens can give us more eggs too but the price of food will go up also. 

This is only a few of the new chickens we got .

     The baby pigs are growing so fast. They are a month old tomorrow. They get out everyday and eat the goats food.  But now the pen is wired shut so they can't get in there. We need to sell a few of the un-registered ones to make room for the ones who are and breed more registered ones. If anyone is looking to have a hog roast let me know.

     Yesterday I borrowed one a Rex bunny to breed with our rabbit Sugar. I sure hope this time we get some babies. They are the same breed. The Rex bunnies are so soft and thick velvety fur. They are great pets for children on up to elderly folks. They make great pets. They are easy to take care of and can be trained to live in the house.

Sugar has a box for her soon to be babies.

     The goat pen needed mending again. Jacob has smashed into it enough again to break the wiring around the bottom most of the way on two sides. He was escaping and coming up to the front door. While we were wiring I got into a nest of fire ants again, this will be the second time this weekend. The rain has driven them out of the ground everywhere.

Chloe checking out the wire job!

Jacob is mad now that he can't escape.

Ant Attack Ouchy!

     We have started on the girls section of the house. Getting ready to put in windows. Hopefully we can get all the window work done.

   

Wow it’s Alive!

     I am so amazed that my rye and wheat grains have started to sprout. The grains have been in the refrigerator for a while too. Now I can start the buckets of fodder for my girls (hens)! I will have to make a trip over to Earth Fares to buy some new seeds this next week. Boy are the girls going to love me. It will save me so much money in the long run. 

     Today we went to check on rabbits and I think this time we have a winner.  Silvia the rabbit may well be pregnant now. We put Bunbun in with her to breed. She is beginning to nest again. Sugar was bred also with him at the same time, so hopefully we can have babies. The g kids are hoping for new babies.

Growing Up

Growing Up

          Today we are getting lessons in breeding rabbits. Since the g-girls brought their bunnies over to our house to live we have since found out that we have one male and two females. Today we also noticed that their female that brought started to pull out her fur. Hum… Well I know what that is all about but they were worried, so I told them to go do some research on it. And research they did. They came back in to tell me they needed to get a box for her because she was going to have babies. We let them know there was already a hutch set up for her in the back yard. They were so excited too. We got it ready for her and prepared her box and rounded up food bowls etc. They watched a few more videos and came in to tell us we needed to cut her nails before the babies were born. They even told me how they can tell whether the rabbits are pregnant by how big their bellies are in your hand. They told me they were to check the babies every day for the first week to see if they were healthy and well fed.  They will be good farmers one day if they keep up the good work researching. 

          I too did some research just as a refresher course since we have not had rabbits here for a good many years. We never raised the dwarf bunnies before we had the meat bunnies. I found out how much feed they were to have every day and what they weight for the basic knowledge. I also found out that the Netherland bunnies are a very popular breed. Did you know rabbits can breed and have their kits in 30 days? Did you know female rabbits were called does and males were bucks? Or did you know that momma rabbits were called dam and male fathers were sires?  You only need one buck to ten does when breeding, and it can be as early of 5 months old for the does and 6 months old for the bucks.  So if you think rabbits would be a great thing to  breed  make plans for lots  of them and a way to sell them before you get too crazy because the can  have up to 8 babies if you are breeding dwarfs.  Everyone needs their own pen just remember and the male is the one put in with the female. I hope this is a help to anyone who reads my blog that may be interested in rabbits breeding.  Well now you know just a bit more.

          In the mean time we will have to put the male in his own pen too. I am sure my bunny will be pregnant too if she isn’t already. In the meantime I think my g kids are starting to grow up, and in ways that is good and in others it saddens me.

Silvia the Bunny

Silvia

Today, after our worship service, we had to go to Walmart to pick up a few things. On the way in there was a lady standing outside the front doors and in her hands she had the cutest little bunny. She asked me if I wanted her. Wow how can I resist. We were just talking about rabbits just the other day. My husband said “You have no place for that rabbit” and I said “Oh yes, we still have a few rabbit hutches left at home from when we raised them before.” I whispered to the lady I will take her and I will be back shortly. She told me she would wait for me to come back out.

We shopped for the few things we needed and I went out to see if she was still there and she was gone. My heart sunk. But as I was crossing the parking lot, she come across the way with her. I was so happy. I took her to the car and opened up a bottle of water for her because I know it was very hot and who knew how long they were out front there. Capful after capful she lapped up.

When we got home I gave her more water and some greens that I had in the refrigerator and some sweet feed. I put her in a plastic shoe box with an old shirt pulled over one end of it for now. I am sorry to tell my cats that they have been evicted from the rabbit hutch I have been feeding them in. Hum now I have another dilemma, where will I feed the cats?

I have everything ready to go when the time comes to put my little silver bunny I names Silvia out in her new home. A rabbit waterer, a feeder pan and a rather big size home for her to live in. I hope she feels like she got picked by a good mommy to come home with.  I love saving the day!