Last year I bought some Ancona ducks from Cackle Hatchery. I ended up with six ducks at the end of the season. I checked to see which ones had the curly tail that marks a drake (male). I identified 2 males and put red and blue leg bands to mark the drakes and ducks (females).
This year I noticed one of the red-band ducks had a curly tail. So yesterday I went in to inspect the whole gang. I found that I had 4 drakes, not just two, and only 2 ducks.
I also noticed that I had 2 tricolor drakes, not just one as I had thought. So, what I did was I took the two black-and-white drakes and put them in the pen with my extra roosters.
I'm hoping to hatch out ducklings--- both black-and-white and tricolor. I'm thinking of trying to vent-sex the ducklings so I can raise a group that has more ducks than drakes for next year. I'm also hoping to have many others for selling at the fur and feather swaps this year.
~o~o~o~
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Friday, March 19, 2010
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Guinea Fowl Fever
Last year I bought a pair of guinea fowl at a Fur and Feather Swap. I liked them so much that at the next swap I bought three more. The runty one died, and two others blew away in a blizzard, but I ended up with a pair, one male and one female.
They are very nice. I housed them with my spare roosters in a pen made out of a six-foot-high chain-link dog run, with an old calf hutch for a winter shelter. The guineas quickly learned to fly out of the shelter to forage, but flew back for overnight.
This spring I decided to get more guineas. The guinea-pen now has netting on the top so they can't fly out, so I will get all their eggs. I'm also haunting eggbid and other sources looking for hatching eggs for sale. I just got my new incubator so I have greater hope that hatching eggs will hatch.
It seems like the first signs of spring is the time when I get all excited about poultry, ordering more kinds than I really need. But I'm hoping this year to hatch out quite a few to sell at the fur&feather swaps. In addition to my guineas I have Ancona ducks (who have already started to lay) and an assortment of chickens including 4 rumpless Araucana types. I also have 2 self-blue silkie bantams--- a hen and a rooster, and if I can only set them up in separate quarters I'll be set....
~o~o~o~
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They are very nice. I housed them with my spare roosters in a pen made out of a six-foot-high chain-link dog run, with an old calf hutch for a winter shelter. The guineas quickly learned to fly out of the shelter to forage, but flew back for overnight.
This spring I decided to get more guineas. The guinea-pen now has netting on the top so they can't fly out, so I will get all their eggs. I'm also haunting eggbid and other sources looking for hatching eggs for sale. I just got my new incubator so I have greater hope that hatching eggs will hatch.
It seems like the first signs of spring is the time when I get all excited about poultry, ordering more kinds than I really need. But I'm hoping this year to hatch out quite a few to sell at the fur&feather swaps. In addition to my guineas I have Ancona ducks (who have already started to lay) and an assortment of chickens including 4 rumpless Araucana types. I also have 2 self-blue silkie bantams--- a hen and a rooster, and if I can only set them up in separate quarters I'll be set....
~o~o~o~
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Monday, October 19, 2009
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Octagon Eco Incubator
This incubator is cool! It has a capacity of 24 chicken eggs, and comes with dividers so you can set it up for whatever size eggs you have. It is auto-turning and it looks to be easy to use and easy to clean.
~o~o~o~
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Monday, September 21, 2009
Farmers' Market in Daggett, Michigan
There is a new Farmers' Market in Daggett, Michigan, which takes place at Fran's Rink and Park in Daggett--- next to the grocery store, which is next to the place where I go to vote.
It started June 18th, and is on Thursday from 4pm until 7 pm. When I went, there were 2 vendors. There were green beans, garlic, and live chickens and rabbits available, among other things.
The web site has information on what vendors were there in June and July but hasn't been updated. Also it does not have information on how to become a vendor at the market. (I'm working up the courage to phone the farmers' market manager for info.
I'm hoping that folks in Menominee Co. will patronize the market and that it will still be there next year--- I'm hoping to participate.
~o~o~o~
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It started June 18th, and is on Thursday from 4pm until 7 pm. When I went, there were 2 vendors. There were green beans, garlic, and live chickens and rabbits available, among other things.
The web site has information on what vendors were there in June and July but hasn't been updated. Also it does not have information on how to become a vendor at the market. (I'm working up the courage to phone the farmers' market manager for info.
I'm hoping that folks in Menominee Co. will patronize the market and that it will still be there next year--- I'm hoping to participate.
~o~o~o~
Have a farm blog? Join the farming reddit!
Monday, May 4, 2009
5 Best Books if you are Serious about Sheep
If you are serious about your sheep--- whether you have 5 or 500--- you will want some good information about them. There are a lot of sheep books out there. Here are a few with actual information you can use.
1. Sheep Raiser's Manual by William K. Kruesi
This 1985 book is one of the first two I bought about sheep raising, and it has been in constant use as a reference ever since. It is aimed at the producer of commercial sheep (for meat), perhaps in flocks of 100 or less.
This book contains a wealth of sheep wisdom. There is a section on methods of grazing, from continuous grazing to intensive rotational grazing and strip grazing. The pasture improvement section tells how to improve your pastureland through methods such as frost-seeding. A chapter on line breeding tells how to improve your flock through linebreeding while avoiding the hazards of closer inbreeding.
There is a section on accelerated lambing methods, particularly the Cornell STAR system. This system was very popular when the book was written; now people are more likely to favor a system of annual spring lambing on pasture. However, it is good to know both methods!
There is also a very good section on farm business management that all sheep raisers should take a look at. Your sheep should be supporting you, not you supporting your sheep.
2. Storey's Guide to Raising Sheep: Breeds, Care, Facilities by Paula Simmons and Carol Ekarius
I bought the earlier edition of this book, Raising Sheep the Modern Way . Updated and Revised Edition
about the time I bought the Kruesi book, and both books were my first sheep raising guides. The breeds section in this book was where I first got the idea of getting Shetland sheep, which at the time were very rare and quite expensive. The book has a great deal to offer in the way of sheep facility plans, suggestions for sheep related income, particularly from wool, and vital information on sheep health in lambing. Above all, it introduced me to the charming rhyme 'Ewes yearly by twinning/Rich masters do make/The lambs from such twinners/For breeders do take.' (Youatt, 1837)
The twinning rhyme is sadly absent from the newer edition, but it is updated and now includes a number of profiles of successful sheep farms. It has enough new information that I don't for a moment regret buying the new edition even though I still had the old.
3. A Conservation Breeding Handbook by D. Phillip Sponenberg
is useful for the breeder of any rare breed of livestock including sheep. The most important thing I got from reading this book is detailed instructions for how to divide your flock into 3 separate bloodlines for the purposes of reducing inbreeding. It also details 'rescue breeding', which is when you start with a very small flock, perhaps with only one ram.
These breeding methods are not only of use with the very rare breeds, it's also good for preserving rare bloodlines within more numerous breeds, or for those who want to minimize their purchase of outside stock.
4. More Sheep, More Grass, More Money by Peter Schroedter
is not written by an 'expert' but by a boots-on-the-ground, manure-on-the-boots sheep farmer who tells how he makes money by grazing sheep in Canada. Grazing is the emphasis here. Schroedter recommends pasture lambing in the spring rather than winter lambing in sheds and tells how to do it. He tells how to pick strong grazing replacement ewes, and how and when to add grain feeding to the mix.
Much of this book is quite amusing and it is a great and useful read, but remember this is one man's experience. He dismisses the prolific breeds such as Finnsheep, Romanov and Booroola as being too expensive to feed for his system, yet I know of one Booroola breeder who also practices pasture lambing. As always with farming books, try things out and keep what works for you, in your situation.
5. The Complete Herbal Handbook for Farm and Stable
is another book I bought early on which has proved its worth over time. The book recommends using garlic as a wormer; recently there have been scientific studies which confirm this method's usefulness. This book is a very complete account for the use of herbs with different classes of livestock, including many that the flockmaster can grow for himself.
Do you have favorite farming books not included on the list? Tell me about them in a comment!
31 Days to Build a Better Blog , day 2 assignment, Write a List Post.
Note: several more Shetland sheep blogs have been added to our blogroll, as well as some Dorper sheep blogs. Please visit them!
~o~o~o~o~o~
Have a farm blog? Join the farming reddit!
1. Sheep Raiser's Manual by William K. Kruesi
This 1985 book is one of the first two I bought about sheep raising, and it has been in constant use as a reference ever since. It is aimed at the producer of commercial sheep (for meat), perhaps in flocks of 100 or less.
This book contains a wealth of sheep wisdom. There is a section on methods of grazing, from continuous grazing to intensive rotational grazing and strip grazing. The pasture improvement section tells how to improve your pastureland through methods such as frost-seeding. A chapter on line breeding tells how to improve your flock through linebreeding while avoiding the hazards of closer inbreeding.
There is a section on accelerated lambing methods, particularly the Cornell STAR system. This system was very popular when the book was written; now people are more likely to favor a system of annual spring lambing on pasture. However, it is good to know both methods!
There is also a very good section on farm business management that all sheep raisers should take a look at. Your sheep should be supporting you, not you supporting your sheep.
2. Storey's Guide to Raising Sheep: Breeds, Care, Facilities by Paula Simmons and Carol Ekarius
I bought the earlier edition of this book, Raising Sheep the Modern Way . Updated and Revised Edition about the time I bought the Kruesi book, and both books were my first sheep raising guides. The breeds section in this book was where I first got the idea of getting Shetland sheep, which at the time were very rare and quite expensive. The book has a great deal to offer in the way of sheep facility plans, suggestions for sheep related income, particularly from wool, and vital information on sheep health in lambing. Above all, it introduced me to the charming rhyme 'Ewes yearly by twinning/Rich masters do make/The lambs from such twinners/For breeders do take.' (Youatt, 1837)The twinning rhyme is sadly absent from the newer edition, but it is updated and now includes a number of profiles of successful sheep farms. It has enough new information that I don't for a moment regret buying the new edition even though I still had the old.
3. A Conservation Breeding Handbook by D. Phillip Sponenberg
is useful for the breeder of any rare breed of livestock including sheep. The most important thing I got from reading this book is detailed instructions for how to divide your flock into 3 separate bloodlines for the purposes of reducing inbreeding. It also details 'rescue breeding', which is when you start with a very small flock, perhaps with only one ram.These breeding methods are not only of use with the very rare breeds, it's also good for preserving rare bloodlines within more numerous breeds, or for those who want to minimize their purchase of outside stock.
4. More Sheep, More Grass, More Money by Peter Schroedter
is not written by an 'expert' but by a boots-on-the-ground, manure-on-the-boots sheep farmer who tells how he makes money by grazing sheep in Canada. Grazing is the emphasis here. Schroedter recommends pasture lambing in the spring rather than winter lambing in sheds and tells how to do it. He tells how to pick strong grazing replacement ewes, and how and when to add grain feeding to the mix.Much of this book is quite amusing and it is a great and useful read, but remember this is one man's experience. He dismisses the prolific breeds such as Finnsheep, Romanov and Booroola as being too expensive to feed for his system, yet I know of one Booroola breeder who also practices pasture lambing. As always with farming books, try things out and keep what works for you, in your situation.
5. The Complete Herbal Handbook for Farm and Stable
is another book I bought early on which has proved its worth over time. The book recommends using garlic as a wormer; recently there have been scientific studies which confirm this method's usefulness. This book is a very complete account for the use of herbs with different classes of livestock, including many that the flockmaster can grow for himself.Do you have favorite farming books not included on the list? Tell me about them in a comment!
31 Days to Build a Better Blog , day 2 assignment, Write a List Post.
Note: several more Shetland sheep blogs have been added to our blogroll, as well as some Dorper sheep blogs. Please visit them!
~o~o~o~o~o~
Have a farm blog? Join the farming reddit!
Friday, May 1, 2009
Take Care of the Flock, and the Flock will Take Care of You
Recently I joined an internet something-or-other called 31 Days to Build a Better Blog. The first day's task was to write an 'elevator pitch' for your blog. That is, to explain your blog briefly enough that you could explain it to someone in the course of an elevator ride.
What I came up with is this: 'Take care of the flock, and the flock will take care of you.' What does it mean? I'm not quite sure. But in part it's a reaction to the idea of solving all of one's financial problems with off-farm jobs, money-making schemes, and purchasing various high-priced stock, equipment or feeds to make your flock profitable.
Your flock--- the sheep you've got now--- have the potential to support you if you support them. At least, that's my hope.
So that's what I will be writing about on this blog. I hope someone enjoys it!
One thing I'm going to be doing to create a better blog is to create some good blogrolls. All of the blogs will be related to sheep farming or farming in general. Today's addition to the blogrolls is Allan Savory's blog. Allan Savory is the editor of the Stockman Grass Farmer magazine, a good magazine about intensive rotational grazing.
A previous addition to the blogroll is 'Redbud Lane Shetland Sheep'. This is a Shetland sheep farm in Missouri. Right now they have a lot of wether (neutered) ram lambs for sale, check them out here.
~o~o~o~
Have a farm blog? Join the farming reddit!
What I came up with is this: 'Take care of the flock, and the flock will take care of you.' What does it mean? I'm not quite sure. But in part it's a reaction to the idea of solving all of one's financial problems with off-farm jobs, money-making schemes, and purchasing various high-priced stock, equipment or feeds to make your flock profitable.
Your flock--- the sheep you've got now--- have the potential to support you if you support them. At least, that's my hope.
So that's what I will be writing about on this blog. I hope someone enjoys it!
One thing I'm going to be doing to create a better blog is to create some good blogrolls. All of the blogs will be related to sheep farming or farming in general. Today's addition to the blogrolls is Allan Savory's blog. Allan Savory is the editor of the Stockman Grass Farmer magazine, a good magazine about intensive rotational grazing.
A previous addition to the blogroll is 'Redbud Lane Shetland Sheep'. This is a Shetland sheep farm in Missouri. Right now they have a lot of wether (neutered) ram lambs for sale, check them out here.
~o~o~o~
Have a farm blog? Join the farming reddit!
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