Spring is full swing on the homestead...

Well, we all know about the Spring attitudes! But now it is my turn to get in the mood...not that mood! The cleaning mood!

So far this is what my weekend looks like:
Saturday:
9am: 10 bales of straw being delivered
all morning: cleaning rabbit cages and putting straw away
day time: making cheese and yogurt
evening: homework

Sunday:
9:30: meeting
1:30: home and soap making
late afternooon: seed planting
evening: sewing

Monday:
morning: kayaking?
late afternoon: pick up new bunnies
evening: finish homework and make meals for week (bfasts and lunches)

World Tree Rabbitry needs revamping and attention

Okay, I have decided enough is enough. I am getting a trio of different kind of meat rabbits. One of the does is proven and will come here bred! Once those babies are weaned, I will breed her to one of my other bucks and then the other...we will find out what the issue is here with no babies! I am spending a good portion of this weekend getting the rabbitry back in order and keeping the chickens where they belong (anywhere but on my porch and on top of my rabbits!)

These Harlequins are meat rabbits but are not as rare/critical as the Silver Fox or Am. Chins (the Am. Chin being the most critical with the Silver Fox as second) but I have actually never seen them around here...the breeder is trying to bring them to the Eastern Shore. They are an old breed from France. So, I am hoping to have some luck with them and then get back to raising the other two breeds once I have some meat in the freezer. I do like the look of their fur too...for crafts. Since my breeders become my pets, I like that they are really cute with their multi colored faces!

Here is the pic of the young buck I am getting named Tempo.

Here is the pic of the young doe I am getting named Enigma (Momo is her mom).

And this is Momo, (a Black Japanese Harlequin) who will come to me pregnant by:

Randy Blue - a Blue Japanese Harlequin (papa of Tempo)

Spring in flux

Well, the separation of the toms was a success. Mr. Buff and Big Tom are raggedy looking but not trying to kill eachother anymore. Mr. Royal is in with a lady friend with the ducks and geese...no one seems to mind the new arrangement....should work until I get the new pens built. Ms. Buff and one of the grey hens is still setting eggs...I am not thinking much is going to happen because I find they occasionally leave the nest to go socialize with the boys! *shakes head* young mothers! Spring has not started to set at all yet...so maybe she is waiting for warmer weather or seeing what the new girls come up with?

The geese are really laying now and the ducks...sorta. Hoping incubating the eggs will be successful!

Rabbits are an issue right now...I just got 2 new rabbits, a buck and doe Standard Chins...the buck never got into a good eating routine...when I brought them home, the girl was hesitant for a day or so and then was eating like everyone else, the buck not so much. He would never finish a bowl of food but he didn't seem to be losing weight. I didn't put them together though, thinking the buck needed more time to acclimate. Well, late last week (Thursday), he was fine in the morning, when I got home late in the evening he was tilting his head and walking in circles...Saturday he was worse and then slipped away. The poor little thing, I hadn't even named him yet. So now I have a doe that is too small to breed with anyone....think I will be selling her and going back to concentrating on the ones I have, particularly since it seems Rowan, my SF doe, has gotten a parasite. I dewormed her, separated her from everyone and she is eating like crazy...so hopefully it all works out and she starts to gain weight again. Everyone else is fine, thank goodness! Sometimes I hate spring...this is when I always seem to have issues.

So, crossing fingers for everyone to get or stay healthy! I have an0ther big work day this coming weekend!

Spring! eggs and such

Well, I can't seem to keep up with everything...especially here. School is just crazy, meaning I am crazy and stressed. Definitely a difficult semester. And, of course, now it is time to get moving on homesteading stuff. All the girls have started laying like crazy and I now have tons of eggs!

My turkey hens are setting on eggs (hopefully they are viable and they produce babies!). I have goose and duck eggs...hopefully viable (have seen the drakes doing their jobs but haven't seen anything going on with the Geese, so...we shall see). The duck and goose eggs are going in the incubator in the next couple days...just need to get some time to get it all set up!

I had to separate the toms because they are trying to kill eachother, so Mr. Royal is in with the ducks and geese with a hen to keep him company (the black hen from the slate/oregon mix). The two greys from that mix are still with Big Tom, Spring, and Mr. and Mrs. Buff. Mr. Black from the mix group is in a crate now...ready to go to freezer farm soon. All the hens have a reprieve for the moment...need bigger ratio of hens to toms and I am keeping all the toms except Mr. Black...though I need a Mrs. Royal since my first hen disappeared. :-(

Gardening is starting to happen and with that a new fencing that will keep chickens off porch and keep the two Cayuga drakes in the garden.

Hopefully I will be able to report more progress soon!

goosies

Well, I have been unsuccessful in the hunting my own food department this year. No deer for myself but I was lucky enough to get some from friends. No geese for me yet either. It has been a weird year for most hunters. However, my coworker/boss got 3 geese last night and brought them to me! He knows I like to use the whole goose, down, feathers and all. The leg meat goes to the Trollie girl and the breasts for dinner! Yumm yumm...this means I have my plans set for tonight though...with 3 geese to process and then clean up after (and going to make broth) I'll be busy with that all night. Tomorrow will be a definite reading geography/working on lab night!

so much for keeping up with this blog

Well, I made it through the holidays and had like one week off from school after the holidays, not from work. So, the break I was so looking forward to never happened. The first couple weeks of classes were insane due to issues with my computer and compatibility with the software at the school. Not fun. I finally got it sort of figured out...at least to get me by for now. The amount of work for my two classes is insane on top of everything else I need to do. But the classes are good, I am learning a lot, I just might not get my normal A's and I might go splat by the time it is all done!

On the homesteading side....things are going relatively well. I have had a bit of loss. One of my turkeys got out, my Royal Palm hen and she disappeared...of all of the turkeys I did not want to lose her. So, no Royal Palm babies this Spring. I still have my Buff and Standard Bronzes though and someone has started laying eggs! I think an incubator is in my immediate future. For now...the eggs are yummy!

Speaking of eggs, I have gotten 2 duck eggs this week, one blue, one white! And chickens...well, they have slowed down but my new girls are still going strong and my little Polish girls are doing their duty!

My rabbits are a source of aggravation. They do provide good poo for garden and such but no babies! *grr* I am getting 2 new rabbits next weekend with my tax return, a Standard Chinchilla pair - I have an American Chinchilla pair and a Silver Fox pair right now. Maybe I can get something going!

On another sad note, Rothy - my barn cat that came with the house - got hit by a car. He had become my summer garden and porch buddy, I am going to miss him so much.

All else is proceeding as usual for the winter (as odd a winter as it has been). I got the fencing up in the front yard area and will be starting my second garden there shortly. I am starting some seeds this week for early spring planting.

And I leave you with a pic of my Americauna girl Vivianne.

Been quite awhile...

Well, I didn't mean to be away for this long but right after all my traveling came the end of the semester and well, that is always a lot of stress! It has been one of those Falls...lots of stuff going on around the homestead, new car to lessen stress of being stranded but add stress to the bank account and end of semester woes.

However, I finished both my Geology class and my Soil Science class with A's and will be moving on to my new school this next semester..transferring into the BS in Oceanography and Climate.

This past weekend I spent time finishing projects that needed to get done. I never got the geese and ducks moved to thier new pen so they are where they are til the Spring. However, they needed just a bit more shelter than the awesome tree there...so I put together a very rough shelter with some 2x4's and a full sheet of plywood...interesting doing it by myself in the pen that was all mucky from recent rain...it got done though and my muscles were only a little sore the next day! LOL

I also finally got my worm bins made (I will post pics in another post) for my red wigglers and I am nearly done with my aquaponics system. I am awaiting another size tubing, need to make the final connections then add plants and fish...(I will post all this in its own post soon too).

Anyway...I am back and have lots of projects to catch up on.