REAL MAN TRUCKWORKS & SURVIVAL
TOOLS, CONSTRUCTION, ALTERNATIVE ENERGY => What are you building? => Topic started by: stewie on December 25, 2016, 02:41:14 PM
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(https://images.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fs-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com%2F236x%2Fc7%2F5d%2Fdb%2Fc75ddb24f2f78f9cf1065de4cd00ad9f.jpg&f=1)
this is my first rule when working on my farm - cardio.
I've been ghost for about 3 months. Some know i moved up from being a suburbanite with every sort of convenience within 5 mins for me to a "farmer". it's been quite the transition. The Lord has humbled me not only with the work on the land but also with my family (who requires me time). I now have to drive 20 mins to reach a store and when i do go i need to be well prepped - like shopping lists and my daughter who reminds me about everything i always forget. Aside from the structural foundations, there is no concrete on the property - my driveway is 250 feet or dirt/grass and when it rains - mud. I've seen my tank (pond) swell 3x since late october and learning how the land handles water, flooding and wind.
We have 42 acres. 36 is leased to row crop and hay right now, so the area i am (current) actively work is 6 acres. Out of those 6 acres, 4 were totally covered in weeds, brush, crap and general lack of care and maintenance for almost 10 years. The first months i spent just clearing trees, 2 acres of blood weed, demoing old, rotted, dangerous structures - as well as working a 9-5 IT job. I've never ever been stretched so thin - ever. I am going from 6 am to often 11pm at night. With winter here, i have 2 hours of sunlight per day to work with if i am in the office during the day. Luckily i work from home a few days a week which is awesome.
Until the spring i am on a serious budget and while i can borrow my friends KUBOTA for heavier jobs, i like to - when I can get in a good cardio working out and do it by hand. I've never been in such good physical shape as i am now. Spring time will bring a UTV and possibly an older pickup into the mix.
Since 8/26, ive cleared 20 trees from the tank. this involved me wading up to my waste in nasty water with my darling STIHL saw felling willows, etc then dragging those trees 300 feet to a burn pile. A friend and I managed to take a few roots/stumps out using his tractor.
I've set 1.5 acres ablaze. The burn has turn that pasture area in the greenest grass on the land. This week i'll be setting ablaze a burn pile the size of a house as well as another .75 or so acres to prepare for bees, herbs and a vegatable gfarden.
I've demo'd an an entire 3 tiered deck with just a mallet and my STIHL. With the help of a friend, put up 300 feet of ranch fencing to make a backyard and built a 24x12' deck.
Built an entire 18x6' chicken coop (pics below), raises 26 chickens (20 are in the coop, 6 are going in our yard), met and selected SHEEP so we can start a herd for the spring, got a pot belly pig, wound up with a barn cat and planted to 2 pecan trees.
we have currently 3 large livestock pens. I am in the process of clearing those after 6 years of utter neglect. i plan to have that done this week (cardio, cardio, cardio). I've hard my arms and legs mauled by fire ants almost 12 times, slashes, punctures, rashes and allergic reaction from all the work, but.... i love it.
I took an entire weekend and attended workshops and lectures at a wonderful homesteading fair up in Waco. I left there armed to take on just about anything and blessed and humbled because the land i sit on now is so perfectly situated for what we want to do.
2017 will bring the adding of almost 1000' feet of fence line to open up more pastureland for the sheep, a veg garden, 2 small barns and some other TBD's.
Lol, and that's just the outside... i will not speak of the actual house. lol.
My life has been turned upside down. I've learnt more in these 3 months then my entire lifetime. God has placed new people in my life who are showing me the ropes and laughing when i screw up, then have a beer with me after.
I'm a farmer.... but i still wear my MERRELLS hiking/tac boots, tru-spec pants and an assortment of "breathable" shirts. I dont see this changing much. lol.
I'll make this an ongoing thread as i gather more pics and project info....
Casa De Cluck
(http://i554.photobucket.com/albums/jj411/fohshizzle/images/E725AEC2-43C1-4300-B3D9-08FD7D34F2CF_zpsuzcopoe8.jpg) (http://s554.photobucket.com/user/fohshizzle/media/images/E725AEC2-43C1-4300-B3D9-08FD7D34F2CF_zpsuzcopoe8.jpg.html)
(http://i554.photobucket.com/albums/jj411/fohshizzle/images/B15944C8-007A-46CE-B794-0CD8288F4CC4_zpsjuxpcpmj.jpg) (http://s554.photobucket.com/user/fohshizzle/media/images/B15944C8-007A-46CE-B794-0CD8288F4CC4_zpsjuxpcpmj.jpg.html)
(http://i554.photobucket.com/albums/jj411/fohshizzle/images/9CB4BB69-F8EA-4267-B6BB-E431B6D38CC4_zps0jv4d36r.jpg) (http://s554.photobucket.com/user/fohshizzle/media/images/9CB4BB69-F8EA-4267-B6BB-E431B6D38CC4_zps0jv4d36r.jpg.html)
(http://i554.photobucket.com/albums/jj411/fohshizzle/images/B0A5F794-510F-491C-B0E7-A77364ABBC73_zpsnvw9perh.jpg) (http://s554.photobucket.com/user/fohshizzle/media/images/B0A5F794-510F-491C-B0E7-A77364ABBC73_zpsnvw9perh.jpg.html)
(https://images.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=http%3A%2F%2Fthumbs1.ebaystatic.com%2Fd%2Fl225%2Fm%2Fm365GLXo3eWCVDlkLT7lgtQ.jpg&f=1)
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Awesome! Congrats on the wonderful new life.....
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It's great when it's your place. Good work.
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(https://images.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fs-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com%2F236x%2Fc7%2F5d%2Fdb%2Fc75ddb24f2f78f9cf1065de4cd00ad9f.jpg&f=1)
this is my first rule when working on my farm - cardio.
I've been ghost for about 3 months. Some know i moved up from being a suburbanite with every sort of convenience within 5 mins for me to a "farmer". it's been quite the transition. The Lord has humbled me not only with the work on the land but also with my family (who requires me time). I now have to drive 20 mins to reach a store and when i do go i need to be well prepped - like shopping lists and my daughter who reminds me about everything i always forget. Aside from the structural foundations, there is no concrete on the property - my driveway is 250 feet or dirt/grass and when it rains - mud. I've seen my tank (pond) swell 3x since late october and learning how the land handles water, flooding and wind.
We have 42 acres. 36 is leased to row crop and hay right now, so the area i am (current) actively work is 6 acres. Out of those 6 acres, 4 were totally covered in weeds, brush, crap and general lack of care and maintenance for almost 10 years. The first months i spent just clearing trees, 2 acres of blood weed, demoing old, rotted, dangerous structures - as well as working a 9-5 IT job. I've never ever been stretched so thin - ever. I am going from 6 am to often 11pm at night. With winter here, i have 2 hours of sunlight per day to work with if i am in the office during the day. Luckily i work from home a few days a week which is awesome.
Until the spring i am on a serious budget and while i can borrow my friends KUBOTA for heavier jobs, i like to - when I can get in a good cardio working out and do it by hand. I've never been in such good physical shape as i am now. Spring time will bring a UTV and possibly an older pickup into the mix.
Since 8/26, ive cleared 20 trees from the tank. this involved me wading up to my waste in nasty water with my darling STIHL saw felling willows, etc then dragging those trees 300 feet to a burn pile. A friend and I managed to take a few roots/stumps out using his tractor.
I've set 1.5 acres ablaze. The burn has turn that pasture area in the greenest grass on the land. This week i'll be setting ablaze a burn pile the size of a house as well as another .75 or so acres to prepare for bees, herbs and a vegatable gfarden.
I've demo'd an an entire 3 tiered deck with just a mallet and my STIHL. With the help of a friend, put up 300 feet of ranch fencing to make a backyard and built a 24x12' deck.
Built an entire 18x6' chicken coop (pics below), raises 26 chickens (20 are in the coop, 6 are going in our yard), met and selected SHEEP so we can start a herd for the spring, got a pot belly pig, wound up with a barn cat and planted to 2 pecan trees.
we have currently 3 large livestock pens. I am in the process of clearing those after 6 years of utter neglect. i plan to have that done this week (cardio, cardio, cardio). I've hard my arms and legs mauled by fire ants almost 12 times, slashes, punctures, rashes and allergic reaction from all the work, but.... i love it.
I took an entire weekend and attended workshops and lectures at a wonderful homesteading fair up in Waco. I left there armed to take on just about anything and blessed and humbled because the land i sit on now is so perfectly situated for what we want to do.
2017 will bring the adding of almost 1000' feet of fence line to open up more pastureland for the sheep, a veg garden, 2 small barns and some other TBD's.
Lol, and that's just the outside... i will not speak of the actual house. lol.
My life has been turned upside down. I've learnt more in these 3 months then my entire lifetime. God has placed new people in my life who are showing me the ropes and laughing when i screw up, then have a beer with me after.
I'm a farmer.... but i still wear my MERRELLS hiking/tac boots, tru-spec pants and an assortment of "breathable" shirts. I dont see this changing much. lol.
I'll make this an ongoing thread as i gather more pics and project info....
Casa De Cluck
(http://i554.photobucket.com/albums/jj411/fohshizzle/images/E725AEC2-43C1-4300-B3D9-08FD7D34F2CF_zpsuzcopoe8.jpg) (http://s554.photobucket.com/user/fohshizzle/media/images/E725AEC2-43C1-4300-B3D9-08FD7D34F2CF_zpsuzcopoe8.jpg.html)
(http://i554.photobucket.com/albums/jj411/fohshizzle/images/B15944C8-007A-46CE-B794-0CD8288F4CC4_zpsjuxpcpmj.jpg) (http://s554.photobucket.com/user/fohshizzle/media/images/B15944C8-007A-46CE-B794-0CD8288F4CC4_zpsjuxpcpmj.jpg.html)
(http://i554.photobucket.com/albums/jj411/fohshizzle/images/9CB4BB69-F8EA-4267-B6BB-E431B6D38CC4_zps0jv4d36r.jpg) (http://s554.photobucket.com/user/fohshizzle/media/images/9CB4BB69-F8EA-4267-B6BB-E431B6D38CC4_zps0jv4d36r.jpg.html)
(http://i554.photobucket.com/albums/jj411/fohshizzle/images/B0A5F794-510F-491C-B0E7-A77364ABBC73_zpsnvw9perh.jpg) (http://s554.photobucket.com/user/fohshizzle/media/images/B0A5F794-510F-491C-B0E7-A77364ABBC73_zpsnvw9perh.jpg.html)
(https://images.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=http%3A%2F%2Fthumbs1.ebaystatic.com%2Fd%2Fl225%2Fm%2Fm365GLXo3eWCVDlkLT7lgtQ.jpg&f=1)
I'd love to see plans for that chicken coop!
One of the nicest ones I have seen to date, well done!
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That's a level of commitment that few acheive. Congrats and thanks for sharing.
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Great looking coop and dedication to improving your piece of land- the things that snag, rip and bite are challenging to say the least! The power of a well planned and executed fire cannot be stressed enough!
Enjoy the process and the fruit of those labors!
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Good for you! Definitely investing that sweat equity. The cool thing is sweat equity will pay off for years to come. Looking forward to seeing the udates to come.
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I'm with the other guys, that's a heck of a nice chicken motel. Congrats on your progress!
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Is that one coop for 20 birds? That might be a bit tight for that many. You might see a lot of tail feather chewing when theyre in that tight.
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for the most part i designed the coop on paper and did a lot of on-the-fly design. it was my first 'large' project, so i had to learn along the way. i was still using my old, cheap power tools for the job so it took a long time to pull off.
the chickens will be free ranging in a 40x60 livestock pen at first then gradually more (still working on fencing). they all seem to get a long in the coop - although theyre still trying to figure out the "when do we go inside the hen house" routine.
yesterday i did a lot of cleanup, including finishing up brush removal from that pen. my arms are loaded in ant bites, but i slept well.
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Wow, you did it the hard way. If I can recommend next time get about 20-30 goats they will level an area like that in no time, all the way to the dirt. Also if you have more time 40-50 chickens will also accomplish the same task and you get lots of eggs out of it!
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Congrats on the new experiences. And I dig your Chicken Castle.
I suggest GEESE... they keep the predators at bay, they are great watch dogs, and they also clear land fast. They also oftentimes will help the chickens "learn" safe free range practices. As a bonus, they also can be trained to "annoy" anyone that you feel should be annoyed. I like to train ours to "escort" the USPS delivery stooge. My hope is to one day have a small army of geese that are trained to respond to German commands so I can be ....THAT guy.
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I'm intrigued by raising chickens. I'm concerned it's not feasible given I'm gone Monday through Friday.
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Chickens are easy, it depends on what you want, eggs or meat? you have to be careful mixing breeds as some do not mix well. Also your kids might not like the fact you have to "refresh" the flock every 3 years. The birds pretty much take care of themselves, just set up an automatic feeder and water system I have left mine unattended for a week and no issues, just have someone collect the eggs everyday.
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Phil thanks for that. Kids are fine with dead animals. Raised them right from the get go.
What if I don't have anyone near by to collect the eggs? Do I just toss the ones on Friday afternoon and collect Sat and Sun? Or will they stop laying if you don't collect daily?
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You can leave the eggs in the winter you can get let them sit for a few days summer is a little risky. What happens sometimes is they get into the habit of pecking the eggs or pushing them out of the boxes so they can eat them. Chickens eat everything and I do mean everything even each other sometimes. They only stop laying when they molt or the days(daylight) get short other than that the right breeds lay almost everyday!
It really comes down to what you are raising them for, in Texas coyote and fox might take the toll on the flock, as Norm says throw in a few geese and they will take a coyote on and usually win, birds are highly adaptive.
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I hate to keep dotting up Stewies thread. Do we have a thread on raising livestock yet?
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Wow, you did it the hard way. If I can recommend next time get about 20-30 goats they will level an area like that in no time, all the way to the dirt. Also if you have more time 40-50 chickens will also accomplish the same task and you get lots of eggs out of it!
no no... we're getting livestock too. the sheep will level the pens in no time, however i needed to clear the walls of weeds and decay all over because frankly it looked like janet reno's face.
we're going to get shetlands from a breeder outside houston. they're an awesome breed for what we want to do.
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Gotcha on the free range area...I thought they would be penned up in that area of the coop wire. That makes more sense.
Geese are definitely good watchdogs but I hate them. Had a great watchdog version of one when I was a kid. He ended up in the pot. Was a total pita.
TRN you can make nests with slanted wire floors where the eggs will roll out behind the nests into a spot they can't get to so they don't eat them. I agree that in your heat leaving them too long would be iffy. But would make a good kids job to collect them daily.
They will clear land really well but also will invite a ton of critters (hawks, coyotes etc) to come get them for a meal if they are totally free ranging so you have to be careful. The chicken "tractors" can do that well where you move them to a new spot, they clear it, then move it to another spot and the clearing continues.
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tomorrow i'll be setting ablaze the main burn pile and doing a clearing burn around the pond after i take down a bunch of dead branches from the surrounding trees. The weather should cooperate nice.
also, i am a real boy now! i got lured into consumerism and spontaneous purchasing @ home depot today. im officially broke - so no body ask me for $.
(http://i554.photobucket.com/albums/jj411/fohshizzle/images/C4581289-02D1-4FD3-9C98-0155C1591E92_zpsohd4nkvr.jpg) (http://s554.photobucket.com/user/fohshizzle/media/images/C4581289-02D1-4FD3-9C98-0155C1591E92_zpsohd4nkvr.jpg.html)
Chickens are easy, it depends on what you want, eggs or meat? you have to be careful mixing breeds as some do not mix well. Also your kids might not like the fact you have to "refresh" the flock every 3 years. The birds pretty much take care of themselves, just set up an automatic feeder and water system I have left mine unattended for a week and no issues, just have someone collect the eggs everyday.
we went with mostly orpington's with a few americas and wyondottes. the 2 latter are not nearly as chill and docile but good egg layers. we also have a few barred rocks and bantams we're keeping int the yard. they are growing much slower then the others so they're still inside. one of them has become best friends with the pot belly pig we have named "Chunk" of the goonies fame. lol
Winnie and Chunk. She actually comes when you call her. I have a feeling that barred rock will have on a chicken diaper and turned into a spoiled rotten entitlement animal like our dogs have become.
(http://i554.photobucket.com/albums/jj411/fohshizzle/images/AA82A4EF-D76A-4016-A926-8FAF9468AC16_zps7csl7ivc.jpg) (http://s554.photobucket.com/user/fohshizzle/media/images/AA82A4EF-D76A-4016-A926-8FAF9468AC16_zps7csl7ivc.jpg.html)
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I hate to keep dotting up Stewies thread. Do we have a thread on raising livestock yet?
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You know the deal right?
Edit: Hmmm, tricked myself, you're already the moderator of that forum!
I know, since I like controversy, here's how we'll do it this time
Red Neck since you called for it and I'd normally make that your baby, and since you're already tagged for the job, I'll hose someone else, just because you called for it.
Lucky winner will be: Wilbur!
Now you two boys get along down there, hear!
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Gotcha on the free range area...I thought they would be penned up in that area of the coop wire. That makes more sense.
Geese are definitely good watchdogs but I hate them. Had a great watchdog version of one when I was a kid. He ended up in the pot. Was a total pita.
TRN you can make nests with slanted wire floors where the eggs will roll out behind the nests into a spot they can't get to so they don't eat them. I agree that in your heat leaving them too long would be iffy. But would make a good kids job to collect them daily.
They will clear land really well but also will invite a ton of critters (hawks, coyotes etc) to come get them for a meal if they are totally free ranging so you have to be careful. The chicken "tractors" can do that well where you move them to a new spot, they clear it, then move it to another spot and the clearing continues.
We had a chicken tractor made from an old dog kennel/run, anchored it to a 4x4 base (with each end of said 4x4 length angled to slide over the ground) then had a chain at one end to sling over ball on atv hitch to move daily. Threw fence wire panel on top along with chicken wire & that cross sectioned slat material they use around decks for shade. Worked really well for several years.
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our original plan was a chicken tractor, too. its a great concept... but for our needs it quickly lost the focus. the coop was originally 6x12. i rigged up a simple, albeit pain in the buttox system to get it out from my car port (where i started building it in the rain) and into the pens. It took me pushing it and my wife pulling on my lawn mower to get it to move. Once i added on the much needed 6' extension that bad boy isn't going anywhere.
i will suggest that any coop have a mesh skirt around it. it keeps predators from being able to dig under the coop and get in. I'll take pics of my later today and post up. I used 2x4' horse fencing i picked up. I staked it into the ground as well.
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We had a coop/run they went into at night or days we just didn't get them out in the tractor.
On another note, Don I'm confused as I don't see any of that pink styrofoam board taped up anywhere in these pics Stewie is posting. Also seeing a huge lack of carnage of equipment? ;D
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We had a coop/run they went into at night or days we just didn't get them out in the tractor.
On another note, Don I'm confused as I don't see any of that pink styrofoam board taped up anywhere in these pics Stewie is posting. Also seeing a huge lack of carnage of equipment? ;D
Sure hope Don has had a good day or you will be busted once again.....
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We had a coop/run they went into at night or days we just didn't get them out in the tractor.
On another note, Don I'm confused as I don't see any of that pink styrofoam board taped up anywhere in these pics Stewie is posting. Also seeing a huge lack of carnage of equipment? ;D
The chickens must of eaten it!
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Never thought of that.....
Hey Don, buy some free range chickens & I hear they'll make that hide site way mo manly! Seriously Stewie ain't got no stinkin pink foo foo crap going on down there.......
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Since Shawn is taking cheap shots at me, I wanna ban him again. So I decided to let you knuckleheads vote on this rebel-rouser!
You people decide this man's fate!
Ken gets 20 votes to start with
I get 55
The rest of ya's get, say, one
That seems fair.
I voted the correct choice already ;-))
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Hey, I think that last option on the vote is really out of line. The rest of those options sound pretty good otherwise! ::)
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I like all the options, so...
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I hear Stewie has one of those "chain letter" pardons Obummer's handing out on the way, so no sense banning him until after Jan. 20 if it's going to mean anything....... ;)
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I hear Stewie has one of those "chain letter" pardons Obummer's handing out on the way, so no sense banning him until after Jan. 20 if it's going to mean anything....... ;)
Say it sin't so!
Well, if Stewie envokes the kings authority and pardons him, knowing that the Shawn was rescued by the Obummer, well I guess I could live with that... ;-)
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Pretty good distribution of votes up there.
But in keeping with the democratic party method, remember to vote early, and vote often!
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Oh, and Stewie,
Sorry for wreckin' your thread, but it goes like that around here!
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Boy the love is thick in here this morning I can smell it in the air. Then again maybe that smell is Kens gf H lurking around..... ;D
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^^^^ The boy just don't learn! He's still at it^^^^
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Sheesh....this is just like my RT job....I go do some work and come back to find out I've been selected for.....more work! And at the same pay. :o
Depending on the size having wire on the top is important. A buddy of mine looked wired his up after losing a few birds and looked out one day to see a red tailed hawk walking on the top looking down at the birds. Haha.
I had really good luck with barred rocks. Had 75 at one point (selling eggs was my "paper route" as a kid). The males make great meat birds too. I let some go too long without killing them and they dressed at 10 lbs. They were great eating.
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ok so it looks like my very important thread has been ruined. :(
i'm frankly at a loss here - the hens have been in the coop for almost a week tomorrow and they still havent figured out to go into the hen house. i have to chase them down each evening as put them into the hen house. it's driving me and my wife insane. this is further keeping us from letting them free range.
it seems even the chickens may have gotten contagious mental problems from a few of our dogs.
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"Chase them down"? You mean they stay in the coop or they stay on the ground in the pen?
Are they laying or not yet? Once they start laying they will seek out a dark place to lay so will likely go right in. You worried about predators chewing through the wire at night? My guess is they will find it on their own. Do you have roosts in the coop part?
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ok so it looks like my very important thread has been ruined. :(
i'm frankly at a loss here - the hens have been in the coop for almost a week tomorrow and they still havent figured out to go into the hen house. i have to chase them down each evening as put them into the hen house. it's driving me and my wife insane. this is further keeping us from letting them free range.
it seems even the chickens may have gotten contagious mental problems from a few of our dogs.
Maybe feed them in there each evening couple hours before dusk, and then take away all supplied food sources during the day. Open coop in the am, taking away feed. This way they figure out - outside to forage during day - grain inside at night. After awhile you put the food near coop entrance and fill it only in evening and with just the amount they'll eat before am, your pattern is consistent without having to haul in and out.
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ok so it looks like my very important thread has been ruined. :(
Near as I can figure it just means you're doing it right. Lol.
Seems to happen all over the place.
Love the coop, have no offering on solution tho, haven't had chickens since I was a teen.
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ok so it looks like my very important thread has been ruined. :(
i'm frankly at a loss here - the hens have been in the coop for almost a week tomorrow and they still havent figured out to go into the hen house. i have to chase them down each evening as put them into the hen house. it's driving me and my wife insane. this is further keeping us from letting them free range.
it seems even the chickens may have gotten contagious mental problems from a few of our dogs.
Maybe feed them in there each evening couple hours before dusk, and then take away all supplied food sources during the day. Open coop in the am, taking away feed. This way they figure out - outside to forage during day - grain inside at night. After awhile you put the food near coop entrance and fill it only in evening and with just the amount they'll eat before am, your pattern is consistent without having to haul in and out.
we want them to free range, but havent let them out of the coop yet because they all seem to be retards.
we want them to march into hen house at dusk without us having to put each one in there manually. I've been told this can take time and to be patient. I am a patient man, but my wife lacks what I have --- this is why we complete each other.
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ok so it looks like my very important thread has been ruined. :(
i'm frankly at a loss here - the hens have been in the coop for almost a week tomorrow and they still havent figured out to go into the hen house. i have to chase them down each evening as put them into the hen house. it's driving me and my wife insane. this is further keeping us from letting them free range.
it seems even the chickens may have gotten contagious mental problems from a few of our dogs.
Ours always went in at dusk, just what they did....
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"Chase them down"? You mean they stay in the coop or they stay on the ground in the pen?
Are they laying or not yet? Once they start laying they will seek out a dark place to lay so will likely go right in. You worried about predators chewing through the wire at night? My guess is they will find it on their own. Do you have roosts in the coop part?
inside of the coop we have to chase them down, grab them and put them into hen house because they refuse to go in there on their own.
they dont roost in the hen house, they just huddle together. A few will roost during the day... sometimes.
not worried about predators. that sucker is a fort knox of chicken coops. No one in, no one out..... until they stop being retards so we can let them free range.
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Yeah chickens are not the brightest of animals for sure. Breeding any animal for a specific trait (egg laying, meat, milk production) seems to breed any sense of intellect out of them too. ::)
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Had another thought, maybe you have really liberals birds and they just feel warm, fuzzy and safe at you place? I think that's the angle Don was shooting for with the pink theme..... ;D
Oh & welcome to DOT nation (in case your wondering DOT stands for derailer of threads)
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it seems every animal we have with the exception of the mini rex rabbit is a retard, so it's par for the course i guess.
we need to pray now for the sheep (and goats) we're getting that they have common sense and frankly brains period. I can post a whole thread on my 3 dogs and their "behavior".
i laugh at myself.
I have a build a pig hut now for the mini pot bellied pig so he's out of the house. the other 6 chickens are getting kicked out this weekend (we're buying a smaller coop for them today).
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Well, I think you may be slightly disappointed w/ the "intelligence" of the sheep, but I think they're a little smarter than chickens.
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Are the sheep to be used for coyote bait?
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Well, I think you may be slightly disappointed w/ the "intelligence" of the sheep, but I think they're a little smarter than chickens.
This^^^
I think it's a dead heat between retarded and really freaking stupid either way. Ha
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Well, I think you may be slightly disappointed w/ the "intelligence" of the sheep, but I think they're a little smarter than chickens.
This^^^
I think it's a dead heat between retarded and really freaking stupid either way. Ha
Well from some one who was raised around several hundred head of sheep & having chickens myself I think you are correct......
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Fear not, there's HOPE! To train any animal, you just have to be smarter than the animal.......not A LOT, just smarter! ;)
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hahahaha.
well the pens will have a hot wire, but the concept of bait if appealing. it's not uncommon to here rifles/shotguns go off once or twice a night out here.
i wonder if night vision can be seen (no pun intended) as a business write-off. lol.
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Get a Donkey. my late, great uncle who lived to be 98 years old was a sheep rancher in Alberta, Cardston area. Ranched by himself just over 200 head until the last two years of his life when a stroke took him out of the game. Donkey's will kill wolves, coyotes, you name it, eat the same as the sheep and are slightly smarter.
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Get a Donkey. my late, great uncle who lived to be 98 years old was a sheep rancher in Alberta, Cardston area. Ranched by himself just over 200 head until the last two years of his life when a stroke took him out of the game. Donkey's will kill wolves, coyotes, you name it, eat the same as the sheep and are slightly smarter.
we met a guy who has 2 he wants to get rid of. we're going to need a livestock trailer first (on our to-do list).
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the past three days have dumped more rain on us in central tx then i can remember. The last time we had rain like this i was still living in the burbs. sewers and engineered draining systems kept the worst from us. however, on stewie's farm, it's the wild west.
the bad.
- the 2+ north facing acres are a swampland. My new k2500 'burb sunk 6" into the driveway and surrounding fields (which are used to turn around in etc). I had to pop the 4wd on to get out to go to work.
- the backyard is a wasteland. all the landscaping and leveling i did was destroyed by water that rushes in from the NW corner of property. The yard is mud and pools of water. we had to move the bantam's to higher ground.
- The tank (pond) south of the backyard rose about 4 feet over it's banks. the normal shoreline is about 35' from the southernmost fenceline. It got within a foot yesterday (shortly after below pics were taken).
- Captain Chunk's Ghetto, I mean Grotto was flooded out (its hard to water seal/make water tight a structure when it's humid and raining out)
- barn flooded, luckily most items are on pallets so damage was minimal
- rain was coming down so hard, the roof of my deck was leaking (never seen that befoh).
the good.
- i now know how the property responds to rain of this magnitude.
to do.....
- wait 5-7 days for ground to dry out enough to work on
- cart in tremendous amounts of dirt so level yard off more
- expedite the purchasing of a new dry storage shed
(http://i554.photobucket.com/albums/jj411/fohshizzle/images/724AA57D-E039-4A57-A7EA-6FF4ECBEEF8D_zps3jd9ytsy.jpg) (http://s554.photobucket.com/user/fohshizzle/media/images/724AA57D-E039-4A57-A7EA-6FF4ECBEEF8D_zps3jd9ytsy.jpg.html)
(http://i554.photobucket.com/albums/jj411/fohshizzle/images/9C77BE8B-8FD7-4763-AEB8-F94E7F6D69FF_zpsoeqnafh9.jpg) (http://s554.photobucket.com/user/fohshizzle/media/images/9C77BE8B-8FD7-4763-AEB8-F94E7F6D69FF_zpsoeqnafh9.jpg.html)
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Where do all the snakes go when it rains like that?!
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Stewie, it's good that you're taking notes and are going to fortify the place. Sorry, you received so much rain but you could probably use the rainfall.
Don, your poll was a flop btw. Only 9 people voted and I was one of them........ :popcorn:
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Stewie, it's good that you're taking notes and are going to fortify the place. Sorry, you received so much rain but you could probably use the rainfall.
Don, your poll was a flop btw. Only 9 people voted and I was one of them........ :popcorn:
Looks like the common rabble held you up, Lucky... ;-)
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Stewie, it's good that you're taking notes and are going to fortify the place. Sorry, you received so much rain but you could probably use the rainfall.
Don, your poll was a flop btw. Only 9 people voted and I was one of them........ :popcorn:
i have my work cut out for me. the property is perfect for homesteading, prepping, etc. I have everything I need at my fingertips, but the land needs TLC. I had a long chat with my lease farmer. he's a native of like 60+ years and knows the land well. What's needed is heavy machinery, so i may be renting a backhoe, frontloader, etc. real soon.