Self-taught farmers confidently raising chickens, ducks, geese, and pigs. Our focus is on practices that are environmentally harmonious and respectful to our livestock. We appreciate the beauty around us, clean eating, fermenting, and responsibly utilizing the bounty of the land. If you like thinking for yourself, continuous learning, and connecting with the homesteader lifestyle, check us out.
Yesterday, we picked up 4 six week old Pilgrim goslings. These babies were hatched under and raised by their goose mother. It was likely their first time in a car, and the first time they had been separated from Mom. A very big adventure!
Continue reading “New Farm Denizens: A Quad Of Pilgrim Goslings”
At times I wonder about the future of small-scale farming: with large farming operations buying up small farms and effectively putting smaller farmers out to pasture, why would someone voluntarily choose what is, at best, a hardscrabble lifestyle? It’s certainly not for the prestige, the ease, or the security (or the healthcare coverage)…but now that I’ve been a full-time farmer, I better understand why certain individuals still choose to farm.
Continue reading “Musings: Farming As Both Struggle And Inspiration”
You already know that fermented food is good for people, but did you know that animals can benefit from it, too?
The older two goslings are now 7 weeks old, and the younger group of four is 5 weeks old. The older goslings have replaced most of their yellow baby down with snow-white feathers, including wing feathers! The younger ones still look downy, but their wings are longer and less “stub”-like, and their legs have elongated to the point that they look a bit gawky…especially when they run.
Continue reading “Growing Goslings: Real Feathers and Big Feet”
When we went out to do the evening feeding recently, we noticed that a Muscovy duck seemed to be limping as she came up the hill to the feeding area. Limping can indicate a relatively benign injury like a minor sprain or something more serious, like a bumble, so we caught the unhappy girl and took a closer look. What we found was unexpected, and a bit of a shock: her head and bill were bloody. We caught her and put her into a cage in the “infirmary” in the garage for treatment and observation. While you hope that none of your animals ever suffers an injury, in a setting where they free range with the threat of predators, it’s likely that an injury will occur at some point. Continue reading “The Importance Of The Farm (Animal) First Aid Kit”
How time flies…our first goslings were hatched a month ago from our goose’s eggs. There were only 2 eggs (of her first 5) that made it to lockdown, so we kept our fingers crossed that both would hatch…and they did! We now think we have a little goose and gander, based on differences in their behavior and physical characteristics. Continue reading “Chinese Geese: Growing Goslings”