Post Digging and Fence Building

(Pictured: J with the impact drill)

Well, we've put it off as long as we can. We HAVE to get the goat pen put together. So today is the day.




J and I are drilling the post holes (mostly J). In Central Oregon, it's ridiculous to try to dig post holes. The impact drill works really well, though. J likes things to be precise, although this time we aren't using the sight...don't know why. We were first planning to have a single gate on the far side of the goat pen that lined up with the pigs when both were open. But I suggested we add a second gate on this side of the pen as well, mainly because I don't want to have to walk all the way around to get in to feed.


As it stands, we do have to walk through the goats to get to the pigs. But that isn't an issue. If we need to remove a pig, we can open the pig and goat pens, creating that shute, and getting the pigs out without going through the goats.


I enjoy building fence. I know I will regret that statement, but I like to see it come together. I don't mind twisting wire. We use the DitchWitch to pull the field fence tight so I don't really have to work very hard. We have been using 1 1/2inch pipe that J cut into six foot sections instead of buying actual posts. It works really well and it's free. He cuts secondary pipes to create diagonal braces for the corners and then welds the pipes together.

Wood Stacking, The Other Pilates

G'Pa had a guy drop a bunch of juniper in the driveway this week. But J is in LA and it might rain. So I stacked it up in the wood shed. But these weren't your average size logs...they were at least 24 inches in diameter and 24 inches long. Most of the logs were right on the edge of my ability to lift...but I did it.

At one point, I thought about how smart it was to do this...I knew that I could physically lift the logs, but I wondered what I might permanently injure as I did it. So far, no injuries.

Random Moment of Parenthood

Love listening to the kids play:

K: I have cloaking so you can't see me.

Z: And you didn't know that I have cloak goggles so I CAN see you.

K: But I disabled your goggles before you put them on.

Z: That's not fair! I pull out my repair kit and fix them...

Major

(Pictured: Major (black pig), Kevin, Hammy)
Major is visiting us for the week. He is a Hamp cross boar. He is very big...like 500 pounds big! He is here to breed Hammy. But for some reason I feel like I'm facilitating a rape more than a breeding. He is so big that she can almost walk under him.

Mike at the feed store says that Major'll figure it out. But I've seen him mount her a few times and she can only stand up for a few seconds before she falls under his weight. He is so much bigger than she, that he has his front hooves up over her front shoulders and he still isn't quite in "striking distance."

We talked about AI, but I really would rather do this the natural way. It isn't harmful to the pigs and although you have less control over the actual date of conception, it just seems better to me. If Major doesn't succeed this time, we'll let Hammy go through another cycle and then try again on the following one. That'll give her 42 days to grow bigger and stronger...and I want my $100 worth!

Goose Proofing the Coop

Well, for the past few days I have been trying to figure out where all of my chicken eggs are going. I went from having seven eggs a day to none. Something fishy...

I thought it might be rats so I went down to the feed store and bought those big rat traps. As I went out to set the traps - trying to figure out how I was going to catch a rat without catching a chicken or a dog - my two geese came walking up to me...with egg on their faces!

I think what must've happened is one of the geese was in a box to lay and egg, stepped on a chicken egg and broke it, and realized it tasted pretty good. From then it was game on. Well, I don't really want to kill the geese so I had to figure out how to goose-proof my nesting boxes.

So...I took 1/2 inch pvc pipe, cut it into lengths that would reach the top of the boxes and stretch out at least 18 inches in front of the boxes, and then screwed them in place, leaving a six inch gap between bars so that the chickens could get in. It works like a charm! They cannot get close enough to stretch their necks into the boxes on the bottom or the top. I left one lower box unprotected for the geese.

Packrats

We caught a HUGE packrat in the attic today. It was the size of a squirrel...I kid you not. We think it must've been the only one up there because we haven't heard any of the usual gnawing sounds we had been hearing.

So gross!

Piggy Trust

I've been working hard to get Hammy Fae to trust me. Today she showed me how much she does. I was giving her some good scratches and she was leaning on me, when her feet went out from under her and she slid down onto her side. Belly rubbin' time!

She snorted and oinked as I rubbed her soft pink belly. You know, her skin is generally pretty tough to the touch, as is her wirey hair, but her belly - soft. It's just like a puppy belly. Each time I would pause to see if she were still awake, she would lift her head just a little and grunt...as if to say, "Come on, scratch me again." It was wonderful.

One of the reasons I was working on this, is that when Hammy has her first litter of piglets, it's a good thing to be able to calm her. If she is used to belly rubs and knows how much she enjoys them, I can use this to help her during her labor. I hope.

Boys+Flamethrower=Fun That Mom Shouldn't See

J just got out the propane tank and the big flamethrower nozzle and set the boys to task outside burning all of the weeds along the side of the field. It's pretty wet outside, so it's not like the whole field will go up in flames (not to mention the grass is only a couple of inches long). But the kids think it is AWESOME!

M and Z are taking turns on the nozzle while the other drags the tank around behind them. This is definitely something you wouldn't see in a subdivision...at least without the police being called for child endangerment. Our kids are doing an excellent job of being responsible with this work. Of course, they know that if they mess around, the propane burner goes away...so they have an incentive not to catch their brother on fire no matter how annoying he can be.

I like to busy myself with things in the house while these projects take place. It's easier for all of us if I'm not involved. Not that I don't trust these kids, but I just can't help myself. I'm a mom. One of the best pieces of advice my grandmother (a mother of four boys) told me was that there are some things that boys do that a mom just shouldn't see. Amen.