Well, it's that time of year again. And I am already falling behind. I thought that I'd be so on the ball this year - I mean, I've done this for awhile now. I should remember what needs to be done. But alas, we are three weeks away from Lilo's due date and I am just now realizing that I should've already given her several meds.
In an effort to prepare for next year (and the other goats that will kid later this year), I am going to write down all of the information on this blog. That way, hopefully, I will be able to stay on top of things. * A lot of this information comes from two great websites, Onion Creek Ranch and Fias Co Farms. *
6 Weeks Out
BoSe: 2.5cc/100lbs IM injection
Sulmet: Day one - 1ml/5lbs, Day Two-Five - 1ml/10lbs, given orally
Ivomec: 1ml/50lbs, given orally (even though it says it's an injectable)
No Alfalfa: This is to reduce the amount of calcium in the doe's diet to avoid "milk fever."
4 Weeks Out
Covexin 8 booster: 2cc SubQ injection
3 Weeks Out
Vitamin E: Added to grain
2 Weeks Out
BoSe: 2.5cc/100lbs IM injection
1 Week Out
Shave udder and tail area
Kidding Week
After birth
Iodine 7%: Dip umbilical cord
BoSe for kids: 1ml/40lbs
1 Week After
Disbud: Boys may be earlier than this - looking for a good horn bud to work with.
2 Weeks After
Locking up babies at night / milking momma in the mornings
3 Weeks After
Covexin 8: 2cc SubQ injection
4 Weeks After
BoSe: 1ml/40lbs
Wether boys
6 Weeks After
Covexin 8 booster: 2cc SubQ injection
8 Weeks After
Ivomec: 1ml/50lbs given orally
Monday, December 30, 2013
Wednesday, November 27, 2013
About Us - Until November 2012
This is a blog about our adventures living and growing on the Rogers Roost Ranch. We are by no means farmers, although we do our best to figure it out. We moved back here to regain a sense of the simpler things in life - although farming can be a complex thing. We want our kids to learn the importance of a hard day's work and feel the joy of building a fort or climbing a tree. We want to feel more connected with ourselves and the lives that we touch.
About Us has changed, but I want to preserve where we have come from. This is where we will always realign to, regardless of the home, the homestead, or the land.
When J and I found ourselves without solid work, we decided to take what we do have and make more of it. We live on 5 acres in the high desert of Central Oregon. Our home is unusual because we live completely off-grid. We have no wires or pipes connecting us to the outside world. We have solar panels and a generator for our power source. We haul water from the community well about fifteen miles from here. We have three miles of dirt road between us and the pavement. It's unusual, but it's peaceful.
Our home is a homestead, but by no means is it rustic. We have tile floors, indoor plumbing, and internet...along with all of the other comforts of a newer home. But we are conscious of how we consume. We conserve because it is part of the reality of our chosen lifestyle, not because it's cool. We hang dry the clothes, even in the winter, whenever it's dry outside. We hand wash our dishes because it uses less energy and water than the dishwasher. The kids check the battery bank before turning on the computer because they don't want to be in the dark at night. It's a natural part of our existence, but one that most people ignore.
We are working on growing a large garden - with the goal of feeding ourselves through the winter. There are unique challenges with a garden where we live. We have no well so water conservation is critical. Our growing season is short as we live at 4200ft. But with a greenhouse and very specific watering systems, we hope to succeed.
About Us has changed, but I want to preserve where we have come from. This is where we will always realign to, regardless of the home, the homestead, or the land.
When J and I found ourselves without solid work, we decided to take what we do have and make more of it. We live on 5 acres in the high desert of Central Oregon. Our home is unusual because we live completely off-grid. We have no wires or pipes connecting us to the outside world. We have solar panels and a generator for our power source. We haul water from the community well about fifteen miles from here. We have three miles of dirt road between us and the pavement. It's unusual, but it's peaceful.
Our home is a homestead, but by no means is it rustic. We have tile floors, indoor plumbing, and internet...along with all of the other comforts of a newer home. But we are conscious of how we consume. We conserve because it is part of the reality of our chosen lifestyle, not because it's cool. We hang dry the clothes, even in the winter, whenever it's dry outside. We hand wash our dishes because it uses less energy and water than the dishwasher. The kids check the battery bank before turning on the computer because they don't want to be in the dark at night. It's a natural part of our existence, but one that most people ignore.
We are working on growing a large garden - with the goal of feeding ourselves through the winter. There are unique challenges with a garden where we live. We have no well so water conservation is critical. Our growing season is short as we live at 4200ft. But with a greenhouse and very specific watering systems, we hope to succeed.
We have pigs, goats, dogs, geese, ducks, rabbits, and chickens that all serve their own purpose. We have three boys who are very involved in the daily activities around here. They help to feed livestock, build fences, and plant the garden.
We are certainly not the only family who has done this, but as the chaos of the modern world advances, we find ourselves in the minority - and we don't mind. While most people wouldn't enjoy the challenges of our chosen lifestyle, we find joy in the simpler pleasures - fresh goat milk, a well-built fence, podeos (pig rodeo). These are simply the day-to-day events of a small farming family in America.
Saturday, April 6, 2013
Starting a New Garden in a New Zone
Well, we don't have our livestock with us, but we have settled in a small house with a yard for the time being. That doesn't mean that I won't still be farming and ranching...just on a much smaller (and city ordinance approved) level.
The yard that we have is mainly grass. Some fescue, some bunch grass, some quack grass. It makes a reasonably nice lawn with the moss filling in the spaces, but it is not much to work with when you want to start a garden. I have already gone through tilling a hay field under for a new garden and spent a lot of time fighting the grass hay that wanted to regrow. Lucky for me, I work right next to a noxious weed specialist. The process that I am following is per her advice. It is not without some herbicides, but I am hoping that it makes the fight against quack grass a bit more even.
We started by tilling under the grass on March 30th. I think J managed to get about 12 inches down which is perfect. There isn't any lava rock here in Kitsap County, but there are these pretty little round rocks everywhere. I was going to spend a day collecting and removing these rocks from the soil but the neighbor (who is an avid gardener) said that they help the soil to stay warm...something that the moisture level here makes hard. So I have decided to leave the rocks that are smaller than my fist.
Here's the plan...
March 30th - till grass
Fence off garden - no specific time frame, but it needs to be done before we do any more work as the dogs think that we have made them a dirt box to play in.
April 15th - Spray with RoundUp, making sure that it is NOT "Ground Kill" but just has glyphosate. You can read about glyphosate here. It's a pretty cool herbicide as it only works on the plant when it is going through active photosynthesis. Because of that, we need to wait for the grass to sprout, spray it on the grass, and then give it a few days to photosynthesize. As a side note, I will NOT be using Monsanto seeds.
April 18th - Cover the entire bed with cardboard. This is not to "burn" the grass off, but to stop the photosynthesis process and allow the herbicide to have time to kill the grass. We don't get enough sun in this area to cover the bed with plastic and have it "cook" the weeds.
May 1st - (Probably May 4th because that's a Saturday and I'm a working girl now) Uncover, create rows, and begin planting. While this is a little later than I would like, I have to go through the steps if I want to get rid of the grass.
Ongoing - I am going to use a sponge brush applicator and "paint" the grass seedlings as they emerge. This way I can kill any new grass without treating the entire bed again.
While I'm waiting for the day that I can plant, I am having fun creating a planting spreadsheet, researching the best varieties for the area, and making a list of things to plant.
The yard that we have is mainly grass. Some fescue, some bunch grass, some quack grass. It makes a reasonably nice lawn with the moss filling in the spaces, but it is not much to work with when you want to start a garden. I have already gone through tilling a hay field under for a new garden and spent a lot of time fighting the grass hay that wanted to regrow. Lucky for me, I work right next to a noxious weed specialist. The process that I am following is per her advice. It is not without some herbicides, but I am hoping that it makes the fight against quack grass a bit more even.
We started by tilling under the grass on March 30th. I think J managed to get about 12 inches down which is perfect. There isn't any lava rock here in Kitsap County, but there are these pretty little round rocks everywhere. I was going to spend a day collecting and removing these rocks from the soil but the neighbor (who is an avid gardener) said that they help the soil to stay warm...something that the moisture level here makes hard. So I have decided to leave the rocks that are smaller than my fist.
Here's the plan...
March 30th - till grass
Fence off garden - no specific time frame, but it needs to be done before we do any more work as the dogs think that we have made them a dirt box to play in.
April 15th - Spray with RoundUp, making sure that it is NOT "Ground Kill" but just has glyphosate. You can read about glyphosate here. It's a pretty cool herbicide as it only works on the plant when it is going through active photosynthesis. Because of that, we need to wait for the grass to sprout, spray it on the grass, and then give it a few days to photosynthesize. As a side note, I will NOT be using Monsanto seeds.
April 18th - Cover the entire bed with cardboard. This is not to "burn" the grass off, but to stop the photosynthesis process and allow the herbicide to have time to kill the grass. We don't get enough sun in this area to cover the bed with plastic and have it "cook" the weeds.
May 1st - (Probably May 4th because that's a Saturday and I'm a working girl now) Uncover, create rows, and begin planting. While this is a little later than I would like, I have to go through the steps if I want to get rid of the grass.
Ongoing - I am going to use a sponge brush applicator and "paint" the grass seedlings as they emerge. This way I can kill any new grass without treating the entire bed again.
While I'm waiting for the day that I can plant, I am having fun creating a planting spreadsheet, researching the best varieties for the area, and making a list of things to plant.
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
Where Do Farmers Go to Meet Farmers?
This is a serious question when you are a displaced farmer. There is a strong need to connect with like-minded people when you are disconnected from your farm like we are at the moment. Even if you cannot go out to the barn every morning or hear the rooster, you need to find that connection. It's an earthly need. You crave dirt. You dream of tractors. You look for leftover hay in your pockets.
So, when we first moved here - to the "city" as we call it (and everyone here laughs) - I started to look for farmers. Well, I actually started out looking for someone who could connect me with 4-H farmers in particular. For my boys, of course. To keep them connected to the wholesome values that 4-H and FFA gives a kid. But really, I was hoping to find farmer friends.
Well, I did. Tough girls who, as my city friend said, "carry pocket knives for castrating goats." Girls like me. Of course, you don't use a knife to castrate goats, but I get the idea. And that's exactly the type of friends I found.
But where does someone go to find them if they aren't insane like I am...striking up conversations in the parking lot of Trader Joe's? Here are a few suggestions:
1. Contact the local State Extension Office. We found a Small Farms Expo happening (and we attended it). Through there you can always find people who are part of farming groups or co-ops.
2. Look up the local 4-H clubs. Not all 4-H groups are farm related, but many are.
3. Try craigslist. Sounds a bit out there, but I've been known to email people who are selling livestock or related products and just ask if they want to be friends. It works. And you meet the most interesting people.
I am starting to build my family again here...my farming family. And it feels good to know that I'm not alone in my desire to get my fingers dirty or in my excitement over "farmer porn" (seed catalogs). I love that the people I have begun to meet share my values and are passionate about it. Knowing that I have been able to find some of these people makes me feel like I might just be able to live here.
So, when we first moved here - to the "city" as we call it (and everyone here laughs) - I started to look for farmers. Well, I actually started out looking for someone who could connect me with 4-H farmers in particular. For my boys, of course. To keep them connected to the wholesome values that 4-H and FFA gives a kid. But really, I was hoping to find farmer friends.
Well, I did. Tough girls who, as my city friend said, "carry pocket knives for castrating goats." Girls like me. Of course, you don't use a knife to castrate goats, but I get the idea. And that's exactly the type of friends I found.
But where does someone go to find them if they aren't insane like I am...striking up conversations in the parking lot of Trader Joe's? Here are a few suggestions:
1. Contact the local State Extension Office. We found a Small Farms Expo happening (and we attended it). Through there you can always find people who are part of farming groups or co-ops.
2. Look up the local 4-H clubs. Not all 4-H groups are farm related, but many are.
3. Try craigslist. Sounds a bit out there, but I've been known to email people who are selling livestock or related products and just ask if they want to be friends. It works. And you meet the most interesting people.
I am starting to build my family again here...my farming family. And it feels good to know that I'm not alone in my desire to get my fingers dirty or in my excitement over "farmer porn" (seed catalogs). I love that the people I have begun to meet share my values and are passionate about it. Knowing that I have been able to find some of these people makes me feel like I might just be able to live here.
Friday, February 8, 2013
Lilo's Attack
I just learned that Lilo killed a 6 week old Nigerian doeling. I am not sure exactly what happened. I know that she was taken to a friend's house as a milker and that the doeling attempted to nurse. I don't know if anyone saw it happen or if the kid was in with Lilo where it couldn't escape.
I am saddened by this event. I offered to give the owner our kids, but she has no real use for them. And she takes responsibility for leaving a new doe with her herd without supervision. I guess it is a lesson that we must remember. Lilo is a very kind doe, but even the nicest does need to be watched when they are around other kids.
Pebbles and Bam-Bam
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| Pebbles |
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| Bam-Bam |
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Tumbleweed's Babies
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| Pebbles and Bam-Bam |
Sunday, January 6, 2013
Lilo Has Kidded
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| (From Left to Right) Annette, Aphrodite, and Buck. |
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| Aphrodite and Annette |
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| Aphrodite - a new milker for us. |
Sarah has been caring for Lilo at her house. The kids are doing wonderfully, as is the momma. We have two doelings and a buckling. Everyone has their own guess as to who the daddy is, but as for me, I think we have a little of both. My personal opinion is this...I think Neptune (our Nubian paint) is Aphrodite's daddy and I think that Zeus (our Boer) is Annette and Buck's daddy.
It looks like we will be keeping Aphrodite as a milker to add to our herd (once we have a farm again). Annette looks like she could make an excellent milker for someone also...she's just not as flashy in color as Aphro. All in all, they are a beautiful trio and I am so proud of Lilo! Great job, momma.
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