Piglets, Chicks & Hogs oh My!

As stated in the previous post, Lucy our sow, had a litter of 10 piglets on Saturday. Well, four days after her, Ethel had her a litter of 10 piglets. Now all would be great if all 20 piglets make it but in Ethel's litter, 2 were extremely small. I mean small. Lucy actually had 12 piglets, but 2 of them didn't make it and the two that we think might have been still born were much larger than these 2 runts. We try to allow things to be as nature would have them here so I unfortunately have to go by the way of "survival of the fittest." It is hard seeing these two little guys fight for their positions. I tell you what though, if they make it, they will be some bad some guns. Pigs with attitudes. My wife has a neat little story on our family blog about them.

Lucy and her 10 piglets

Some of Ethel's new piglets...You can see the pink runt in the front.

So yesterday was the big day of moving our laying pullets out of the brooder house and onto pasture. I have never in my life had to move 300+ chickens but Lynsey and I devised a plan. So to the side door we moved the cattle trailer and we were going to herd them in and load them on the trailer. Well, they didn't want to go out the door so they just went to flying and packing into the corners. Not good. I thought for sure they were going to either crush or sufficate each other. So to plan B which we didn't have. We got a net and started rounding the pullets to the door just keeping them in a semi circle so that I could get in and start putting them on the trailer. Eureka, it worked. Just took much longer handling each bird rather than them just loading themselves on the trailer. So out to the pasture they went and boy do they look more at peace now. I can't imagine confining a bird for all its life and not allowing it to do what its natural instincts tell it to do.

The new pens....Eventually will be used mostly for our broilers.

Roaming from the pen

Roamed right out of the pen and to the barn...I moved them back that night to their new house and they did great staying in there today.

This hen came out of some bushes the other day and had 14 chicks following her. She is down to 11 now due to some stray cats. I have to get rid of them. She is the best mom ever.

This is just a plug for kittens. We are kitten rich and I mean these are some fine kittens. True barn kittens that are nice. Is that an oxymoron? In the next couple weeks, we will have 19 kittens to give away. Please take one or two, maybe three.

7 of the orange and white

4 of these...more long haired

I got our new 12 door hog feeders in this week. The lady told me at the feed store that they come in 2 sections and you just assemble the top to the bottom. Simple enough, so I ordered 2 because I would only have to pay freight once and in a couple months, we will be able to use 2.
However, in this area, nobody finishes hogs anymore so they thought I was absolutely crazy for even buying these things. Sounds great for us from a business stand point because no competition. Especially when you are producing pastured pork supplemented with certified organic grain.

These are 40 bushel feeders but I have the extra bands to make them 60 bushels if need be. I like the size of the 40 bushel though because I can use the small tractor and dump feed directly from the bucket to the bin. Plus I check the pigs everyday so I don't mind bringing feed a few times.

So when I went to pick up the feeders, they were not in 2 sections, but in about 10 pieces, with 4 bags of about 300 bolts and nuts and pins and washers all mixed together. So then I open the instructions and in there is a diagram that looks like it was drawn with a pencil. I'm not going to get any deeper because I am happy with the feeders now but after about 18 hours to assemble one, I was a little unhappy. So I called the manufacturer and they were very helpful. But this is what it looks like with the hogs happily eating out of it.

Putting together was terrible, you really need 2 people, but other than that, they are great feeders. Very durable.

The last two days have been great rain days. The first day we got 1.1" and the second 1.3". So I hope the seed really begins to come in. We are still real thick with rye grass right now but I only think I will get one more rotation on it before it goes to mostly seed head. Thats good though because I am hoping it will reseed itself pretty good this year.

Thats about it for now. I have a little bit of seed to get put out next week and then I'm tapping out on that. That will be a huge weight off my shoulders.

Still Here Busy as Ever

Yep, you probably thought I had fell off the face of the earth but not the case. You see, I don't know what happened.... There was the baby goat, BIB, then came the second kid, Bambi, and then I just got so busy out here that I didn't really want to blog about all the little things that were going on. I don't know why, I just really wanted to come in and spend time away from the computer at night. So thats what I did. But I will catch you up on the great things that are going on here.

First things first. Once again, I hate the goats. Yep, I'm a fair weather goat fan and right now I just wish they would run away... But they are so dang cute roaming around the place...They just keep roaming into places that they have no business going in and eating seed, dried molasses, and getting into the pig and chicken feed. They are relentless. However, when all the spring seeding and spreading is done, they will have nothing to get into. But I still wish they would run away.

The cows are doing great. I am particularly pleased with the Red Brangus we purchased almost 2 months ago. They are extremely efficient and looking better and better each week. Even crazy #707 is in full swing. They are currently rotating on our 40-45 paddocks. Pete the bull is very laid back but I haven't seen him working his magic yet. Maybe he waits till no one is watching. I look to have 5-10 beeves ready by end of the summer so that is exciting.

Pigs are really enjoying life and getting bigger and bigger. Lucy and Ethel were pregnant, Lucy had 10 piglets last Saturday night, and Ethel's rolls are still in the oven. She looks miserable. Her heat cycle falls 4 days after Lucy so I figure she should have her piglets in the next couple of days. Lucy is a great mother, just overbearing to Ethel now but I guess that is expected by sows. I remember walking up on some feral hogs when I was a land surveyor and the mother of the piglets chased us up a fence. We had to sit there for 2 hours. So I figure letting them live in their natural environment brings out nature in them. Our stocker pigs are really filling out. They look awesome. I have 3 that will be ready in about 4-6 weeks I think and then I have 3-4 others that will be ready by end of summer. One of the stockers, I am going to keep for a breeder sow, she looks great and has converted feed much better than any of the others. We'll see.

We officially have chickens coming out everywhere. We are currently getting about 30 eggs daily but that will change in the coming months. Of my 300 layers we purchased, 9 have died, only 4 were natural deaths. (I had a rampant mother hen get inside the brooder ring and she went to killing my other chicks looking for her lost one that got in there. I was pretty mad at her for that.) I have been very pleased with Ideal Hatcheries chicks. However, I have hatched about 60 of our own chicks and have 3 hens setting right now. I figure we have the room, why not let them do it. I mostly allow my bantams to set since they are such great mothers and I am the only one that usually eats their eggs. They are pretty small. I am going to be moving about 325 layers onto pasture tomorrow so they will officially be out of the brooder house. To think confinement chicken never get to look forward to roaming on pasture. (Next we get our broilers and turkeys)

Our pastures are looking great. Its amazing in just one year the difference. Not only have we put out seed for our cool and warm season grasses, but implementing Managed Intensive Grazing has changed everything. By rotating each day, aggressively grazing then allowing to rest for approximately 40-45 days, our grasses are awesome looking. This is kinda funny, but in one week, we had someone from Conroe TX send a letter saying that they wanted to buy our property and soon after that, someone called from Houston TX and said they wanted to lease it for their cattle. If they only knew how much has went into this place. It is nice to know though that people are beginning to notice the place when they drive by.

Plans are in motion for our new office building equipped with a fully operational kill room for our poultry. More on this in the near future.

So this is what is going on. I can't promise posts everyday like before because right now, it is so busy, that at night, I just want to relax at home with my girls. However, I will be more diligent in keeping this blog updated. I love farming, its my passion, but I don't really love typing on a computer... but it is a great way for me to document the things going on at the farm. More pics will be on the way. Thanks for checking in and reading about our lives.

New Kid On the Block

Yesterday was a great day on the farm. We had two chickens that hatched two batches of eggs. All in all, we got 18 new chicks. Then while doing the morning rounds, I noticed that Thelma, one of the brown pygmy goats, was off by herself in their old pen. They never go in there by themselves so that seemed kinda strange that she was even in there.

Well later in the day around lunch, I went back out to feed the animals when I noticed her in there again but this time she was in her little house. I got to thinking that she was due anytime so I went to go check on her. Sure enough, there was BIB. The cutest little kid I have ever seen.

Today was her first day to really get about. Its crazy that they come out walking right away for the most part. She keeps her near the barn for the most part, but I had to get the pigs out of there. I was worried that they might accidentally step on the little girl, or even worse, nip her or something. Pigs do like meat and all although we have never fed ours meat. I think that is why we haven't lost any chickens to them yet.



Louise the other brown goat is due anytime. Her bag is full and she looks like she is getting very uncomfortable. Hopefully in the next couple of days, we will get our second kid, or kids.


This morning was the big morning for our laying chicks. The post office called at 06:00 and said they had a bunch of chicks in there. So off I went to pick them up. I stayed up till midnight last night getting the final touches of their house done. I was concerned about it being too drafty, so I made a border around where they were going to be. I hope it works. It looks like something off of ET.






We got 300. 100 Black Australorps, 100 Rhode Island Reds, and 100 Americanas. All 300 arrived alive, but within 30 minutes, one looked sick. So I separated it and put it in a small brooder. It died shortly after. So now we are down to 299. As of 9:00 pm, no more casualties. They seem to be doing good up to this point. These are going to be our 100% organically fed, free range layers. It is amazing the difference in the look of the feed in the organic grains vs. commercial grain. I don't know if it has anything to do with it being non-genetically modified.


I have 4 chickens on the outside of the brooder border, they know how to take care of those babies so much better than us. They just walk around the outside, with their chicks following. I think I have about 36 chicks with them. I still have one hen setting so in 10 days, she should be hatching. I love spring.

Update....

As of right now, #707 is back in the pasture. We were coming back from Round Top when I got the call about 6:00 pm. We were about 30 min from the house so I had to book it to get home, changed, hook the trailer up, and get down the road, before it got dark.

I was amazed that they caught that cow in only a day. Boy was she still crazy. He said he would just take her straight to the sale barn if it were him. I figured I will give her one more chance. She is very pretty.

So we got her loaded up and I brought her home. I backed her into the pasture where all the other cows were and opened the door. Out she went into the herd. I thought score......point for Yonder Way.... but then she took off toward the back of the pasture. Still in the same fence but trotting like a horse. I thought for sure she was going to jump out again. But she didn't. She came back and got in the middle of the herd. Hopefully tonight and tomorrow, she will calm down and settle in.

I have to work in Houston tomorrow so prayerfully she will be ok and Lynsey won't have to do anything major. If so, I might be coming back home. That is one of the perks of being a Fire Fighter, we all tend to help each other out.

Pete and his girls

Today, possibility became reality. We officially purchased our first 10 heifers and bull for the beginning of our closed herd. But that statement in itself sounds so simple, for the easiest part of the day by far was the writing of the check. Lets start from the beginning.

These are Red Brangus. I love Red Brangus and all the characteristics they possess so that is what we went with. We are 100% grass-fed, grass-finished so long lanky legged cows that finish out at 1300-1400#'s is not for us. So I want smaller framed, easy fleshing cows. These 10 heifers I have will probably max out at 1000-1100#'s. The bull is a 5.2 for frame size which is considered really short. However, his ribeye area and ultra sound info was pretty good. I feel really good about Pete being our starter bull. He is registered Red Brangus so he even gets some fancy papers with him. But then the craziness began.....

Loading them was a breeze. Got on the road, they are only 20 miles from the house, and got to the pasture. Well, the first load, I brought 7 heifers. I backed the trailer in and opened it up and off they went like white lightning. I mean, gone. There was one that was especially whiley. She got to the fence and just jumped over it. Like a show pony or something. The other six didn't know what to do so they took off the opposite direction.

Well our other herd of cows waiting to be moved were all the way across the pasture waiting patiently. The whiley one took off towards them running all the way. She got to them and jumped the poly wire that was keeping them in. They didn't know what to do. They knew I didn't open the gate so it seemed they were confused on whether to leave or follow this strange new trick cow.

I figured she would stay with the herd now knowing where she is probably suppose to be. So after the other six I went. Well they successfully ran through all my poly wire that was dividing the eight paddocks in the pasture they were in then proceeded to the pig pasture. Over that fence they go. I mean these girls can jump. I figured at least they can stay in there and calm down. So I divert my focus back on the main herd and the whiley heifer.

Lynsey and I go down the alley way that is suppose to bring the cows to the new paddocks. This always works but with this new creature in play it seemed like it was going to be disastrous. We finally make it to the top of the hill, which is pretty far away, and our herd starts lining up. It seems this is the order they were looking for. At this time, 5 of our original herd are out of the paddock, but they are next to the others wanting to get in the alley. Then all heck broke loose.

Whiley heifer just took off to the corner of the pasture and over the electric fence she went. Then over the barbed wire fence after that. Yep, she is officially rogue. Down the road she goes with everyones dog's barking. I wanted to throw up. I jump the fences and she is already about 200 yards down the middle of the road, sprinting.

So I holler to Lynsey, but it was windy and I guess all she could hear was wind. So I keep hollering. Then the cows think I am telling them to come to me so they start leaving Lynsey and coming towards me. Well, I at this time am running as fast as my worn out boots will go. I can't much say it was sprinting cause I bet it didn't look that way. Lynsey took off across the other two pastures towards the highway just in case she might try and come back towards that way. I headed back towards the Ranger to get in it to chase. However, the Ranger was all the way back at the end of the alley. I ran fast down the hill and then thought I was going to die going up the hill. Really, once again I almost barfed, just not the what am I going to do barf like above but rather the my body thinks I have lost my mind and knows I will have to stop if it throws up. But I made it.

So in the Ranger I go, flying in the grass along the highway, and out pops Lynsey. Man she was fast. Rubber boots and all. So now we are like Luke and Bo Duke driving down Waesapape Rd looking for this rogue heifer.

We go and go. Looking in all the pastures just to see if maybe she went over again. Then eureka, we notice a herd of cows all starring in the same direction. Yep, there she is in someones front yard. So we pull in and think maybe we can get them to close their gate to keep her in. After all, they had a mesh fence with 2 strands of wire on top. Surely she wouldn't try and get over that. Ha, think again. Over she went but this time, she caught her foot and it flipped here over. Her foot was caught for a moment in it but she quickly freed it. Then she was off across this guys pasture. She finally went to the corner of his place and chilled out.

So what to do when your new heifer jumps every type of fence possible other than 8' game fence? I guess you just leave it there. I called a friend and he said the best thing to do is just let her calm down there and get use to that herd. Then in a week or so, maybe she will come up with their cows and then we can pen her and bring her back. So I talked to the owner later in the day and he said that would be fine. He was such a nice person.

Well I went back and got my other 3 heifers and a bull. My original herd came down the alley way and went into their new paddocks. This time, when I unloaded them, they saw the other cows and stayed where they were suppose to go. The other 6 actually felt left out I guess and got in the paddock with them. So now 9 of the heifers and the bull are in with the original herd. I went out there several times and they really seemed to have calmed down. My original herd is use to us so I think they put them at ease not being skiddish.

I drove back by the other mans pasture and our heifer was lying down in there. She got up when I drove by so I guess she knows I was inquiring about her. Then I noticed that he had a Black Angus bull so who knows, she may end up bred. Wouldn't that be fitting. I don't even get to breed her to my new bull.

Oh what a day. I am pooped.

Goats, at it again!!!!

Well, I thought I had these little boogers contained, but boy was I fooled. They cooperated for a while, leading me to feel like I was in control. Then they all at once decided to show me that at any moment, they could have gotten out. And boy did they ever.

Not only did they escape, they began destroying the chicken wire that had kept them in for so long. They would stick their horns in the mesh and begin to jerk making bigger holes in it. Then they would stick their heads through and push their way through until there was this perfect hole about 10" in diameter. So day after day, I would round them up (more like chase them around) and repair the holes, wiring them back together. They would stay in for a bit, then do it again. Finally, I gave in.

The whole reason I can't stand them being out roaming where they want to go is the chicken feed. These four would sit and run the chickens off and literally eat a couple pounds of food twice a day. This is not very cost effective. Plus, they use to try and eat the pig food. Well, I quickly devised a plan to foil their efforts. At least for the chickens, the pigs are big enough to handle their own battles.

With two stock panels, their appetites would have to be filled with grass and other browsey things because, "No chicken food for them!!!"



Now the goats can be the free spirits that they so long to be. They are so cute, roaming in their little group all around our central area. When they get real excited, they bounce instead of run, kinda like the skunk on Bugs Bunny. (Pepe Le Pugh) sp?

However, they have really been doing some really funny things lately. I knew they had some funny personalities, but this has taken it to a new level.

Yesterday, I go out to the barn in the morning, and Billy is standing on the cows back. This cow is separate because he is not doing so well right now. But in an effort to help him out, Billy decided to get on his back and scratch it. Yep, he stands on his back and paws at his back. The cow loves it. Then, the cow would stand up and Billy would face him. Billy would put his horns under the cows neck, and go to town, scratching the underside of his neck. And who said animals couldn't communicate.


And today, I was doing my morning routine when I notice Billy staring up at the bottom of the chicken coop. I could see stuff falling from the floor to the ground, but I figured maybe the cat had gotten in there. Boy was I surprised. Inside, no other than Anna Belle. As you can tell, she is back to her mischief. I have to admit though it was very cute. She is really doing great after losing her kid a few weeks ago.




I have chickens setting everywhere. If they are setting when I go to collect eggs, I usually get the eggs out from under them each time. If they continue to try and set after several days of doing this, I will put about 14 eggs under them and let them go at it. Currently, I have three setting on about 42 eggs total. Who knows how many will hatch. I have two bantam hens setting on eggs but they set in the same box. I don't know how many eggs are under them, but it is a bunch. They are suppose to hatch next Monday. We'll see.


The cows are doing great in their rotation. Our native spring grasses are coming in great. The cows really enjoy all the tender weeds and wild flowers right now. If you make your cows eat these things, they really will eat them and enjoy them. At least they look like they do. Over the next couple of weeks, I will be putting out our warm season seed, Texas Tough, and Crabgrass. I can't wait to see how they do. Rain baby Rain.




Our 300 chicks that were suppose to come in the morning have been delayed. I was so aggravated. Their house is fully set up and ready to go and then I get the dreaded phone call. They were going to be short 27 Americanaus so I could either be short those and get the order tomorrow or wait till next week and get them all. So I chose the latter. I love the green and blue eggs and so do our customers so I want to have them available.

Thats it for now but a lot has happened this week so I will have lots to write about. Peace out from Yonder Way

Possibility

I have been searching for Red Brangus everywhere. Most people around here run Black Angus or Brangus. We are looking to establish a closed herd, using our calves for replacement heifers for ourselves or feed out our steers and heifers for 100% grass fed beef.

When it comes to grass fed beef, you don't want what almost all commercial or registered breeders are genetically looking for. In a time when size is everything, genetics is allowing for taller, longer legged cows that are large boned and weighing in excess of 1500#'s. Thats for cows while bulls are weighing in excess of 2000#'s. Well, we don't want that. I'm looking for a medium to short frame cow, smaller boned, wide body with easy fleshing. I think I finally found the place that will start us off close, but it will take us years of breeding down before we get where we need to be.

The farm we are looking at is Triangle K Farm located in Chappell Hill TX. This is awesome because it is only 25 minutes from our farm. These cows are living in the exact conditions as our farm with summers of high temperatures and high humidity. Conditions that really keep the Black Angus/Brangus from doing well. Also, another benefit of buying from this farm is that they have daily contact with the animals because they do rotational grazing, they are use to electric fencing, and they predominately produce forage based cattle. Meaning that these cows very rarely ever eat grain. Our calves of course will not be allowed to consume grain at any time so they will truly be grass fed, grass finished beeves.

Here is a few picks of the prospective cattle. They have two smaller, compact, full bodied bulls that I think may be a possibility, and then they have 50 commercial Brangus heifers to choose from. These are all 3/8 Brahman, 5/8 Angus.

My favorite bull...You can see how much shorter he is than the same age bull next to him. I liked his fullness, coat, and color.

This guy is like a pit bull. I liked him too, he was even shorter legged than the top bull but his birthing weights were on the heavy side which makes me worry about ease of calving for the heifers.

She is about 12 mos old...Medium framed.

I like them because the have heifer/cow heads on them. Some of the cows I was looking at you couldn't tell if they were steers or heifers.

These cows have been supplemented with very little through the winter. They are all full bodied. Granted this place has awesome winter grasses

Its going to be hard picking 10 out of the 50.

I like the darker red color...

I may try some light colored and dark colored to see which perform better.

Please pick me...

We are looking at getting around 10 or so with a bull. That way we can start breeding in May, June. Then that will give us spring calves, born in March, April, giving them good milk from the spring grasses. I can't wait.