Friday, December 25, 2009
Merry Christmas
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Christmas Day at Othala Acres was a very good one, with all the family here, including Ron's parents. We opened gifts and had a delicious ham dinner. Christmas was great for us... we were some of the fortunate ones in New Hampshire. Since the horrible ice storm on December 12, there are still folks around who had to spend Christmas in shelters, at family/friends' houses, or in a candle lit house (if they were fortunate enough to have a heat source that was not dependent on electricity). We were lucky to only have lost power for 12 hours or so on December 12 (half of it was before we woke up for the day), and we have a fairly new wood stove. We really wanted to go to help others who were forced to leave their homes, but luck would have it that we were all suffering with a nasty stomach bug that kept us at home for almost a week during right about the time the storm struck. Many people not only were forced to leave their homes or live on candlelight (or generators), but many had damage to their homes, vehicles and more due to trees and large limbs falling everywhere. There were long lines at the pumps with people buying fuel for their generators. Many parts of the state looked like a bomb hit with trees and wires down everywhere. Our immediate area somehow escaped most of the carnage around us... almost like a tornado leveling a town but leaving a strip of houses untouched. Very surreal. Events like this really put things into perspective and make you thankful for what you have and how easily it can be taken away. Never take what you have for granted. ~Lily |
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
What did you do on Christmas Eve?
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I was herding pigs! We had someone come by and ask if we were missing pigs, because there were two white ones down the road. I said we don't have any pigs right now, but I'll go down and see what's up. So my son (home on military leave from the Marines) & I went down and found the guy and one of the local police officers in the neighbor's driveway. As I started talking to the officer, this huge Yorkshire sow comes barreling around the corner with the other neighbor's son right behind her. Tommy went back to get some grain as the rest of us tried to herd/coax the two pigs back into their shed. Of course the door was thin plywood that opened OUT, so we had to brace ourselves against the door to prevent 250+ lbs of pork from busting it back open. The town Animal Control Officer showed up and we chased them out into the pen and he nailed a big board across the opening so they couldn't get out the house door again. Of course they wait until their owner is visiting family in Maine to plan their break-out. I guess they got wind somehow that next week their time is up. Hope their owner has a big freezer. :) We had no idea they even had pigs. It's amazing how many folks around here have livestock and you wouldn't even know it. Everything from chickens to cows to pigs to horses. It's so very cool... instead of looking at me like I have two heads when I mention our critters like I'm used to from down in Springfield (Massachusetts), most people in this area go "really? we have/had those too!" I love country life! :) ~Lily |
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Longshanks
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Well, Edward's first day of hunting ever was yesterday. It was more like an hour of scouting, but we took the bow anyway and Edward is excited he got to hunt with daddy. However, the hunt went something like this.. Edward: "la la la la daddy do you see any deer? La la la I have camouflage on. la la la I hate posquitos. la la la" Ron:" Edward... shhh" But I wouldn't trade that experience for anything in the world. Edward did find some tracks and scat on his own, so that is haleful. Speaking of haleful, he gladly imitated me and took a knee after we got out of the truck and before we went into the woods to hail the deer and Ullr for the hunt. This is how our ways continue. p.s. Ingrid was so mad I wouldn't take her too. Next time I'll take her, just to get her out there, but it will have to be 'just for scouting'. There is no way we'll see anything with her and Edward in tow.:-) ...Ron |
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Wild Goose Chase
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Friday, Ron & I went up to Zephyr Lake Park to ty to catch the pair of Toulouse geese that someone abandoned. When they saw us, they swam right up for handouts, and ate the bread we tossed for them. We both had nets, and Ron was able to catch one of them. Once he got that one in the crate, he came back to help me with the other one. At one point I tried to head him off as he ran toward the water, but slipped on the wet grass and went down on my ass as the goose high tailed it for the water. Of course he refused to come out and swam well out of reach with the local mallard ducks. We left for a bit and came back to find him back on shore, so we tried again. This time he went right over Ron's head and back into the lake. We hid and waited like a couple of lame hunters, but no way would he come back out again, so we gave up and brought the first goose home with us. Today, we went up to the lake again to try another go at catching the second goose. He was staying far away from the beach and hanging out by the vegetation with the ducks. So I decided to go around and head down the railroad tracks to try to get to where they were. I went down the bank and they swam away slowly, but I started tossing little pieces of bread into the water, and the goose turned around and started back my way. I was surprised and excited to see he was coming right up to me and even ate from my hand. So after a couple minutes, I squatted down and tossed a couple pieces down in front of me. He bent his head to eat them and I grabbed him by the neck. He let out a surprised HONK! and struggled just a little and settled right down as soon as I was holding him. I think he may have actually felt relieved ... one because I didn't eat him and two because he probably knows people are where the food and safety really come from. When we got home, I reunited the pair, and the first goose started making soft little happy noises... they are definitely very happy to be back together. So happy ending! Yay! :) I have to thank this wildlife rescue guy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wu_KMGhA on the best way to catch a goose. It definitely works well. :) ~Lily |
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Frost?
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I am sore today. The kind of sore that is haleful. The kind of sore that proves to your soul that you worked the day before. We have a few very large poplars here at Othala Acres. Over the past winter, the top third of one very large one snapped off and instead of falling, hung up in another tree. A 'widow maker' as we call them. It could fall anytime and make your wife a widow. Well it has been in the corner of the Gods Grove the past few seasons and only the sheep go near it so I was content to leave it. Last month I took it down. I cut the tree at about 3 feet off the ground and let it fell. It was a bit spooky because the top thrid of the tree was broken and the tree fell in two pieces. Fortunately they fell pretty much next to each other which speaks more of luck than my skill with a chainsaw. The same day I cut the tree into wood stove lengths. Well yesterday I split all that wood by hand. Edward and Ingrid then helped me load up Lily's old wheel barrel and get it to the sheep fence where we then loaded it into the back of my waiting pickup. The Gods Grove looks funny having my pickup in it. Then the kids and I drove through the woods to unload and stack the wood next to the house. We got two truckloads full and it seems to be about a quarter of a cord of wood. This brings us to about a stacked cord of wood that I cut split and stacked myself. Nice accomplishment. All by hand. Yeah I know, "Yay Ron, Ron is so rugged. Now go get yourself a shower and a medal." :-) The floor of Lily's poultry barn is almost done. The walls will go up very easily after that. The sheep will need the fall shearing very soon and all the chicks and turkey poults are growing like weeds. However, almost all of them will be sold off. Cull time is hard because Lily has to choose which is the best of the best for our breeding stock. With life comes death and with death comes life. That is the ways it has ever been and shall ever be. Never more obvious than on a farm. We lost a turkey hen yesterday and it seems the 5 babies we let her raise are gone as well. We found two of them and the other were nowhere to be found. They have gotten chilled, which is easy when they are so young, and have died. Fortunately we have over two dozen turkey poults (babies) from earlier hatches this summer that are thriving so we still have a very healthy breeding program. I just really hate losing turkey hens. Bow season for deer starts in the next couple days and I was able to go up Gap Mountain and get the second deer stand we own. I should put it out tomorrow. I think Lily needs to come with me to help me place it where she wants it. This will be my first season trying my hand at bow hunting. I am sure I will like it although it will be odd hunting in warm weather instead of the cold on November and December. Speaking of cold, Intellicast said it was 39 degrees a little while ago, yet when I went out to let the birds out and check on them, the dew on the roof of the house was no dew. It was FROST! First frost of the year. Well of the season. Had the annual blacksmith event with Jim (Ealdhand) down in Litchfeld, CT this past Sunday. I don't think either one of us got photos. This was the third year we have done it and each year we get more into the period clothing and such. It is a 'old home days' event which mimics 19th century life, complete with Civil War soldiers and other civilian re-enactors. I brought a table I made this year on which we displayed a bunch things we made. Buckles, hooks, handles, hinges and such that a 19th century village blacksmith would be required to make. It added a lot to our setup as it gave us a bunch of talking points to interact more with the people visiting the event. There are so many apples on the trees this year. Delicious ones but also very ugly. I need to learn more about them to see if we can get them to be good looking apples or if they will always be gnarled and such. They are heirloom apples (russet & blue pearmain) from trees that were planted about a hundred years ago and neglected for the past 50 years of so. Maybe they are destined to simply be cider apples, which re awakens my desire for a good cider press. I know where to get them. But at a price of $500 or so, it is a bit verboten right now. Now is also the time to be thinking what bulbs we shall plant for next spring's flowers. Also any sapling transplanting should be done now. Get the whole root ball. Oh, rabbits. The 7 babies born the other week are all head and eyes. So cute. Great coloration on all of them and so different. One has the coloring of a wild rabbit and she gets to stay with us. The rest we shall sell or send to the stew pot. We'll see how that goes. Rabbit and dumplings are so delicious. --Ron |
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Hopkinton Fair
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What an excellent haleful weekend. Saturday began with Carl and Dana, Thor and Nikki spending the day here at Othala Acres. There was some blacksmithing on my forge, some grilling of meats on the grill, some pistol shooting across the road and some easy mead/beer drinking in Ingsleigh Hall. The sharing of companionship down the Hall was the most enjoyable for me. I have spent a bit of time down there lately cleaning and painting. There are flags of the families different heritages hanging down there now. I am steering more towards 'ethnic' flags as opposed to modern national ones if possible. For example, I have the old 'Erin Go Bragh' irish flag instead of the modern tricolor one. The Engish Flag of the Cross of St George instead of the modern Union Jack. That sort of thing. It looks terrific. Can't wait to have symble there for Wintersfinding/Winternights in October. Sunday was the Hopkington fair with the Burke-Smith's. Again, haleful time. Kids went on the rides with the mom's while I stood around with Mike waiting for them. Just standing around looking cool, each of us with our youngest daughter's diaper bags slung over our shoulders. Mikes wasn't too bad, but mine was a 'Blue's Clues' backback. Lucking I could care less but it was a but funny to see. After a few rides, some cotton candy and fried dough, it was out of the midway and into the agri section of the fair. Saw plenty of pigs that looked like our pig. So that means lots of Hampshires. Cows were mostly Holsteins I believe. Not too much variety there. But sheep and goats always have a diverse showing. NH used to be HUGE sheep country in the 1800's. That heritage has stuck with us, even though until the 70's we had more cows than people up here. The nickname used to be 'Cow Hampshire'. Some still call us that. We had ice cream, frappes and ice cream sodas to finish off the fair. But one last mention of the fair would be the size of some of the giant pumpkins. Truelly amazing how some people can get their pumpkins that big. --Ron |
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Turkey and rabbits For Sale
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I have a one year old Narragansett tom for sale for $35. Also selling our mixed breed rabbit herd (New Zealand and unknown crosses).... babies were born March 19th. Four males (3 albino, 1 brown), one female (brown & white spotted), and mom, who is a little over one year old (don't know exact birth date). Mom is brown and a great mom. $5 each or all 6 for $25. I'll be posting the info with photos in the For Sale section of the website soon. |
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
NH Chickenstock
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This past Sunday (June 29), the first annual NH Chickenstock was held in the Tractor Supply Co parking lot in Milford, NH. There were lots of Backyard Chickens members and others there to sell, buy and socialize. There were chickens of all ages, turkeys, pheasants, ducks, guineas and rabbits. It was a lot of fun and really nice meeting Backyard Chickens folks face to face, and seeing friends from the local poultry show circuit. Plans are already in the works for the 2009 NH Chicken Stock, so keep an eye out for information some time next year! ~Lily |
Friday, February 22, 2008
Long Overdue Update
Posted in Critter Happenings
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It's been quite a while since I've updated the blog. Lots of happenings since the last post. We hatched some Narragansetts last year, but lost most of our hens to foxes or coyotes when they hid nests across the road. This year they will reside in a fully covered pen so they can safely brood their eggs. We attended shows in the Spring and Fall, and took Champion Turkey at the NH Poultry Fanciers show. I'm thrilled to also announce that one of our Dominique hens is famous! Her photo is featured in Storey's Illustrated Guide to Poultry Breeds by Carol Ekarius. The book has lots of interesting and useful information on many poultry breeds, as well as beautiful photos. Her picture is also in A Pocketful of Poultry, by Carol Ekarius. It is a condensed version of the first book, and features beautiful photos of all types of poultry, with short facts and info on each breed. Either book is definitely worth getting! The winter has been especially hard this year, and we had many losses, both from the cold and old age (many of our first chickens that are still around are old timers now). But we had some hatches earlier in the year that gave us promising new birds in our Dominique, Silkie and Narragansett flocks. There weren't many, but the ones that we did hatch are looking very nice. We also added a pig to our farm. Wilbur the Lucky was about 65 lbs when we brought him home in June, and now he's tipping the scales at about 375 lbs! He's still a baby, so he has some growing to do! Hopefully not too much tho, since we are keeping him as a breeding boar. He is part Hampshire and part Poland China (he definitely looks Hampshire tho). Our main interest is the Tamworth, which is listed as "Threatened" in the ALBC Watch List, and we're looking into raising them on a small scale. Our latest addition is a pair of mixed breed meat rabbits that we purchased at a poultry swap this past Fall. Jack & Jill (named by Edward, our 4 year old) will hopefully give us a nice variety of colors in their offspring that also yield good meat. ~Lily |
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
Silkies Stolen at Show in West Springfield, MA
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Helping to get the word out. Please pass along... $1000 REWARD Leading to the person or persons responsible for stealing a White Silkie Hen from her show cage on January 14, 2007 at approximately 7:30 am at the NEPC Show – West Springfield, Mass. If someone offered or sold this bird to you or someone you know, or you have any information at all, please contact us at 508-923-0051 hattricksilkies@comcast.net This White Hen can be physically identified.  Also stolen from the show hall: Pair of Black Silkies and a Splash Silkie Hen It makes me very sad and very angry that I have to post this. Poultry shows are for people who love poultry to come together to compete with the birds they worked very hard with to look their best, and most importantly, to socialize with other poultry people and have fun! But there are always some who have to take advantage of good people for their own selfish gain. This has been an increasing problem of late. A breeder at the huge show this past Fall in Ohio lost their entire breeding flock of Buff Rumpless Auracaunas to a thief, and others have also had birds stolen right out of show cages at other shows and fairs. I hope the thief or thieves responsible for these dispicable acts are caught and the birds returned safely. No matter how coveted these show birds are, there is ABSOLUTELY NO excuse to steal them. Their owners love and care for them as much as anyone else and are heartbroken about their losses. |
Thursday, January 18, 2007
The 2006 Agricultural Identification Survey and the NASS/NAIS Identity
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Copyright 2007 by Mary Zanoni. The following
article may be distributed solely for personal and non-commercial use
without prior permission from the author. Non-commercial distribution
and posting to assist in disseminating information about NAIS is, in
fact, encouraged, so long as proper credit is given and the article is
reproduced without changes or deletions. Any other distribution or
republication requires the authors permission in writing and requests
for such permission should be directed to the author at the
address/phone/e-mail address below. The 2006 Agricultural Identification Survey and the NASS/NAIS Identity by Mary Zanoni, Ph.D., J.D. P.O. Box 501 Canton, NY 13617 315-386-3199 mlz@slic.com January 11, 2007 Like many small-farm advocates, I have been fielding questions over the past few weeks about the above survey being sent out by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS). Many people ask if there is any relationship between the survey and the data being collected (often without the knowledge or consent of farmers) for the National Animal Identification System (NAIS). As we shall see, although USDA personnel wont admit it, NASS data is the foundation of the USDAs aggressive pursuit of NAIS. To my great surprise, in this morning's mail I myself received a 2006 Agricultural Identification Survey (2006 AIS). I say "to my great surprise," because I am not and never have been engaged in any type of commercial agriculture whatsoever. I have never before received any type of communication from NASS. The envelope states in very large letters, "YOUR RESPONSE IS REQUIRED BY LAW." The envelope further states that the due date is January 29, 2007. As explained below, it is clear that many people receiving this form are not in fact "REQUIRED BY LAW" to answer it. Further, a recipient has only a couple of weeks between the receipt of the form and the purported deadline, and it would be impossible for the average non-lawyer to do enough research within that time to figure out whether he/she is or isn't actually required to respond. The form itself begins with several general questions, such as Do you own or rent any land? Do you grow vegetables, hay or nursery stock? Do you receive government payments? The questions appear deliberately designed to imply that anyone who would answer yes is among those REQUIRED BY LAW to fill out this form. The USDA is thus casting a very wide net in this particular intrusion into the lives of American citizens, because, frankly, just about everyone who is not homeless owns or rents real estate; some 75 million people in the United States grow vegetables; and some 60 million people receive government payments. (See 2007 Statistical Abstract of the United States, Table 1226 (vegetable gardening); Table 528 (government transfer payments).) Now, perhaps it is possible that this wide net might not be as intrusive as it appears. After all, maybe NASS has only sent this form to people reasonably assumed to be farmers. But in fact it was distressingly easy to confirm that intrusiveness and deliberate over-inclusiveness are the hallmarks of the NASS approach. This morning, I called the information number listed on the form and spoke to a woman at the USDAs Helena, Montana call center. According to her, the call center is being swamped with calls from people who live in cities and have nothing to do with agriculture. She stated that the call center employees really have no idea of why or how all these people have been sent the 2006 AIS. When asked for some conjecture as to how so many unnecessary people could have been included in the mailings, the woman explained that, for example, anyone who had ever subscribed to a horse magazine might have been included in the database. Now, that raises interesting questions. How is the USDA/NASS getting the sub*****ion lists of horse magazines? Why and how are horse magazines, or, for that matter, any rural-life publication, any breed association, feed store, or private or public livestock or horticultural enterprise whatsoever, giving their member/subscriber/customer lists to the government without telling their members, subscribers, or customers? Or, worse yet, how is the government accessing such lists or databases without the awareness of the businesses or organizations in question? During times when the Executive Branch of the United States Government has secretly gathered the records of most peoples incoming and outgoing phone calls, and the President asserts a right to open your mail and my mail without a warrant, this is not a trivial question. Returning to the first page of the form, we see the wide net growing ever wider. The form states: Many people who dont consider themselves farmers or ranchers actually meet the definition of a farm or ranch and are important to agriculture. We need your completed form even though you may not be actively farming, ranching, or conducting any other type of agricultural activity. Finally, the first page of the form reinforces the threat of the REQUIRED BY LAW language of the envelope: Response to this survey is legally required by Title 7, U.S. Code. (Emphasis in original.) (Note the single-double quotation marks the threat actually is in quotation marks, employing that common tenth-grade stylistic conceit of quoting something to make it appear extra-important.) One senses evasions aplenty here -- the form has referred to the definition of a farm or ranch but nowhere tells us that definition. It suggests that anyone receiving a form has a legal obligation to answer it, even though their enterprise may not meet the definition of a farm. Given the foregoing ambiguities, I had further questions about the definition of a farm and the possible legal penalties for not responding to the 2006 AIS. Specifically, I asked if my understanding of the definition of farm as an operation with at least $1000 in sales from agriculture was correct. (See 2002 Census of Agriculture, FAQs, www.nass.usda.gov/census_of_agriculture/frequently_asked_questions/index.asp#1.) Further, having found the penalty listed in 7 USC 2204g (d) (2), namely, that a person . . . who refuses or willfully neglects to answer a question . . . . shall be fined not more than $100, I noted that, insofar as the 2006 AIS actually contains 42 separate questions, it could be important to know whether there was a separate $100 fine for each unanswered question, or just a single $100 fine for not answering the entire 2006 AIS. These questions were beyond the purview of the call-center woman, so she made a note of the questions, referred them to a member of the NASS professional staff, and promised that the NASS staff member would call me with the answers. The next day, January 12, 2007, I received a call from Jody Sprague, a NASS statistician. First we addressed the question of the farm definition. Ms. Sprague conceded that someone whose property or operation did not meet the farm definition would have no obligation to answer the 2006 AIS. She also conceded that the basic definition of a farm as an operation with at least $1000 in agricultural sales was correct, but explained that in addition to the gross sales figures, NASS also assigns certain point values for particular agricultural activities. If the points add up to 1000, your operation would meet the definition of a farm. When asked for an example of how the point values work, Ms. Sprague explained that 5 equines would equal a farm but 4 would not. (Subsequently, she explained that each equine equals 200 points.) When asked how many cattle equal a farm, Ms. Sprague said she did not know. At one point Ms. Sprague said that NASS wanted, through the 2006 AIS, to determine if they could delete people who should not be on their mailing list. But for the most part she contended the opposite, e.g., that she would advise anyone who had received the form to fill it out; and that even a person with one horse should complete the questionnaire, although she previously had conceded that someone with fewer than 5 horses would not meet the definition of a farm and therefore would not be required to fill out the survey. We next turned to the issue of how NASS may have compiled its mailing list for the 2006 AIS. First Ms. Sprague maintained that the sources of the NASS mailing list are confidential. I noted the call-center womans reference to a sub*****ion to a horse magazine as a source of names, and asked for some other possible sources. Ms. Sprague said that growers associations, such as the Wheat Growers Association and Barley Growers Association, were examples of sources. I asked for more examples but she was reluctant to give any, claiming that some are confidential and some are not confidential. She explained the overall process of list building thus: as NASS comes across lists where there are possibilities of agricultural activity, NASS incorporates those names into its mailing list. We returned to the subject of point values for different livestock. Explaining that many people were likely to have questions about this, I asked if Ms. Sprague could find out for me the point values of cattle or other non-equine livestock. She put me on hold for a long while. Subsequently, she gave me the following point values: beef cattle, 310 points per head; dairy cattle, 2000 points per head; goats and sheep, 50 points per head. (I wanted to ask about chickens, but I was getting the distinct sense that I might be pushing my luck.) Ms. Sprague stressed that she did not want people to be concentrating on the point values. For example, she noted that people should not say they have 4 horses if they really have 5 horses, because it wouldnt be ethical. (But apparently under the NASS moral code, rummaging through some of those Choicepoint-type consumer profiles to track your reading habits is perfectly ethical. And, as we shall see, the NASS moral code also permits forking over your data to states that are in hot pursuit of the NAIS premises-registration quotas imposed as a condition for the states continued receipt of federal NAIS grant money.) We went on to the question of the $100 non-compliance fine. Ms. Sprague assured me that a farmers failure to answer any or all of the 42 total questions on the 2006 AIS would only result in a single $100 fine. She also said that the fine is rarely enforced and that if any producer chooses not to report, no one from NASS would seek them out. Finally, I asked Ms. Sprague if there were any relationships between NASS and the APHIS NAIS program, and she said, Absolutely none. I asked her if any other agency, state or federal, would ever be allowed to use NASSs database to solicit premises IDs for NAIS, and she said, Absolutely not. And indeed, pursuant to 7 U.S.C. 2204g (f) (3), Information obtained [for NASS surveys] may not be used for any purpose other than the statistical purposes for which the information is supplied. Several weeks ago, Missouri antiNAIS activist Doreen Hannes sent a series of questions about Missouris solicitation of NAIS premises IDs to Steve Goff, DVM, the Animal ID Administrator of the Missouri Department of Agriculture (MDA). Dr. Goff provided written answers on December 20, 2006. When asked where the MDA had obtained addresses for its solicitation of NAIS premises IDs, Dr. Goff stated: the mailing was done through a contract with the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service. I wont answer my 2006 Agricultural Information Survey. Instead, I will send a copy of this article to my Congressman and my two United States Senators. I will ask them to have the House and Senate Agriculture Committees investigate the rampant and shameful abuses of federal law and common morality inherent in NASSs compilation of its mailing lists and use of those lists to promote the APHIS National Animal Identification System. Why will I do this? Because I dont live by the USDAs false code of ethics; I answer to a higher authority. |
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
Fall is in the air
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Yesterday afternoon, I, the wee ones and Ron all enjoyed munching on
apples growing wild on our trees. There are 3-4 trees that we plan on
pruning come February so we can get them producing
again. These trees tho are already giving us some really tasty apples.
They're small, bumpy & funky looking... but YUM! Two of the trees
have golden apples that are sweet & tasty, kinda like the 'golden
delicious' or 'honey gold', and the others are the red/green tart
apples like Macs or Cortlands. It's cool that not only do we have apple
trees growing here, but we have a variety of different types. We're
planning on adding a couple new trees next spring, too. It was fun sitting around in the apple grove munching on our very own apples. Edward & Ingrid loved them, too. |
Monday, August 7, 2006
Fun weekend at the Cheshire Fair
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The Cheshire Fair in Keene ran this past week, and I entered the Powder Puff Pig Scramble on Saturday, which was open to ladies over 18. I and the other lucky contestants all received a sack and lined up along the wall. Once the official yelled "go!" a minute and a half of total chaos broke out. Women running everywhere, piglets scrambling everywhere, and the occasional squeal of a captured pig. I dove for a couple and missed, and each time I heard another pig squeal, I knew my chances had gone down a bit more. Then suddenly I saw a pig being chased with no where to go but right at me. I dove for him, tackled the little guy & put him into the sack. He is now chomping happily away on our farm, and for the next 5 months will be living the life of Riley. Let's just hope I don't get too attached before then... since I already broke our "we never name our food animals" rule and called him "Hambone."  And Ron got the whole thing on video, too!  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bw4E91pkqgcWe also watched some of the draft horse pulls, oxen pulls, and tractor pulls, which are always fun. We didn't get to see the demolition derby, but I had a great time watching all the cars that were still able to run drag themselves on rims out of the ring. We also checked out the animal displays, sheep show and saw the really nice poultry entered in the 4H poultry show. The 4H kids also did great jobs on their displays again this year, too. And of course I don't have to explain how great the fair food is...  |
Monday, May 22, 2006
Silver Spur Pigeon & Poultry Show 2006
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On May 20th, Ron, the two little one and I packed up a few of our birds and headed off to the15th Annual Silver Spur Pigeon and Poultry Show in Westford, MA. It is a small show presented by the 4H Aviculture Club and held at the 4H Fairgrounds, which also held a rabbit & cavy show, dog show, plant sale and yard sale that day. Since it's breeding time and most of our birds are not in show condition, we brought just 2 Silkie hens, a Dominique hen and a Narragansett hen. Organizers were excited that we had entered our turkey, as turkeys have been sadly absent from the show for a number of years. The show was judged by Brian Knox, who was great for explaining what to look for when judging each breed. Our NB Buff Silkie hen took Best of Breed, and our Dominique hen took Best American (very small class tho!). Our turkey took home a trophy for Best Turkey (albeit she was the only turkey, but we are still proud of her win  ).Other Champions included Champion Waterfowl, which was a Black East Indie drake. I didn't see who won Champion Pigeon and Champion Dove. Reserve Champion of Show was a gorgeous Silver Phoenix cock (Champion Large Fowl), and Grand Champion of Show was a very pretty Bantam White Cochin hen (Champion Bantam). Congratulations to all the winners! Here is a link to some photos from the show: http://tinyurl.com/e7c8t I entered the raffle and won a new New England Bantam Club tee shirt, and purchased a pet carrier for only $5 at the Yard Sale that is perfect for carrying birds to the shows. Thanks to everyone who worked hard to hold this show. We met some great new people there and had a really good time. It was our first year attending, and we plan on returning again next year! 
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Tuesday, May 9, 2006
May Day weekend recap...
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This past weekend was great. Spent time with many good friends, raised a beautiful Maypole, and welcomed the newest Burke-Smith via a very lovely Naming ceremony in Ingsleigh Hall. The weather was perfect (save for a little overcast & droplets on Saturday), and the blackflies were just semi-evil. On a sad note, however, we lost our old sweetheart of a ewe, Alice, to bloat yesterday. She was a very gentle old Finn with arthritis. Everyone seemed OK when we left to run a couple errands, but Alice was already gone when we returned less than an hour and a half later. We are very sad to have lost her, since she was so loving and gentle around small children. Alice will sorely be missed here. One other bit of sad news also: our second attempt at hatching eggs from our Dominique flock this year has failed. None of the eggs were fertile, so it looks like our rooster Chucky is shooting blanks. :( We have some Narragansett turkey eggs in the incubator now... crossing fingers on these eggs, as it is our first batch this year for turkeys. |
Thursday, April 27, 2006
Silkies on strike!
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We are now almost into May, and still no baby Silkies. After getting the new breeding pens ready and everyone in a couple months ago, I had high hopes for hatching some new Silkie babies. For a good 2-3 weeks the Splash/Blue Silkies were laying very well. I waited and waited, but sadly not one Buff Silkie egg. Six of the eggs were developing nicely in the incubator, but my 2 year old found the power strip and pressed the button. The eggs were cold when I discovered the problem, and the hatch was lost. Meanwhile the Splash/Blues decided if the Buffs weren't laying eggs, they shouldn't have to either. I'm still waiting impatiently for eggs! On the other hand, we have eating eggs coming out of our ears! Chicken eggs, duck eggs and mix turkey eggs. Good thing I like to eat eggs! The Dominique girls have been laying like crazy. I had some eggs in the incubator from them, but since our poor roo lost an eye to another of our roos (who is now in a new home!) just before the breeding pen was set up, he wasn't interested in loving the ladies. All the eggs were infertile. We have another batch of Dominique eggs in right now, and I'll be candling them today or tomorrow to see if they're cooking along. And finally the turkeys. We got a little behind on the breeding pen, but we have our Narragansett boy Canonicus in with our three best Narri hens, and I'm collecting eggs to go into the incubator in a week or so. Let's hope we get some poults soon! Guess for now I should just go visit the hatchery chicks we bought who are happily running around in their brooders... |
Wednesday, April 19, 2006
We now have Bantam Dominiques!
Posted in Critter Happenings
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We now have 16 new tiny babies peeping away in a brooder. Our order of bantam Dominique chicks arrived from Cackle Hatchery this morning. Our original standard Dominiques were purchased from Cackle Hatchery, and they have nice color and are excellent egg layers. Foremost Dominique breeder Mark A. Fields mentions on his website (http://www.dominiquechicken.com) that the Cackle Hatchery bantam Dominiques originate from his Unbeatable Beauty line, so I'm really excited to see how these babies develop! We're proud to be able to help preserve America's First Chicken in both standard and bantam size. Photos of the new babies can be seen here: http://othalaacres.photosite.com/dominiques/BantamChicks/ Update: The chicks that arrived from Ideal Poultry on April 7th are growing like crazy, and all now have wings. They're just getting into that awkward stage with feathers growing in and fuzz falling out, but they're still cute as ever. |
Friday, April 7, 2006
New chicks are finally here!
Posted in Critter Happenings
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Our new chicks finally arrived from Ideal Poultry... 2 Buckeye pullets, 2 Buff Chantecler pullets & a trio of Partridge Chanteclers, plus 10 Red Broilers for our freezer. We will be adding Chanteclers to our heritage breeding program, so I'm really excited to finally get these babies. The broiler chicks are little butterballs & practically jumped out at me when I opened the box. The two Partrige pullets were chilled and huddled with their eyes closed, so I carried them around in my bra for an hour or so & fed them water w/electrolytes from a dropper until they perked up. Now they look a lot more lively and everyone is eating and drinking. I just  the sound of peeping coming from the library right now! Click the link below for cute chick pix: View 2006 New Babies album. |
Wednesday, March 8, 2006
Almost Spring!
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Spring is just around the corner... the weather is warming, the chickens are laying well, and the wild birds are very active. The seed and hatchery catalogs have been trickling in for me to happily browse through. Two days ago we tapped our maple trees for the first time this season. We have two very large and very old oaks next to the house which we've tapped for the past few years. This year we also tapped a couple of the smaller trees in the woods beyond the big maples. So far they've been flowing slowly, but they should be picking up soon. We tapped them just in time, too, since a week or so ago, we opened our last bottle of syrup from last year, and have been enjoying it on pancakes & french toast. Yesterday we FINALLY got our new wood stove installed. It was originally supposed to be installed in mid-December, but there were some issues with the chimney needing repair. With baby Ingrid being born around that time, things got pushed back a lot, and we finally got things fixed and the stove installed. It is a Jotul #3 small stove, but it is supposed to kick off a good amount of heat. It would have been nice to have it during the winter, but here in New Hampshire we have a few cold days ahead of us, so it will be put to good use before Spring finally arrives.Another sign of Spring around here is the hum of the incubators. I have 2 styrofoam Hova-bators (one wafer heated circulated air with egg turner, and one electric thermostat circulated air). I stared collecting eggs from our Dominiques and Silkies to hatch, and have around a dozen eggs so far. Unfortunately the Buff Silkies are on strike, but the Splash & Blue Silkies are laying like crazy. I'll be putting the eggs in most likely this weekend. We won't have any chicks for Ostara to hearald in the first day of Spring, but we'll at least have chicks well before Easter. |
Friday, March 3, 2006
More Fraud From The USDA (NAIS)
Posted in Action Alerts
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The USDA is making calls to individuals all over the country, and if you give them answers they are registering your home without your permission. Many of the thousands of farmers who the USDA claims have registered, did not give their permission. They just answered the questions. Be wary of any government agency calls. Don't answer questions and hang up. From the nonais.org site: "More Fraud From The USDA" The USDA is claiming that farmers are voluntarily signing up for NAIS. The reality is that the state governments and the USDA are signing up farmers without their permission. NAIS is not being implemented as a voluntary program contrary to the claims in writing of the USDA. A while back the USDA called me and tried to get me to answer questions so they could sign me up for a Premise ID - a PIN as they call it in their Strategic Draft Proposal for NAIS. I refused. Today I got a call from the government again and the woman wanted to give me my PIN number. I asked what this was about and she would not say. She just said she needed to give me my PIN number. I refused and hung up on her. Farmers and homesteaders in other states have had this same experiences with both the USDA and their state departments of agriculture signing them up without their permission and then calling it a voluntary signup. Beware of the lies our government tells. A great many farmers on their "voluntary" signup list were not voluntary. Be careful of talking with government agents. This is not paranoia. The USDA and state governments are acting in an underhanded manner. Now is the time to just say No to NAIS! This is the USDA site for what they claim they're doing about NAIS: http://animalid.aphis.usda.gov To find out the truth about what the USDA is doing go to these sites: http://nonais.org/ http://stopanimalid.org/forum |