Just curious who else is living super frugal

[Totalcolour]

Totalcolour, I love your hutch! We're just in the planning stages of starting with meat rabbits. We've been knocking around the idea of building our own or buying and I'm leaning toward buying the cages and then building a sort of lean to for the roof. We get some really hot temps in the summer here, so they'll need lots of shade.

You can MAKE the wire cages too! You need a crimping tool to join the end pieces, but it's really simple, and saves a ton of money! Hubby makes all our cages, and we even sold some at the local farm auction when we had too many of the wrong size.

While we don't get a lot of heat, we need the shade for the wind/rain/snow. Himself built the structure (he has a woodshop) and did the electric and plumbing himself. With it raised off the ground they are easy to clean under, and I hope everyone knows that rabbit poo is a cold manure and can be put straight on the garden without needing to compost it first!

Good luck with the bunny project. If I had to give up everything but one, I'd keep the bunnies. They aren't noisy, messy and don't take up much time and they taste great!

 

[ScottnLydia]

Maybe he has teenagers. You know the drill. The exact same thing is in there all afternoon but they have to keep checking every 5 minutes to see if suddenly there's something good to eat in there.

Yeah, I hate teenagers. Can"t do a thing with "em. I traded all of mine in on 'adults'!

I highly recommend 'adults', they don't smell as bad as teenagers and you get complements instead of backtalk. They will often volunteer to help out with jobs, which is another perk.

I really like my 'adults'.

~S

 

[galanie]

Yeah, I hate teenagers.  Can"t do a thing with "em.  I traded all of mine in on 'adults'!  

I highly recommend 'adults', they don't smell as bad as teenagers and you get complements instead of backtalk.  They will often volunteer to help out with jobs, which is another perk.

I really like my 'adults'.

~S

Oh yes, traded them off for adults 'round 10 years or more ago. Haven't looked back! As a side perk, I seem to be getting smarter, too!

 

[Peep_Show]

Mom was a child of The Depression and lived frugally ever since. Those of you old enough to remember probably recall the generic groceries... Plain yellow bags or cans with large bold black letters telling you just what was inside: Dog Food, Yogurt, Tuna Fish, Peanut Butter, White Bread, Egg Noodles. None of it was name brand or, if it was, it was Grade B.

Now, mind you, Dad made very good money. We children didn't have to suffer through generic hot dogs, but Mom was in charge of the kitchen and stuffing the larder. To compound the situation, Mom also didn't have any sense of taste or smell, so flavor meant nothing TO HER. I honestly think her cuilinary-cheapness funded their annual vacation. I will say, though, that her ability to make pennies squeak resulted in a very good college education for her kids and, in the future, some inheritance for her heirs.

Being frugal does not mean doing without, but there is a vast amount of compromise.....

 

[DennisK]

Hi folks! A while back, I was complaining about the cost of chicken feed, and HeatherLynn recommended supplementing their diet with kitchen scraps. I recently gave them some homemade bread that started to go moldy. I was apprehended by DW and charged with trying to poison her chicks!

They seem to be OK … I’m wondering what shouldn’t I feed chickens?

 

[FireTigeris]

Hi folks! A while back, I was complaining about the cost of chicken feed, and HeatherLynn recommended supplementing their diet with kitchen scraps. I recently gave them some homemade bread that started to go moldy. I was apprehended by DW and charged with trying to poison her chicks!

They seem to be OK … I’m wondering what shouldn’t I feed chickens?

Well moldy things, things with unknown fungus... anything poisonous to humans... um... I think there's a list somewhere.

 

[FireTigeris]

Hi folks! A while back, I was complaining about the cost of chicken feed, and HeatherLynn recommended supplementing their diet with kitchen scraps. I recently gave them some homemade bread that started to go moldy. I was apprehended by DW and charged with trying to poison her chicks!

They seem to be OK … I’m wondering what shouldn’t I feed chickens?

Moldy things, poisonous (to humans/animals) things, rancid things, fungi with unknown type (if you eat fungi and would eat it yourself, it's ok), really really rotten meat...

 

[ScottnLydia]

Dennis, Dennis, Dennis!
What not to feed chickens;

Moldy bread
Moldy anything
Tomato leaves
Potato skins, especially if they have green showing
Onions to laying hens (unless you like funky tasting eggs)
Garlic to layers (as above)
Moldy bread (Jennifer wanted this in again)
Uncooked meat (don't want them to get worms)
Uncooked eggs (smash 'em up so that they are unrecognizable as eggs, to avoid egg eating)
Egg shells, unless ground up (see above)
Moldy bread
Spoiled anything
Wombats
Rat poison

Other than that, I really can't think of anything. There may be some disagreement on the potato peelings, but I get nervous about the solanine (the green toxic stuff) in them.

Oh, and NO MOLDY BREAD, MISTER!

~S

P.S. Nice picture of you, but who is the guy in the funny hat giving you the finger?

 

[DennisK]

P.S. Nice picture of you, but who is the guy in the funny hat giving you the finger?

WOW! No potato peelings!?! I have been doing that so much it is almost a habit! And no tomato leaves … I’m getting ready to take our tomato plants out; so this is good to know. I guess they will go into the compost heap.
Thanks – it is a rather hansom picture of me, if I do say so myself! It is my mug shot. Jennifer had to hold me up for the camera cop as I was a bit uncooperative. I guess I will be serving time – attempted chicken murder, resisting arrest, etc….

 

[DennisK]

This is Jennifer holding up our first head of broccoli. This year was our first garden.