Controversial Discussions

[Strayahen]

I'm an Aussie - and because 'Rake' just doesn't seem to want to play on my iview app (and it is the final episode!!) I thought I would have a read through some of the forum posts. Absolutely amazed to find that Tony Abbot is being discussed! Full disclosure, I am not a fan, but really curious as to whether those that have posted and replied are Aussies like me - or is our Tony getting international press?

 

[Farmer Mike S]

This irritates me so much!
If you want a pet, then be prepared to look after it no matter what it is from a mouse to an elephant.
Also circus's are horrible places for animals and animal circuses should not be allowed!

I really had no intention to rant about my friend, but it does annoy me so much. Most his chickens got eaten by predators and unfortunately he's getting more. He's got a 4x4 coop and puts ten chickens in there and if there's bad weather theyre stuck in there because they don't have a covered run. I had to watch his chickens over the summer and the coop only had one window which he opens a crack, and it was over 100 degrees in there. He just seems to have no desire in this trade, I feel like it's more for ego but who knows why.

Compared to other people though, he's not really too bad. For some odd reason, there's a really big "redneck" ego around here. You got kids that drive these big trucks and are constantly showing them off, and they don't even need a truck and don't even use it as a truck. You also got people who show up wearing camo, brag about hunting, how hard they work, brag about being a redneck, etc. You also have girls that consider themselves "country" because they went to a country concert. It annoys me and a few other people though because most of these people are fakes and have absoultuety nothing to do with being a redneck. I don't even know if being a redneck is even a good thing. I'm not redneck or country either, but I know the lifestyle and I do live part of it. What also annoys me about this is I feel this is another reason people don't appreciate country life and think it's just fun and easy. You got these kids driving around in lifted trucks, wearing camo, and listening to country music calling themselves country; then they go home to their mansion and play on the cell phone. I live in a higher middle class suburban area so pretty much if you were born here and live here, you are not country or redneck

 

[Farmer Mike S]

It seems to me that your friend is certainly not cut out for the farming life. If he thinks 4 hours of work is hard he should try getting a harvest in. Around here the farmers work from about 5 in the morning till midnight and it is often noisier in the night with the combine harvesters than during the day at other times of the year. Sunday, Christmas day, as we know it makes no difference if you have livestock. They must still be tended. Farming is not a job but a way of life. Many farmers round here are 4th or 5th generation on the same farm and have known no other way of life.

We have the added complication of living and farming on salt marshes, so in the winter it floods and livestock are kept inside. It then becomes a complicated balancing act of getting the animals, particularly sheep, who don't tolerate wet ground, out as soon as possible to enjoy the spring grass, but not too soon to pose a risk to their foot health. The same juggling act applies to the planting of crops which must often be delayed as when the water table is high, the water recedes slowly, delaying the sowing. And then, as if by magic, it all comes right and everyone is out sowing like mad to make up lost time. Once again working for maybe 15 hours a day. No, not a job for the feint hearted at all!!

You are scaring me a bit! I feel like I would enjoy the lifestyle and would be able to handle it, but I don't know. I might go live on an off the grid farm for a year as an intern to get first hand experience of what life's like, so I would truly get the feel and not have an over romanticized image of the lifestyle. It may end up not being for me, but I wouldn't know for sure unless I tried. Something I heard about country life is that while it's hard, it's rewarding and people who enjoy the lifestyle enjoy it

 

[Chickerdoodle13]

There are lots of ways to get involved with farming without actually doing the farming! I intend to graduate as a poultry vet and work with farmers that way. I wont be dealing with the actual farming of the birds, but I will play a big part in flock health and meat or egg safety for the public.

There are also jobs in farm advertising, ag business, etc. The possibilities are endless!

 

[newfoundland]

Oh dear, I did not mean to scare you. I was just pointing out the reality of a farming life. It is more complicated here because most farms are mixed farms and as well as raising crops, there is usually a variety of livestock, needing different care and attention. Lambing for example here begins in mid/late January and the ewes must be housed where they can be tended throughout the night if necessary. This coincides of course with the worst weather and coldest temperatures. Who could envy the farmer or shepherd at 3 o'clock on a bitter winters morning with a struggling ewe or lamb? Then there is the calving, which has the possibility of being even more tricky! Most go smoothly but there are no guarantees and these are valuable assets to the farmer, ones he does not want to risk by not being vigilant.

Animal welfare is a huge deal here and quite rightly so. No one wants to know that the meat they are eating has not be humanely reared. All animals can be traced back to the farms they were reared on by their ear tag numbers and inspections of livestock markets are regular. Farmers are accountable for the health and condition of their animals and as they are such a valuable investment, farmers want to give them the best possible conditions, nearest to as natural a life as possible. Many say you can taste the difference in naturally raised animals that have been grazed on old pasture. I don't know as I am a vegetarian, but this land has been farmed since Roman times and in our fields, the old pasture ones, you can still see evidence of the ridge and furrow strip farming from medieval times!

 

[Fierlin1182]

I'm an Aussie - and because 'Rake' just doesn't seem to want to play on my iview app (and it is the final episode!!) I thought I would have a read through some of the forum posts. Absolutely amazed to find that Tony Abbot is being discussed! Full disclosure, I am not a fan, but really curious as to whether those that have posted and replied are Aussies like me - or is our Tony getting international press?

I for one am an Australian. I've been overseas a bit recently, and I've not seen mention of Tony elsewhere. He hasn't really done much of global importance, lol.

 

[cluckcluckluke]

Quote:
No way is Tony even thought of over overseas. I too am an Australia and I too have a new hatred fro him.
Although this new hatred is based on what one person has to say and a bit of light research, so it's a little flimsy.lol.

 

[cluckcluckluke]

Quote: My parents are friends with a family much like this. I have ( sadly ) sold about 8 hens to them ( a few on each occasion ) and now they are down to about 2. They keep promising they will build a proper, fox proof pen but they never do.
I also had to look after one of their hens when they went away and when the hen arrived at out house it was absolutely covered in mites and it's legs were so badly scaley mited.

But, unfortunately this is all just ignorance. I do try to educate them on simple chicken husbandry but they are honestly just to busy to own chickens and yet they think they can

.

 

[Fierlin1182]

How busy is too busy? I'd think we're pretty far right on the busyness spectrum but we have no problems with keeping chickens. On weekdays we usually get home at 9 or even 10pm, and we leave around 8. We feed our chickens once a day, in the morning, and they have a half of the garden to dig up insects and find seeds in. They lay large eggs every day and our friends always comment on how they've never seen fatter, more healthy-looking chickens. As we only see them (the chickens, not the friends, lol) for maximum five minutes most days, I think they are excellent at taking care of themselves.

On weekends we let them out to the front half of the garden while we keep an eye on them, so they can dig beneath the big trees. We save food scraps daily to give the chickens after their morning meal. We've never had a problem with foxes (there are no foxes in this part of the city) or other predators, the same as other households with chooks in our suburb, and our chickens have never been sick besides the usual symptoms of old age. (Besides once when chicken #2 ingested something unsavoury in the garden when she was 2 weeks old, but I don't count that. )

I think if people know the essentials for taking care of chickens and take action as soon as something goes wrong, they can successfully raise chickens even if they lead busy lives.

 

[cluckcluckluke]

How busy is too busy?

I'd think we're pretty far right on the busyness spectrum but we have no problems with keeping chickens. On weekdays we usually get home at 9 or even 10pm, and we leave around 8. We feed our chickens once a day, in the morning, and they have a half of the garden to dig up insects and find seeds in. They lay large eggs every day and our friends always comment on how they've never seen fatter, more healthy-looking chickens.

As we only see them (the chickens, not the friends, lol) for maximum five minutes most days, I think they are excellent at taking care of themselves.

On weekends we let them out to the front half of the garden while we keep an eye on them, so they can dig beneath the big trees. We save food scraps daily to give the chickens after their morning meal. We've never had a problem with foxes (there are no foxes in this part of the city) or other predators, the same as other households with chooks in our suburb, and our chickens have never been sick besides the usual symptoms of old age. (Besides once when chicken #2 ingested something unsavoury in the garden when she was 2 weeks old, but I don't count that.

)

I think if people know the essentials for taking care of chickens and take action as soon as something goes wrong, they can successfully raise chickens even if they lead busy lives.

But that is your situation.
They have to deal with Goanna's as well and snakes and foxes, and we all ( Aussies.lol. ) know how crazy and aggressive Goanna's can be.
Still I don't think it is fair that I continue to give them chickens and they not take the proper precautions that have to be met with their situation to keep happy, healthy hens.