Nevadans?

[VCfeathers]

Cow news-

So I'm definitly looking at jerseys. and there are several available in Fallon. The higher fat content is what everyone will need for cheese, ice cream, yogurt, etc... Plus I'd much rather handle an 800lb cow than a 1300lb one. It looks as though the initial cost of the cow will be about $1500 and that is for a healthy young cow that doesn't meet dairy production standards. During peak milking she'll produce between 6 and 10 gallons a day. We drink about 3 gallons a week, plus Sunny's 2... To make this feasable we need to share this cow between 6-7 people at least. I'm still very interested, but we need more co cow owners lol. I'm happy to bring milk to Reno once or twice a week, and if people wanted to turn extra milk into cheese or ice cream to help cover cow costs then I could probably get some more investors. My inlaws love fresh organic food, but they'd rather buy it than grow it. They love it when I take them eggs. Also we need to consider what we'll do with the calves. although I guess my son could raise them for 4h and sell them after, or maybe we could cut a deal with the dairy farmer at purchase time....

 

[chicharomirinda]

Just got back from CAL Ranch. They have the rest of their Cornish Rocks on sale for 50 cents each!

So if anyone is thinking meat bird project... you're not going to get them that cheap anywhere! I think they are trying to get rid of them because they have a tendency to stink, since all they do is sit in one spot in front of the trough and eat and poop, and it's nasty diarrhea poop.

I had heard about this but (thanks again BYC), Beekissed (she's a guru of country living - if any of you have had interaction with her on here you know what I'm talking about) had a thread where she was saying that you need to feed them fermented feed. Fermenting the feed not only raises the protein content by as much as 12%, but it also gives the chickens a steady stream of gut bacteria, which normalizes their digestion. They still poop large quantities but it is normal poop, not diarrhea. The chicks are healthier (meaning the meat is too!) and presumably happier since I know I'm never happy when I have diarrhea.

She does it by mixing the mash with water and unfiltered ACV (with the "mother" still active in it), then let it sit for 24 hours, filter and feed. You keep the strained liquid for the next batch, kind of like sourdough bread starter, so it gets better with time.

I may just pick up another 10 - they had some that are a little older so I would then get two "harvests".

that's an amazing deal. I wish I were ready for raising meaties but not quite yet.

Hi everyone,

Thanks for all the help with the guinea fowl /peafowl debate. I had seen the craigslist ad for guinea hatching eggs and am seriously considering them. Also Sunny thanks for the offer to hatch I'll probably take you up on that after your move and everything. Also if you're serious about white peafowl, the only peafowl eggs I could find were mixed and I'm not interested in the white ones. You'd be welcome to keep them if you'd like.


OK next question. How serious are people about cow sharing? Our little mustang mare is in need of a friend, and though I dearly love horses the expense is not something I can afford without a return on it right now. Not to mention we're working on being more self sufficient. I'd be happy to house the cow and care for her in exchange for her feed and care costs. Of course this all would need more consideration. How much milk will people want, where will they pick it up. etc.... But I'm definitely open to the idea since I was already considering it myself.

Not interested enough in milk to join in this effort. But good luck and hopefully you guys will be able to get that going. My husband is lactose intolerant and my son has a slight milk allergy and doesn't drink milk.

The ameracuans are in the coop even though the run isn't done

yay!

The big ducks are now outside ducks, and the little ducks have taken over their kennel. 4 weeks old today, and they're larger than a bantam chicken. I need to take a picture of Sahara holding a 4-wk duck next to a 4-wk chicken. It's insane. My 1.5-wk ducks are already bigger than the 4-wk chickens. Anyway, the ducks shared one of the bottom nesting boxes last night. This morning, they were really crying, until all of the intimidating hens left the coop and I showed them where the food and water is. They still haven't figured out how to leave the coop... they were 5 inches from the door and didn't get it. But now they're not hungry anymore, so there's time for them to explore. The hens aren't picking on them at all. They're still smaller than the hens, so they're still very intimidated, but they were eating side-by-side with all but the more dominant hens.

The little ducks went in the car with me last night as I dropped the kids off at their dad's house. They mostly slept in my arms, until we went through the drivethrough at In-N-Out Burger. Luckily, the burger they attacked was mine. I handed the other two burgers out before they could touch anyone else's. I had a half bottle of water with me, so I gave them tiny pieces of the bun, with water. Then last night, they were so overstimulated by their big trip around town (I also took them with me to Bibo's when I met Aubrey to get some eggs) that they refused to go to sleep without cuddles.

ducks seem like a lot of fun. I was reading about them a bit on the duck section of byc the other day.

Hi everyone! Welcome Ale! So good to have some locals on here.

My garden is growing great. I'm harvesting some tomatoes, green beans and some crookneck squash! Oh, and I have some tomatillos that are ripe too! I think I'm addicted to this bucket gardening thing. I'm already planning for next year and how I need about 40 MORE buckets!

The NYD girls combs are growing and pinkening! Winner is really looking awesome! He's so attentive to his girls. I opened the door between the Coopa (where the NYD hatch is living) and the main run when I was spreading out a bag of fresh cut grass. He wandered out and did his cluck-y "here's food" call, and several of my older girls dashed over to see what he had. At that, the alpha hen came over and roughed him up a bit and he retreated with his girls back into the Coopa!

I have 2 broodies that should be having chicks hatch around the 15-16th and a momma hen that really wants back in with the others. She has begun to lay again (a week ago), unfortunately she'd been eating the chick starter with her babies so we can't eat the eggs for 2 more weeks. I changed the feed in there to flock raiser that day. I'm thinking I may put her in with the NYD chickens to show them where/how to lay, and to separate her egg from the others. Her chicks were hatched April 5th and so can be on their own, though I know they don't really wanna be. She still shares some food with them and calls them to roost with her so she's still a good mom. Do you think I could put them in the Coopa with her? The only time I've ever combined mama and babies with the flock is when we moved everyone. I'm just nervous that the others will hurt the littlies. Any advice?

your garden sounds great! I'm envious that you have produce to harvest already.

Hello everybody! It sounds like Spring has everyone into all sorts of projects.

Seth, how's that coop? We need pics . And Ron, how are those bees?

We had an exceptionally eventful week at our house last week... Monday morning our rooster started crowing, so he was dealt with on Tuesday night. Then I presented and defended my thesis on Friday, so I'm now nearly complete with my Masters! THEN on Sunday my boyfriend proposed!

I've had so many firsts and life events this past week I'm feeling a little giddy! Oh, and today we confirmed one more of our chickens is a roo... More morning crowing, but we vaccinated that one and think we will have to wait till the 26th for the vaccine to be clear of his body. He is a really beautiful Barred Rock we bought from a man in Marysville. I wish someone needed a nice roo, because he really is sweet and gorgeous, but I know those are unfortunately easy to come by.

Our seedlings are looking great, and I'm hoping to get our raised beds finished (I just need to paint them now). Missy, what do you think, can I start my lettuce outside now?

Sunny and Mandy, I didn't realize that peafowl could help alert you to snakes?! That's great! This time of year is perfect for running into rattlers. After it gets hot you usually won't see them quite as much during the day, since they'll be active more at night instead. It'd be great if you had a home alert system!

Well, I hope everyone is enjoying the nice weather. It sounds like you all have lots of plans in the works, so good luck!

congrats on your thesis defense! And on your engagement! (i'm assuming you said yes?)

You can definitely start your lettuce outside.

 

[SunnyDawn]

Hello everybody! It sounds like Spring has everyone into all sorts of projects.

Seth, how's that coop? We need pics . And Ron, how are those bees?

We had an exceptionally eventful week at our house last week... Monday morning our rooster started crowing, so he was dealt with on Tuesday night. Then I presented and defended my thesis on Friday, so I'm now nearly complete with my Masters! THEN on Sunday my boyfriend proposed!

I've had so many firsts and life events this past week I'm feeling a little giddy! Oh, and today we confirmed one more of our chickens is a roo... More morning crowing, but we vaccinated that one and think we will have to wait till the 26th for the vaccine to be clear of his body. He is a really beautiful Barred Rock we bought from a man in Marysville. I wish someone needed a nice roo, because he really is sweet and gorgeous, but I know those are unfortunately easy to come by.

Our seedlings are looking great, and I'm hoping to get our raised beds finished (I just need to paint them now). Missy, what do you think, can I start my lettuce outside now?

Sunny and Mandy, I didn't realize that peafowl could help alert you to snakes?! That's great! This time of year is perfect for running into rattlers. After it gets hot you usually won't see them quite as much during the day, since they'll be active more at night instead. It'd be great if you had a home alert system!

Well, I hope everyone is enjoying the nice weather. It sounds like you all have lots of plans in the works, so good luck!

Hi Stephanie! CONGRATULATIONS!!!!! Well I hope congratulations are in order anyway. I assume you wouldn't be telling us unless you said yes?
Yep it is busy around here this time of year! I think guineas are the much better choice for snake alarms. They are loud little buggers and will surround a snake and scream bloody murder! They will eat the smaller ones (from what I have read they are very efficient group predators) and most every bug around too. Not sure I am ready for these noisy little things though! I'll let folks know if the peafowl are effective snake alarms once they get older. Peafowl are super noisy too but only really bad during mating season.

Cow news-

So I'm definitly looking at jerseys. and there are several available in Fallon. The higher fat content is what everyone will need for cheese, ice cream, yogurt, etc... Plus I'd much rather handle an 800lb cow than a 1300lb one. It looks as though the initial cost of the cow will be about $1500 and that is for a healthy young cow that doesn't meet dairy production standards. During peak milking she'll produce between 6 and 10 gallons a day. We drink about 3 gallons a week, plus Sunny's 2... To make this feasable we need to share this cow between 6-7 people at least. I'm still very interested, but we need more co cow owners lol. I'm happy to bring milk to Reno once or twice a week, and if people wanted to turn extra milk into cheese or ice cream to help cover cow costs then I could probably get some more investors. My inlaws love fresh organic food, but they'd rather buy it than grow it. They love it when I take them eggs. Also we need to consider what we'll do with the calves. although I guess my son could raise them for 4h and sell them after, or maybe we could cut a deal with the dairy farmer at purchase time....

6-10 gallons a day?!! Wow that's a lot of milk. Sounds like you need 14 more folks besides the 2 of us with that much milk coming in! Are you sure you want to do this? Cows have to be milked every 12 hours on the dot and they would be in a lot of pain if someone tried to wait a bit. I actually can remember that pain and I wouldn't wish it on anyone! lol At least us humans can express it ourselves though.
For you that are squemish about this topic... GROW UP!!!

I meant that in the most loving way, of course!

Anyway if we can get enough people to commit to the idea then I am in! LOVE, LOVE, LOVE fresh unhomogenized milk!!!


Hatch update! I couldn't remember if I had set these eggs on Wednesday or Thursday but got my answer today! I woke up to one peep zipped and pushing out (love it when I get to see the first one out) and 1 more is out now. Lots more are pipped so it's a waiting game now.

I am sitting on my hands, determined to leave them alone for however long it takes! I always say that and it is easy the first day and a half but...

 

[horseshowmomnv]

Cow news-

So I'm definitly looking at jerseys. and there are several available in Fallon. The higher fat content is what everyone will need for cheese, ice cream, yogurt, etc... Plus I'd much rather handle an 800lb cow than a 1300lb one. It looks as though the initial cost of the cow will be about $1500 and that is for a healthy young cow that doesn't meet dairy production standards. During peak milking she'll produce between 6 and 10 gallons a day. We drink about 3 gallons a week, plus Sunny's 2... To make this feasable we need to share this cow between 6-7 people at least. I'm still very interested, but we need more co cow owners lol. I'm happy to bring milk to Reno once or twice a week, and if people wanted to turn extra milk into cheese or ice cream to help cover cow costs then I could probably get some more investors. My inlaws love fresh organic food, but they'd rather buy it than grow it. They love it when I take them eggs. Also we need to consider what we'll do with the calves. although I guess my son could raise them for 4h and sell them after, or maybe we could cut a deal with the dairy farmer at purchase time....

I am very very very interested in cow sharing... we have been drinking raw milk for several years but it is a "hassle" to get the milk... I am limited to two hooved animals on my half acre but can help transport (have horse trailer) have a truck can do some work... and also help with expenses. I am at the bottom of Geiger Grade in the foothills... We drink at least 2-3 gallons a week, I have made cheese, kefir, use the whey for fermented veggies....
PM me if you would like to include my family.
Jann

 

[NevadaRon]

Congratulations Stephanie!

The bees are doing great. I got some "pollen patties" and put one in their hive a few days ago. It's a homemade pollen substitute to give them extra protein, which you need in the early stages after installing package bees, to make sure there is enough protein to get the colony off the ground with new brood.

Mandy you can count me in on the dairy cow project! And I think I can find something to do with the calves...

I've been wanting to raise a beef cow ever since I moved here. The Northern Nevada Correctional Center in Carson City has their own dairy herd, and every year they sell the calves so I was thinking of buying one of them to raise. I have almost 10 acres so plenty of room to graze. Unfortunately, it's not fully fenced yet.

 

[americanvalkyrie]

For you that are squemish about this topic... GROW UP!!!

I meant that in the most loving way, of course!

Agreed!


Stephanie, congratulations all around! My husband was so relieved when he finally defended his thesis. And yes, you can plant your lettuce outside. Actually, it's one of the first things you can plant. If you're looking for something to put in containers or in the shade, go with lettuce. When late June and July hit, it might just turn bitter if you don't have the right amount of shade. But that's one thing I love about lettuce. It comes up when you're starving for something green, then fizzles out by the time you have tons of other stuff coming out of your garden.

Here's my lettuce (and onions) yesterday, after 4 harvests. I just go out with a chair and scissors, and clip the largest leaf off of each plant. Then I weigh it and compare it to that week's price for "mixed baby greens" at Savemart. Even though "organic wild lettuce" is worth a lot more than mixed baby greens. So far, we've pulled $25 of lettuce out of here. I plan to let it go to the end of the month, then dig up just enough to put in eggplant and pepper seedlings, then let the remaining lettuce grow and bolt as the seedlings grow up.



Mandy, I asked my husband what he thought about the cow share idea. His answer, "I guess it depends on what the milk will cost." So there you have it. We could easily use 4 gallons a week just to feed the kids and make yogurt. More if I'm doing cheese and a batch or two of ice cream for the family. I love how raw milk separates skim from cream, so you just take the cream off, and you have skim milk. I like to keep cream around for cooking, but it's so expensive.

As far as making cheese with it... if it's illegal to sell raw milk here, I don't think it'll be much more legal to make raw cheese and sell it, especially in the kind of house that broods chicks inside. But I can make it for my family and other people on a "barter and favor" basis. Barter for hay from a local rancher, or maybe have someone buy some feed for your cow and you could "barter" cheese for the feed. Either way, they're getting their cheese and your cow is getting fed.

I think it would be good to see what kind of feed a Jersey cow eats. More milk usually requires more water, and you have plenty going for your horse anyway. But a cow isn't going to eat anything different than a horse eats.

Elizabeth, each day I get more attached to these ducks, I recommend them. As I was outside Bibo's yesterday, a couple of ladies stopped by and admired the ducks. We had an instant convert. Now one of the ladies wants ducks, and I directed her to this thread, telling her that there were duck breeders on here if she wanted to inquire.

You know, this is the life! I'm sitting here eating fresh homemade yogurt, mixed with boysenberry jam made from my berries last year. This is why we do what we do! The only way this would be better is to have yogurt made with fresh, organic, local milk! Hmmmm...

 

[SunnyDawn]

Quote:
Cool! Sounds like I need to get to learning about making cheese. I've been reading a lot but haven't actually tried to make it yet. I'm going to go check the ingrdients list for the supplies now to see how much this venture will actually cost.

Mandy funds are kinda tight through June with the move and all! When were you looking at buying the cow?

 

[americanvalkyrie]

Mandy funds are kinda tight through June with the move and all! When were you looking at buying the cow?

Ditto. I have a massage license due to renew June 30th, and that will be at least $300 in CEUs and fees, plus I have to renew my city business license, which is about $200. And June has 2 birthdays and Father's Day.

Sorry, just whining a little.

But after June, when those costs are over with and we're supplementing a lot of our food, we're skating free for awhile!

 

[americanvalkyrie]

More morning crowing, but we vaccinated that one and think we will have to wait till the 26th for the vaccine to be clear of his body.

Ooh, thanks for the reminder. The 26th will be about when my babies can get vaccinated and move outside, so to make room we're going to butcher the little kids roosters a bit early. They won't be full-sized, but they'll provide tender meat. I vaccinated them 1 or 2 days after you did.

Does anyone do crafts with feathers? Though, if you do, I figure there's no shortage of pretty feathers around here. If we have to eat Blue, maybe someone will want his feathers for a craft. Maybe those long hipster earrings that are trendy right now? I wonder how many people who wear those are vegetarians and think the birds gave those feathers up voluntarily.

 

[chicharomirinda]

Does anyone do crafts with feathers? Though, if you do, I figure there's no shortage of pretty feathers around here. If we have to eat Blue, maybe someone will want his feathers for a craft. Maybe those long hipster earrings that are trendy right now? I wonder how many people who wear those are vegetarians and think the birds gave those feathers up voluntarily.