Sue... the name of the book would really be helpful lol..
If you could only have one goat book, what would it be??
what about one chicken book??
Grandma left me a few boxes of junk.. and really 99% was junk... old papers chipped coffe cups.. stuff she had left over from yard sales that just didn't sell.. well I went through it one more time before getting rid of the stuf..OMG
there is a 1924 Standards of Perfection, from the American Poultry Association.. of all the chicken books I have read so far, it by FAR explains the chicken best.. of course it does nothing about modern practices.. but as far as "see thru" drawings of the chicken.. WOW..
The finding of this book was so freakish... I got the chicks just weeks before she passed, I called her every day with updates and emailed her pics.. she never had chickens as an adult just as a child so only had memories.. which I guess I brought back.. she was a mazed at the chicks coloring.. she only ever remembered chicks being yellow. Anyway she had passed only about a week when I went through this box and found this book... how odd that she would have it.. what a treasure to me.
Chatty chat cock- a doodle- doooo
Oh Frans that is truly a treasure you found there. She will be with you and your chicks with that book.
What a fabulous story Fran! That is amazing to me. Surely it was her way of saying that she is looking out for you. How special!
great find, frans!
peafowl, i have a contct in your state that needs a source, owner, breeder, or small hatchery, to get some heritage layers... email me?
tf
If you are looking for more fat in goat's milk, Nubians tend to have a higher fat content. When you are looking for a doeling to buy, ask they sellers if they participate in testing their goats and their milk. Ask for the results-purchase the doeling whose mother had the highest fat percentage. This will also show you the mother's milk production. Sometimes when you look at the mom's udder it looks great but she may have a meaty udder and low milk production. You would want a star milker if you are looking for excellent milk production.
http://adga.org/DHIR/07breed_lactation_averages.htm
http://www.caldairygoats.com/readperfped.htm
this page shows the milk production
This message was edited Aug 5, 2008 9:43 AM
I need to pick your brains for a little bit. I looked for and Incubation thread and could not find one. So if this is the wrong place to post, I am sorry.
Anywho, I ordered eggs off of ebay and received them today. They were packed wonderfully and he even included 6 extras. BUT most of the eggs are dirty. I see poop and mud. When I incubate I never put in dirty eggs or eggs that I have washed.
Would you all incubate them as is? Would you wash them and then incubate? Any suggestions would be helpful.
Thanks-
Sheila
I'm no expert, many others know way more, but I never wash eggs until right before I use them. In this case I would take them straight from SINK to 'BATOR.
I read that each egg has a protective coating and the only time I touch that is if I have to. Are they umm....chunky enough to pick off the main debris without actually washing? I never use dirty eggs, myself. Perhaps a minimal amount of picking and straight water?
The queens of the coop should be on in an hour or so. Hopefully someone has some solid experience. 'Luck!
Damerow says: "When possible, avoid incubating dirty eggs. If the eggs are extremely valuable, wash them in water that's a little warmer than the eggs, adding a little chlorine bleach as a sanitizer"
I've also heard of gently sanding off the offending muck--but then I heard that that will create microscopic dust particles that can work their way into the egg pores and float around and contaminate the incubator.
I washed my some dirty eggs once--they didn't hatch, but neither did the clean ones--they had been in the mail for 2 weeks.
Good luck--if they are the only eggs you are incubating, I would wash them right before you put them in the incubator.
Hi Frans - you make cheese from milk, with rennet added to 'clot' it. You would need cream for your butter and sour cream, of course. You can't use pasteurised cream as it doesn't have bacteria. Don't forget yoghurt - you can make cottage cheese etc. from batches of yoghurt.
As a substitute for sour cream you can make Creme Fraiche....
You can make crème fraîche by adding 1 cup of buttermilk to 2 cups of heavy cream and leaving it in a warm place (80° to 90°F) for at least eight hours and max 24 hours. One of the benefits of crème fraîche is that it can be whipped. Tastes much the same, though a bit milder.
Cheesemaking something I intend to try one day as dairy products have gone up 130% in the last few months. His nibs will have to build that milking stall!
well.. geez, I knew that... lol... not really but I would have.. with time...
Dordles--you mentioned that you didn't want to slaughter your cattle--so you were breeding them for other people's herds. That is what I was thinking of doing with southern (american) heritage hogs. I really don't want to be involved with killing them--but I would like to be involved with preserving them. How did you advertise?
1Angl - How are you doing? I totally missed the heat exhaustion in my manic skimming. Are things settling somewhat?
We have an excellent site in NZ called TradeMe and I just advertised through that. We kept our heifer calves and left the 'boys' as bulls, so they are primarily bought for breeding rather than slaughter. We get around $600 for a 15 month old bull.
It's always a quandry, what to do with males of any species it seems. (including humans? ha ha).
Sorry Frans - didn't mean to sound like a teacher - just trying to be helpful. You've got me fired up again re cheesemaking. I'm now thinking of getting a milking goat - more my size for milking!
Catscan, are those hogs like a rare breed? Sounds like they go back aways? Does "heritage" mean they came out with the pioneers?
oh no dordles.. please don;t think I was offended.. I was half joking /half serious... I really didn't know a lot of what you said.. but am in the process of learning... thats why I went with a baby goat to give myself a chance to learn from the ground up.
And please teach away.. I am here to learn.
Whew! that's good frans. It's just that to make sour cream, you have to have a special bacteria which is added, then the cream has to be pasteurised again. Sounds like a lot of trouble! I haven't made anything except yoghurt, but really would like to try some cheese. The soft cheeses like mozarella
are the easiest, though probably not a lot of use unless you make lots of pizzas!
It's a wonder I get anything done, I spend so much time checking things out on the net. I think I'm metamorphising into a "greenie"! Self sufficiency is more and more attractive. We now have our own egg production units (hens), cattle if we want meat (we're not vegetarians yet), vegetable gardens, a large orchard which gives us fruit most of the year, 700 blueberries planted, a Bokashi system for compost etc. It's all good
It's just occurred to me one goat won't do it - what was I thinking! I'd have to get a "billy" to get her pregnant before we could milk, so two goats, plus the offspring. Do they produce enough milk to nick some or is it all needed for the kid?
I know nothing about goats - do they jump fences? Oops - more time on the net.
Mmmmm....
Hi dordles--the heritage hogs predate the pioneers--they came out with the Spanish originally and probably crossed with later introductions--they were critical to the Southern homesteaders and are very tough survivors with excellent meat. They are in demand in restaurants because the meat has more flavor than the modern "white meat" hogs. They are also smaller than the modern industry hog. Some of the breeds include the Mulefoot, Red Wattles, Guinea (may have come from Africa with the slave traders), Choctaw and Ossabaw Island hogs. They were used to rototill, kill snakes and other vermin including rats and mice and for fat for fuel as well as meat. And they tend to be friendly and easy to manage.
Yea, excess males are a problem. I keep telling myself "its nature's way", but as the mother of two sons, I hate thinking that any males are expendable:0)
LOL
I DO NOT want a billy... I'm gonna have to "borrow".. and yea, seems like more than one is neccesary.. and yes, my 23 lb 3 month old baby stella is jumping her 4 foot fence, of course she is using her hay basket to help her over, I haven't figured out how to fix it yet..
I do have a bigger better badder fence, just not us yet.
cheese book
sorry lolol
http://www.amazon.com/Home-Cheese-Making-Recipes-Delicious/dp/1580174647/ref=pd_sim_b_25
hope the link works
thanks grownut... I'm doing better, but its chilly and cloudy outside so will have to wait and see what happens when it warms back up :o( may miss most of DSs foot ball season if it gets too warm here :o(
oh and DIET cow?! no way! just ate super fattening cow for dinner :o) ribeye! YUM!
Y'know in Japan they told me that marbling was healthier because the fat cooked out of the meat whereas if it was too lean any cooking oils etc. would be absorbed. !?! I know it eats better.lol.
At least chilly and cloudy should make it easier to stay in...?
KittyJo, that is FANTASTIC NEWS! Let us know how it goes, pretty please...........
tf, will do later this evening. No real contacts left anymore, but I can sure check around. buy or sell? Have a few friends into chickens (one 'chickenlady' reminds me of you....lol) and others with kids in 4H. Been outa the chick biz about 2yrs now...... You still gonna do the 'chocolate' banties next year? Still want.......just banties for next spring, no big guys yet - course, I say that now........lol
Catscan, good call on the incubating. I never washed, if really bad had a very diluted textrol (spell?) spray that I used to sanitize them - only the ones I really wanted - pheasant, quail, peafowl, chicken, etc. btw - thinking I will need some of those nankins next year. Please keep me in mind
Now i am back to thinking goats, pigs, ducks, oh my (lions, tigers & bears, oh my!) What are you guys doing to me? I have never owned any personally! OMG :o)
lolol! uh oh! sis is 'hooked' huh?! tee hee!
Reel her in Muwahahahah
went to fair with kids and saw all the animals. Chickens were nice. alot of golden orpingtons. a few strange looking ones and then the rest seemed to be Silkies or white thingys No idea what they were ? leghorns ?
fat all depends on the food the animal eats too. fat from pasture is leaner and healthyier than fat accumulated from corn feed or grain feed . Its the cholesterol thing. Good fats vs bad fats.
But one can always add flavor by herbs and or added fats for a flavor Low and Slow cooking is recomended for the leaner cuts like Elk , bison and any lean beef.
How do you like to cook ?
i love slow cooking but i also like a quick stir fry and fattier meat is better for that . :)
dordles, I used to let my kids nurse off mom exclusively for about 6 or 7 weeks then I would take one milking a day for two or three more weeks. After that, the kids were out of luck and I would milk twice a day. Some people prefer to keep the kids separate from the doe and bottle feed. Either way your doe should have plenty of milk to share with you and her kids. Unless she has triplets!! One of the reasons I chose this way is my son and I were the only ones that would drink the milk! My DH and DD said the milk was too sweet for them! I think it was all in their head!
Sue
Cat, did you happen to read the article in Countryside awhile back on the Black hog? These heritage pigs will graze in pasture and not root it up! I would love to get some! Gotta hit the PowerBall!
Ummmmmm. Am I too young to know about the chicken fairy? Heard abou the tooth fairy 30 some odd years ago but....
grownut-HIDE! do not let the chicken fairy find you
that's for sure
uh oh! someone get grownut that patch! quick!
but she'd have to make it past the baby chicks to get to the patch at the back of the store right? where IS cf?
grownut, there is an African fable of how when you lose a tooth, the fairy there brings you TWO chickens, a male and female, so you can start your own flock i suppose...
well, the N. American version will PULL YOU TEETH AND HAIR OUT, and send you as many baby chicks as will fit in her basket! instant flock...
so, LOOK OUT!
tf...
hope the chicken fairy hits my area soon I only had 1 silkie hatch and who wants just 1 chicken. I ordered more eggs maybe I will have better luck with the next hatch.
Maybe if she would wait until my current batch of chicks have graduated to the big birds coop... 'Rmaybe I just need the patch. Those blue green eggs (Americauna?) are sooo pretty.
sorry fields, wish i could share.... she is sending me [should arrive Friday]:
50 Brown Leghorns, 25 Delaware, 25 Welsummer, and 25 Buckeye. and 10 Blue Swedish ducklings.
dh is outside hoping to get that coon....
has anyone heard from Myrrh or Christy?
are either of you, fieldsems or grownut, close to Indiana border? i got my blue jersey giants from there, and was just thinking, she sells hatching eggs.... i should check her website and see what she has...
tf i have a question
my friends went up the coast and on sunday and got back today (thursday)
on sunday they got some green chicken eggs off a friends farm and some other eggs
she gave them to me so i could incubate them only problem is she refrigerated them(NO!!!!!!!) any way i know refrigerating them kills them but i am going to try incubating anyway
is there a one in a billion chance that ANY could still be viable i am also going to post this on a thread in the mane forum
anyones feedback is welcome
never been inthat direction before not sure how far I am from the indiana border. Does she ship hatching eggs?