The next batch of chickens have arrived! We picked up 100 new baby chicks! Thankfully, it is quite warmer than the last time we brought chicks home, so everything went smoothly, and it was easy to keep the temperature steady in the brooder. They are all cuddled up and cute as can be!
We will not be selling all the 100 birds this time, as we would like to keep some on hand for our personal use. We only plan to sell 80 out of this batch. So, if you are interested in purchasing a chicken, make sure to place your order soon! We have had orders coming in before the new chicks even arrived on the property, so I do not want anyone to miss out!
I will oversee caring for the chicks in their first couple of weeks. CJ will be away for work. I think I have the hang of chicken rearing down so that no adventures occur, but they always seem to happen when I least expect it!
Some of you may have seen the post announcing the addition of the four new barn cats: Mable, Musketeer, Pat, & Dani. They are doing well! They are roaming freely inside the barn and have even begun to venture outside a little. Musketeer is very friendly and loves to be petted when we go in. He has even jumped up into my lap a time or two! Mable is a little wary of people but will come up to you if you sit still for a while. The kittens (4mo old), Pat & Dani, are skittish and love to run around the barn and play. Pat is warming up more to people and will occasionally allow himself to be pet, Dani is not quite there yet and is keeping her distance. They all come running in the morning for breakfast though! We are hoping that they help with any rodents in the barn.
We had only intended on getting ONE barn cat. Now most of you will think that I had something to do with bringing FOUR home, but I assure you this was all on CJ. He called the Animal Rescue League and spoke with them about their barn cat program. He was told that it really is better to get two cats, so they have some company and are not alone. Having worked there in the past, I knew this to be true and a good piece of advice. CJ agreed and set an appointment to go to the shelter. The next day the gentleman from the ARL called and said that he understood we had agreed on two cats, but would we be interested in one more cat that they had there. CJ agreed. The next day, we get another call. I
know we had agreed on THREE cats, but there was another cat there that had really bonded with the kittens and would be a great addition to our farm. At this point CJ was thinking “What’s one more” and agreed. Hence, the four cats we brought home.
I am not complaining, I love them all. I do feel, however, that CJ and I have reversed our roles. Normally it is me who brings animals home all
the time and has no restraint. Here lately, it seems, that CJ is fulfilling that role while I am being the reasonable one saying, “No more animals”! I see now what he has put up with all these years! HA!
I read a quote the other day that I could really relate too. It said “Chickens… The Gateway Drug to Farming”. It is certainly true in our case! We started out with 7 chickens. We now have, 6 chickens for egg laying, 100 meat chickens, a donkey, a cow, 2 bunnies, and 4 barn cats, Oh… and a guinea pig! That is in addition to our 1 dog (really, we could count him as 2 or 3), 2 cats, & 2 turtles inside! I know in my heart if he sees another farm animal for sale, he will not be strong enough to resist. Maybe I finally broke him with all my past begging for more animals. I guess the old saying is true, be careful what you wish for!
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On that note, Cow Cow is doing great. He is getting bigger and bigger! He is getting to be too much for even CJ to control inside the pasture at times. His Jersey breed means he is playful and has quite an attitude. Evidently God blessing us with a daughter abounding with attitude was not challenging enough, so he gave us a cow with an attitude to boot! I may need to search for a “Training Your Cow, for Dummies” book soon! Maybe there is a Cow Whisperer, that can help? That should totally be a thing, and I would pay top dollar for the service!
Overall, things are going well here on the farm. Things are running smoothly for once and I think we are getting the hang of this farming stuff down! Let us hope it stays that way!
