![]() lol) and loves the fresh eggs the most of anyone. He is the alpha when it comes to Poppy needing discipline (which is slowly less frequent. Feed, fencing (is there ever not a fence that needs repairing?) and cleaning out barns. Of course Matt does the bulk of the heavy lifting when it comes to the farm animals. When I got sick their responsibility changed a lot, and they really stepped up. Our 3 oldest kids are to a point where they primarily manage the chickens, sheep, horse and cats each day. We let our animals out each morning, and lock them up in their barns each night to protect them from predators. And depending where you are at in the season, grain, pellets or oats too! Thankfully all of our barns have power and water either in them or nearby. I never realized that livestock (horses and sheep) needed fresh hay twice a day. We seem to prefer male cats… they just seem friendlier? Our kids are so good with them, and they really get a lot of joy out of our cats. Tiger is nearing 10 (I think he’s already used up a few of is 9 lives) and while he might go on living forever, who can resist a sweet kitten. And… well, we added another kitten to the family. I can’t stand them… AHHH! The cats definitely do hunt… but not quite enough! Our house cat who is an indoor outdoor cat also does his part. ![]() Their job is to take care of rodents, but I think my kids feed them too well because I have seen a few r.a.t.s’s hanging out by the sheep barn this summer. I mentioned our 3 barn cats who are very low maintenance. He has helped to reclaim more or our pastures, and I really enjoy him, as I have always loved horses.įinally… the cats. He was free from a neighbour, but as any horse owner knows- they’re definitely not free! And so if we can’t ride him he’s not quite earning his keep. I still hold out hope that we can bring him around, but we really need a “bullet proof” horse that is a little more calm and chill. He is a sweet horse, but he is a little ornery, and hasn’t taken to a saddle well… I think he spent a little too much time away from kids and not being ridden. The idea was that they could ride him, brush him, and get familiar with horses. I can’t recall if we ever introduced you to our horse Razzle Dazzle, but we got him for our kids. They’re the first thing to sell each day they go out. We sell the eggs to some local friends, and the rest go into the fridge at our road side stand. This spring we got some more, bringing our total to 27. Once we moved out to the farm We added 12 more ready to lay hens in the fall (Isla Browns) which we ordered from our local farm store. After rehoming some of our roosters, 4 chickens remain from that original flock: Lavender, Polly, Dandelion and Molly the Rooster. ![]() Raising chicks is fun, but it also takes a long time before you get the eggs. You may recall that last spring we brought home 7 baby chicks and built a backyard coop. Each of our animals serve a different purpose here on the farm. Let me start out by saying, we didn’t want to add animals just for the sake of having animals, as they are not only quite an expense, but also a daily responsibility.
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