Larsen Poultry Ranch - homesteading journey

[Larsen Poultry Ranch]

Sheesh I sound whiney.

Other positives to mention: orchard trees are now on a drip line and have protective cages, trenches dug and spigots are soon to be installed. Baby stuff is starting to accumulate, Goodwill has great prices on clothes.

 

[Ridgetop]

When is baby due?

 

[Larsen Poultry Ranch]

If you don't have misters, put an old fashioned sprinkler on the top of the rabbit house. Or get one of those sprinklers on a stand (they look like a twisted up piece of pipe and often come in bright colors) and put it in front of the fan so the fan blows air through the water. It really helps. Also fans blowing over big blocks of ice can help.

This is very unusual weather for June. Usually very cool and gloomy this month here in California. Big heat doesn't usually come in arrive until July.

I need to put water or ice in front of the fans I have set up. I think it got this hot this early the year before last, because I was at the old house in June/late May and I lost most of two litters to the heat. It was my first year with rabbits and I shouldn't have bred so late but I didn't know any better at the time.

When is baby due?

Baby is due at the beginning of October. Just over 3.5 months left.

 

[Ridgetop]

Worst part of pregnancy in the heat! Actually no part of pregnancy was good for me. Throwing up for 4 months, swelling feet, unable to bend over, constant trips to pee - Where was the glow and wondrous calm of pregnancy?

Oh right! Now when I can have grandbabies without any effort!

We'll be think of you.

Oh yes, and definitely get a good size kiddie pool! Not for the dogs - for you during the horrible heat of summer without A/C. We only had A/C on the 2nd story of our 100 year old house and laying in that kiddie pool during the worst of the heat kept me alive!

 

[Larsen Poultry Ranch]

Rabbits seemed to do ok yesterday. Ice bottles not freezing as quickly as I'd like. Going to keep adding bottles so there's more to keep the freezer cold.

Found tasty sounding recipes for jerky yesterday, so I think I'm going to push for the darn extra rabbits to be butchered. I gathered most of the ingredients for the apple cider jerky, but not finding the instacure #1. Didn't really want to order it online but I might have to do so.

Apple Cider Pheasant Jerky

Enjoy this treat by preserving your wild bird meat into a portable snack. Making jerky is easier than you think with this simple recipe.

projectupland.com

Orange-Soy-Ginger Rabbit-Belly Jerky Recipe

Don't waste those rabbit-belly flaps, make jerky instead.

www.realtree.com

 

[Larsen Poultry Ranch]

Yesterday was 102°, today is supposed to be the same or higher. Fans and ice bottles not cutting it for the rabbits. Very frustrated.

Hubby worked on the irrigation pipes and ran some conduit pipes for the electrical/video wiring. He wanted to get them all set up so he could fill in the trenches along the driveway. It was just getting dark and he started walking towards the front yard garden zone to work on that irrigation pipe and almost didn't see a little rattlesnake. It was maybe 2' long and did have a rattle. He shoveled it a few times. It it had been bigger I would have tried to skin it, he's wanted a rattlesnake skin. Now I'm freaked out there's snakes possibly everywhere. I feel like I should be carrying a stick around. Maybe we need some guinea fowl.

 

[HomeOnTheRange]

I feel like I should be carrying a stick around.

I carry a small 22 pistol with no. 12 bird shot filled shells. Nice for snakes and other things without the worry of a slug traveling to far.

 

[Baymule]

Fried rattlesnake is pretty good too.

 

[Bruce]

Tastes like chicken? And do you chicken fry the rattlesnake?

 

[Baymule]

Tastes like chicken? And do you chicken fry the rattlesnake?

Doesn't taste like chicken. Don't chicken fry, roll in cornmeal like frying fish.