rachels.haven's Journal

rachels.haven

Herd Master
Joined
Jun 7, 2016
Messages
3,105
Reaction score
12,403
Points
523
Location
zone 7a
Ah. Well, it was just a thought.
My neighbor up the hill is going to split the cost of a uhaul rental with me and she's getting some corral panels for her horses and I'm going bring in more cattle panels to try to put up a big buck pen complete with buck hut behind the yard fence before the ground freezes. Yard fence got postponed until Friday. I'd like to start when they are finished, but I may start pounding before then.

Spoke with a different neighbor today-not the dog one. They warned me about rabies in the area (yay, adding that fun story to the one with the up the hill neighbor who got lyme). They've gotten treated due to a rabid bat incident. Price was more painful than the shots they said. Told me that our area was supposed to be where the high school was going to be built, but the salamander protectors/conservation commission put a stop to that. Our lands all used to be a farmhouse, which they bought run down and are slowly fixing, orchards, and farmland. Now the apple trees are ancient and dying and properties overgrown and wasted. They love the goat noise. I don't think they can hear the roosters or dogs. Said where my fence line plan looked good to them, but warned me that the random rock piles are bigger than they look, so it would pay to avoid them. The corner of my property near them used to be an ancient card road, and if you look you can still see the wagon ruts. They also said they'd take any rocks I cared to move over the property line to their yard. Also said our pond is shrinking and drying up more every year. Maybe the salamander police will ease up if the pond goes. The neighbors seem nice. It was nice to meet them.

This evening the coyotes were rallying. It sounded like children shrieking, and tunelessly singing, and screaming from everywhere in the woods. Really eerie. My kids were kept inside. All the goats were unusually quiet and hiding and Bailey was on guard. I left all the outside barn and side garage lights on so the whole world around the barn is lit up. So far all is well. I'm listening.
 

Baymule

Herd Master
Joined
Aug 22, 2010
Messages
33,094
Reaction score
98,671
Points
873
Location
East Texas
I am glad that you met more neighbors and that they are not looney, but are nice people. Too bad you didn't know about the salamander conservation pond before you bought the property. Oh well, you can proceed with your "temporary" fence, at least the salamanders can go through the holes in the cow panels.

Hope the coyotes stay away, hope the dogs keep them warned away. We are now dealing with a cougar in our neighborhood. It killed 5 goats a mile from us earlier this week. That lady used donkeys for pasture guards, just another reason to have DOGS and not donkeys. I know what the donkeys did, they ran in terror and were glad to outrun the durned goats, the cougar could have the goats! A neighbor whose place backs up to ours heard a cougar scream last night, right at dark, that's too close!
 

rachels.haven

Herd Master
Joined
Jun 7, 2016
Messages
3,105
Reaction score
12,403
Points
523
Location
zone 7a
Planted paw paws, persimmons, and a mulberry today. Let the dogs run the yard like crazies until they started "helping" too much. Need some apples, I think, and a garden area.

Also discovered where they hid the links to my watched threads after the switch.
 

Bruce

Herd Master
Joined
Feb 4, 2016
Messages
17,435
Reaction score
45,775
Points
783
Location
NW Vermont
Ah. Well, it was just a thought.
Perhaps Bay bolded that one word not to suggest that it would be temporary due to quality but could easily be seen as temporary to a fence checker.

Price was more painful than the shots they said.
That is probably good as my understanding is that in the past that series of shots was horribly painful. Of course the alternative is a permanent home 6' under.

The corner of my property near them used to be an ancient card road, and if you look you can still see the wagon ruts.
That is pretty cool!
 

rachels.haven

Herd Master
Joined
Jun 7, 2016
Messages
3,105
Reaction score
12,403
Points
523
Location
zone 7a
Lol, I'm potato level some days. Thanks Bruce.
Had a moment of clarity and realized we only need to get permission to do about 300 feet (and possibly 100 feet of buffer on each side courtesy of the town) of it. The rest they can have no say in supposedly.

Also found a rat in the barn. All the mice vanished. Time for the shock and snap traps. It is an open air building. I don't think he has much food besides hay, but shelter and coyote protection are probably enough to invite him.

And realized why we went from 8-10 eggs to 1 or 2, covered in egg. My hens have all gone egg eater. Set an egg on the floor and they all have a frenzy. Maybe I'll be testing free range inside our fence with them, testing out the dogs with them, and Mr. Silkie rooster and his girls-coming on the 12th-will be the only chickens we have. Luckily we don't eat many eggs (but a little sad because I like the blue ones, and they did become blue!).

I'm drying off Saffron. Her milk supply is plummeting. Looks like she took.

Anyway, got to get the kid ready for school.
 

Baymule

Herd Master
Joined
Aug 22, 2010
Messages
33,094
Reaction score
98,671
Points
873
Location
East Texas
I hate egg eaters! A permanent coop is on my radar...….. when I get it built, a roll out nest box is going in it.


Yes, I did mean that the Lockjawz fence corner pieces were for your fly under the radar, flaunt the rules, temporary fence, not that the corner itself was temporary. LOL

Rats. I hate them. We have rat snakes that do a pretty good job on the rats and mice, until the dimwits go after the eggs. Oh well, when I build my permanent coop, it will be as snake proof as I can get it and wire skirted (laid flat on the ground) all the way around the coop and run.
 

rachels.haven

Herd Master
Joined
Jun 7, 2016
Messages
3,105
Reaction score
12,403
Points
523
Location
zone 7a
Yep, potato level me. Oh that's funny. I should have realized that.

I considered roll out nest boxes, but several reviews of premade ones suggest the hens just learned to catch their eggs or stick their heads in the box. Mine would be that type. They are bored and active breeds. Chickens aren't meant to be in an aviary setup. I may try rollouts anyway next time I have $50 or enough time to build in the budget. Meanwhile I'm trying golf balls. But there were hens this morning with eggs half way out as they headed to the coop door this morning and I caught those eggs, so we got some today. I just have to work for them, I guess, lol.
 

rachels.haven

Herd Master
Joined
Jun 7, 2016
Messages
3,105
Reaction score
12,403
Points
523
Location
zone 7a
Gate posts are in. Fence guys decided to call it a day after that to let them set. It's also very windy and cold and almost looks like rain (although that's not what the forecast says).

Edited to add: And now the snow is flying.
 
Last edited:

Latest posts

Top