Moving a homestead..
One of the hardest jobs with having the deadline to move out and off the land by June 30th was not only packing and moving our home, but packing and moving all our animals we owned! This was also springtime which means we had our does kidding to worry about. The worst thing we could do would be to stress them out during their final weeks of pregnancy so didn't want to move them before they freshened. It was also downsizing time which we started first with the chickens and rabbits. As we have over 20 rabbits and close to 30 chickens we knew we needed to be smart. So as soon as our local processor could, we had all rabbits but 3 processed and all chickens but 17 processed for the freezer.
We also had to be concerned with where to house everyone even if only temporary, once we moved them to the new homestead. With the barn cleaned out we were able to better see that this building was not useable for anything besides storage and even that was in a few small areas only. So with that limitation we began to consider our options. Oh and did I mention that there was still over a foot of snow on the ground and it was frozen? Yeah we needed an early spring for sure which we didn't get.
The goats and rabbits were housed in the tunnel house that we had converted to a barn the year before (See making a barn here). Usually by kidding time we were able to put the bucks into their outside summer habitat to give the does more room to bring their kids into the world. But with a late winter and loads of snow on the ground, the boys had to stay in the barn as well. It made for tight quarters but was actually a blessing in disguise as we were then able to break down all the outside habitats which included fencing, posts, and shelters moving them to the new house in anticipation of the big transport. As the days ticked by are prayers for warmer weather were answered and we were blessed with lots of warm sun that melted the snow and ice fast so we could finally get to work!
We also had to be concerned with where to house everyone even if only temporary, once we moved them to the new homestead. With the barn cleaned out we were able to better see that this building was not useable for anything besides storage and even that was in a few small areas only. So with that limitation we began to consider our options. Oh and did I mention that there was still over a foot of snow on the ground and it was frozen? Yeah we needed an early spring for sure which we didn't get.
The goats and rabbits were housed in the tunnel house that we had converted to a barn the year before (See making a barn here). Usually by kidding time we were able to put the bucks into their outside summer habitat to give the does more room to bring their kids into the world. But with a late winter and loads of snow on the ground, the boys had to stay in the barn as well. It made for tight quarters but was actually a blessing in disguise as we were then able to break down all the outside habitats which included fencing, posts, and shelters moving them to the new house in anticipation of the big transport. As the days ticked by are prayers for warmer weather were answered and we were blessed with lots of warm sun that melted the snow and ice fast so we could finally get to work!
Once the snow melted by mid April, we were able to make temporary habitats for the bucks, does, chickens and even the geese. The rabbits we were able to start off with putting them in the garage area until the weather got warmer. We then were able to make a doe/kid habitat farther back in the wooded area near the bucks so that they could be out and browsing. We ended up selling off all the kids from the spring as well as our Nigerian does Mary and Pippen. Because the house has a mortgage, our expenses have skyrocketed which means we had to make sacrifices. It was sad to see them go as we had them both since they were bottle babies but Coco gave us so much milk we only had them as pets. As winter this year approached, we also decided to rehome Ferdinand and Walda our two Chinese Geese. It wasn't so much that they were hard to feed, but being on such a main road we had to contain them into a smaller area which was ok temporarily but for the winter it would be hard to house them where they would be safe and sheltered for the cold winter months.
At the start of this winter 2014 we were down to 4 goats our 2 bucks and 2 does, three rabbits and 16 hens with a rooster guard. Our hope is to next summer be able to get pigs again as well as a beef critter or two to utilize the back fields. Once the big pines are down we will have so much more land to use and we can build up our homestead again as we see fit. We also converted the garage part of the L section of the house into a two stalled barn for the goats and rabbits to share. This makes it quite nice on cold winter mornings to be able to just walk out to garage to feed and water them all. If it wasn't for the chicken coop being closer to the barn, I wouldn't have to go out at all! Maybe by next winter we will have that all figured out too! :D And sorry no pictures of the garage conversion, I could have sworn I took some??? If I find them I will add them for sure.
At the start of this winter 2014 we were down to 4 goats our 2 bucks and 2 does, three rabbits and 16 hens with a rooster guard. Our hope is to next summer be able to get pigs again as well as a beef critter or two to utilize the back fields. Once the big pines are down we will have so much more land to use and we can build up our homestead again as we see fit. We also converted the garage part of the L section of the house into a two stalled barn for the goats and rabbits to share. This makes it quite nice on cold winter mornings to be able to just walk out to garage to feed and water them all. If it wasn't for the chicken coop being closer to the barn, I wouldn't have to go out at all! Maybe by next winter we will have that all figured out too! :D And sorry no pictures of the garage conversion, I could have sworn I took some??? If I find them I will add them for sure.