A busy day at the store!

We are cleaning up and moving around items to prepare for the new building, John will be preparing the outside tomorrow!  This is really exciting and we've gotten some great new products to share!

We also got an egg incubator today to start attempting to hatch Harriet's eggs :)  I haven't been able to master the temp and humidity yet but I'm hoping to have it down by Friday when she gives me another egg.  Usually at 9:30am on the dot!

The goats were still in a fuss this morning but settled down by this evening.  This is VERY good because they were making all the birds go wild with their yelling and beating the fence!  We are thinking maybe Cricket will wait another year to be a momma, she just isn't interested at all.  We do have a good mate for her if she changes her mind.  We will have to wait and see.

Stay warm and be well!

Lamancha Success!

I think things went well for Lamancha (Buttercup) and this spring (in 5 months) we will be proud goat grandparents!  I'm hoping for girls so I can keep them :)  Cricket and Cupcake were not as enthusiastic, so we will have to bring them back to the farm when they are feeling a little more frisky.

Today was a wet and nasty day but we got things done and now I'm going to head out to take one of my nieces and one of my nephews to west african drumming in Willimantic, CT.  It is so much fun, I can't say enough about it!

This weekend I will be going to a local farm to look into adopting some laying hens to keep the store in stock with eggs (we just got eggs in if anyone is looking).  At the end of the weekend I will head to another farm in eastern Connecticut to check out some silkies and frizzles (these are hens) for my fancy collection!

It's a good life!

Be well!

Introducing Ozzy & Harriet!

First off, I was told these birds can't fly.  What I should have been told is they can't fly FAR and the run ver VERY FAST!  Ozzy had me running around the stores parking lot and in the woods in the pouring rain this afternoon after I tried to move him to a dry pen!  I wish I had video and I'm also glad I didn't.  People driving by must have thought I was nuts!  They are very funny birds, I hope to get video tomorrow if its nice out.

Harriet has the pompom head and Ozzy has the mullet!

Lots of work on a rainy day!

When it rains for more than one day in a row, there is a lot of extra work to do.  The rabbits don't get thier normal exercise outside, the turkeys get wet and muddy, the goats won't leave the pen, and the dogs don't go out.  This morning was a lot of mucking out the turkey area and providing new straw (We stopped moving the turkey flight cage 2 weeks ago and gave the turkeys access to a 40x40 garden we have fenced in.  This cut down on the fighting and pecking dramatically.)  I then cleaned out the goat pen completely and filled that will cedar chips and gave them extra hay for the long day of chewing cud while looking out at the rain.

Unfortunately, I noticed this morning that one of the turkeys I've been watching for signs of trouble is struggling today and refusing food or water.  He was well enough to come in out of the rain and lay in some fresh straw but that was it.  I fear he won't make it through the day.  I've sent out messages to friends who know more than me about raising turkeys, but I now know from sad experiences that there really isn't anything to do but keep him comfortable.  This always makes me so sad, even though I know that by next month they will no longer be with us, I feel as if I've failed him in some way.

I will post later about my new additions to the farm and let you know how it went.  They are called naked neck silkies or showgirls.  The 2 I am getting are heterogeneous showgirls so they have a naked nack with a bow tie.  Even the boys are called showgirls and I will be getting a boy and a girl, both white, both heterogeneous.  Next spring they will live in a chicken tractor in the gardens helping me with bugs, this winter I will have to establish a home for them in a more protected environment.  For now they will have a tractor I am borrowing and a small living space out of the elements - particularly this never-ending rain.  Better than a drought, but I am kind of getting weary of it.

I will check in later!  Be Well!

Guess what I'm getting tomorrow?!

This bird is proof that God has a sense of humor.  Showgirl silkies!  This is a bow tie showgirl.  John and I love them AND can't stop laughing out loud.  I am driving to Woodstock tomorrow to meet a couple looking for a home.  They are a year and a half old and both are white.  I will definately blog pics!  I hope you will get to meet them at our party on October 22 along with the petting zoo crew!