Well, it was about a month late, but our calf, T-Bone, is separated from Sugar and we are finally milking again after 5+ months of giving the calf all of it. She gave 2.5 gallons this morning with about 1/3 cream. This is the 18th month of her lactation. Wow! I certainly didn't expect that. I thought we'd be doing good to get a gallon a day. We're only going to milk once a day so that will come down a bit, probably to around 2 gallons. We should be making lots of cheese. I'm thinking maybe a Swiss this weekend.
We have some home improvement things that we wanted to get done this fall and didn't, but all our farm stuff is wrapped up and our woodshed is full. We have a chest freezer that is full to the brim of beef and another full of lamb, chicken, corn and bone broth. We are truly blessed. God is good.
Be well.
Wednesday 8 December 2010
Monday 1 November 2010
November 1, 2010
Wow, sorry about last month, folks. I've been busy at work, busy with church matters, and we took another week of vacation. We're entering our slow season so I should be better about keeping up.
The lambs went to the butcher on October 1st and the bull went on October 12th.
Here is the bull carcass, after halving, before being quartered and loaded into the truck. The carcass weighed 750# so I estimate the live weight at around 1200# (give or take 50#). The meat is ready so we'll be cleaning out our freezers and bringing it home this week. I haven't seen the finished product yet, but the exposed ribeye face was showing some nice marbling even before cooling. He was 16 months old and our butcher thinks we hit the sweet spot where the testosterone allowed for rapid growth and muscling but will not have an adverse effect on meat flavor due to his young age. The drawback to an intact bull may turn out to be less fat but the carcass looked encouraging in that regard. I'm sure it won't be prime, but choice would be nice.
The ewes and rams have collectively decided that it's time for breeding. They were separated by a single strand of electric fence and while the ewes have been going back and forth all summer, the rams just ducked under the fence for the first time on Sunday morning. The ewes were up on the hill with them on the boys' side of the fence on Saturday and when they came back to the barn, the boys followed. We may end up with lambs in late March. That's a little earlier than I'd like but the lambs were a bit on the small side this year. I probably should de-worm the lambs once or twice during the summer. Some farmers have had good luck with garlic juice but the lambs have to be dosed with it regularly. I'm sure we would have bigger weaned lambs if I kept the intestinal parasite load down.
The pullets (and 1 rooster) have been moved into the barn with the older hens. We haven't decided if we're going to keep the older ones. Our pen is rather small for 28 birds so we'll probably get rid of the older ones this winter when they start spending more time inside. We've finally got a surplus of eggs.
We're finally going to separate the calf from Sugar this weekend. She was in heat on October 20th so I expect her to come back in next week unless the calf managed to breed her. He turned 6 months old on 10/21 so it's possible but not likely. If she's not bred, as I expect, I think we'll put the bull calf back in with her in February to shoot for a November 2011 calf. That's a goofy time of year for a ruminant to give birth in Ohio but I guess we'll just have to go with the flow.
The lambs went to the butcher on October 1st and the bull went on October 12th.
Here is the bull carcass, after halving, before being quartered and loaded into the truck. The carcass weighed 750# so I estimate the live weight at around 1200# (give or take 50#). The meat is ready so we'll be cleaning out our freezers and bringing it home this week. I haven't seen the finished product yet, but the exposed ribeye face was showing some nice marbling even before cooling. He was 16 months old and our butcher thinks we hit the sweet spot where the testosterone allowed for rapid growth and muscling but will not have an adverse effect on meat flavor due to his young age. The drawback to an intact bull may turn out to be less fat but the carcass looked encouraging in that regard. I'm sure it won't be prime, but choice would be nice.
The ewes and rams have collectively decided that it's time for breeding. They were separated by a single strand of electric fence and while the ewes have been going back and forth all summer, the rams just ducked under the fence for the first time on Sunday morning. The ewes were up on the hill with them on the boys' side of the fence on Saturday and when they came back to the barn, the boys followed. We may end up with lambs in late March. That's a little earlier than I'd like but the lambs were a bit on the small side this year. I probably should de-worm the lambs once or twice during the summer. Some farmers have had good luck with garlic juice but the lambs have to be dosed with it regularly. I'm sure we would have bigger weaned lambs if I kept the intestinal parasite load down.
The pullets (and 1 rooster) have been moved into the barn with the older hens. We haven't decided if we're going to keep the older ones. Our pen is rather small for 28 birds so we'll probably get rid of the older ones this winter when they start spending more time inside. We've finally got a surplus of eggs.
We're finally going to separate the calf from Sugar this weekend. She was in heat on October 20th so I expect her to come back in next week unless the calf managed to breed her. He turned 6 months old on 10/21 so it's possible but not likely. If she's not bred, as I expect, I think we'll put the bull calf back in with her in February to shoot for a November 2011 calf. That's a goofy time of year for a ruminant to give birth in Ohio but I guess we'll just have to go with the flow.
Saturday 25 September 2010
September 25, 2010
Well, the joke's on me. I posted on 9/9 that Sugar was likely bred. She came into heat the next day, September 10th. If she's not bred this time, she'll come back in heat around 10/1. After that we'll be butchering the bull. If she ends up not bred, we'll try again next summer. I don't want to keep trying and end up with a calf in late July or August. She's been lactating for 20 months and since the calf is taking all the milk, we have no idea how much she's producing. I'm sure it's low since we didn't get enough rain in September and are having to feed hay already. Fortunately, we were able to buy our herdshares back so we're still getting good milk. So much for natural breeding being more reliable that AI. I don't know if our bull is infertile or just inexperienced.
The butcher is coming on 10/1 for the lambs. We still have one available. If anyone local is interested, email me at joe [at] realfoodfreedom [dot] com. The price is $3.00 per pound (carcass weight) plus butchering (around $200 total cost for a 45 lb. carcass).
We've decided not to raise any more meat chickens this year since our freezers will soon be full of beef. We would like to sell half the beef which can be split into quarters. The price for that will be $2.25 per pound plus butchering. I expect Porter is in the neighborhood of 1000 lbs which probably equates to somewhere around a 600 lbs carcass. I'm just WAGging (wild-ass guess) it so if you're interested don't count on these weights. Email me at the above address and I'll let you know when the butcher's appt. is and the actual weights as soon as I find out. I expect this beef to be leaner than I would like since he's a bull and not a steer. He's not 100% grass-fed but has had organic corn and spelt (no soy!).
We arrived home last Monday from our annual trip to the coast. It was great! Our animals all thrived under the care of Jennifer's brother. Now we are ready for all the work of autumn.
The butcher is coming on 10/1 for the lambs. We still have one available. If anyone local is interested, email me at joe [at] realfoodfreedom [dot] com. The price is $3.00 per pound (carcass weight) plus butchering (around $200 total cost for a 45 lb. carcass).
We've decided not to raise any more meat chickens this year since our freezers will soon be full of beef. We would like to sell half the beef which can be split into quarters. The price for that will be $2.25 per pound plus butchering. I expect Porter is in the neighborhood of 1000 lbs which probably equates to somewhere around a 600 lbs carcass. I'm just WAGging (wild-ass guess) it so if you're interested don't count on these weights. Email me at the above address and I'll let you know when the butcher's appt. is and the actual weights as soon as I find out. I expect this beef to be leaner than I would like since he's a bull and not a steer. He's not 100% grass-fed but has had organic corn and spelt (no soy!).
We arrived home last Monday from our annual trip to the coast. It was great! Our animals all thrived under the care of Jennifer's brother. Now we are ready for all the work of autumn.
Thursday 9 September 2010
September 9, 2010
All is well at Liberty Farm. Lambs are growing, calf is growing (like mad) and Sugar appears to be bred!
Sugar came into heat for the first time after Porterhouse went in with her on July 31st. He didn't get the job done and she came back into heat on August 19th. It's been 21 days and she hasn't come back in heat so we assume that she's bred. She's due in mid-May. Her heats were mostly uneventful before we introduced the bull but the two times she came in while he was with her were very obvious. She was trying to mount the calf, the bull and the rams. That probably seems odd to folks unfamiliar with cows, but the cows will mount other cows to get the bull's attention. We're really excited to have another calf b0rn here!
The pullets really look good and we haven't lost a single one. We ended up with one rooster which isn't bad out of twenty birds. He recently started crowing. It's kind of annoying at 4:00 in the morning but I love that sound.
Lamb butchering is scheduled for October 1st and we might have one left. If anyone is interested, email me at joe [at] realfoodfreedom [dot] com. I think we'll butcher Porter in late October. We'll have half a beef available then (can split into 2 quarters).
Be well.
Sugar came into heat for the first time after Porterhouse went in with her on July 31st. He didn't get the job done and she came back into heat on August 19th. It's been 21 days and she hasn't come back in heat so we assume that she's bred. She's due in mid-May. Her heats were mostly uneventful before we introduced the bull but the two times she came in while he was with her were very obvious. She was trying to mount the calf, the bull and the rams. That probably seems odd to folks unfamiliar with cows, but the cows will mount other cows to get the bull's attention. We're really excited to have another calf b0rn here!
The pullets really look good and we haven't lost a single one. We ended up with one rooster which isn't bad out of twenty birds. He recently started crowing. It's kind of annoying at 4:00 in the morning but I love that sound.
Lamb butchering is scheduled for October 1st and we might have one left. If anyone is interested, email me at joe [at] realfoodfreedom [dot] com. I think we'll butcher Porter in late October. We'll have half a beef available then (can split into 2 quarters).
Be well.
Saturday 14 August 2010
August 14, 2010
I finally finished my rotational pasture mowing yesterday - only a month late! We'll be feeding some hay for the next couple weeks to augment the comparatively small amount of grass we have left. That seems to be the norm for the summer even with our low stocking rate.
Sugar was in heat on July 31st. The next several days will tell us if she's bred because she'll come back into heat if she's not. If she did settle, that means a late April or early May calf. The timing couldn't be better. If she comes back in heat and is bred this week, it will mean a mid-May calf which is fine, too. A little late is better than a little early with our typically unpredictable April weather.
We have a 65 gallon Rubbermaid water tank for the bovines. Porter's new game is to use his horns to catch under the lip and flip it over. I didn't want to spend this much money but I guess I'll go to TSC this week and buy the biggest stock tank they have. I prefer plastic to galvanized steel but the steel ones don't have a lip around the top where he can hook his horns.
Our bull calf T-Bone looks entirely different than when we brought him home at three days old. When we got him, his coloring was exactly like his sire's - Milking Devon red - with a white patch on each side from his (primarily) Dutch-Belted mama. At a little less than 4 months old, he has turned almost completely black with a Jersey face. If I have time later, I'll try to get a pic and post it along with an old one to compare to.
Sugar was in heat on July 31st. The next several days will tell us if she's bred because she'll come back into heat if she's not. If she did settle, that means a late April or early May calf. The timing couldn't be better. If she comes back in heat and is bred this week, it will mean a mid-May calf which is fine, too. A little late is better than a little early with our typically unpredictable April weather.
We have a 65 gallon Rubbermaid water tank for the bovines. Porter's new game is to use his horns to catch under the lip and flip it over. I didn't want to spend this much money but I guess I'll go to TSC this week and buy the biggest stock tank they have. I prefer plastic to galvanized steel but the steel ones don't have a lip around the top where he can hook his horns.
Our bull calf T-Bone looks entirely different than when we brought him home at three days old. When we got him, his coloring was exactly like his sire's - Milking Devon red - with a white patch on each side from his (primarily) Dutch-Belted mama. At a little less than 4 months old, he has turned almost completely black with a Jersey face. If I have time later, I'll try to get a pic and post it along with an old one to compare to.
Friday 13 August 2010
bull pics
The first two pics are T-Bone when we brought him home in April. The third is him today. It's not a great shot but shows the change. The fourth shows Porter's water tank-flipping horns.
Thursday 5 August 2010
Note to our farm customers
We have removed our listing on Local Harvest because we have been getting more calls for chicken and eggs than we can deal with. Raising chickens is not our favorite activity here and we started out just producing for ourselves. If you are a current customer, rest assured that we will continue to provide for you. We will have an egg surplus beginning in November or December but we don't plan on increasing the number of meat chickens we raise in a year - 100 is enough for us.
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