New mobile field shelter finished!!!

Well I've finally completed our new shelter  on skids to make it mobile and it's own straw loft!! 

It looked huge when I started it but after assembling it I've realised I'm going to have to build another!!! 

Haylage cutting begins......

The contractors (whitehead farms) have started cutting our fields for haylage.

I love this time of year (making food for the animals and storing it up ready for winter) 

I tell you in the mid of winter there is nothing like the smell of opening a bale of haylage up. It smells like a mixture of cider and summer all mixed into one. 

My mother in law says it smells so good she's tempted to eat it!!!!

Happy Days!!! 

Photos of the farm and some of the animals

Let the lambing commence !!!!!

This is a fun time of year for us and our children a time when new life joins the farm. It's come right on time as one of the Donkeys died just two days ago so we need some positive results.
Our first yew to start lambing had twins but one managed to escape the pen in the early hours and get out of the barn and the temperature here at night is below freezing. Sadly we found the little fella dead the next morning in the yard :0( (not a great start). The mother had also stopped nursing the other lamb maybe out of concern for the missing one, when I got to him he was freezing and near death so we had to get him in front of the fire. With no colostrum in him it was hit or miss, we mixed some up and after warming him for an hour got him to feed. Well that was yesterday.. This morning he's still alive but I think the whole ordeal knocked the wind out of him.

Best place for a cold lamb

very week

11:30pm- Our second yew goes into labour and within about 5minutes delivers her first and then 30 mins late her second.
Being so cold we have put a quartz heater in the barn (hence the red glow!!)
We've used our kids video baby monitor to keep an eye on them and I've taken a fond liking to my wives ear muffs!!!! (It's really cold!)

Big Brother!!!!!!

perfect. saves keep going out in the cold!

Farming sends you mad!!!!

TB test day 2

Well what else can I say other than what a relief that our girls are all clear. :0)

TB test day 1

Monday 12th Feb 2013:
The vet paid us a visit today to carry out the first part of our TB test on our Dexters. Even though cases of TB in this area are very rare there is still the what if. (Keep positive)!!
The down side is we have to wait till his return visit on Thursday for the him to check any lumps till we get the all clear.

Another thing to all you sheep and cattle owners, are you up to date on your clostridial diseases vaccine? We'd never even heard of this before recently and have now vaccinated all our sheep and cows. Speak to your vet if you need to know more.

They love their new hay feeder!!

A fantastic new purchase from IAE. A yearling round bale hay feeder. Ideal for dexters because of their small size the normal size feeders are a little large in diameter.

No more wet soggy hay nets!!

Finally we have treated the sheep to a hay feeder after years of stuffing hay nets.
This hay feeder is 1200mm long and will take a full bale. Our timber gate manufacturing company is a registered dealer for IAE (the manufacturer) and supply the full range of fencing, animal feeding and handling equipment.

www.gatewrights.co.uk

Is the wet weather ever going to end!!!

The ditches are bursting there banks, the grass is now a muddy, slurry mess and the cows are miserable!!
This is our weather report for next week!
I'm in the process of building a shelter for them but until I finish I've dragged the livestock trailer into the field for the calves to get some shelter.
A little sunshine pleeeease!!!

Ps. The photo of the tractor was taken a few weeks back when the weather was nicer!!!!!!

De-spurring our cockerel

Our Roosters Spur

Despurring any Rooster (cockerel) is not recommended unless for medical reasons and in this case it was very much needed.
Our rooster Frank had severely gouged the front of his foot either fighting or doing something else. His spurs were over 3" long and unlike most roosters spurs his pointed too far over to his opposing claw hence as he walked along the spur kept catching on the wound and reopening it. Ouch!
We tried treating it and wrapping it to protect it with no avail, the spur just kept gouging it out and it started to turn septic.
After watching a couple of YouTube vids (good old YouTube) we decided the only way to help him is to remove the spur. Now a roosters spur is just like a goats horn really and has a quick running up the inside of the spur about 50-70% of the spur.
So here's how to remove it:
1) get someone to hold the rooster.
2) support the foot with your hand and with a set of pliers grip the spur close to the base.
3) gentle rotate the pliers forward and back twisting the spur and only squeezing the pliers enough to grip the spur being careful not to crush the spur.
4) as you twist the spur and gently pull it will separate from the foot and come off leaving a fairly raw looking quick (there may be a small about of blood)
5) disinfect the area and the quick will dry up and be fine. We recommend isolating him till he heals up to prevent attacks from other chickens.

A Cockerel with long and deformed spurs

Google image of someone removing a spur

The quick