| Livestock handling, husbandry and slaughter ~
What kinds of livestock and poultry do you have?
We currently maintain a variety of laying hens and roosters, both cross bred and pure bred, including Silver laced and Gold laced Wyandotts, White Leghorns, California White, Rhode Island Red, Barred Rock, Black Astralorp, Black Jersey Giant, Light Brahma, Dark Cornish, Americauna. The goats are Boer and Boer X Nubian for both meat and milk. Our heifer is Black Angus X Hereford, and the horses are purebred Lipizzan, Quarterhorse, American Paint Horse (APHA). The little mule is something else, we just haven't figured out what.... The rabbits are mixed breed, large and are kept for meat production and weed control. The 2010 veal calves will probably be dairy or dairy crossed with a beef breed.
How do you manage your animals?
Chickens - The laying hens and some roosters are free range. They have their choice of nesting areas around the farm, from nest boxes in the coop to building their own in the hay stacks and anywhere else that they deem suitable. Young birds are kept in mobile pens (chicken tractors) untill ready to lay as are the meat birds and extra roosters reserved for breeding stock or slaughter. Mobile pens are moved daily, every few days or weekly, depending on the size of pen, number of birds in the pen and impact on vegetation in the pen.
Goats - The goats are on pasture and have run in sheds for shelter from rain and sun.
Horses - The horses have free access to pasture and shelter.
Stallion and Heifer - The stallion and heifer are both in training and are on dry lot (large pens) currently. The stallion will stay in training for 2010 and will have a variety of turn out pens and round pen. The heifer will be going on pasture with the mare/gelding herd in April, where I'll continue with her training.
Rabbits - The rabbits are kept in hutches off the ground unless doing weed control at which time they are moved into rabbit tractors and moved between the rows of crops.
All animals have access to clean water and are fed on a regular schedule, some have access to feed 24/7, others are fed a ration on a schedule.
All animals on the farm are vaccinated when needed and as needed for various diseases. They also receive veterinary care as needed and are dewormed regularly - twice/year for the horses, goats and heifer. Animals that are injured and treatable or who have come down with some other ailment are treated with antibiotics, antisepsis and analgesia as necessary to prevent infection and discomfort during the healing/recovery process. Aside from new chicks in the brooder, no animals are fed antibiotics, dewormers or other drugs as a regular part of their daily ration. Animals have free access to clean water and mineral supplement/blocks appropriate for each species.
Chicks in the brooders are fed a chick crumble medicated with Amprolium, a coccidiostat (coccidia are microscopic single celled parasites and are endemic to this area), untill large enough to start on pellets (3-4 weeks of age) at which time their immune systems are well developed. Young birds are gradually weaned off of heat lamps and by the time they are 4-6 weeks of age are large and hardy enough to move to the outdoor brooding sheds and pens which have minimal heat and allow the young birds to become aquainted with the free range flock. At around 8 weeks of age they are moved into their permanent outdoor location, cockerels are seperated and either culled through slaughter or are held in seperate tractors or flight pens to grow out for slaughter or breeding.
Animals about to give birth and post partum are kept in seperate shelters/pens until they have given birth and the young has had a health check, and is/are nursing well on mom.
How do you source animals not produced on the farm?
I purchase from some national breeders of heritage breeds for poultry, other than that I do my best to source new stock from local breeders.
Do you use antibiotics, or dewormers and if so how do you use them?
I use a medicated poultry starter crumble containing a coccidiostat called Amprolium. Coccidia are microscopic single celled parasites and are endemic to this area. Chicks are fed this crumble until old enough to eat pellets (3-4 weeks of age) at which time they are shifted to the same unmedicated layer pellets that the laying hens are fed. They are also given a bit of scratch grains every day at this time.
Horses, cattle, goats and other hoofstock are given dewormer as appropriate and needed. The normal deworming schedule for these animals is twice yearly unless an animal exhibits a high parasite load through loss of condition and/or testing of a fecal sample.
Emus and other poultry are not dewormed.
Fly control on hoof stock is used - pyrethrins/pyrethroids, either spray on or wipe on, creams, etc. Fly masks on horses during fly season, diatomaceous earth (DT) on manure, and the chickens keep fly larvae in check through foraging in the arena.
The cats are treated with a spot application of flea control once a month or as needed during the year. In general the cats are treated untill there is no sign of flea activity. Periodically the house is treated with DT or pyrethrins/pyrithroids to control fleas.
The chickens have dusting areas available to them that are treated with DT.
What type of predator control do you use?
The cats are used to control rodents to the extent that they can. We also use poison for rat control and are careful to do so in a manner that keeps the chickens and any other animal safe.
Live traps are used to control other mamalian predators.
Because we allow the laying hens to free range, they are from time to time, subject to predation from raptors (hawks) and other predators. We do loose the occasional bird, but I feel that this is one of the inherent risks with the free range system and the benefits for both the birds and our customers far outweigh that risk. Birds and rabbits kept in tractors and flight pens are not so much subject to arial predators, but they can still fall prey to coyote, fox, raccoon, skunk, and rats, and I do my best to mitigate those risks.
How does your program for meat animals work on the farm?
If you choose to purchase an animal from the farm, you will be purchasing a live animal. I can grow that animal for you to slaughter size, and I'll charge you for that service, or you'll be purchasing a live animal that is already slaughter size. For poultry, and rabbits I can slaughter for you, there is no charge, or you may take the animal(s) home and slaughter them yourself. For larger animals, you will either need to make arrangement with the local mobile slaughter or a slaughterhouse of your choice. Either way, you will be responsible for the cost of slaughter and cutting/wrapping if you use that particular service, as well as transporting to the slaughterhouse if you choose to have the animal(s) slaughtered off farm.
At times, I will provide free samples of some poultry/meats for interested subscribers to try.
How do you and/or who do you use for slaughter?
I'll be using Mark's Meats (USDA Inspected) in Canby for off farm slaughter. I also prefer Wimsatt's Mobile Slaughter & Butchering, based in Colton, for on farm slaughter.
Poultry and fowl are killed through exsanguination, emu are killed through decapitation. Both methods result in rapid death that is as humane as possible.
Do you sell milk?
No, I don't sell milk.
Do you sell hatching eggs?
Yes, hatching eggs need to be ordered ahead of time and are $3.00/dozen for mixed breeds (although you may specify brown, green or white), and $6.00/dozen for purebred birds. We currently can supply purebred bird eggs for the following breeds - Golden Laced Wyandott, Silver Laced Wyandott, Plymouth Barred Rock. In 2011 I will have eggs and chicks for Dark Cornish and possibly for Cornish Cross.
Can I buy an animal produced on the farm (other than horses) and take it home?Yes, when you place an order for an animal or buy one that we already have, you may leave it here and I'll grow it for you to slaughter size, or you may take the animal home at purchase. All we sell here are live animals. We expect that you will take a horse that you buy home.
How do you feed your animals, and what kind of feeds do you use?
Hoofstock (horses, cattle, goats) are fed hay and most have access to pasture, the stallion and heifer being the current exception and have a mineral/salt block and or loose mineral supplement. They also, from time to time get a ration of grain or all purpose livestock feed. Grain is also used as a training aid, the paycheck for doing a good job. I feed local hay when possible.
Poultry are fed layer pellets, scratch grains (cracked corn and wheat).
Emus are fed an all purpose livestock feed.
Rabbits are fed rabbit pellets (alfalfa pellets), hay, forages and a mineral/salt supplement.
None of the feed is certified organic.
How do you manage animals in the winter?
The chickens have a heat lamp in severe cold weather. All other animals have access to shelter and I like my animals to go into winter with extra weight, which helps insulate them as well as providing extra energy during harsh weather. This has been my policy for the past 15 years and it has worked well.
During the shortest days of the month I keep a light on in the chicken coop, which helps keep the egg production a little higher in those months.
Are your laying chickens and meat birds free range, pastured, confined?
The laying hens and their attendant roosters are all free range. They have their choice of roosting in the coop, barn trees, etc. They also have their choice of laying in the nest boxes in the coop, or elsewhere in the barn, hay stacks, or anywhere else their hearts desire. It makes egg collection a bit interesting at times, but that's why our chickens lay nice rich eggs.
Chickens kept for meat, including extra roosters, are kept either in chicken tractors (movable pens) or in flight cages.
What do you do with spent hens?
We sell spent hens to people interested in slaughtering them, we also eat some of them ourselves. I may make some spent hens available to the wildlife rehab center as well to feed raptors or other predators.
What do you do with the manure from the animals?
The manure from areas that I can harvest it, is composted and used as a soil amendment. Manure from the hens, emus and goats is left where it's deposited with the exception of the chicken coop and the run in shed for the goats, that manure and bedding is harvested and composted for use as a soil amendment as is manure and hay bedding from the brooders. |
