Just Ducky

It's a happy day at Lazy Danes as we welcome Rascal the duck. Rascal is a white pekin duck that is about 2. She was raised inside and loves people and cereal. The kids are very excited to add something they don't have to worry about as being food later and Rascal is happy to find a home where she will not be food. For now she's on the front porch, she had her welcome home bath in the girls tub. This evening and for several days she will spend time in turkey pen (they have moved out) until she figures out this is home. I'll pick her up a little dog house tonight and we may give her a separate pen depending on how she does with the other birds.

Bath time! Video coming soon....

The little peeps are growing into chickens. It's still amazing how fast they change. They are quite content in their indoor brooder and since we continue to get snow and below freezing temperatures they get to stay in the house. At least I can feed and water them in a climate controlled environment even if it means vacuuming a lot of wispy chick feathers.

Feathers in on the wings and tail feathers coming in. this is at 1 week old.

Next up in poultry- more turkeys!

A Few Setbacks...

"The best laid schemes o' mice an' men

Gang aft a-gley," ~Robert Burns

After such noticeable progress here at Lazy Danes, the last week has been quite unproductive! Weather and injury (hammer to finger-OWWWW!) are the contributing factors and while the injury is mending nicely the weather is still being very uncooperative. So here is a status update of our various projects...

Chick brooder- mostly done. I need to add the wire and cut the hole for the lamp in the top still. The chicks have arrived, but they're not missing their brooder. Instead of being in the big brooder in the shed they are nestled in a rubbermaid tote in the dining room. We have the weather to thank for that since I really don't think I could keep them warm enough out there right now.

Goat fence- posts in, wire run to gate. Now we just need more clips and weather conducive to running wire.

Shed- mostly painted. Trim and detail work still needs to be done. How about some dry days?

Raised beds- still need to be painted since they were untreated wood. They are also still under a couple inched of snow. Again, how about some dry days?

Unfortunately, there is more rain/freezing rain called for this weekend so there still won't be any outside work getting done. On the upside, we had some great sledding, built a snowman and let the Danes play in the 7 inches we got a week ago. Crazy weather this year.

And now, on to the chicks! After last years very messy experience of brooding the chicks inside, and since I didn't want to get as emotionally involed with birds I'm planning to eat we were going to brood this batch in the shed. I had planned a nice, large, wooden brooder to keep them warmer than the little cardboard job from last year. All very well thought out if we were having a "normal" NC winter of barely below freezing at night and 40-50's during the day. Well, Chuck got to drive though snow and ice to get the little biddies Monday morning and into the house they came. I do like hearing their little peep-peep-peep but I'm dreading the feathers flying. We only lost 4 to shipping stress and with the weather like it is, that's not too bad. We're left with 28, in some combination of Delaware, Americana and a mystery chick. They're harder to tell apart in this batch so we'll just have to see when they grow up a bit.

New Stuff for the New Year!

Whew! It's been busy couple of weeks here on the farm. We have finally thawed out after a long cold snap. We rarely stay that cold for that long. Hopefully, we're back to normal now, at least weather wise.

As spring quickly approaches, and with it many added chores, we have been preparing. Two major accomplishments this week- the raised beds and the milking shed. Woo-hoo! Chuck and I did the beds ourselves. They're built out of 2x8's with 4x4 corners. The earth below is tilled, giving us about 18-22 inches of good growing depth. They're filled with rich, steamy composted topsoil. Now if we can get anything to grow besides weeds and sweet gum trees we'll be good. The vegetable seeds are on the way. We ordered a lot of heirloom veggies- those mostly came from pine tree seed company. There are a few hybrids such as the spinach because we have a hard time with spinach bolting around here. The plants are coming from Gurneys. I'm very excited about the heirloom tomato collection. There should be purple tomatoes, yellow tomatoes and green striped tomatoes in the group of 6 plants. Other things we ordered... peas, pumpkins, bush beans, corn, peppers, cucumbers, lettuce, garlic, onions, carrots and beets.

Our other addition is the milking shed. We outsourced that to Curt's Decks and Sheds out of Trinity, NC. He did a wonderful job. He was prompt, fast and reasonably priced. The shed is 10x14 and should give plenty if comfortable space to milk the does and for Chuck to process meat. I'm searching for a large second hand sink- maybe of the restaurant variety and we'll have it plumbed. The gray water from there will be used to water the raised beds. We still have to paint it- we're trying to decide between Lazy Danes green or gray to match the house. Thoughts?

Two more significant projects remain- the second goat paddock and a brooder box for chickens. The chicken order has been placed at McMurray Hatchery. We'll be getting 25 straight run Delaware chicks- they are on the ALBC (American Livestock Breeds Conservancy) critical list. Most of them will be to process since we've had our fill of attacking roosters. We will keep some of the hens to boost egg production. We also ordered 5 Araucanas. While not an ALBC listed breed they do lay green or blue tinted eggs. Some people call them "Easter Eggers". I'm looking forward to adding a tinted egg or two to the dozens we sell. The hatchery is also once again sending us a free mystery bird. We adore last years mystery bird, Peck, so we thought we'd try it again. Peck turned out to be a giant partridge cochin rooster and is a real head turner.

We're still planning to order turkeys in the spring. We're looking at the Slate and the Bourbon Red. They're both heritage breeds, and the toms will weigh in the neighborhood of 23 lbs. I love the Royal Palms, so there may be a few more of them added. They're much smaller, but dress out nice for a family that doesn't need 20 pounds of turkey at a meal.

That's the news so far this year with a lot more in the pipeline!

Happy Winter

Chickens on Ice

Winter is upon us at Lazy Danes. We're battling frozen water troughs and a freak snow storm at the moment. The animals are not sure about the white stuff blanketing the ground. The goats finally decided to give it a try, but mostly stay in their house. The chickens are coming out a bit more after the fourth day. They slip and slide all over the ice topped snow. The turkeys have been the most adventurous, wandering around wondering what happened to the grass. The Angoras are just glad that they're not hot anymore. The dogs like a good 20 minute zoomie session then they come in shivering to lay by the heater.

Roscoe, checking out the snow

In more turkey news, 2 more have been processed for our family's Christmas dinner. We're left with 3 Royal Palms and the promise of more in the spring. Along with the turkey order, we will be getting more chickens as well. This time there will be a small number to process and a few more egg layers. The girls have slowed down their egg production due to the shorter days during this time of year, but we still have ours and a few to sell. Also in production- we believe a New Zealand (meat rabbit) to be pregnant and due to deliver on or about Christmas. The goats should both be in kid for milk and milk products in the spring.

Royal Palm Turkeys

I have been knitting like crazy, gifts for the family as well as stockings to sell at the gallery. The spinning has taken a back seat, but I hope to get back to that after the holidays.

Stockings

Giving Thanks for the Turkeys

Notes from Chuck...
Today I slaughtered, scalded, plucked, and dressed out 2 heritage breed turkeys for our Thanksgiving dinners. Not only have these turkeys led happy, healthy lives, but raising them and processing myself makes me feel very appreciative of how fortunate we are. We really lose something when we buy our food wrapped in plastic, shipped to us from an anonymous factory somewhere. We have become so many layers removed that we forget what really goes into the food that goes into our (and our children's) bodies.

Anyway - enough soapbox.

Things I learned / relearned today:

1) Water management is key. If everything else goes perfectly and you don't have your water needs under control, your whole experience will suck. You will need a large tub of hot water, a canning pot sized container of ice water, and clean, fresh water (like from a garden hose). Get your water straight and think it through before you get started, and everything else falls into line.

2) Start your fire early. You need that big tub of water HOT before you can scald the birds, and you can't do any plucking or cleaning until then. Start your fire and build some coals, then put some fresh wood on before putting your tub on.

3) 3/4 full is PLENTY of water in the scalding tub. Any more than that, and water sloshes over the edge and puts out your fire. That sucks. Also, the more water in the tub, the longer it takes to heat.

4) It is worthwhile to invest in or build a killing cone. If you cut the throat of or chop the head off a turkey that you're holding or have strung up by the feet, it will start flapping furiously and spray a fount of blood for a good (no exaggeration) 10 feet in every direction. It looks like something out of a zombie movie, and the death throes for turkeys last a solid minute or two, which is a long time when you're holding a flapping blood sprinkler in one hand and wiping your eyes with the other. If you don't have a killing cone, a wooden ledge under your chopping block works well - just route the bird's neck under the ledge and it will bleed out down there.

5) A good scald is critical to how you spend the next hour of your life. Using a thermometer (meat or candy), get the water up to a good 140 - 150 F. Then hold the turkey by the feet and use the leverage of the legs to dunk the bird, pulling it up and down several times to wet the underfeathers. TO BE TRIED - adding some soap (Dawn, etc) to the water should make it wet better and cut some of the feather oils, helping to get a good scald.

6) You CAN NOT get a good scald if your water isn't hot enough. You are not saving any time by not waiting for the water temp to come up. Either work on your fire, get something to drink - something. Don't scald too early - you'll regret it.

7) With a good scald, plucking is easy. You know you have a good scald when the big feathers on the wing or the tail pull out easily. Until they do, you don't have a good scald. Let me reiterate how important a good scald is on the rest of your day. Seriously.

8) A .22 to the head works well for dispatching a turkey, but you don't get a good bleed out. Some people prefer to slit the throat, which probably works well in a killing cone. For me, a machete on a large block works well, with a caveat that a decapitated turkey head is about the grossest, strangest feeling thing in the world to pick up off the ground or the block. At least the eyes close.

9) After scalding, with a good scald the feathers zip right off. Problem is, the feathers are wet and so are your hands, so the feathers stick to your hands. Back to water management - having a hose close by is tremendously helpful.

10) Keeping your turkeys away from food for 12 - 24 hours works well to make sure their crop is empty. This is a pocket of food they just ate. It's not really a big deal if the crop is full, but you'll have to dig out a big handful of corn and grass while you're dressing out the bird. Easy if you have a hose. See why I keep bringing up water management?

11) You'll have to cut the neck again during processing. I don't know the best way to do this. I kind of cut it back towards the breast and then wring it around. It is supposed to make good stock, but right now I'm throwing them away. Speaking of -

12) Prepare a small or medium sized trash can, and line it with a bag. Put your feathers and entrails here, then when you're done you can just tie it up and put it in the can. You can always use the entrails and feathers for other things - your call. I throw them away for simplicity.

14) Cutting the tendons around the knee makes the feet come off MUCH easier. Supposedly the feet make good dog treats, but I'm not breaking up any Great Dane fights in the middle of processing, so I throw them away, too.

13) Get a good field dressing knife. Having the right tool makes a WORLD of difference. Mine has finger holes and hangs from a lanyard around my neck - very well designed.

14) Birds have one all-purpose hole, called a vent. Cut all the way around it, and be careful not to cut too deeply into the body cavity. You don't want to puncture that stuff, but if you do, at least you have a hose nearby. You'll have to work a lot of the membranes inside free with your hand, and when you do it right you can pull out the whole intestinal tract and most of the organs all at one time. Today I even got the windpipe, all in one bunch.

15) It's a good idea to examine the organs as you pull it out to make sure you have a healthy bird. Dogs and cats also like the liver, kidneys, and heart, but to minimize animal drama I disposed of them along with the rest of the entrails.

16) The lungs are the toughest part to get out. They are bright pink and the consistency of, well, lungs - kind of a cross between tofu, jello, and livermush. You'll need to either buy a tool called a lung scraper or just pull them out with your hands. You kind of have to scrape your fingertips across the inside of the ribs to get them all, then rinse. No big deal, just something to expect.

17) Give thanks to the bird before you dispatch him, and mean it. You've raised him, fed him, and given him a good life, and now he will feed your family for a time.

18) It's a lot of work to grow your own food this way.

19) It's worth it

Happy Birthday Bo and Luke!

Our farm mascots turned 4 today. We were Lazy Danes Farm long before we had real farm animals. I can't imagine life without Danes.

Too Much Rain

The Weather Channel is calling it the Atlantic Assault. While that does seem a little over dramatic, there has been entirely too much rain here on Lazy Danes. Mixed with the winds, all my animals ( and me) are miserable. Goats do no like rain, so they stand in their house hollering for someone to turn it off. The chickens, turkeys and guineas look pitiful with their feathers wet and floppy. The rabbits are even damp where the wind has been blowing the rain into their shed sideways. Damp angoras are a sorry sight. The dogs are feeling cooped up, too since they refuse to go out for more than the necessary business even in the lightest mist. The fields have standing water, hopefully the oats won't drown before the sun comes out supposedly tomorrow.

This was taken last weekend before the monsoon. That light green tint is from the oats barely through the surface- the ones the fowl haven't gotten to yet.

In the kitchen I've been experimenting with new recipes for fall and winter crops. We've had sweet potato enchiladas, butternut squash and turkey chili, squash bread and a pumpkin pound cake. There have also been our favorites like pumpkin pancakes, pumpkin cookies and creamed sweet potatoes. Yum! Now that the cold weather is sneaking in, I've been making homemade

hot cocoa, the packets just don't compare!

It's getting close to Thanksgiving so our older turkeys are about to fulfill their destinies. It's sad, because I really enjoy having them on the farm, but I realize that I will be eating a turkey for Thanksgiving and I'm glad it will be one that has had a happy, healthy, natural life than one that has been kept in a tiny cell unable to move under it's own power with its beak cut off and wings clipped (not just the feathers) that gets shoved in the freezer at a Wal-Mart Super Center. Thank you turkeys.

One of the baby turkeys showing off.

We spent last weekend up in Sparta, NC at Joe Edward's Christmas Tree Farm and Blue Ridge Art Gallery (we love you Joe and Melia). I took more knitted stockings that will hopefully sell. We had our pictures made on the farm and they're sure to be wonderful. Thank you Julie (Uppercase Photography)! If anybody would like more information on the tree farm/gallery there is a link on the right. The tree farm has Frazier Firs and Colorado Blue Spruce in all

different sizes. It's a choose and cut operation so the trees are super fresh and last a long time.

The gallery has great Christmas presents many hand made by local artisans. There's even wine!

Chuck with Buddy, the tree farm mascot.