Previous Hoofin' It North Happenings

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Have you seen the official turkey from the video of Alaska's Governor Palin on eBay? Please bid to support our troops!

I visited briefly with Anthony from Triple D last night and he told me about all the attention he's been getting over the video shot at his place after Governor Palin pardoned "Thanksgiving" the turkey. This is his way of turning an unpleasant situation into a positive! Way to go, Anthony!

Happy Thanksgiving, all!

WOW! A lot has happened in a year!!! The hens are laying, having just come out of a brief molt, the ducks look amazing, and the turkeys, well what can we say about the turkeys? They are AWESOME! Our biggest venture this year, though, was the goat herd. We've established the herd... and it is growing! After countless purchases from SilverAurora and My Kids Farm (with many more on the way), we had some amazing kids hit the ground running this year and we have already begun breeding for 2009 kiddings. We showed in no less than five ADGA/AGS dairy goat shows over the summer, and spent a week at the Alaska State Fair in Palmer sharing our newfound enthusiasm with as many people as would listen. ;) Heather even took home the title of "Rookie of the Year"!! No wonder we've been too busy to post here!! We'll try to stay more current.

Oh yeah, and All I Saw Farm is now up and running!

November 14, 2008

New websites on the way!

Fair Skies - new website about our purebred Nigerian Dwarf Dairy Goats is under construction!  All I Saw Farm (previously known as Perseverance Farm) - website about our fowl and other farm operations coming soon!

November 14, 2007

Two new bucklings join the herd!

SilverAurora TH Xenya *S (Kenya) and SilverAurora TH Xudan *S (Sudan) are finally here!  It was a long-anticipated arrival but we are ecstatic that we were able to make it happen so they could finally join us!  Thank you Suzanne and Rick of SilverAurora for these gorgeous boys.  We can't wait to see what they will produce for us!  These last two additions should round out our herd purchases for the year and allow us to set up some very nice breedings.   Photos and kidding schedule coming soon.

November 13, 2007

SilverAurora JC WhisperSweetly joins the herd!

We are delighted to have this petite girl as a new member of our herd.  Photos coming soon.

November 4, 2007

New pictorial for poultry enthusiasts

Learn how to build a water heater/de-icer for your poultry.

October 21, 2007

And finally... the layer chicks have arrived!

Our order of 60 layer chicks of various breeds from Welp Hatchery finally arrived Friday (3 weeks after we ordered them!).   They had a hard trip and not everyone made the trip OK, but we're hopeful the survivors will continue to look as healthy and boisterous as they do now.

It's a little late in the year to be starting chicks but we didn't know there would be such a delay when we ordered and we MUST have plenty of layers by spring.  We tried to pick birds that would do well in our cold climates, with smaller combs/wattles and heavy feathering or feathered feet.  We ordered Ameraucanas/Auracaunas (also known as Easter Eggers or EEs because they have been known to lay eggs of pale, bright, and deep greens and blues), Black Australorps, Black Jersey Giants, Standard Blue Cochins, Assorted Brahmas, Dark Cornish, Golden Laced Wyandottes, Partridge Cochins, Partridge Rocks, and 10 Assorted rare breeds (it will be fun guessing but we think a lot of them are probably EEs).  We ordered all straight run (meaning the chicks are not sexed before they are shipped) to start and with any luck we will end up with at least one pullet from each breed to lay eggs by late April or early May.  We may be lucky enough to have a few breeding pairs to hold over for the high quality birds in local demand.

The Freedom Ranger chicks have also graduated from the cages to being free within the coop now.  They have a hideaway under the laying boxes built to allow only small birds to squeak through the narrow openings so they can escape the adults if there is a pursuit.  They also have a heat lamp, a bit of water, and some food in their hideyhole in case they are too afraid to venture out on their own.  So far, things look to be going well and they are heading out quite a bit lately.  None have decided the yard is worth exploring yet, though!  Must have been that first sticking snow we just had last night...

October 14, 2007

And yet more new additions...!

Today Heather found a WONDERFUL farm off Sunrise Road in Wasilla.  It was an absolute pleasure meeting Kevin Burke at Burke Family Farm and learning about his operation.  And of course, the purpose for her visit off Schrock, west of the Little Susitna River, was to pick up a dozen Tuscaurora turkeys (also known as Kentucky Bourbon Reds).  These two-month-old poults are quite the attraction, with their fine red plummage and melodic vocalizations.  We're proud to add these to our farm and can't wait for them to leave quarantine to join the rest of the flock.  We expect most will mature around Valentine's Day 2008.

October 11, 2007

MORE New Additions! Yes, MORE!

Today we officially became goat owners!  We purchased two wonderful senior Nigerian Dwarf does from Silveraurora!  Silveraurora SB WaitingForMe (first freshener) and Sandy Hollow's SS Butterscotch 3*D AR1849 2*M joined our family and they are settling in nicely (Heather can't seem to stay away, checking on them several times and going in to spend time with them all throughout the day).

Oh their milk is SOOOO LOVELY.   If you thought goat's milk wasn't palatable, you haven't had GOOD goat's milk!   These girls are currently giving at least a quart a day of wonderful, creamy, milk that is easily discernable from anything you can buy in the stores - in a GOOD way.   We did a blind taste test to see for ourselves and it wasn't even CLOSE!   Anyone that knows Heather well, knows she loves her dairy products and she has a very sensitive palate but until we tasted our fresh raw goats' milk side-by-side with our favorite organic whole pasteurized cow's milk from the grocery store, neither of us realized all the off flavors present in the store-bought versions.  In our fresh goats' milk, there is no aftertaste, no foul smell, no strange textures, just pure, sweet milk of the most amazing variety you'll ever taste in your life.  The same is true for good goat cheese - if you thought you didn't like it, try REAL goat cheese made from a caring goat owner that runs a clean shop.

Milking twice daily takes some commitment but it's sure worth it - we can't get enough!  We treat our goats right and handle the milk appropriately (including filtering it during or immediately after each milking), so we are able to drink it raw, often straight.   Unfortunately, we love it so much that there hasn't been enough stored up yet to try our hand at cheese or yogurt making... yet!  More does are definitely in our future!

Unfortunately, Alaska state law still prohibits the sale of raw milk in it's natural state for human consumption.  We can work to change that through education and legislation, but in the mean time, you can have you're own goats and understand what we've recently realized we've been missing all these years.  If you've always wanted your own goats but were worried about having too much milk or too big of a time crunch with goats, having Nigerian Dwarfs sure simplifies things.  You can never have just one goat because they are herd animals and will be lonely if not housed with another of their kind, so why not get two small ones that eat about as much and give about as much milk as one big one, for half the cost of keeping two big goats?  Less time to milk, slightly smaller housing arrangements needed, and ease of care all add up to make these goats the perfect family farm staple.  At around 18"-23" high at the withers (top point shoulder at the base of the neck), Nigerian Dwarfs are sure a great way to familiarize yourself with their needs and care - and they're often small and light enough to lift in a pinch!  For more information on miniature goats, consider joining the Alaska Mini Goat Cache.

We have already committed to buying a buck and we're looking at another buckling and either a couple of wethers or a couple of other bucks that are well-suited as companions for the bucks/bucklings we've already been eying.  Yes, we are looking at Oberhaslis, Alpines, Nubians, Kinders, and lots more!   We'll probably stick with NDs for now,  though, unless we find JUST the right "other" goat... er... GOATS (plural)... :)

Have a look here at all the hard work Lowell has put into preparing their stalls and then you can see how much the new girls are enjoying breaking it in!

We also added 15 more Muscovy ducklings - yes 15 more!  That means we now have 21 growing strong!  These also came from Silveraurora.  The new ducklings are shown below on the left.  For comparison, some of the ducklings we picked up last month are shown following the new duckling photos.  My how they've grown!

TommyGirl the turkey is doing well and the Freedom Ranger meat chicks have already graduated from the guest bathroom wading pool set-up to the coop in large cages to separate them from the adult layers but provide them with the added warmth.

Any day now the layer chicks will arrive and we'll have to give up the guest bathroom again for a few weeks.  :p

More pictures and fancier linked pages coming soon.

October 8, 2007

New Additions!

The Freedom Rangers arrived last Friday early morning.  They were cold and LOUD and very stressed from the shipping but they were transferred immediately to separate brooding boxes to warm up and rest.   Unfortunately, we received varieties different than we ordered and we're still waiting on a response from the hatchery.  Hopefully it will be a simple explanation and all will be well.  One variety has given us more trouble & losses than the others so it will be helpful to find out what is different about them besides potentially more shipping stress than the other varieties.

Sunday was a great day for Heather.   She went over to Silveraurora and looked at some amazing dairy goats for potential purchase.  If we can just get the budget to work we could have ourselves a very nice starter herd!

Heather also brought home six wonderful Muscovy ducklings.  They hatched out this summer from black and white pied and chocolate pied stock.  The originating strain also carries the lavendar genes and the six Heather brought home appear to be barred.  It looks like we have 1 drake and possibly 5 hens, which would be a good match.  There may be another drake in there but it's hard to tell at this stage.  We are hoping to begin a decent breeding flock with these ducks so that we can enjoy their high quality eggs and meat next year.   Hopefully we will also be able to get some different genetics locally to help strengthen and lengthen the flock's integrity.

It was wonderful of Suzanne to take so much time out of her schedule to teach Heather the basics of evaluating dairy goat conformation and talk about the finer points of milk production and walking about the show ring as well as share some of her tried and true tips on poultry keeping in our cold climate.  Thank you, Suzanne!

After a nice visit with our friends at Silveraurora, Heather stopped by Su Valley Appaloosas and visited with our good friends there where we were showered with gifts for our poultry - fall garden scraps and trimmings and premium alfalfa hay scraps!  We also had an opportunity to sample GOURMET smoked canned red salmon and zuccini relish.  YUM!   And as much as we hate accepting help (or asking for it), it was nice to have such wonderful friends like TJ and Kirk bring us two bales of high quality shavings for the chicks (even when they sneak over when we least expected it).  Thank you, Kirk!

TommyGirl the turkey is doing well.   We've decided she is a Broad Breasted White variety so she will not be going to brooding camp.  Next year we'll try to get some different varieties to grow up a meat flock of our own.

Raising rabbits has been on the horizon for us for a while but it doesn't look like we'll be set up for them this winter.   We'd rather spend our efforts growing our poultry and getting our hands into dairy goats.  Sooo... we have much preparation to do for the winter, including cleaning out the raised gardening beds and adding manure feterilizer and more prilled limestone to prepare them for next year, and of course we are still marketing our property for sale--our hands are very full!

September 25, 2007

As Alaskans, we always dread hearing, "Fall is upon us and winter is fast approaching!"

But it's not all bad!  This is the time of year when the mornings are crisp and the colors vibrant!  The days are still warm and the rains come to knock down the dust and prepare the ground for the impending hard freeze.  There's still plenty of time to harvest and prepare for next year's crops and everyone finally gets a chance to sample the bounty we've patiently watched grow and mature in our raised beds.

We got a very late start to our gardens this year, starting several seeds in the soil as late as mid- and late July!   But just a few days ago I went out and poked around only to find new pea pods and some large zuccini squash as well as several Super Sweet 100s tomatoes, various pumpkins, and of course, more lettuce!  As happy as we were with this year's harvest, we often say, "Next year will be better!" (no matter where we are).

Heather also built an incubator and decided to try hatching some eggs from our laying flock.  These will be mixed breeds as more of a pet experiment since we presently only have one Japanese Bantam Rooster (and a fine rooster he is).  We don't expect too much from this little test.

To really expand our laying flock, Heather ordered several varieties of chicks from Welp, Inc. set to arrive around October 12.  With any luck, these will be very colorful additions to our flock and we hope they will be in production by spring.  So if you're looking for locally produced eggs from hens allowed free range time and provided a FANTASTIC diet including flax seed, kelp meal, and various other healthful yummies, keep us in mind!  We may have eggs available for a select few customers through the winter months as well.  As our flock grows, we may also have high quality chickens suitable for dual-purpose meat & egg production as well as exhibition available for purchase.  Drop us a line to inquire.

Heather met a wonderful gal today and picked up a lovely white turkey hen to boot!  We haven't decided yet whether or not she will go to sandwich camp or stay her and be a good start to a turkey breeding program for future flocks.  Most likely she is not of breeding type/quality but our research should give us some answers soon.

And just when you thought we couldn't do more to have you all think us crazy urbanites-turned-wannabe-farmers, we had to put you over the top!  Maybe it's the cool air fiddling with our sanity, but Heather got the poultry bug and ordered (GASP) 100 meat chicks from Freedom Rangers set to arrive Friday!   Oh dear!  We ordered several of each available breed, including the Gourmet Blacks that are reknowned for their dark meat with full, gourmet flavor and grainy texture prized by culinary enthusiasts.  If things go well, we may have chickens for sale by mid-November - consider them as a Thanksgiving dinner alternative to turkey!   Email us in a couple of weeks to see how the chicks are faring.

We are also looking to add some Muscovy ducks to our flock in the coming weeks (hopefully chocolate pied variety).   Other future additions hopefully will include various turkeys and guineas as well as dairy and meat goats, pigs, and even cattle and sheep!  We shall see how things progress.

September 19, 2007

Alaska State Fair in Palmer's 2007 Livestock Shows
were AWESOME!

From August 23-26, 2007, Heather helped ring steward and announce for the Alaska Mini Goat Cache shows (including AMGC's Obstacle Course and mini-goat show for Pygmy and Nigerian Dwarf goats), Alaska Dairy Goat Association/American Dairy Goat Association shows, a one-day American Goat Society show, and Alaska State Fair Open Livestock competitions. Heather was even able to handle a goat for Carol Hepler of Kennelwood Farm going into a Division Championship class for open goat, livestock! Our good friends at Silveraurora Nigerian Dwarf Goats ended up with the win in this class with their Junior First Freshening Doe, Silveraurora SB Wahooroo 3*D 2*M AR (Pending) (pictured below)!

The exhibitions have been tremendous, the competition fierce, the participants friendly, and the spectators supportive! We had great guidance from our well-organized show committees and the judges, Lynn Flemming of Pinebush, NY, and Dale Redeker from Georgia, were EXTREMELY patient and easy going.

Heather was fortunate to hang around enough to get a chance to BRIEFLY handle Silveraurora's Shetland Sheep lambs (rams and ewes-ooooh smell that LOVELY lanolin!) and Nigerian Dwarf goats, 8 Stars Farm's Nigerian Dwarf and Nubian goats, one of Kennelwood Farm's Nubian goats, and one of My Kids Farm's Nigerian Dwarf goats. After spending some time oohing and ahhing over all the animals, learning critical points of conformational and performance analysis, and talking to many fine breeders and owners, Heather found herself taking note of phone numbers and planning budgets to acquire some of these fantastic elements to a self-sufficient homestead. If the smiles on our faces proudly displayed every day at the Fair this year are any indication, this place could look VERY different in a year!  Suzanne is pictured below with her gorgeous sheep.

And here are some lovely goats owned by my friend, Rayna at 8 Stars Farm.

Oh BOY did we have a BALL at the 4H Junior Livestock Auction too! We hooted and hollered and whistled and cheered with the best of 'em, encouraging the kids and the crowd to support them. We only wish our pocketbooks were stuffed a bit more such that we could actually place a winning bid on these fine specimens. Good golly, some of those animals went for $12.00/pound on the hoof!!! *faints*

With much encouragement, Heather even entered two of our Bantam chickens, some vegies, a handful of herbs (including a large stalk of cilantro/coriander that officially measured 42.5" long in Division 10, Giant Crops, Class 40 Other for Cilantro), and several flowers!

Heather received a couple honorable mentions, a handful of seconds, a handful of firsts, and even one Division Championship! We were disappointed that an incorrect guidelines book for the flower judge led to our lovely calla not being judged this year. Oh well - there is always next year!

Alaska Equine Rescue's
May 5th, 2007 Auction & Pot Luck Fund Raiser
was a HUGE success - we helped raise $10,800
and we had a great time doing it!!

We thoroughly enjoyed meeting many of our new online friends and spending time with our old buddies!

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