Comings and Goings

I have been pretty sick the last two weeks. Not sure what it was, but it was miserable. Either the mother of all colds or a moderate dose of one of the flus that are going around. Anyway, I am a lot better now - though my chest is still full of fluid and I am coughing like a 100 year old smoker!

We did get some animals moved around this weekend. Amanda brought T-Bone, the Dexter steer, over for finishing. He is being very well-behaved so far. But he is LOUD. I am seriously considering giving him a goat buddy to keep him company. Perhaps that will tone down his protests.

Fair exchange being no robbery - we sent her home with Ms Piggy who was becoming very miserable on her own. She loaded easily - all you need is a red bucket and a cheerful voice. She is going to live at Amanda's with Willie, the Chester White boar. Hopefully she will be producing a plentiful supply of little porkers. I will miss the pigs. I really enjoyed having them. I will get a couple each year to raise so I am already looking forward to the next ones.

I also sent my Dexter heifer, Shay, with Amanda. She was supposed to be bred when I bought her, but her due dates have come and long gone so I figured that she could go and spend some time with our Dexter bull, Squire. Hopefully I will have a new bovine addition next September. Shay was not that into being loaded. We had to resort to tricks and subterfuge. We put feed in the bunk and moved it nearer and nearer to the trailer. She was finally loaded, but it took a while.

Amanda needed a buck to service her goats. Her first choice was Black Bart, a gorgeous Boer/Nubian cross who is large and muscular. He, however, didn't understand the benefits of going to Amanda's and refused to come near the gate, the trailer or the feed. So she settled for Doobie who is a very nice fullblood Nubian. Doobie has a wonderful "pet" temperament. I just put a lead on him and he walked amiably along. I am pretty sure he has got all my girls settled so he can stay there as long as needed.

Today I am smoking bacon from the pigs we did two weeks ago. Amanda's is all maple cured. I did one third of mine in maple cure, one third in a rub of salt, sugar and apple juice concentrate and the last third was done in a salt, sugar, cracked peppercorn rub bound to a paste with hard cider. I am planning on a bacon sampler for tomorrow's breakfast.

Tomorrow I want to move the sheep up into the north field and the goats down into the south field. That will make the grass use more equitable. There is precious little of it left now, and everyone is getting hay twice daily. The big round bales are proving very easy to use. I am really happy with them.

I need to get together all the things I need for the turkey brine. I will put the turkey in the brine tomorrow morning, then take it out and smoke it overnight on Wednesday for Thanksgiving dinner - which will be held at Amanda's.