County Line Farmstead

07/14/2020

07/08/2020

Some sad news, but with a good update! We had a pretty devastating raccoon attack on our chicken coop last week. 10 of 12 chickens were killed or lost, one was put down due to injuries, and one was found the next morning without a scratch. 4 of 6 ducks returned to the run and one needed put down for injuries. One of the remaining three ducks was injured very badly on the neck and head and we had to fight off a serious maggot infestation in multiple wounds, but is now recovering very well. We're confident it'll return to the outdoors fairly soon but will likely have some lasting effects from the damage; neck mobility may not completely recover and balance will need reestablished from a perforated eardrum.
But having four survivors is more than we expected, and we're very grateful for them! We got a swimming tank set up for the ducks today, and they seem to be loving it!

06/20/2020

06/08/2020

Whew! It's hot out there folks. Drink plenty of water.
We got three new trees planted on the farmstead today. A bur oak (one of our favorites), an American mountain ash, and a paper birch.
There's still over a dozen trees and shrubs that we have heeled until they get put in. A few highlights from that list:
Early Richmond sour cherries
Arrowwood viburnum
Red oak
Serviceberry
Crabapple
And quite a few more!

05/29/2020

The chickens are getting big! They finished their mandatory coop time (so they remember where home is when they get tired at night) so they got to step out into their newly enclosed run for the first time tonight. Just for an hour or so before sunset, under supervision since we don't have a roof over the run yet. They were quite pleased to be scratching and picking at leaves! The ducks will move in with them sometime next week, and hopefully there'll be a roof up by then so everyone is protected enough to have free roam of the run. Some photos will be in the comments, since apparently we can't post video and photos at the same time.

04/23/2020

We are very excited at our prospects here at the County Line this spring, despite all that is happening in the world. We're starting things off with new birds and a new setup!
Unfortunately, our last attempt to have a home flock was shut down due to inadequate space management for the birds. We gave them too much and they kept getting into trouble. So we're taking a better approach this time! The coop is being made from a shed attached to the taxidermy shop, and when the birds are old enough to be outside without the lamp they'll have a brand new fenced in run made out of the surrounding area. Plenty of shade from trees and the shop to boot! We're quite excited to get the ball rolling around here for the spring, so stay tuned because we've got a lot more planned!

08/13/2019

It's a great day to have the goats back at home :)

05/29/2019

Wouldn't that be great? I'll draw up some blueprints. Where's the nearest napkin?...