09/24/2024
Well this is weird and probably doesn't matter much to anyone LOL. But I have an extremely exciting announcement! Wytchwood Homestead is officially complete, as far as animals go!
That's not to say that I won't hatch out something if I need to or breed something if I need to either for my own use or to sell, but as far as the base population of this Homestead I have a nice diversity, all of the animals that I've been wanting other than a donkey and emu and a horse lol. Can't afford those yet. But anyway other than those three everything that I have wanted I actually have right now. And in small numbers as well.
This was important to me. I wanted to make sure that I had at least a breeding pair of everything but just because I have a breeding pair doesn't mean that I have to breed them you know? All these birds and stuff unless I stick eggs in the incubator or they go broody that's it. Same with the rabbits they're in separate cages. Dogs the same way; all it takes is some responsibility to keep that from happening if you don't wish it to.
So I'm going to make a list of all the different types of animals on this Homestead. Now remember there's only two or three of each thing or you know like one or two breeding pairs etc which is a little nerve-racking because you got to worry about sickness and disease predators accidents other animals etc but I think I'm doing pretty good right now. Tell me what you think:
Cats-Rodents and snake control
Dogs- security. Some excel in caring for animals, some are more alert guardians, 2 are service dogs
American Bresse chickens (2 roosters, main and backup, 3 hens, handful of youngsters plus newly hatched babies. It's an ongoing thing and hopefully a future money maker.)
SMALL laying flock (5 or 6 hens) (and a few roosters running about- just a few for eggs to eat or replace flock members and for colored eggs)
SMALL Muscovy flock (1 Drake, 2 hens, 5 babies)- bug control mostly and VERY broody; good mothers
SMALL rabbit flock (one Smoke Pearl Rex Doe, one Harlequin Angora buck, one Californian Rex buck)(I can breed for pet or meat as I choose)poop for fertilizer mostly, but also can sell or eat
2 Young Peafowl (one male, one female, both India Blue) beauty, elegance, novelty and for babies or eggs to sell next year
Quail (not sure on numbers but I've got 4 cages with one pair in each plus babies. No longer Celadon layers but I can rebuild if I want.) LOVE the meat, LOVE the eggs, and collecting different colors atm.
3 Turkeys (IF I AM CORRECT IN SEXING THEM I have 2 males, one female. 2 are White Holland!) 2 are to help replenish the breed, one because he's spoiled lol. Eggs for sale or hatching. Plus they eat a lot of the feed that my other animals turn their nose up at.
4 Buff Orpington (one rooster, three hens)- while I will definitely hatch out a few babies to maintain my own flock, mostly these are strictly for selling hatching eggs or chicks. They are a closed flock so all babies are pure.
Guineas (3 adult females, 6 almost adults, and about half a dozen babies growing up)- I cannot have too many guineas for real. I have no problem feeding them in the winter because during the summer I don't have to feed him a bit if I don't want to and they absolutely annihilate the ticks and chiggers and things like that plus they're safe for my garden other than the occasional laying of eggs in it. Plus, they are by far the best alert animal I've ever had, yes even better than geese.
3 Pygmy Goats 🐐 (female) these girls are here for multiple reasons. Eventually for milk that I can drink use for other animals especially the ab, babies to sell and for their clearing abilities. These are foragers and I need their foraging abilities...
I think that's it!
Everyone has a purpose, is capable of procreating to be self sustaining, and fits in nicely here.
Like I said, I will sometimes have meat, eggs or babies for sale but there is now nothing I'm really looking for and nothing I really want to sell. I feel so accomplished right now if I can just maintain these. Plus I do have babies that just hatched or are hatching etc that I didn't count simply because I mean they've got to grow up and I don't know who I may need to keep or who I may need to sell but there is babies in the horse trough as well as two of the brooders. Bresse and quail babies in one, peachicks in one, guinea babies in one.
And I do have a rabbit due in a month lol.
Pic of cute babies for tax.
P.S. we let April's heat pass by again for the second time in a row. She'll come into heat again in the spring of next year, about 6 months from now and then we will take a look at it then and see where we're at. But right now I want to make sure that we have the proper infrastructure and the ability to properly feed house and care for puppies, but mostly some warmer weather and bigger pens where they can get out of that shed and run and play and have a little training etc. They need more personal one-on-one attention. Two litters at once is just too much so April gets to stay just April for now.
Besides, we'll have our hands full with Fiona's. ;-)
