Now for something totally different

Well we're still ramping up for the growing season! Our garden is tilled, not planted (peas soon, but too cold for everything else) and the chicken fence is in. Our turkeys are running around like mad. Ironically the turkeys are persecuting the remaining ducks. This is very ironic if you have read the duck tale earlier in this blog. I think our fowl are destined to be in conflict. Well not all the turkeys are a problem, there is the turkey that jumped into the kiddie pool and drown. Turns out turkeys are indeed plenty short on smarts.


As aside we had a really cool trip to the woodland park zoo in Seattle. The zoo was really close to where I grew up (on Kensington) so it's nice to share this with the kids. They had a pair of really old Ossabaw hogs. Very cool. Check out some random pictures below. Oh and there is a REALLY cute picture of a kitty and our little one in the kitty house!

Spring is in full swing

With a weekend in the 60's and more coming, it seems spring has finally sprung on the Dalan Farm. We've been fencing (our primary pasture is setup) and getting ready for new animal and plant adventures. I'm still getting a steady stream if inquires about Large Black Hogs and a good number of folks interested in breeding them. That is really cool!

Speaking of animal things...we did have some bad news this weekend. Our two boy ducks had a habit of chasing and biting one of our favorite hens, Shadow. Saturday morning after we let the birds out of the house, the Duck boys were found standing over Shadows still warm, but very dead, body.

I could just spit. I had planned to put these ducks in the freezer because of their behavior months ago. I had put it off for one reason or the other, but now it was too late. Well, Saturday we picked up some new birds (Banty chicks and Turkeys) to sooth wounded child hearts (we now have a Shadow II). We also buried Shadow in the woods and will plant a tree over her. Lots of tears. Even a few from me...I'm not particularly attached to the chickens (unless they are accompanied by rice and green beans), but when my kids hurt, I hurt. In any event, we seemed to find some closure and a few smiles in the end. Even had a good talk about the inevitable (though often dangerous) nature of revenge. My kids are getting smarter than me...fast.

But what about the ducks? Lets just say I combined an anatomy lesson for one of my more adventuresome children with some culinary experimentation. I discovered we all enjoy a well cooked pair of ducks. Waste not, want not.

The View From Here

Well we have crossed the threshold. The Large Black Hog Association is making the push to gain membership, register new pigs and leverage upcoming stories in Hobby Farms Magazine (http://www.hobbyfarms.com/). I wasn't sure volunteering to take on some of the association paperwork was a smart idea. But it has worked out beautifully. We're getting a ton of support, and all those involved seem to be committed to the same thing. More Large Black Hogs everywhere!!

I was worried, you see, because I tend to over commit myself and, to be completely honest, I'm a bit impulsive. I know...right now your chocking on your bagel and saying "WHAT!?!? YOU!?!?" Settle down! If you've followed the blog, this should not really be a surprise. I drove 4000 miles to buy pigs because I saw 30 seconds of them on the History channel. I am inclined to think there is a hand behind all of this guiding my madness. Even if the hand isn't guiding me to these hair brained adventures, it seems to be protecting me while I am running with scissors. Either way I'll take it.

But enough about me...how about the farm? We've built the buck pen, and moved all the resident goats out there to take advantage of some taller grass. And took the opportunity to move the big pigs (these are your babies Cathy) out to the original goat pasture. I swear Swinehilda was frolicking! After moving them out the the farrow pens (our winter Hog storage) their tails have been twisted like a cork screw for two days. Now I just have to gather the courage to move the little pigs either (1) in with the big pigs, or (2) in with the goats and my neurotic Llama. I'll post pictures either way... Speaking of pictures, here's some of Sir Francis, Swinehilda, Daphne and Olivia in the larger accommodations.

Crazy Busy

Well I have been crazy busy lately. Spring has finally started to "sprung." And not just on the farm. I'm working hard with other "Proto-members" of the LBHA (Large Black Hog Association) to get the gory details (paperwork) all doodled up so we're as official legally as we are in spirit. I encourage you to check out the website for news and whatnot about Large Blacks http://www.largeblackhogs.org/.

On our farm we've been fencing and cross fencing (did I complain yet about metal prices yet?) for our new buck who is coming next weekend. We'll be up and running with our goat breeding program in no time. He's a commercial buck (i.e no papers and a Heinz 57 family tree...which is OK with us, we don't sell many living goats and don't show any) but both he and his sister are real fast gainers and he should make a dynamite sire for our meat goats.

Anyone on the west coast who happens to stumble across this blog, get your weaner reservations in early. Our summer little is getting reserved quickly but we should still have good availability for 2009. Unless our boar is sterile or something. LOL...knock on wood about that...

Anyway...I'm sure I'll have some new (and real purdy pictures) soon. Stand by and sorry for the long absence!

Random Black Hog Fun

So some of my readers have said I needed to get some more personal pictures of our babies. I keep telling peopl how friendly thay are, and sometimes I am met with a bit of skeptisim. Well, in an attempt to put eveyone's mind at ease let me show the results of proper "post-feeding-belly-rubbing-loving."

The Boar is Sir Francis Bacon. Out like a light. Enjoy!

THEY ARE SOOOOOOOOOOOO CUTE.

Lilly (our fullblood Nubian) had triplets today. Two boys and a Girl. Not much to say...enjoy the pictures.

Presidents Day Adventures -- Better late than never

So there I was minding my own business, just cleaning out the Goat/Llama barn (man they put down a lot of doody over the winter), and who should I see? A fellow Large Black Hog enthusiast who goes by the name of Craig. I helped him get a pair of LBHs last fall and have been in touch since then. His wife is an ex-Walla Walla local (my mother-in-law taught her when she was in the 2ND grade) and so it was not a surprise to see them in town for the long weekend. Ahhh...but they were up to more than just visiting.

They were up to sheep. Navajo sheep to be exact. You see they had been looking to acquire some Navajo's (a rare breed like the LBH) and apparently the first arrangement fell through. They found another source in MT and had used the long weekend to pick some up. They were on their way back home to the West side of Washington and wanted to park the sheep on our farm while they rested, visited and then took off Monday (the holiday). I said "sure" when Craig asked about leaving the trailer. The Mrs. commented how nice it was that they (Craig and Co.) were comfortable dropping by. Having neighbors and friends drop by at random is (believe it or not) a really nice side effect of living on the farm. Way more folks just "drop by" now then did when we lived in town. Can't explain it, just happens and we like it. For the record, Craig called ahead...I just never checked my voicemail.

The entire Dalan mob got to see these rare sheep. Several Rams, Ewes and three Lambs. Quite a pile of sheep actually. Apparently the folks in MT who previously owned them spent lots of time getting their herd going, but had (because of ailments) become unable to care for them. Sad happening, but the sheep are on to greener pastures, as it were.

But this is not a tale of the joys of country living...

So we all chatted, kids played, and hog growth was discussed. Craig dropped his trailer and headed back to his in-laws home in town. We went back to the house. Poop scooping would have to wait for another day, it was getting dark and cold. But I figured I should get some pictures of these sheep before dark. After all, they are a critically endangered breed. This is when it all went to...

As I walked down to the trailer with my trusty camera I notice there is a LOT of noise. Baby animals braying. But different than our goats. As I round the corner to the trailer I catch, out of the corner of my eye, two grey/brown lambs running circles around Craig's trailer and crying loudly, their mother crying in return. The door to the trailer was not secured and the little troublemakers must have stumbled out. Of course the door closed most of the way, after the great escape, and (since they're lacking thumbs) the lambs could not reenter. Not great pictures...but not exactly the shots I was planning to take originally :)

So I called the Mrs for a little help. We tried propping the door open and building a ramp into the trailer. When we did that Mom (the Ewe) tried escaping to get to her babies. Can't blame her. So Heather climbed in the trailer to restrain the Ewe. Well those lambs weren't coming anywhere near that trailer with us in it. We needed a new plan. Then I remembered...for small, uncooperative animals I have just the solution. An old nylon Salmon net. If you grew up on the Pacific coast or in Puget Sound, you've seen them. Big, green meshed net with an extendable handle. Worked last year on some less than cooperative pigs. It would work now. I hoped.

So I fetched the net and in relatively short time managed to net one of the lambs. Back to the trailer with that one. That's when the real trouble started. Apparently I did not know two very important things about sheep. #1: They have lousy night vision (I suspect lousy vision in general) and #2 Lambs are alone (can't hear other sheep) they run. A lot. In random directions.

After another hour of chasing a completely directionless lamb, we got the bright idea of hauling the Ewe and the other lamb out so that our remaining escape artist would hear them and return. Well it's a longer story than even this post, but Heather and my eldest daughter managed to drag/carry the uncooperative Ewe out into the field and even though the last lamb and I were some 200 yards away, a crying momma did the trick. Once the lamb found it mom, netting it was no big chore. Back into the trailer with all of them. VICTORY! Check out the tools of the trade and my red superman outfit.

From The Dalan Farm

And that's why I don't own sheep. You know what I do when my pigs and goats get out? I pickup a blue feed bucket and lead them back home. I'm really spoiled :)