Farmer Failure

I am a failure at being a farmer.   A goat farmer.  I knew Brie was probably going to kid in the next couple of weeks.  I have been diligently checking her bag and backside for weeks, twice a day.  How did she go from looking the same as she has for two weeks, to giving birth to triplets...in the night...with no one there to make sure they made it.   I'm mad, and disappointed, all at myself. I've accepted it; but twice a day as I head to the goat shed to milk her, I get mad all over again.  Nate tries to make me take consolation in the facts, she probably wouldn't have been able to feed triplets, they were all bucks, it's just too cold to have baby goats living in the shed, it makes me feel marginally better. But I still failed. 

What started out as a hobby, few goats, sheep... has turned into my life.  I have my family, my school kids, and our animals.  People tell me they wish they could live "simply" like we do.  I often want to invite them to visit and stay during lambing or calving time.  Give it a week, and you tell me how simple it feels.  Rushing home from work hoping only the skilled "good" moms gave birth while we were away. 

We continue to wrestle with where we want to go with the pigs.  Raising Red Wattle pigs the way we are, with the cost of feed, is not a wise financial decision.  Nate calculated this morning that we will have a minimum of 2.50 a pound into the current batch when they are ready to be butchered.  That is the feed costs.  It doesn't cover the electricity for providing them fresh water during the winter, or the daily labor. Who in their right minds would keep working at something that only costs you?

The answer: me.  Us.  We do.  We start discussing and decided it isn't wise to keep the pigs. Then we eat some pork chops, and ask the question, Where would we get this good pork?  Darn it. Farm decisions are never easy.  I would love to make this my full time occupation.  The reality is it takes both of us working outside jobs to make the income to have the farm too. 

The only consolation I have is that my boys are living, learning, and eating right.  They are jealous of the dogs and cat getting the goat milk right now, wanting to know how many days until we milk for our milk.  They love their animals.  Grieve when things happen to them.  Ask when will we have new lambs.  When will we have new calves?  When will it be warm enough to play in the mud, ride horses every day, plant seeds in the gardens?  Kohen has been overheard teaching his peers on the school bus what organic means and why HIS bacon is the best. (Maybe he really is listening to his parents.) 

I know that I will be renewed in this passion in two weeks when I head to MOSES Organic Farm Conference in LaCrosse.  I know that God will show us where we should go with all of our multifaceted farm plans.  I know it will work out for the best.  I just need some more reminders on dark days, on days when I am a failed farmer.

5 MInute Update

Yes, I actually set the timer for five minutes and am typing a quick update post.

Calves- still only Choice. Not sure what the rest of the girls are waiting for. The bulls are not happy about their separation, but it will last for a few more months at least.

Pigs- Would you believe Gertie and Gwennie both went into labor at the same time? On a Monday morning, of course. Between the two we have 16 beautiful baby red wattle piglets, over half of them are already spoken for. We haven't decided if we will be raising any feeders this summer or not, we'll see what the demand looks like after Earthfest. A new pasture area for the pigs is in the works, as soon as Nate and I get time to fence.

Sheep- Shearing went well, our assistants all oohed and aaahhed over the wool, there may have been some wheeling and dealing, and plenty of claiming, but at the end of the night 10 of the 20 fleeces had new owners! Sandy C. has already begun working with Darla's fleece, and claimed it for next year! She even sent a skein of it over for me. My poor spinning wheel hasn't seen any action since last summer.

Boys- The boys are both doing well, getting anxious for summer and more time at home with their animals. Isaiah's having a rough day of it today- his ear tube (place two years ago) is coming out, and causing him some pain. They spent time this morning at the local easter basket extravaganza, and both came home happy.

Growing things- I have heirloom tomatoes, herbs, and peppers under lights in the back porch, my seeds and potatoes should get here next week. Now for more warmth in the soil so things can begin to grow outside.

My five minutes is up, More to come!

Hi Don M!!!

Pork For Sale

Finally! After hours of researching, phone calls, and debating, we found a USDA inspected processor that sounded like a good fit for processing our red wattle pork. The only hitch- 250 miles away! One of the disadvantages of living in northern Minnesota I guess. Nate's logged 1,000 miles in the past few weeks to deliver six pigs to the processor and then a return trip to bring home 44 boxes of processed pork. We are now able to sell pork by the package. Delicious, pasture raised, red wattle pork. The ham and bacons are smoked, uncured, nitrate and nitrite free (processed with celery juice, organically.) It was worth it- I think. If I can sell this round of product we may have some more available in the future. Otherwise, we may be moving out of the pork business. Keeping the pigs is the most costly venture on our diversified farm. They may be on pasture, but they still want grain, and grain is expensive, especially when you live in the woods!

If you would like to purchase some of this delicious product PLEASE, please, send me a message and I will hook you up. (tifanybriggs at yahoo dot com) All quantities are limited to the stock on hand. Though right now that involves a number of freezers full! I did sell 1/4 of our available pork chops yesterday though!

Pork Prices
Description Price per Pound
Butt Roast 4.49
Chops 6.75
Spare Ribs 5.25
Tenderloin 10.49
Loin Roast 6.15
Breakfast Sausage 4.99
Breakfast Sausage Links 7.49
Bacon 8.20
Ham Steak 8.25
Ham Roast 6.75
Pork Steak 8.25
Bratwurst 7.49
Wild Rice Mushrm Brats 7.49

Bratwurst

Pork Chops

July Recap

Isaiah & LouLou

• Gwendolyn gave birth to 8 purebred red wattle piglets, all thriving.



• The weather has been HOT!



• All things are growing on the Rice River Lamb Co. Farm, including pigs, goats, chicks, sheep, gardens, and children.



• Our turkey hens hatched out ten baby turkeys, they were only around for two days before the dang fox got them.



• Did I mention we have a fox problem? Caused plenty of sleepless nights listening to those darn things hunting.



• 96 meat bird chicks are growing in my front yard, surrounded by chicken wire, encircled in electronet. Did I mention that darn fox?
  


• A new Scottish Highland calf was born, Porter, joining Goldilocks and Chuck as calves here so far.
  


• Made a game changing occupation move; I will no longer be teaching special education in Eveleth, but will be teaching at the North Woods School in our hometown, in sixth grade! I am very excited about the change, but felt a bit heartsick over leaving the friends, students, and connections I've made in Eveleth in the last nine years.
  


• Added a guinea pig to the mix, Isaiah's first pet of his own. Just because you can never have too much going on!



• Looking forward to finishing July out with some county fair time, yoga for the kids, and a pedicure. (Probably should have had the pedicure about two months ago!)

Lyle on the Lam

Walking the escapee back home, no shackles required.

There is never a dull moment around this place, be it caused by the kids, or the animals or one of our projects. Last Wednesday was no different. The day had been spent with various chores and tasks, with a quick break in the afternoon for some hydration. As I headed back outside I surveyed the lower pastures as I always do. Wait, what is that large, red, mass, ACROSS the river? That would be Lyle, who waded the shallow spot to check out the great green yonder. Before Nate could make it down there, he was gone. Where to? Why? We are a pretty close distance to a dirt road as the crow flies, or pig lumbers. Horrible thoughts of an accident caused by hitting a 600 pound boar, spurred me to convince my dad to drive with me down the road and across the fields on the other side of the river. It took some time, and we did find Lyle's trail, just as my cell phone rang. Nate was calling to report that he could see Lyle, across the river, up the hill, in the neighbors' front yard. Great. I made a quick trek to the spot, and started to talk to my wayward hog. He looked surprised, and happy to see me, and lumbered over "talking" all the time. Luckily he followed me home, with the help of his feed bucket that Nate brought over. Lots of grunts, heavy breathing (that poor pig was tired!) and we made it home. He was put in the "detention" pen, which does not have access to the river but has plenty of shade, vegetation, and fencing! Best outcome we could have had in this instance.

June

Really. It's June. Our weather is not attesting the fact, but the calendar is. Today was the last day of school for students at my school. I have one more day of inservice tomorrow, and then I'm free. Well, not really. Then the whirlwind of summer activities start.
The gardens are patiently waiting for some plants to grow. We had awful wind for two days, and then frost last night, so I'm not rushing it.
The summer looks to be filling up fast, but with fun activities:

• Annalise will be coming for a visit next week


• Kohen has a week of orchestra camp


• Timber Days in Cook, with the popular pet show


• Bible School


• Gardens, gardens, gardens


• Pigs, pigs, pigs


• Weddings


• Family Reunions


• Visits from Friends


• Farmers Market


• A new ram


• and plenty more.

I just am ready to develop a summer routine, but it will have to wait a bit. I am anxious to just be able to soak in the days on the farm. Nate and I both agreed that we enjoy vacations, but are perfectly happy being able to stay home with the boys and all of the animals we enjoy. We've expanded our nightly routine from cups of tea in front of a dvr'd program, to include last checks on the pigs and cows. The cattle are not scared of my headlamp anymore, they know that treats accompany it. The little pigs have grown so much they rarely use their ramp into the shed anymore, they just jump.

Kohen has his heart set on bringing a pig to the pet show. But you may not know this- little pigs have a BIG voice. They squeal, grunt, and scream when you pick them up now. Even the ones we've handled daily. I'm hoping a harness and leash will be the answer. That's on the schedule for next week: pig leash training. Never would have thunk it. Isaiah cannot decide his victim-er-entry. Yesterday it was Darla, today it was Daisy. For some reason I don't think Daisy (who has never been farther then her pastures) would do well. I can't hardly get her to move from one pasture to the next if she doesn't want to. I'm encouraging chickens, chicks, poults, lambs, baby goats... Hey, it's not like the kid doesn't have options. We are excited to share our options with Brody, Cam, and Annalise. Maybe I should get some tshirts printed for all the kids. Might make some other local kids feel left out if they don't have a matching t-shirt though.

This weekend I get to learn something new. More on that later.

Thankfully we have not lost any more sheep, though we are constantly on guard. The goats are all out in the north field now, with access to the barn at night. So far they are doing great with it. My plan is to start milking on Monday. We are all anxious for fresh, raw, goat milk.

Well, that was rambling enough wasn't it. I better go and get some housework done before my husband gets home (he took a day trip to Rochester for farm supplies) and accuses me of spending all my time on the computer.

Sometimes Farm Life Sucks

The past 36 hours have not been the brightest in the Rice River Lamb Co. After three years of lambing without predator difficulties, I have become too complacent. Nate found the remains of two lambs on Wednesday night. He and the vet both think it is an eagle or other large bird since a fox or other four legged would have been able to drag the whole carcass off. Of course they both had to be ewe lambs: Erin Go Bragh, half shetland, half icelandic, and Tillamore Dew- one of Scar's ewe lambs. So now we are on edge, scanning the field, scanning the sky, and spending more time then I would like just counting sheep!
The herd of Highland cattle had grown by one on Sunday. Black Beauty, the old (at least 12) black highlander gave birth to a red calf. Since the cattle are new to us and we are new to them, I had been just giving them space. She kept him towards the back of the corral, much like the other mama cows had done initially. Well, by Wednesday night he wasn't doing well: moving slow, lethargic, with a hunched up body. I could not get him to nurse on his mom, but did get him to take 20 oz. of milk replacer from a bottle. We moved the pair into the barn and hoped he would make it through the night. Yesterday morning he was worse, and after much debate Nate headed on the 30 minute drive to the vet, at 6:00 in the morning (Thank you Jerry!) They tubed him, and then made the realization that he was blind, and had some other problems. I had noticed his eyes when I got close enough the previous night, but just figured in his distressed state he couldn't focus. The decision was made that the humane thing was to end his suffering. The vet's thoughts were a virus in the cow during pregnancy could be the cause. We know that the previous owner had been having his own health problems and not given the cattle all their vaccinations regularly, and that we had to get everyone back in condition. Hopefully we can quickly enough without any other big problems.
To top it off I had a sore throat that grew progressively worse, and I realized it was more than just allergies. Add to that Kohen complaining of a sore throat, so we skipped out of school yesterday morning for a visit to the clinic. Two strep cultures and shots later we were on our way home, with 24 hours of contagiousness left. Coupled with the sore throat I was running a fever of 101.5, and totally wiped out. The animals don't care though when they need water, hay and grain.
On a lighter note, Gertie's eleven babies are growing wonderfully. I never knew how cute baby pigs are, or how noisy when you are trying to catch them to lock them in the shed for the night!
The nights have been well below freezing the last few, so I'm glad that I haven't planted the gardens yet. My hope is to feel better by this weekend and get all my starts in along with some lettuce and peas. The new/lower garden plot has been taken back from the pigs but is a long way from being ready for planting. We will see what the long weekend brings.
I better get moving- Isaiah has his St. Jude's Trike-a-thon at daycare, and I need to sneak into school and grab my grade book. Grades are due today- means school is SO close to being over, and more of my time can be spent on the farm.

Babies...Babies...Babies...

Gertrude and her eleven purebred red wattles.

Brie's new babies, one doe, one buck.

In my last post I discussed the girth of Gertie, and how she looked quite pregnant for still having over a month till her expected due date. Well, last night Nate and I coaxed her out of the pasture and into the newly cleaned, remodeled, and updated goat shed. Today when I got home (after 6 pm) I ran down to the shed to check on her because I didn't see her. With good reason. A little red wattle piglet was scurrying around. Wowsers!!! The iphone got some usage tonight between calling Nate, my grandma, parents... along with a few facebook posts. I spent the next four hours with Gertie as she gave birth to twelve gorgeous piglets. Sadly, the tenth one was born dead, but our current count is 6 girls, 5 boys. Poor Gertrude is so tired, she ate a bit of food, drank some water, and layed back down to reopen the all you can eat buffet. Kohen spent a bit of time with me in the shed tonight, observing the birth of 7, 8, and 10. He started to get worried with number eight, and counted Gerties nipples. Mom, she might not have enough! was his thought. I reminded him that siblings are always supposed to share. He also was emotional during the birth of number ten, when it was evident we couldn't bring her back. Auntie Linda was here watching the show at that time and we both talked Koe through the tough situation. He stroked her little ears, sucked back tears and then began cuddling the wiggling, squealing, babies. Our first piglet/farrowing experience went well. The babies are purebred red wattle, but will not be registerable since we don't know who 'got busy' with Gertie before we picked her up from her original farm.
Poor Nate got put into duty modifying the shed to minimize the chance that Gertie accidentally lays on her new babes.

I finally made it into the house about 10:30 and decide to sit with a friendly beer and watch a couple of minutes of Deadliest Catch. It was a very short couple of minutes as we heard a goat begin to scream from the garage/barn. I know what that means. Would you believe it was Brie? Our yearling 1/2 nubian, 1/2 saanen doe? I walked in as she was giving the last push to birth a little doeling. She looked at the baby, and ran. Great. I ended up having to enlist Nate to help me move Brie into a jug, and try to get her to acknowledge her baby. Didn't work so well, and it got worse when I realized Brie was having a second baby. The second one was a buck, with similar markings to his sister. 45 minutes later I'm back in the house. Baby goats are dried off, their mom is tied so she can't make a run for it, and they have been assisted in their first tastes of colostrum, Baby pigs have been checked on three more times, and are busy nursing. My boys are sound asleep on the couch- since their mom neglected them tonight. Nate is asleep in his recliner. I better go to bed, but Sweet Home Alabama (my most favorite movie of all time) is on, and I really should make one more check of all thirteen new babies.

I also forgot to mention that Annafleece finally had her lamb yesterday morning, a big black ram lamb with lots of white markings. They will get their own post later, when I've had some sleep!

Farm Maternity Ward

Baby turkeys hatching in the kitchen. Baby chickens and poults (turkeys) in brooders in the back porch. Two pregnant ewes and three pregnant goats hanging out in the garage. One very pregnant pig ready to move to her private quarters later today. One turkey hen brooding a nest of about 30 turkey eggs. Yep, pregnant farm animals and babies are everywhere!
The spring chores are gearing up here. Earlier in the week Nate and I cleaned out the barn, yesterday we cleaned out the goat shed. My body is feeling the effects of a winter spent not shoveling, suddenly thrown back into the task.

Saturday mornings are now spent watching a large number of children chase balls at soccer. Kohen loves it- even though last Saturday was miserably cold and rainy. Today looks like it will be a beautiful day.

Freshly hatched turkey poult.

The school year is quickly winding down, and summer plans are unfolding. June looks to bring String Camp, Bible School, some Annalise time, Timberdays and a family reunion. In addition I have doubled my own garden space in addition to beginning to work on the garden space for the farm next door. Cattle will be coming in just over a week, and we have yet to put a single post in the ground. The corral lumber is scheduled to be delivered tomorrow, so then the fencing fun can begin. So far two of the cows have calved. I cannot wait to see the hairy babies!

Gertie's Story: When we brought the red wattles home the expectation was piglets around mid-June. I've been getting progressively concerned with how big Gertrude is looking. I'm thinking there may be a chance that she had an accidental breeding prior to leaving her original farm. I have to keep it as a possibility since I have been unable to get in touch with her breeders: they are not responding to email, and their phone has been disconnected. Hence, Nate and I scrambling to turn the goat shed and pen into a pig maternity ward. The plan is to move her later today and giver her her own space, more feed, and some extra attention. I'm very excited for our first litter of baby red wattles!

Poultry News: We had 20 chicken eggs and 14 turkey eggs in the incubator. We managed to have only one chicken hatch, and I took pity on the thing after three days and the boys and I headed to the farm store and picked up four more chicks for company: 2 production reds for Kohen- named Red Pepper and Red Apple. Two gold laced wyandottes for Isaiah with the names of TreeCutter and Tornado.

We have had seven turkeys hatch, one didn't make it and the other six are doing well. I'll probably clean the incubator out today the last two that have started to hatch did not survive to completely break out of the shell. However one of our turkey hens is currently residing on a large nest, so my hopes are for her to hatch out a brood naturally.

Our week was also busy with a sick boy. Croup, severe enough to warrant nebulizer treatments and steroids- and two days of missed work for this mom. He was still coughing some last night, but seems to be doing better.

The sun just broke over the trees- and is now shining directly in my eyes as I sit typing at the table. Guess that's my sign I better do some chores, feed some hungry animals, make some coffee, pack a soccer bag and get ready for a new day.

Have a great weekend everybody!

Happy Easter & Farm Updates

Happy Easter all my readers, especially Don M. from Texas! We had a great Easter, lots of time at home, a scavenger hunt for Easter baskets (that silly bunny), and dinner at Grandma Butchy's with my sister and her family. The boys have eaten WAY to much sugar, and took very late naps, so they are still up, but chilling in the great room with Diego.

SHEEP: I had hoped that Annafleece would give us an Easter lamb or two, but no such luck. The seventeen lambs we currently have are doing wonderful. The poor sheep are still hanging out in the garage, we had another couple of inches of snow this weekend, along with plenty of rain. Sam, Northwestern's neglected child (see previous post) was lucky enough to travel to school with me last Wednesday. Dressed in a pull-up, he followed me down the halls, slept under my students' feet at the table, and won the hearts of hundreds of children. We even took a quick morning walk down to Isaiah's daycare to visit 25+ preschoolers. He's still getting three supplemental bottles a day, his mom just is not producing enough milk or being a good mom. I'm afraid I know her future outlook...

GARDEN: I've been busy transplanting seedlings and planting more seeds. Last fall I made a few crazy purchases at an online gardening center auction that involved a LONG drive to pick up. But one of the purchases was a three shelf galvanized steel cart. It works perfect in the back porch, in front of the sliding glass door, with some lights wired to it. I start my seeds on the heated concrete floor and then transfer them to the lighted shelves to grow. They are doing great. Gwenny and Lyle, my gasoline free roto-tillers.

In related news, we've decided to add another garden this year. This one is between our driveway and the sheep pastures. Instead of working myself to break up the sod, I'm working the pigs. We installed portable electronet fencing, and opened a spot in the pasture fence for the pigs to move in. What three snouts can do in a day is amazing. I've been spending some time with them throwing chunks of sod into the pasture, but they are doing most of the work.

Speaking of PIGS, we will definitely have more in the near future. Gertie is starting to show that she is caring some baby red wattles. We are most excited about these additions. The pigs have done a number on the large pasture, but we are planning on building them a new pig pasture soon so that we can disc, plant and get the large pasture ready for rotational grazing of the sheep.

GOATS: The goat girls continue to get wider and wider. I gave them all CD&T boosters today. This vaccine is an important one to help the baby goats immunities when they are born. I cannot wait to see what we get from their breeding to Jeri's boer buckling. He had some nice color, so we'll see what we get. We are all looking forward to fresh milk again too.

KIDS- HUMAN VARIETY: The boys are loving the arrival of spring weather. K has stepped it up in the chores department. He is now able to get a bale of hay from the hay loft, onto the wagon and hauled to the sheep. Some grumbling is usually heard, but he can do it. His favorite job lately is anything that can be done while driving the lawn tractor. Having outgrown the battery powered gator, he's suffering through power withdrawal. He's also been stepping up and giving Sam most of his bottles when he is home. Don't worry, he still has plenty of play time, including playing in the nice black dirt mud, and tracking it into the mud room, and across my floors...or chasing the chickens around the yard with a stick...or "helping" his brother into the giant puddle along the driveway...

On this Easter I feel truly blessed to be living the life we are living. It's hard work, but things are starting to pay off. After Earthfest and some other opportunities I've had in the past month to share the what and why of our little farm with others, I feel so good about the life that Nate and I are creating. My boys are so happy, and learning so much every day. Watching K tell his kindergarten class about a five-day old lamb's life, and how to care for him. Or seeing how happy Is looks when he gets to help me transplant plants (he wanted the Easter bunny to bring him his own spray bottle for Easter, for some reason that didn't happen.) This summer is looking to be a very busy one for the farm, with new additions, and opportunities. I just hope that I can continue to enjoy every minute as much as I have been. Who knew that working this hard could be so much fun?

The Red Wattle Adventure

Lyle, Girl 1, Girl 2 (maybe I'll have the energy to think up names tomorrow!)

When you have a "mini" farm, you don't always have the equipment necessary for ventures. Especially ventures that I come up with. When we originally started talking and researching hogs we decided we want to try Red Wattles. We also made the decision that instead of starting small with a couple of feeders, we would jump in to breeders. Do you sense the path this story is taking? Flash forward to this weekend when we made the journey to pick up two gilts (young girl pigs who have not had babies) and a boar. Red Wattles are a rare, heritage breed, so you have to search a bit harder to find them. The gilts were located south of Owatonna, and the boar was southwest of the Twin Cities. Nate and I were just happy to find them in Minnesota.

The Red Wattle Adventure began on Friday after a long school week and chiropractor appointment. We dropped my car off at a friends and headed south. A four hour drive to Rochester and we arrived at Nate's sisters. The boys were relatively good, plied with bean burritos and a view of the gorgeous full moon as it rose, a bright orange color. They loved visiting and playing with their cousins (unfortunately I left my camera in the truck.) After a good breakfast we headed west.

First stop was at Auntie 'Laine's for some visiting. Nate and Kohen headed to the farm to get some straw. Next stop was picking up a rental trailer in Owatonna. From there we headed south. Upon arriving at the first hog pickup location, we were greeted by a loose pig. I was just happy she wasn't the one coming home with it. After considerable chasing, grabbing, corralling, and a fair bit of pain for Nate (he fell hard on his hand, hitting the ice) we had two gilts in the trailer. They are nine and almost eight months old, and big! Both are over 225 pounds. Nate and I were more appreciative to how strong pigs are, how much they can lift with their snouts, and the lack of anything to grab on them. I guess we've been spoiled by the wool that makes the sheep easier to catch.

Back on the road and headed north. A quick stop for tacos and to check on the girls, who were riding comfortably in the trailer. Through the outskirts of the cities and on to our second hog pickup location. The setup at the second farm was much easier for catching and loading. Lyle however, had other ideas. This two year old boar gave us a run for our money. He stepped right into the trailer but then hit the brakes before his hind legs and rumps were in. This led to plan B, plan C, plan D... and finally Lyle was loaded. Multiple doors, pieces of plywood, bumps, bruises, and not so clean words were shared.

By this time it was 6 pm, and we still had a 4 1/2 hour drive home, and 1000 pounds of pig to unload. Thankfully we were ahead of the weather. Jan, Nate's mom, called this morning and said they had three inches of snow in 2 hours this morning, and more falling. The boys were at the end of their ok stretch with being stuck in carseats in the truck for the majority of the day. DVDs and bribes finally led to some quiet.

The adventure wasn't over. There is a section of interstate north of Hinckley that is horrible. Big potholes and chunks of concrete out of the road. So we are driving along, about 8 pm when suddenly an SUV pulls alongside us with the passenger waving out the window, motioning us to pull over. The longest fifteen seconds of my life till we were stopped on the shoulder of the road. I jump out of the truck and run back to the trailer expecting a flat tire. Nope, it's better. The rough road had jostled the trailer enough that the rear door had popped open. On the interstate. At night. With three stressed hogs pressed to the front of the trailer away from the edge of death. Not a good feeling. I said a quick prayer for hogs in their place and good samaritans on the road with us. A bungee securing the door latch and another stop for gas and checking the door, we were still one and a half hours from home! Thankfully the boys were asleep.

A quick stop in Eveleth to pick up my car (which was covered with over an inch of snow) and we were in the home stretch. No more door malfunctions, but the task of unloading two sleeping boys and three scared hogs awaited us. It was nice to get home and see my dad here, waiting to help us unload. We quickly carried sleeping boys into the house and headed down to the barn. Some expert driving by the hubby got the trailer as close as we could to the barn entrance. Add in a few pieces of plywood and some straw bales and you've got a nice wide shoot to the back of the barn were the pigs will stay till they can get out in the pasture. Opening the trailer door we were greeted with some grunts and other assorted noises, but no one was moving. Standing around trying to coax three big pigs out of a trailer at midnight when the temperature is dropping and your toes are freezing is not an exciting adventure. Finally, Nate decided he was brave (or as he told me this morning, ready for his life to be over.) He crawled in that small trailer with the three big pigs and a small piece of plywood. With all of his strength he shoved Lyle (who is around 500 pounds) to the back of the trailer. One final push and he was out, sniffing the straw a bit and then lumbering down our nice wide straw and plywood shoot directly into the pen. My dad was impressed with his size and laughing at our technique. A few more shoves and the lovely ladies joined Lyle in the pen. Quick work with 2x4s, ole bolts and the drill and they were secure in their winter home. Of course it took all of five minutes before they dumped half their water, and started fluffing up the straw to make some resting spots.

The night was not over. As dad, Nate and I surveyed our handiwork we realized that Mukwah was gone. Mind you- he stood by through the entire shoot building, trailer unloading experience, but did get yelled at when he came into the barn to check out the pigs. I figured they were stressed enough and didn't need his nose poking in. In the five to ten minutes it took us to realize Mukwah had hit the road he had lumbered over half a mile. Dad was parked behind me so he headed down the road to find him. Thankfully the fresh fallen snow made it easy to track his giant snowshoe sized tracks.
I waited for about five minutes, without saying a word to my husband who had his own opinions on this 12:30am task, and this dog for that matter. Finally I couldn't stand it, so out the car came from the garage, down the slippery driveway, and I was going to find my crazy wanderlust dog. As I turned our big corner and came up the hill, I saw my dad driving slowly towards me. I still wish I had the foresight to take out my camera or iphone and snap a picture of the scene that greeted me. (Somehow this always escapes me in the midst of exhaustion.) My dad drove slowly, window down, leading Mukwah alongside the car, with a, wait for it....household extension cord looped through his collar as a leash. By this time I couldn't stop laughing. Once Mukwah saw me the small Christmas sized light bulb that resides in his big head lit up and he realized he was happy to see me, like he had been looking for me all along. Thus he refused to continue to follow dad in his auto exercising method. Thankfully when I opened up the liftgate to my car Mukwah slowly, regally stepped up and crawled in. I then headed home. For some reason dad followed with. I think he was worried Nate would be waiting in the driveway with a gun. Thankfully Nate was stretched out on the couch by this time. Mukwah was again secured, and I finally headed into the house.

36 hours, 745 miles, one trailer rental, two crabby kids, an oversupply of adrenaline, bumps, bruises, headaches, promises to my man of never making him load or unload anything larger than a baby donkey, and three red wattle hogs in the barn. Not sure if it was priceless, yet. But I guess the adventure was.

Go Organic? Comments Please!

As we prepare for the arrival of swine, we are trying to make a decision of "natural" vs. "organic". I currently market my lamb as organic, it is 100% pasture raised, no wormer, no grain, relatively easy to achieve. We are not certified organic because we sell well under $5000 a year in product. With the addition of hogs comes the addition of feed. Nate did some phone calling today, and we can get certified organic feed, for twice the price of regular feed. So my question -to the three of you that read this blog- is it worth it to pay the extra to have an organic product? Would YOU pay twice the amount to know that the pork you are eating was raised on all organic feed, on pasture, in God's country of northern MN? Our pork operation will be as small as our lamb company. Two gilts, one boar, 2-4 litters of piglets per year.

New Year...New Ventures

As we begin a new year, we are organizing and planning new ventures. In our quest to diversify, we are soon going to be adding a new dimension to the Rice River Lamb Company. A red one. Not nearly as woolly as our current inhabitants. Red Wattle hogs. Google them, they are pretty unique, pretty rare, and pretty cool pigs. We visited a small group of them yesterday, and made the decision to purchase two gilts (young females.) They will arrive in a month.

The Red Wattle met our requirements for friendliness, flavor, and a breed that will do well on pasture. We are excited to soon add this element to our small, niche market farm. Nate and the boys had a conversation on the way home about ham, bacon, and sausage all with a bit of drool and gleam in the eye. The plan is to sell some feeder pigs and pork along with filling our freezer.

As we develop our farm goals they remain simple and straightforward. To supply ourselves and others with top quality, naturally raised, respected, cared for food. To know that the lamb, chicken, or soon pork that I put on our table was able to have a quality life, grown in sunshine, good feed and love. To keep it small enough and simple enough that we can continue to enjoy doing chores. To see our boys learn lessons that television and the classroom cannot give them. (As a side note, Isaiah wanted to bring one of the five week old piglets home yesterday, on his lap. He's an instant gratification guy, and didn't want to wait a month and then bring home 7 month old gilts. Though he was OK with leaving the babies on the farm when he heard the squeals they emit when picked up!) Our plan to start is two gilts and a boar, a small breeding group. I had to give Isaiah a promise that when we do have babies, he will be able to hold them.

I am in love (call me a romantic in mud boots) with the idea of raising our lamb, our pork, milk goats, along with a few turkeys and chickens and a garden that contains more edible produce than weeds. The sheep provide us with meat and wool (my first order of yarn is being processed at the mill right now), the pigs will provide us with meat, the goats provide milk for our family for drinking, cheese, yogurt and soap, with extra for the hogs and chickens, the chickens give us eggs and meat. It feels good to know that we can achieve a balance with our small bit of a farm. To be able to produce enough to share with others is an added bonus.

As I write this I think of how busy this spring and summer will be with the animals and gardens. Others might get excited about planning a vacation, me, give me some animals to take care of. Though I must admit that the care taking is much easier in the sunshine, grass and mud than it is right now as the snow flies outside my windows. Chores right now require down jacket, boots, my new super cool "ponytail" hat, mittens, shovel, five gallon buckets of warm water, and a willing husband doesn't hurt either. Speaking of, we better go shovel a path out the mud room door. Happy New Year everyone!