The Bunnies are Blossoming

I managed to get a picture of the bunnies....and yes there are still 4!  They do not stay in the rabbit pen, so it's hard to get a picture of them all together.  Since they can still fit through the wire they go where ever they want to, mostly roaming at night and in the morning.  The mamas have tunnels that are deep enough for the whole colony to fit in during the heat of the day.  We will have to get them rounded up and into the freezer before we can plant our fall garden...since the garden is their favorite grazing area.  Until then it's fun to watch them!

Putting food by...

I finished drying all 6 cans of fruit cocktail.  I think it turned out so pretty, I could use jars of this to decorate my kitchen!

I also experimented by drying a can of Mandarin Oranges.  These are still not finished, so the jury is still out.  I tasted one of these and the flavor is very intense!  I'm thinking that I will want to keep these on hand to make an orange sauce/glaze for duck. 

I am also working on some potato mixes.  Yesterday was my first attempt at drying potatoes and I'm thrilled to say that it was a great success!

I am trying to make a scalloped potato/au gratin potato type mix like what you buy at the store.  My husband loves those and I like having it as a quick option.  I dried 3 average sized potatoes.  Next time I will cut them a bit thicker.  Blanched them for 8 minutes, then plunged them into ice water.  From there I arranged them on the drying trays.  Drying time in the Excalibur was about 4 hours.  Want to know how many potatoes go into those store bought mixes?  The 3 potatoes nearly filled a half gallon jar!

There can't be more than 2 potatoes in a box of that mix!

Now to come up with a sauce mix.  I'll be working on that and experimenting...will let yall know what I figure out.

And finally, a picture of the new quail.  Still have 11; with a couple dozen more eggs in the incubator.  Then I think we'll be done hatching for the year.

We've got a lot of work to do in the next few days.  We've got meat roosters running around all over the place that will be going to freezer camp tomorrow.  Filly is moving on to other pastures tomorrow, and Mikey and Gimli are moving to lush green pastures at TUH to get fat.

Plus we're hauling winter hay. 

Plus I have to work on some recipes!  I'm way behind on canning, and just now starting my food drying for the year.  It's nearly September....where did 2012 go??

TOP Tuesday....but it's Wednesday

I haven't done a TOP Tuesday blog post in a while.  For those of you that are new, Turn Over the Pantry (TOP) Tuesday is just a post with recipes or ideas for using up those foods in your pantry to help rotate your stock.  Many times, I will make a whole meal from the pantry without any extra ingredients.

If you prepare for emergencies, shop in bulk, or even just shop sales....there are foods that you buy that you don't use every day but are nice to have on hand.  The more you prepare for life's event, the less fear you will have when things happen (like Hurricane Rita and a week without electricity).

Anyway, I buy canned fruit when it runs on sale.  Of course I do a lot of my own canning as well, but when I can hit a sale for .50/can for cans of fruit cocktail, mandarin oranges, and apricots....I jump on them.  Of course those .50 cent prices are long gone....they're $1 now.  But since these are not foods that we eat every day, we need to be sure to rotate the cans through.  I had 5 cans of fruit cocktail that expired a couple of months ago.  Just because a date has passed doesn't mean the food inside is dangerous.  Manufacturers guarantee quality until that date, after that the product loses texture and color quality. 

So I've been trying to think of a way to use these 5 cans of fruit cocktail, and came up with an idea last night....why not dry it?  Dried foods, when properly stored, have an indefinite shelf life.  So I opened a can, drained and rinsed them, and put them out on a dryer tray......and this is what I ended up with!

I'm thinking these could be a nice snack, toss them into oatmeal, use them for baking into cookies or cakes, in trail mix......the possibilities are endless!

We also dry a lot of apricots.  We catch canned apricots on sale and then dry them in preparation for our Christmas baskets.  Once the fruit has dried and cooled, I place it into clean jars....look how great the fruit cocktail looks!

Once the jars are filled, I vacuum seal them and put them in a cool dark spot.  They will keep for years to come...or at least until early December when we make baskets.

A Glance at the Past...

As we look to the future of our herd, I took one last glance at the past.  Here is a photo "family tree" of our 3 foundation does, and their progeny in our herd.  There are more (not pictured) that reside in the TUH herd as well.

I'm looking forward to many more generations from my dear "Big 3".

By the way, in case you are wondering about my dear Faith.  Yes, she is still my all-time favorite goat.  She is still the herd queen.  But she is unregistered.  She's a fantastic milker, pack trained, and healthy and strong as an ox.  But she has major udder faults and will never be registered.  I don't care.  She'll be here forever.

New Homestead Helper

What a crazy Summer it has been.  We've taken some really hard hits this year, but we have also had some tremendous blessings.  With me being so busy with Lace, I haven't shared the blessing we had in July.

As many of you know, we avoid debt like the plague.  As a result, we have only had 1 running vehicle for many years.  It's been over 20 years since I've done any driving.  All along I have had in my mind a particular vehicle that I was praying for....if we ever got to the place where we could afford it.  It's always been an F150 extended cab.  The year wasn't that important to me, but I had a few particulars in mind.
First it had to be something we could afford. 
Second, it had to have a clean windshield...no chips or cracks. (I'm just strange that way)
Third, it had to have a straight bumper.  Every truck we've owned has had a bent bumper!
and finally....it had to be something that we could use to haul goats to shows (reliable).

On July 16 one of the men that Bob works with was driving his father-in-law's truck, helping him sell it.  As soon as Bob saw the truck he sent me pictures of it....

My heart skipped a beat.  I mean was he kidding on the price?  Really?

I knew it was MY truck!

This truck was ABSOLUTELY an answer to prayer!  She was a 1 owner, well-maintained truck.  Brand new 8-ply tires.  Toolbox.  Grill guard.  Did you see the bumpers?  Straight as an arrow front and back.  Toolbox, 4X4, towing package, fog lights (important to me since I have night blindness).  The extended cab has a comfy back seat without sacrificing bed space.  She hauls 17 bales of hay.  She's been well taken care of her whole life, and should be a solid, reliable vehicle for years to come.

Saw a picture of her on July 16......and she was mine on July 18 before noon.  An answer to prayer.  What a great husband I have.  Not only did he buy me this great truck, but he's allowing me to put "girl touches" on it.  The seatcover has hot pink stripes.  And check out the valve stem covers....the Queen has her crowns...

My knight in shining armor provided me with a faithful steed.  And her name is Black Beauty!

KJ-Farm ESE Satin Lace

She was the last of our registered foundation does.  Every registered doe in our herd traces back to 3 goats, Happy, Legacy, and Lace.  They are all gone now, but live on through their daughters, sons, and grandkids.  We were very blessed to have this wonderful doe.

This is it

I woke up this morning to find Lace laying out on her side, and a bit cold.  She is refusing any food or drink.  I think she has stopped fighting.  She put up a good fight for 3 long weeks, but this morning she's telling me that it's time.

Moving Forward

I may have to be locked up in a padded cell soon.  This up and down emotional roller coaster ride Lace has me on is starting to drive me a bit crazy.  After fearing the worst last night, this morning Lace was much stronger and in a better frame of mind.  She was so much stronger in fact, that she stayed in the sling for a record 6 hours before tiring out completely.

Let me tell you a bit about Lace.  In case you haven't noticed by now, she is one tough cookie.  Yea she has always had a weakened immune system...but that's all that's ever been weak on this girl.  This is a doe that popped out QUAD kids in about 20 minutes back in Jan.  Having triplets and quads is her specialty...and she puts lovely breed character and milkability into every one (well, not the bucks). 

Lace can also give you the 'stink-eye' better than any goat I know.  If she gets mad at you, she turns into a mule in a heartbeat.  Determined and stubborn, that's Lace.  I'm sure that's why she is still with us...

Now she has determined that she wants OUT of the stall.  I have had to close the stall door to keep her in there.  When I do open the stall door to adjust her sling or give her a few leaves to chew on...she tries to make a mad dash.  It's like a racehorse at the starting gate...

Of course she gets nowhere real fast since her rear legs are still non operational.  But deep down inside she is trampling right over me.  Until she stops for a drink...

Big progress today.  She can stand on her front end for extended periods.  I can't believe this is the same goat I was looking at yesterday.  It's been 3 weeks since she has been able to support her own weight for more than a minute or two....until today.  I will keep working as long as she wants to continue.  I pray that one day she will trample over me!

A Setback

Lace was doing very good yesterday.  So good in fact that she was able to wriggle her way out of her sling.  After 5+ hours in it and working continually to stand, we tucked her in for the night.  Within an hour she had crawled her way out of her stall.

We put her back in the stall, gave her a few leaves to chew on, and went to bed.  Sometime during the night she had crawled out of the stall again, knocking her water bowl over in the process.  This left her laying on the cold ground, wet, for part of the night.

She really could not afford the extra calories she burned to keep herself warm.  Today has been grim, and I'm afraid she's going to surrender this battle.  I'll know better in the morning.  Please keep her in your prayers tonight.

Baby Steps

No, Lace is not on her feet yet....but she is very very close....

She was full of energy after her milkshake this morning.  Since she is still not able to chew cud effectively, I make her a "milkshake" that will give her the nutrients she needs...

These are all mixed together in the blender, with a Tablespoon of Amino Acid concentrate and enough Gatorade to make a thick shake...

She loves this stuff, and her "milkshakes" have done wonders for her when she was sick in the past.  This morning she is determined to get on her feet...

It's agonizing to watch....knowing what a strong and powerful doe she is....and what this illness has reduced her to.  But she is getting stronger every day. 

I know that the Lord will restore her to good health.....look at the miracle He's worked in her so far!

And if she does manage to kid next year......we will have a little Hallelujah!

Moving Along

It was a long weekend.  Lace miscarried her kids yesterday morning.  It's much better that her body not be burdened with kids, and I'm thrilled that she is still with us....but I couldn't help but be sad for what might have been. 

We have begun physical therapy with her.  Saturday we constructed a sling that enables us to hoist her up, getting the weight of her body off her legs and allowing the blood to circulate through them to make them stronger.  It was quite an ordeal to get her up even for just 10 minutes.  After the session she slept for hours, showing me that it took a lot out of her physically....but by yesterday morning she was ready to do it all again.  Sunday afternoon she was able to spend 2 hours in the sling.  The sling allows her to excersize her legs without having to put weight on them, and also allows her to pee and poop while standing rather than having to lay down in it.   

Her front end is still strong and we have to moniter her closely so that she doesn't twist the sling too much; but she has hay and water within her reach by moving a small step.  Pretty remarkable for a goat that was too weak to blink her eyes just 10 days ago!

I really think she will be standing on her own by Friday.  Today she is having an herbal fast, so she will not have any type of medications or herbs at all today.  Only food and water (with electrolytes added). 
On another note, our quail eggs hatched over the weekend!  With me being so busy with Lace I was not very diligent about turning the eggs.  As a result, we had less than a 50% hatch...but 18 new baby quail is not bad!  I'll be adding another batch of eggs to the incubator next weekend.

Thank you all for your continued prayers for Lace, it means so much to me!

Lace's Battle and Barn Cam

I apologize for being silent on here as of late.  We had a rather dramatic turn of events that has kept me quite occupied.  I had been busy getting some does ready for fall shows, securing winter hay, drying vegetables....

Then in the afternoon of July 29, Faith and Lace had a bit of a scuffle.  Not unusual since they both consider themselves herd queen.  Later that evening as I did barn chores I noticed that Lace was limping a bit.  I assumed that she hurt it in the scuffle and that all would be well in the morning.  The next morning she was still limping, but was still able to jump up on the milkstand.  Her milk was nearly all gone....which let me know that there was something more than just a twisted ankle.  I moved her to the day spa so that I could keep a close eye on her.  As the day progressed, she used the leg less and less.  I examined her toes, pastern, knee...I couldn't find any swelling.  I figured she was bruised badly and gave her a bit of banamine to make her more comfortable.  The next day was more of the same, somehow I knew there was something else going on...but I just could not figure out what to do for her.

Early morning on August 1, Lace was down in her rear.  Over the course of the next 24 hours her symptoms became more dramatic, and her temperature went up.  We started intensive antibiotic therapy, steroids, and round the clock fluids.  It's been round the clock sitting with her, giving her fluids and medications, praying, weeping.....and then finally on Wednesday, after the introduction of a THIRD antibiotic; one that is very powerful and could destroy her kidneys....I decided I just could not give her any more injections.  Thursday she had no pharmacuticals of any kind; only the herbal treatments that I had been doing in conjunction with the meds.  Friday was the same except for a low oral dose of pain reliever.  She's now able to eat and drink on her own, she's alert, and ready to get moving. 

Yesterday Bob installed a barn cam so that we can watch her closely without having to run outside every 20 minutes.  This is freeing up a bit of my time for other things, which is wonderful!  The barn cam will be a welcome addition during kidding season as well!

Lace has always had a bit of a compromised immune system.  She is CAE negative, but I believe that her immune problems are a direct result of over vaccinating that was done during her first year of life.  We do not vaccinate our herd, nor will I vaccinate our herd.  We use the herbs that God gave us for healing, and have done much better with them than reaching for a shot every time something goes off.  If we trust in the Lord for healing, then we must trust that He made the herbs for our good health and well being.  Of course God also gave us a brain to know when medical intervention is needed.  Lace's delicacy has never been passed on to her kids.  She has always delivered triplets or quads and several are still in the herd or they are with folks we keep touch with.  She has strong and healthy kids so what ever health issues she has is not something genetic.

We are going to continue to treat her as long as she wants to live.  I've been praying fervently for her to have a full recovery and I have faith that it will happen....but it will take some time.  She turned 6 in April, so she should still have a long and productive life ahead.  For now please pray for her, it is a miracle that she is still with us....and we need another miracle to get her on her feet! 

Preserving Eggs ... follow up

Back in April I found a new method of preserving eggs without refrigeration.  I decided to do an experiment to see if the method works.  I am here to report epic failure.  I oiled 3 dozen eggs and kept them in a temperature controlled room (actually my herb closet).  This morning, after searching for several minutes I was able to located the horrid smell coming from the eggs!  Here's the original post http://queenacresonline.blogspot.com/2012/03/incredibleediblepreserving-eggs.html

Guess I'll be trying to locate some waterglass next.

So far freezing is the best option.