Goats are also on the list. I was raised around goats and it’s sort of the family “thing”. :-)
At least with the goats I’m not starting from scratch!
I used to have nubians - till arthritis made it hard to milk... But since I found this:
The friend of one of my neighbors got one, and I went over and tried it... Works great! He had a dozen of the larger bottles, and narry a foot in the bucket, goats all welcomed the milker. Just wash, strip and slip on the milker - 5-6 squeezes and they let down the milk very well. I will be picking up a doe this spring after kidding after I get my milker
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With the exception of butter, I have made just about anything you can think of - Several cheeses, yogurt, ice cream - great resource and they have such great personalities.
Oh, on the Buff Orpingtons, they are also very personable - people friendly birds. We have one hen who whenever she sees my wife, comes running for her to pick her up and carry her. I have one rooster who when I go in to collect eggs, jumps up to a high perch and then to my back as I bend over. As I straighten up, he moves to my shoulder and ‘supervises’ me getting the eggs. They are a large bird and lay a very large number of extra-large brown eggs.
I got my day old chicks from Ridgway Hatchery in LaRue, Ohio. They have a website at:
http://www.ridgwayhatchery.com
Others carry them too, but I have bought from these people several times over the past 50 years, and they really take pride in what they ship. This last order, I got a phone call to inform me that they were delaying my shipment for 3 days, as Mrs. Ridgway was not completely satisfied with that batch and they had more hatching in 3 days.
Their 3 generations of experience (86 years in business) is kind of reassuring. I had no losses in shipment and they were the healthiest birds you could imagine. Just put a bit of (1 tablespoon per quart waterer) apple cider vinegar in their water for a few weeks and they really do well on it. In fact, we had a week long rainy spell and they dropped off on eating, so I put the vinegar in their water and they perked up within a day. (Used about 4 oz. in 5 gal waterer)
Hey, drop in on the thread and share some with a lot of like minded people at:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/chat/2181392/posts?q=1&;page=1623