Restocking the Ranch.

Last year, I sold my goat herd to concentrate on my Safety Classes.  Now that I'm done with my major safety courses.  It's time to reinvest in a couple of goats for the ranch again. 

The current gas prices at $4.72 is hard to work with.  Although, it dropped to $4.62 last Friday.  It still has not gone down to where it was before the climb.  Purchasing gas to run equipment is expensive, especially when I have to maintain the paddocks and get the ground ready for planting.  It's just not sustainable. 

Raising livestock is labor intensive.  However, by doing it correctly following examples done in the U.S. Mainland by other successful farms/ranches who are profitable.  I am sure that I can do the same.  I've done it before at a small scale.  Now it's time to take it to the next level. 

So the plan right now is to purchase two goats, a pair of does, to start the next herd for Matua Ranch.  In line with that. I also plan to purchase a drove of  shoats (weaned piglets).  I'm looking at 2 gilts, for my breeding program, and 1 boar.  I'm looking around September or November to get some barrowed pigs to raise for the Christmas Market. 

My Rabbitry is doing fine.  I have two more does almost ready to drop new litters of kits.  I have three bucks, two more than I need for breeding.  One of them will become a roaster.  Building the pens for the incoming does will help expand the rabbitry.  The Junior bucks not used for breeding will be called as Fryers or Roasters. 

I am hoping towards the end of the year, around November, that I will be able to purchase by first herd of cattle, two cows, maybe a young bull as well.

It feels good to be earning income from the Safety Courses that I now teach.  It'll help get the ranch get back to sustainability. 

ESTA...

Flores Manga

I was going to trim back my Russian Mango Tree in a couple of weeks.  It had dropped it's flowers weeks ago.  I didn't think there would be and fruits this year.  I have new chainsaw and some pruners ready to trim it back and top it off.  


Fortunately, I looked up at the tree and saw a couple of shoots of flowers.  I'm praying now that they last and fruit out.  I really enjoy eating my mangoes for breakfast and making my smoothies from the nectar.

Update:  May 30, 2011.

Lost all the flowers to the Mango tree to last weeks hard rain.  Looks like no mangoes this year.  Planning for next year. 

Rabbit Doe Up for Culling -- On Last Chance.

I was hoping that I would be seeing a new litter of kits in the rabbitry nursery.  But, my suspicions were correct on that doe in the picture above in the foreground.  She eats her new born kits. 

For the last couple of days since last week, the grey doe was observed nesting.  Normally, a rabbit doe would drop her kits 2 to three days after that.  It's been 5 days, and no kits.  My suspicions point towards the doe cannibalizing her kits as she delivers them.  I checked her abdomen yesterday, and no marbles can be felt.

I'm going to give her one more chance even though I shouldn't.  I'm gonna breed her again in two weeks.  If she fails after this next breeding.  I'll cull her out, make her into stew.


Update:  May 30, 2011.

The doe gave birth last week to my surprise.  She dropped four kits.  They are now furred out and walking around the nursery with their eyes open.  It looks like were keeping this doe. 

Baby Rabbits.

Here are pics of the new kits, about two weeks old.   I'm using an old USPS plastic box as a nesting box, shredded paper for nesting materials, and a 2x4 locked in place with a concrete block to keep the kits in the nest.  It'll be awhile before can tell the genders.  The pic above is from last week.  The nest box is no longer in there.  The kits are moving around on the wire. 

100% New Boonie Puppies.

The pups are a couple of weeks old.  There are 6 of them.  I thought the snake got one of them soon after they were born.  But Duchess has been very protective of them.  She's killed two snakes already.  She won't eat them.  So I end up giving the dead snakes to Stormie, Duchess's dam. 

Today, I was able to check 4 of the 6.  Of those 4, one is female and 3 are males.  There are two - Black on white, One - White on Brown, one - Brown on White, and the two pure blacks that I couldn't get to.  The Brown on White has a more chocolate color on  him.  From their sizes, the female Black on White is the runt.  The Brown on White is one of the more aggressive pups.  The pure Blacks are also the same size as the male Brown on White. 

I haven't picked out names yet.  I'll have to wait.  I need replacement dogs for the ones, I've lost last year and previous years.  So far they've stayed in the makeshift den underneath the back porch.  They are getting used to my voice and whistle.  The big male Brown and White starts growling when I do that.  When he came close to me.  I picked him up.  He didn't squirm or yelp. 

They are 100% Boonie pups.  Although, I can pretty much trace the dam's line.  I don't know who the stud is.  We just noticed Duchess pregnant one day.  On the dam's line, the pups have Rottweiler, Pit Bull, Alaskan, and German Shepard mix.  Their Dam, Duchess, is a really good ranch dog.  So I'm hoping that those traits are also with this litter of pups. 

As soon as they're able to, I'm going to start feeding them snake.  That's how I got their dam and granddam started as good snake dogs.  Duchess and Stormie can smell those Brown Tree snakes a good distance off.  The two of them alone have killed more 9 footer snakes than any dog I know of.  The snake Duchess killed a couple of days ago was 3 feet long. 

They're ready for their first training later this week.  I'm going to have to catch and pen a hen with her chicks.  One by one, the puppies will be placed in the pen with the hen and her chicks.  This training will insure that these pups don't go after any of my poultry. 

Anyway, I'll post some pics tomorrow. 

ESTA...

Vietnam Mango aka Russian Mango.