Guardian Animals - Are they for you? And what is out there to choose from?

Above, you will see our family's choice of Livestock Guardian Animals; a Great Pyrenees we lovingly named Athena.  Obviously, you can see that we went with a dog, and not another choice out there (I will further discuss options in guardian animals below),  We have decided to use her, in combination with electric fencing.  This will not only help to keep predators out, but it will also help by training to keep our animals within certain boundaries, in order to further protect them.  If you aren't familiar with a Great Pyrenees by sight, then I have to tell you that the dog in the photo is just a puppy, just going on approximately four months.  And finally!  I can actually say that this IS an accurate photo, as it was just taken today!  Though, I may dig out some earlier puppy photos just for fun.  She basically looked like a cotton ball with legs.  What I think is even funnier is that she is bigger than my two year old working dog!

We have managed to create a decent size library at home about animals that we have or that we intend to get in the semi-near to near future.  Sheep is one of those animals that we're definitely interested in getting.  Well, there is a pretty good section in one of our books, HOW TO RAISE SHEEP (p151-153), that touch on Livestock Guardians.  That, along with some internet searching between myself and, who am I kidding?  Mostly done by my husband...well, that helped us to decide that a dog was the best guardian animal for us.  And then all we had to do was find the dog for us, which was a lot easier than we thought!  But, back to other options out there...  According to HOW TO RAISE SHEEP, electric fencing is the number one deterrent mentioned.  After that, llamas, donkeys & dogs are mentioned.  Each animal has their own specific reason or behavior that makes them a better choice for one family over another.  Donkeys protect by kicking and making noise, showing their teeth and sometimes biting.  A llama is intimidating just by its size alone and has been used in livestock guardianship for so long (literally thousands of years at least), some say that it is essentially bred into them and they just "know" how to do it and easily scare off dogs and coyotes.  As for dogs, there is often some training involved for them to be good guardians and a lot of times the dogs are even bred into a heard of dogs that are over and over bread specifically to be used as guardian dogs.    Their training begins when they are a puppy, living with the animal/s that they are protecting and learning all that they need that way.  Our dog, Athena, is and will still be learning for some time, but even as a pup still losing teeth, she impresses us on a regular bases.  She lets us know, even at such a young age, and with no outside training (though that is something we may be doing as well) if something is wrong or out of place.  It's actually rather comforting to have that extra security and when you can hear it, it's like you can really feel it too. 

So, I have spent some time talking about Guardian animals, though just briefly.  I encourage you to do your own research if this is something that you are seriously looking into.  I will gladly answer any questions that I am able, as well as suggest books or websites that I am aware of, but I'm not a professional.  I can only tell you what I know from my learning and personal reading and experiences so far.  And don't just talk about what guardian animal to get, talk about whether or not you even NEED to get one at all.  Just because you are homesteading, that doesn't mean you are living on a large lot or acreage and you need an animal to protect you.  Or perhaps you are homesteading in the city or suburbs as many people do - then is a guardian animal an expense that you want to shell out, not to mention something that you are even allowed to have where you live?  Many of you could definitely not have a donkey or a llama, and even a large dog would not be allowed with a lot of the new rules these days.  So, do consider that option as well, before you put endless hours into research or put the money into an animal that you aren't able to shelter.

HAPPY MONDAY EVERYONE!!!

Sustainable Life & Teaser Pictures

We have a small farm or homestead; I have even had a lady refer to it as a gentleman's farm (a farm that can be run by one person).  Well, whatever you'd like to call it, essentially it's our property turning sustainable homestead after my husband and myself decided that we'd give that lifestyle a more full and honest try.

As far as the sustainable life goes, we had started heading that direction with our immediate family several years back.  Sure, it happened slowly to get where we are now, but it did happen.  Some family members were more resistant than others.  And not to mention that visitors could sometimes be difficult or confusing, considering that we had begun to do things a bid differently than "everyone else" in certain arenas that apparently make a person raise an eyebrow.  Despite those mini-obstacles that came and went, our family managed to continue on the "green highway," if you will.  It definitely didn't hurt that a school that our children attended for a couple of years in CA (Falbrook Montessori), was not only very aware of recycling as well as other earth-friendly ideas, but they were sure to pass that awareness and positive information onto their students in their curriculum.

Why NY? Mostly (or make that one-hundred percent) that we already own a house and some property here and the bank just refuses to let us just up and move where we want without paying off the mortgage.  Ah, well.  We will get there eventually - closer to family that is.  But for now, we will still continue to live our sustainable dream, doing nothing more but perfecting it along the way!  And as far as perfection goes, we have approximately five acres of land, or perhaps just over, to get all our perfecting done on.  Along with a house that's actually too large for our family's needs, but that can help us to provide plenty of areas for storage and perhaps even extra food preservation areas.  This upcoming planting season will be our very first winter that we will be planting to provide ourselves with all the food our family needs and preserving by means of canning, drying, and I would even like to give curing a try for some items. And we've also got some meats that I'm sure we will put away in the freezer; perhaps even preserve another way as well. 

Well, I'm sure that you are ready for something else by now.  Wanting some nitty gritty about what really goes on around here...  pictures of animals...  people working and getting dirty.  You see, that's the same thing that I'd want to see too.  So never fear - We've got goats, chickens, pigs - and not just one or two either.  I'll go ahead and post some teaser photos below so you can AT LEAST get a glimpse of some of our happy animals. 

Here are our kids, snuggling together on a colder afternoon or evening.  We did have a handful of goats a few years ago, but this is our first time officially with kids and we just adore them.  I will say that I'm sure my husband is probably happy that they are now weened from the bottle (yes, this pic is dated - I will post another one soon as I either find one or snap one!).  I have only helped with bottled feeding a couple of times, and milking the does (we have three lactating does right now)...  well I think I have done so little of that.... I'm not even going to actually claim a part in it.  The hubby is the one who does most all of the milking and physical/outside chores, at least for the moment.  

I know this isn't a "fun photo of one of our animals" as promised BUT is is a photo I just could not resist sharing. Why? Because I just had to share my most simple joy - and no, it's not just line-drying laundry as you might me guessing. :) That's actually only the half of it.  What's the other half?  Crazy as it may sound, I truly do enjoy and find a real sense of accomplishment when I hand wash all of our clothing and miscellaneous other items. 

This is one of our milking does, Meadow, wandering to pick at some potential later winter brush.  My husband has said that she is our most affectionate doe, yet she is often quite the bully towards her two "roommates."

Here's a quick snapshot of our pigs.  Again, this photo does seem out of date since it was taken, so I will have to get another one snapped and posted.  I swear, they really have grown!

I hope that everyone has enjoyed these pictures that I've shared, and I can't wait until your comments start popping up and I really get going with the writing.  Hope to see you again this weekend!

Just a few lines about us

I'm sure that you're wondering what this blog is going to be about, so perhaps I can sum that up for you.  Basically, we are an average size family (are we average anymore? There are four of us), and we have decided that we want to live a simpler life.  What does that mean for us?  Well, we want to consume less packaging when we shop, recycle everything that we are able, grow our own food - not just in the garden, but I'm talking our own meat as well.  We truly do want to provide for ourselves as much as possible without having to find ourselves in the supermarket or shopping for things long-distances.  When we do have to make a purchase, it's local as a first choice, even trading when possible! 

To be honest, I could go on and on with what we intend our blog to be "like", but the best thing to do is follow along and find out for yourself!  I look forward to receiving advice from those more intimate with farming than myself, as well as offer help in cases where my husband or I am knowledgeable. 

And don't worry - this blog will be getting "prettied up," pretty soon.  That being said, keep an eye out for our One of a Kind Design that is on its way.  And pictures?  Oh, I promise to post lots of photos.  I already have quite a few from my husband when he's been working.