Neglected? I Think Not
It seems everywhere you turn people are upset that some folks have outdoor animals. I’ve seen lots of name calling, confiscation of pets and even in some municipalities people are citing people for having outdoor pets. With proper shelter, warm bedding, water and extra feed, many animals do quite fine outside, even during the winter. We have outdoor animals, chickens, ducks, guineas, cats and even Tara spends most of her time outside. I can guarantee that they’re not being neglected, or abused, in fact they’re all happier for it, much, much happier! These animals would be absolutely miserable if we tried to keep them inside to stay warm all winter.
Tara is one happy dog when she’s out in the cold, in fact, she’s much happier the colder the weather gets. She’s been getting extra bones and lots of the fatty pork trimmings we saved when we slaughtered our pigs. As you can see, she’s happy as a clam out in the cold munching on her goodies. The duck pond that has a stock tank heater in it is close at hand, which means she has delicious ducky water to drink (it’s her favorite kind, so much better than the fresh stuff in her heated dog bowl).
The chickens, ducks, and guineas are also getting a nice warm meal before they roost up for the night. Remember all those potatoes I planted this past summer in the garden? I’ve been cooking them up on the wood stove and mixing them with fermented grains, dried herbs and a bit of lard as well for good measure. Naturally, the fowl are tickled pink with these delicious meals and are rewarding me with loads of eggs.
The Sweets, which is our little feral garage cat, is also spoiled rotten. We have a heated mat for her in the garage, but she refuses to sleep on it, even when the weather dips down to -20. She does however, relish the warm venison burger with added bacon grease. She gobbles it right up along with chicken necks and wings and anything else I take out to her. In the winter she eats about double what she does in the summer. Her fur is so thick you can’t get your finger through it down to her skin, it’s amazing how velvety she gets during cold weather. She also loves to hunt down by the sauna, no doubt there are load of mice down there.
The truth is most animals adapt very well, bringing them into a heated space during a cold snap actually does them more harm than good because it can cause loss of their warm winter coat. If you have stray animals around feel free to provide extra nutrient dense food for them and provide shelter with warm bedding, but please don’t try to put them in a heated space to keep them warm. And please, don’t assume those with outdoor animals are neglecting or abusing their pets, sure there are some people that are, but most are not.
Do you have any outdoor animals? How do you help them in cold weather?
Share this:
It’s Official
I guess when I pull out all my seeds and start going through them the 2014 garden season has officially begun. This is what my coffee table looks like at the moment. I’m being ruthless about what seeds are getting sprouted for chickens and which ones I’m going to actually start this year. No doubt my seed order will be minimal this year in hopes of finally whittling down my seed stash.
I’m also going to be simplifying what I plant a little this year. There are loads of garden chores that need done, and I’d rather spend my time preparing new planting areas for future gardens than tending to a huge variety of vegetables. That’s my main goal for this garden year.
How do your goals for this garden year differ from the last?
Share this:
Wintertime Fun
Our driveway is slick, after the ice storm and several snow storms afterwards, it was pretty much a luge track. At one point, both of our cars were stuck at the bottom and Mr Chiots needed to get the filled gas cans in one of the cars. He rode a sled down and hauled the gas up on the sled. After using the gas to fill the plow truck, we were able to get the cars up the driveway. That gave him an idea though, use our 1/3 mile curvy driveway as a sledding hill – it’s PERFECT.
It sure makes for a long ride down with twists and turns which created a few spectacular crashes. The only problem is the LONG walk back up! Unfortunately we got a lot of rain yesterday that melted our sledding track, guess we’ll have to wait for more snow. At least we got a few good runs in while the conditions were great!
When was the last time you went sled riding?
Share this:
Cultivate Simple 60: Seeds of Change
On this week’s podcast we discuss buying seeds for your garden. The seed catalogs have arrived and it is time to think about planting even though you may be buried in snow.
Thanks for the support Misti from Wildscape Photo and Samantha. Also a big thanks to Melanie from CA for the lovely food care package from her farm!
Brian’s Geeky Corner
Check out Toggl.com for some time tracking goodness!
Seed Buying Tips
Figure out how much space you have and how much you can dedicate to each item. If possible simplify, it’s always easier to keep track of a few seedlings and varieties than a lot. But that being said, don’t be afraid to try something new!
Find a friend to go in on seeds with!!! Save so much money, even if you have a gardening friend you can try to split up seed starting (though I must admit this would drive me crazy).
Organize, organize, organize – figure out a system that works for you. When you have a decent sized garden and grow a fairly large number of different vegetables you must keep your seeds organized. I organize mine by type as you can see here, I know someone who organizes theirs by planting month. It becomes very difficult to keep track of large quantities of seed.
Books of the Week
Our Amazon link has changed. Please update your bookmarks!
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:15:43 — 52.7MB)
Share this:
Little House – no time to waste in spring
“There was no time to lose, no time to waste in rest or play. The life, of the earth comes up with a rush in the springtime. All the wild seeds of weed and thistle, the sprouts of vine and bush and tree, are trying to take the fields. Farmers must fight them with harrow and plow and hoe; they must plant the good seeds quickly.”
Laura Ingals Wilder (Little House Series)
Right now the ground is covered with over a foot of snow, spring seems really far away, but the growing pile of seed catalogs by my chair reminds me that it will be here sooner than I realize.
I’m not quite ready to get my seed order organized, but I don’t really have much of a choice. As much as I love gardening, I’m really enjoying a little bit of rest this winter. However, if I linger too long I may not be able to get the seeds that I want.
Luckily I still have a little time to rest before things get started in earnest. My onions will be started first in about a month. That gives me four more weeks of rest!
Do you ever have to do things before you want to because of circumstances outside of your control?
