This one goes out to the people who want to be new homesteaders! To the ones that have spent a lot of there time reading post or articles about homesteading, to the ones that watch videos from their favorite homestead Youtuber, and to the ones that have done as much research as they possibly can on the subject.
We have been homesteading for three years now! What does that mean? That means we are still kind of new to homesteading but we have three years of learning what not to do under our belts.
I wanted to take this time to talk to the people who are getting ready to start their dream of being a homesteader but still have no idea on what to do. So this is me talking to you!
So I’m just guessing here but I’m going to go out on a limb and say that one of the first things you have thought about is having animals on your homestead. I bet you have even talked about what kind of animals to have and all the benefits to having the animals you have picked to have on your homestead. Am I right? I can’t lie to you we were the same way! We were so excited to get animals we were going to be real homesteaders!
But… I have to ask you. Have you taken the time to learn every thing you can about all the different animals you want to get? Have you learned about all the things that can go wrong with your animals? I’m not trying to be a buzz kill but I don’t want to see you make the same mistakes we did. We don’t want to see you bring this animal in and it become a part of the family and then something happen because you was not ready. This has happened to us and it almost killed us! Now what do I mean by that well set back and let me tell you a little story.
My wife and I read about all the benefits to having a family cow and how great the raw milk is for you. We even read about them being a great joy to have on the homestead. So it hit us WE NEED A COW IT WILL BE GREAT! We also read that they need hay, oats, and a mineral block to keep them happy and healthy. So we did all of that and even got a cute little head harness for the cow that we called Coco. We loved that cow it was truly apart of our family and Coco really was a joy to have. But it was time to move and we went to a better homestead. We packed up and had Coco in tow but in doing so we took Coco from the grass he was use to eating to a completely different type of grass and the hey was also different. We noticed that CoCo’s little belly was getting bigger and we were like look at you putting on weight way to go! But the sad truth was Coco was not putting on weight. Coco was suffering from early sings of bloat. We had no idea we just thought Coco was finally getting bigger. We had no idea what bloat was, what caused it, or that it was treatable if caught early enough. If only we would have known we would still have Coco with us to this day. But we went out the next morning to check on Coco and to feed and that’s when we seen poor Coco on his side dead and his poor belly was so bloated that it was almost starting to rip.
But none of the books we read said anything about animals like cows, sheep, goat, and many others being Ruminant animals. Ruminant animals are mammals that are able to acquire nutrients from plant-based food by fermenting it in a specialized stomach prior to digestion, principally though microbial actions. Now when you take an animal like this and you change their feed really fast it will mess up the microbial actions going on in side of them. This makes it so the animal to not be able to release the gases inside of them causing the animal to bloat up and die if not caught.
But you would think grass is grass right? But as we found out it can be the smallest things that can be the difference between life and death for your animals.
I am asking you new homesteaders just starting out and you may have no idea about animals to please start off slow learn as much as you can about what ever animal you are going to have. Don’t think you can just learn as you go because that is not doing the animals any favors.
We know that about 90% of homesteaders use there animals for food and we are included. But you can still give that animal the best life you can until its time for them to serve their purpose, by just knowing everything you can about your new family member.
RIP LITTLE COCO
You do know you need a female cow if you want milk, right? just kidding. Sorry about your struggles with that loss. Learning lessons the hard way isn't ideal, but thanks for sharing this story to help others also learn. Nice post, I look forward to more.
LOL yes we know you need a girl cow for milk. But you have to start with what you have I guess. I guess it was our fault for turning him into a big dog. He would follow you around and always wanted you to pet on him. I think thats why it was so hard when he was gone.
This is such sound advice.
We had chickens years ago and it started out as a hobby... oh the fun we thought.
Mixing cracked corn with the scratch, incubators full of eggs that eventually hatched. Building and upkeep of the coop, heading out to the coop in -20 winter storm to feed them, collect eggs and don't forget to keep water thawed.
Great post!
We know just what you are talking about! LOL we thought we would be smart and order 100 chickens that all came at the same time. The best part was when we ordered them we didn't know that we ordered 100 rosters! The good times of not having a clue of what you are doing!
Thank you for sharing your experience. I'm terribly sorry for what you went through and what you're going through right now. Know that you have a lot of support, even from us novice homesteaders.
What you say is very true, not only for large livestock, but also animals as small as rabbits. During my research, I did not realize that rabbits could not eat grass cut by a lawn mower. Had I not been informed, I would have happily fed my rabbits lawn clippings and lost them that same night due to the fermenting grass killing them. At the same time, I would have to move them very slowly off their normal pellets and hay to green grass. Super lucky to have read up just before that feeding rabbits mint can help alleviate tiny tummy issues that can come from switching feed.
But we still miss things and it's best to learn from the mistakes, rather than dwell. Now I won't lie, I'm a dweller. While my rabbits are a success, my quail not so much. I've spent hours staring at the spots where my dead quail are buried and get wrapped up in self-depreciating thoughts. We lost two to drowning in their waterer, one to breaking its neck after being flushed out. So, the waterer now has marbles in it to keep them from drowning and the hutch roof has been lowered significantly to deter violent flushing. I'm happy to have learned from these losses but still struggle to move on. Takes time... Like most things.
We have also thought about having rabbits. I did not know that you could not give them grass that has been in a mower! That is crazy! See you are also giving great advice! Thank you so much for sharing that with us.
Really great post and an important warning to animal owners of all kinds! We are considered the GOAT EXPERTS amoung our peers and fellow homesteaders and yet we faced a mystery that wiped out 4 of our does this summer! Even with all of our knowledge and expertise we couldn't save them all! We had 9 sick total and saved 5. 11 others never got sick... We are lucky that we had Auburn Vets work with us at the end to figure it out and hopefully it is over now! So sorry for your Coco, one of our goats we lost was also Coco, I can truly empathize with your loss!
We really want to get into goats! But we are waiting until we know all we can about them and have all the stuff we would need here at the homestead to help with what ever might happen to one of them. It would be really great if you could give us any info that would help us out.
Always glad to help! I have hundreds of videos on my youtube channel but any specific questions please ask! fencing has to be great, shelter is a must and good quality food and water. then it gets complicated from there, lol!
Thanks for posting this. Many people start out in homesteading and just jump in with both feet. Always research everything and ask questions and more questions, not only about animals but about zoning laws in the area you are thinking about buying land. There are many pitfalls so research and more research.
That is so true! A lot of people find out the hard way that they can not have animals in the area they are in. Then you are looking at fines and other stuff that is just so sad.
awww thanks for the advice i feel so bad for coco but like you said do your research and have the knowledge before you get animals. i only have chickens but plan on bigger animals next year so thank you for taking the time to share this and to warn others. I am so sorry for your loss.
That is great! What kind of animals do you want to get next year? We love all of our animals cant really see our self's with out them now. They really do become apart of your family.
Advice I will remember every time I start thinking we might need to try animal husbandry.
One of the things I've been concerned about in keeping even small animals like chickens is the amount of dedicated time that has to be put in to keeping them healthy, even more time than gets put into keeping the garden healthy. I haven't yet managed to adequately stay on top of garden issues, which means I really don't want to have an animal which needs the same kind of watchful care and research. I would feel a whole lot worse losing them!
Yes animals are a lot like children. They always need you to check on them and can never do for them self's. But unlike children they will never grow up to the point to where they can take care of them self lol.
grin True. Perhaps when I have at least a few grown or partially-grown children, animal care will become more realistic and there will be more eyes and hands to assist.
I can see how people would not give things like this a second thought but it's so true. Everything depends on our knowledge and surroundings. Homesteading in the East is quite different than in the Midwest and people need to understand what they can get and produce from those areas. Same goes for animal needs. Understanding these things can really up your chances for success in any area. I think many people jump into Homesteading all the way and get overwhelmed. As with anything, watching a video and doing are two different things and many people feel they can do anything they see others doing (Myself included). I would say for new people starting off Homesteading, take your time and research everything possible first. Start slowly and work your way up. A lot of simple mistakes can be avoided using this method. Not just in Homesteading but in most anything. I have always been a person that jumps in all the way full steam ahead and have paid for that over the years. I've learned to change my mindset.
So sorry for your loss and I truly hope your advice helps other not to make the same mistakes. Best wishes and God Bless!
You are so right! We had to learn that it is ok to not know what you are doing. But once you understand that you don't know what you are doing then you need to learn how to ask for help. Ask people that have been doing this stuff most of their life we have found out that they are happy to share what they know.
Haha, learning what not to do! Just as important as learning what to do!
Your story about Coco shows that even when you do your research you might not get all the information. I can't imagine that an issue like that would have come up in most places you'd research, which makes it all the more important to share mistakes. So thank you for sharing this.
Interesting and sad essay.
My husband and I have been living in the country for 6 years now, and have had 8 momma cows delivered to our pasture in the spring every year. In October, Fred the farmer that rents out this pasture (and hays another section of the pasture) brings his girls from a town about 25 - 30 minutes away from where we live.
My question is: How far did you move? I have never observed any of our girls have that issue, thank goodness.
I was planning on having a milk cow and goats, so I appreciate your story. I have made goat cheese in the past and am looking forward to making it with my own animal's milk. (I also make yogurt from store bought, non-homogenized whole cow's milk.)
Anyway, I just discovered your page, so I look forward to reading more!!
And keep on Steeming your amazing knowledge filled posts.Hi there, @ozarkoffgridfam Thank you for sharing such valuable information. Your Coco was beautiful. Please accept our condolence. We are from The Curator. (A post style magazine on Steemit) We do curating for informative, creative, entertaining, yet undervalued posts. We love your post. And we feel that it is undervalued. We would like to share it in our magazine. But first, we would like to ask for your permission to add your post to our next issue, With a picture from your post. That we will use as a thumbnail, We will share a portion of the post gifts. With the posts that we share in the upcoming issue. If you agree to this. Please let us know below this comment. At your earliest convenience. Thank you. PostHuntress, @the-curator