Garden Farm

[BeardyMan]

Our garden is rapidly turning into a farmyard. We now have an additional silkie hen and a silkie cockerel to go with the silkie we picked up the previous day. Bring the total to 2 roosters and 4 hens. Still want a couple more, but in rented accommodation they get a bit grumpy if you have too many. Not going to get too many eggs off the silkies, but I'm planning on adding another 2 or 4 POL birds in the next couple of weeks.

The silkies are weird little things, look like Fraggles. Didn't realise they have black skin and black(ish) meat, and blue ears - apparently. Seem nice and tame though, and this cockerel hasn't tried to eat Sid yet, so that's always a bonus.

Now I just need to convince the landlord to let me get in a little pygmy goat or a micro pig and we're all set

[SecretPrepper]

Ours is on its way. Finishing the run at the weekend for 4 chickens.
The other half is firmly anti pig but I am going to sneak in some goats when we next move house. But that's a while away.

[Straight Shooter]

Can,t do much more on the animal front until i hear from the planning department....should hear this week, if its good news goats and a couple of pigs will follow ... the plan is log cabin,workshop, garden , animals ...can,t come quick enough for me.

[Steve]

Kune Kune pigs are great, hardy, friendly, and they eat grass. I have 8 of them.

[Straight Shooter]

They sound ideal for us Steve will check them out...what do you feed them through winter and or supplements through the year.

[Steve]

(18 March 2015, 22:44)Straight Shooter Wrote: They sound ideal for us Steve will check them out...what do you feed them through winter and or supplements through the year.

When they were young I fed them Farm Feeds Sow & Weaner, now they eat mostly grass and hay with a few Pig Finisher pellets to keep them used to coming into the barn when I call them. This will make it easier when it's "freezer time".

They have a good sized sty in the barn, but prefer to sleep on a big pile of hay in their paddock unless it's raining hard.

I looked at the economics of keeping pigs, and unless you can either grow their food or get it cheaply from a brewery / bakers / other then it's not really worth doing on a monetary basis. Of course, you can still do it for the skills and knowledge that you are eating humanely raised, pure meat.

[Tarrel]

What about raising rabbits for meat? I'm sure they'd slip under the Planners' radar. Just pass them off as pet bunnies!

Quote:I am going to sneak in some goats when we next move house.

Stealth goat-herding. That should be worth seeing!

[bigpaul]

(18 March 2015, 11:57)BeardyMan Wrote: Our garden is rapidly turning into a farmyard. We now have an additional silkie hen and a silkie cockerel to go with the silkie we picked up the previous day. Bring the total to 2 roosters and 4 hens. Still want a couple more, but in rented accommodation they get a bit grumpy if you have too many. Not going to get too many eggs off the silkies, but I'm planning on adding another 2 or 4 POL birds in the next couple of weeks.
You DO know you don't need a cockerel just for eggs don't you?
The silkies are weird little things, look like Fraggles. Didn't realise they have black skin and black(ish) meat, and blue ears - apparently. Seem nice and tame though, and this cockerel hasn't tried to eat Sid yet, so that's always a bonus.

Now I just need to convince the landlord to let me get in a little pygmy goat or a micro pig and we're all set

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You DO know you don't need a cockerel just for eggs don't you??

[BeardyMan]

(20 March 2015, 09:44)bigpaul Wrote: You DO know you don't need a cockerel just for eggs don't you??

Yup, but it was either we take them or they get culled, so we thought we can give them a reprise

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Plus the silkies get really broody apparently, so you can use them to incubate eggs from other chickens.

[bigpaul]

(20 March 2015, 10:11)BeardyMan Wrote:

(20 March 2015, 09:44)bigpaul Wrote: You DO know you don't need a cockerel just for eggs don't you??

Yup, but it was either we take them or they get culled, so we thought we can give them a reprise

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Plus the silkies get really broody apparently, so you can use them to incubate eggs from other chickens.

watch out for neighbours (incomers) complaining about the cockerels crowing!!!