Talking Turkey

Well on Friday morning, Alyssa and I went to pick up her turkey chicks from her friends' house. We brought them back to our garage to finish out their brooding. These things have grown a lot since they have been here! You can even notice the change between morning and evening. She has named them Saran Wrap and Cookie. (It's a long story. So don't ask.) She has a preference for Saran Wrap more because it is a little larger, more developed, and easier to handle. We won't know if they're hens or toms until we get closer to our fair in July.

Saran Wrap is on the left and Cookie is on the right.

We had to make adjustments to the brooding pen. First off, the two-foot high plywood panels were too short. They could fly to the top and perch from them. Secondly, I couldn't see them finishing out brooding in a three-by-three-foot enclosure. Some random turkey expert reading this may disagree with me but so be it. I believe turkeys need their space. Their legs are fragile for starters and they need to be able to move around in order to develop them. And if they need to fight for space, then they will just start pecking on each other. So new plywood panels were cut. They were still two-foot high but now a foot longer. So now their brooding pen is four-by-four-feet. We used zip ties (my 4-H screws and nails) to fasten five-foot high lats and wrapped some poultry netting around the top.

We saved two of the smaller plywood panels and placed them in the corner by the pen door. When Alyssa opens the door to clean the pen or tend to the food and water dishes, she pull the smaller panels out slightly to keep them enclosed somewhat. The door is held together by an old bungee cord that Justina found in the shed. She loves to give input and help on projects. Sometimes, it gets a little too cumbersome to always have an 8-year-old trying to "help" when you're just wanting to finish the task. Then we need to remind ourselves why we are doing this 4-H gig in the first place - the hands on approach to learning.

Here is the new brooding pen. The smaller panels are there where the door ia opened. She can open the cage wider and then open the smaller panels to close off and space while she goes in to clean. They can still try to fly out but she would be there to grab them. You can also see Justina's bungee cord. (Pay no attention to the mess in the background. We were ransacked by leprechauns on Saint Patrick's Day.)

They are still on a starter feed by Nutrena. They will finish out this bag and move on to a different feed. Some friends of ours are building a coop for them. And they will move into that in about three weeks. They still have a lot of down but their feathers are coming in nicely. Abby likes to watch them. When they first got here, she was yelling at them, "Eat turkeys! Eat! There's the food!"

In Other News . . .

This weekend was all about the arrival of 4-H projects. Yesterday, Alyssa got her pig and Amanda got her lambs. Steve, the friend of ours who's building the turkey coop for us, built a new lamb shelter with four coats of Killz to prevent mold and fungal growth. We tore down the old shelter and have a weekend bin arriving to dump that. No more ringworm for us. Been there, done that, and had to burn the T-shirt.

Saturday, I was off to the West Coast Show Lamb & Show Goat Sale at Del Petersen's Sheep Ranch in Nipomo. This time, we were not there to buy a lamb, but instead to help out. The man who co-leads our Sheep Project is also a breeder. He had a lot of lambs at the sale. One of the kids in our project, Jonathan, got to go up to his ranch the day before and wash and shear lambs for the sale. His mom said that he had the best time.

At the sale on Saturday, he led the lambs from the auction stand and handed them off to Amanda or his little brother, Garrett. Jonathan would then go back in for the next one while Amanda or Garrett took the others to holding pens. This was Garrett's first real experience handling lambs. If he didn't know how to handle them when he started, he certainly knew how three hours later. It was a great experience for all the kids. And as a 4-H leader, that made my day.

Amanda battled an upper respiratory infection all week long. Even by Saturday, she didn't do much at the sale. The lambs can be feisty and don't just go peacefully. So after a week of being in bed, working a full three hours at an auction isn't going to happen. Still she helped out where she could. But I think Justina and I are getting it now. At first, I attributed my congestion to the hay bale seating they had inside the barn. And although I was only in the barn for ten minutes or so, that is usually all it takes for me. I stayed out and supervised the kids the rest of the time. But here it is Monday morning and I still feel crappy. Oh well, this too shall pass.

As I mentioned earlier, the pigs and lambs have arrived. I'll blog about them later. Until the next time, take care and God bless. :)

P.S. Don't forget to render your verdict in the new poll - The OJ Trial.

The Turkeys Are Coming! The Turkeys Are Coming!

Here they come . . . walking down the street . . . got long ole necks and crazy beaks . . . hey, hey they're the turkeys . . . we're just goblin' around . . .

Hmm. No, i don't think that's how that song goes. And those aren't the turkeys that will be coming to our house this morning. The turkeys we will be getting are three-week-old chicks that Alyssa is raising for 4-H this year. And they are white birds. Our fair doesn't allow any other color turkey for the market class.

It is recommended that the kids raise three chicks instead of just one. Apparently, these critters are hell bent on dying and too dumb to even realize it. Their legs are fragile, they will drown in their own water dish or by looking up into the rain, break their necks by crashing into their cages while trying to fly, and if there is anything else then I don't want to know. There are three girls in her Turkey Project this year. Alyssa and her friend Cady each got three chicks and the third girl only got two.

The chicks left Farm Supply for Cady's garage on March 7th. They were suppose to brood for six weeks in her garage. By then their feathers are in and they are old enough to go to cages outside. Well, Cady's parents decided last week that they needed to go sooner than later. Apparently Alyssa and Cady are now down to two each. So tomorrow we will pick them up and bring them to our garage where they will finish out their brooding.

Well we don't know a wit about raising large witless meat birds. So I set out for a crash course in raising poultry. They need to kept under a heat lamp in a small enclosed space. So I used zip ties to put together 4 plywood panels, about two-feet high by three-feet wide. We poured out pine shavings and prepared their water and feed.

I will blog about their arrival tomorrow.

Turnkey for Turkey! This broding pen is four playwood panels, each 2x3-feet, held together by zip ties. The bottom is lined with a layer of pine shavings. The round container is a 1-gallon watering trough and the long rectangular container holds their feed. The light is a 250-watt heat lamp.

In Other News . . .

Amanda has a nasty upper respiratory infection. I took her to the doctor yesterday and she was prescribed an antibiotic. Alyssa was across the street with the kids who live there, preparing their pig pen. They get their pigs this Sunday. And Amanda gets her lambs on Sunday.

Well, I am pretty wiped out. So I am going to hit the hay (no livestock puns intended.) Until then, take care and God bless.

Say Hello to My Little Friends

It was almost a year ago that we purchased a Nikon D80 camera with a standard 18-135mm lens, built in flash, auto-focus, and SLR features. Now this sentence seems impressive to me because honestly, I still have no idea what the hell any of it means! Remember, I told you that I married my husband James for free technical support until death do us part. In exchange for his technical advice, I provide him with tax deductions. The problem was I couldn't photgraph them to save my life.

Actually, I purchased the camera based on the auto-focus and SLR features. The main reason for getting the camera was to take better photographs of our tax deductions' activities. So after talking to several parents at various soccer tournaments, I came to realize that like Chevys and Fords, there are those deeply rooted in Canon and Nikon brand loyalty. I finally went with the Nikon because of the camera body's universality with all Nikon lenses. Truthfully, I do not know if this is true with Canon. But none of the Canon enthusiasts mentioned this perk and nearly all Nikon officianados did. So after finding a deal on the camera on Amazon.com of all places, I took the plunge.

As it goes with technology, one always hungers for bigger and better. So for as much as I liked this camera, I began wanting more out of it. For example, I loved the pictures at Alyssa's soccer game, but I couldn't get a decent shot of her in goal or beyond the middle of the field. And another culprit was the built-in flash was not strong enough for most situations. So we saved for a 70-200mm Vibration Reduction lens with a 1.7x extender and a Speedlight SB-600 flash. And as my husband James put it, these purchases have exceeded our expectations above and beyond.

The new flash and lens withthe extender attached. The new lens was significantly heavier. So we had to splurge for the monopod. This picture was taken with the standard 18-135mm lens and built-in flash. The lights were all on in the living room where this was taken.

This is a picture of the 70-200mm and monopod in same living room but with the new flash and ALL the lights turned off. The room was pitch black.

This is a picture of the standard 18-135 mm that came with the camera originally. I shot this in the same living room with all the lights off and from about 10 feet.

In Other News . . .

It has been a crazy last three weeks or so since I last blogged. So I won't even begin to attempt to catch you up on everything. The 4-H animals are arriving soon. So pig pens are being cleaned up, lamb pens are being readied, and turkeys are being brooded while coops are being built.

There is a new poll up and it will stay up until April 15th. So swing by and vote, and tell your friends! Until the next time, take care and God bless. :)

Biscuit da Bunny

Well I have been a bit busy the past couple weeks. I have been planning out the remaining four months of my 4-H Sheep Project. There are many events scheduled in our family this year - Alyssa has California Cup soccer this April, Justina will make her First Holy Communion at the end of April, and my sister, Joan, will get married in June. Of course, this is also the time of the year when all the end-of-the-year stuff will start popping up as well - open house, awards banquets, year-end school picnics and so on. Also, Easter Sunday falls at an odd time as well. So I thought I better break out the calendar and see what needs to be done and when. And I am glad I did. Those calendar squares fill up fast!

Today, Justina had to clean Biscuit's hutch. So she turned him out onto the grass in the play yard. Sun can damage a rabbit's fur, especially a rabbit like Biscuit. Biscuit is a Thrianta rabbit. The majority of points for the Thrianta is in the bright red color of its fur. So we place an old fitted sheet over the top and sides of the play yard to protect him from the sun.

Here is a video clip of Biscuit. It is a rather unprovocative clip. You might be able to hear Abby in the background talking to "bunny". Other than that, it is just a rabbit enjoying run-around time on the grass. Enjoy!

One Time, At Lamb Camp . . .

Amanda in June 2006 with her Suffolk cross ewe lamb

The time has come to make final preparations for the arrivals of our children's 4-H animals. This year, Amanda will show a market lamb for certain. Whether or not she will take a breeder ewe project to Fair is still being determined. In addition to showing a pig, Alyssa has decided to also show a turkey. Justina is still too young to take any market animals to the Fair. So she will continue to show her rabbit and guinea pigs.

This weekend Farm Supply and Showmaster Feeds hosted a Show Camp at the Santa Maria Fairpark. There were four clinics covering the selection, feeding, grooming and fitting, and showing of pigs, lambs, cattle, and goats. With the exception of the Pig Camp, I attended the other three. The first camp was the Pig Camp. And Alyssa woke up feeling congested and groggy. So she decided not to go. But Amanda and I attended the Lamb Camp on Saturday afternoon.

The clinic began with a presentation on ethics. There was a discussion on how unethical practices on the part of a few jeopardized the reputation of agriculture in the public's eye. Doping, false declaration of ownership, professional intervention in fitting and grooming, and alteration of an animal's physical appearance were among the infractions discussed. In addition, we discussed biosecurity and how to prevent the spread of disease from one animal to the next and thus to the public. Incidentally, this ethics course is required for anyone who is going to show at the California State Fair. The kids present were able to fill out a sheet after the course was completed so that an certificate for the course could be mailed to them. The certification was good for at least five years, so nearly all the children signed the form, even if they didn't think they would go. So that was a pleasant plus for those who atended.

About four of the kids in my lamb group also attended the Lamb Camp. The leader, Lacey Beam, is a breeder, judge of club lambs, and team member for Showmaster. She taught the kids how to feel the lambs' bodies in order to make the proper selection of their animals. After discussions on nutrition and grooming, the kids got to practice showmanship on a few lambs. Amanda got a stinker to work with. It kept jumping up. These lambs were pretty young, probably weaned with in the past month and they hadn't been handled very much. The clinic was very informative and I will make it a mandatory event for my sheep group next year.

Later, that evening, Amanda asked about doing a market steer or replacement heifer the following year since it would probably be her last year in 4-H. Our answer was if she could find a place to keep it and was prepared for the amount of work that goes into it, then so be it. Just how much work goes into raising a market steer project? Well, as with any decision, one should get as much information as possible from knowledgeable folk. So with that, we decided to go to the Beef Camp on Sunday morning. It was very informative. We learned about how to select a calf, halter breaking, grooming and fitting, nutrition, and showmanship. Who knew how important hair care was in raising show cattle! This project is not for those without stamina. Our Fair is in July. So most kids will be getting their lambs, pigs, and goats at the end of March. But if a kid were to take a steer to the Fair, then they would get it on November or December. Craziness!

Now Justina has been chomping at the bit to take a market animal to the Fair. (A lot of the primary 4-H members get this itch their last year in Primary.) Her goal is to show every animal possible at the Fair by the time she leaves 4-H. This would include rabbits, guinea pigs, pigeons, ducks, geese, chickens, turkeys, pigs, lambs, goats, market steers, replacement heifers, and dairy goats. Now she is only 8 years old and could very well change her mind. (One can only hope - at least the one writing this can.) So she is undecided between goats and lambs for her first year. And since her main experience has only been with lambs (and mine), I decided to take her to the Goat Camp that Sunday afternoon. She was able to feel the muscle on a couple goats, and she even got to shear a little bit. And when it came time to practice showmanship on the animals. She was first up and at the gate, ready to go. She also won a lamb/goat sock in the raffle after. That's a knit tube that slips over lambs and goats after they've been shorn. It was a positive experience for her but no deicision has been made yet.

Overall, the clinics were very helpful to those who atended. It was a lot of information to take in at once, but I think for anyone who is taking an animal to the Fair the first time or the tenth time, there was something in it for everyone. It was also very helpful in gathering information for potential projects the following year. The approach was very hands on which was congruent with the 4-H philosophy of "learn by doing". And I was especially appreciative of that.