Winter means vigilance

December is upon us and that means winter. At least here in Ohio it does. While farmsteading is never easy, winter weather turns the challenge level up a couple notches. Be it mud or frozen troughs, each presents it’s problems to overcome.

Many years early December brings mud, this year it brings below freezing temps scheduled for the next 2 weeks. So how do I address the needs of a farm full of animals, a house that needs warmed and work that still needs done?  With vigilance. Everyday there is work to do and if I loose sight of what needs done my animals will suffer  

The solar set up at the barn is not large enough to handle trough heaters. They pull too much wattage. Animals need to drink a lot of water to aide in digestion, which in turn helps keep them warm in winter. If I don’t use the trough heater I have, it means busting ice 3x a day. Animals aren’t going to drink as much as they should when the water is ice cold. So today I rolled out the extension cords, running them approximately 125 feet from the house to the pasture trough. By keeping this trough full by bucketing out of the 150 gallon rain catchment coming off the barn, I can keep the goats and pigs in “warmish” water. The chickens and cats will get water I carry down from the house as they drink far less.

Now the challenge with a trough heater is assuring that the trough never gets empty. Some heaters will kick off if the water is used up but not all. Failing to keep the trough filled not only will result in thirsty animals but it can also mean that the electric heater melts a hole in your trough. One must check the water levels at least daily or more often depending on the size of the trough. 

In addition to liquid water, I soak the feeds overnight in the house. I soak feed year round for the pigs and chickens, not just in the winter. It helps to assure good hydration and helps the whole grains the chickens are fed be more digestible.  The goats are getting beet pulp and some alfalfa pellets which I soak overnight now. This helps them again with hydration and an added boost of nutrition for those babies the girls are carrying.

So that covers water needs but what about housing? The goats are housed in a carport that’s enclosed on 2 sides fully. With tarps covering cattle panels the other 2 sides are protected from frigid winds and drafts. It’s not normally the cold that will do a healthy goat in, it’s the drafts. The pigs have plenty of straw to burrow into and of course multiple bodies create a lot of heat in their shelters. I check their houses weekly and add more straw when needed. The miniature horses with their naturally heavy coats are usually in the barn at night. The chickens are kept in coops that are lined with cardboard on the walls to block out those dangerous drafts and the floor is full of straw, hay and leaves which will be broken down by spring into compost. This decomposing material creates heat on its own which helps to keep the chickens warm too.

Why don’t I use a heat lamp on the hens you might ask? Fire is why. I’ve seen too many barns and coops be totally lost because of them. They are unnecessary. The chickens don’t need them. I don’t even use heat lamps when I brood chicks. I use brooder plates instead.

Good food and a lot of it is also the key to keeping animals healthy in the winter. I feed twice a day in the winter, with typically a snack at noon. Hay for the horses and goats gets fed by hand. I do use large round bales but I seldom put them out in the field. Why? Because goats are huge wasters of hay. They will climb on and trample a bale into the ground in 5 days which I can make last 9-10 if I feed it over the fence. I will flip a bale on its end sitting on a pallet so I can unwrap the amount I need with each feeding. I spread it out into 5-6 piles to assure everyone gets their share.

While we are talking hay, let’s clear up a misconception. Goats will not eat “anything”. They are actually rather picky. Yes, they will eat brush and weeds that cows don’t, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t choosy. I have found they greatly prefer 2nd cutting hay with less waste. The more coarse a hay is, like most 1st cutting “cow” hay, the more they waste and pick through it. So if you are looking to purchase hay, look for hay that is more fine grasses. I’ve found the same to be true for my pigs too. Unfortunately with the drought this summer, there is no second cutting to be found locally, so I’m resigned to composting wasted hay.

I guess the last thing I do to keep everyone going in the winter, is being present. By this I mean, being out there. Knowing my animals so I can realize when someone is acting off and acting accordingly. It’s not fool proof by any means, but I’ve recognized the early signs of pneumonia or other ailments in time to save lives. It's hard when I go to work in the dark, and often come home with minutes to spare of daylight, but that's where headlamps come into play. 

Next time I’ll talk about how I take care of myself and this old house in this winter season.

Until next time, stay vigilant, stay busy, stay warm!