Project - Run extension

We did it! We finished a major project. It feels so good to actually accomplish something after saying, "We should do....", and "I want to....." so many times.

Project: Run Extension.......

     The house we moved into had  a chicken coop & run already on the property. OK, so not really.

What it had was a shed that was converted into a coop......to hold geese. The last owners had five geese. Attached to the 'coop' was a fenced in area, which we'll call a run. It's an eight foot high fence that encompasses a good size area. Least we were content with it to keep our five chickens and giant bunny happy when we first moved in.

See the bunny? Isn't he cuuuute?

Anyway, this spring, we got carried away, and got 16 new chicks, and 6 ducklings.

Have you seen these cuties? Everyone, say "Awwwwww!"

Yeeaah, so that coop & run wasn't going to be big enough anymore. Not in a few months when we have 19 full grown chickens & 6 ducks! The 'coop' needs alot of work, and we definitely had to extend the run. We didn't want to give them free range of the entire property as we're on the corner of the road, and we have big dogs which would chase the birds. Dogs.

About 30 feet (27 to be exact) behind the current run was a run-down pen. I was told that the previous owner didn't have any animals. *shrugs* I don't know what was kept there, but it's a good size.

Many of the posts were leaning and the fencing was gone in sections, but all-in-all, a good base to start. It's not the best looking pen, but it was sturdy, framed with wood at the bottom, and has two concrete slabs. One is where we are going to put a lean-to for hot sunny days, and inclimate weather. The other is going to be a feeding station. The area is functional, so why not use it.

We took measurements & sketched out the area. We decided to extend the run up to the pen.

Many of the areas of fencing had holes in it. Looks like something really tore at it. Instead of replacing it, which would have cost more money, we tore many sections up, and flipped them so it was now the top. It was a 6' fence, so it was tall enough to do this. Critters could have gotten in these 'holes' if we had left them.

Being as we're on a no-budget, budget. We had to go "redneck", and do what we could with what we could. It won't last long, but hopefully by the time it needs repaired, we'll have a little $$ to spend on it. Sometimes you just gotta do what you can!

We re-used all the posts we could. The originals were concreted in, but some were broken. We salvaged those & re-set them. Not with concrete because eventually we will be building a stronger, bigger pen. We're  hoping this will last at least to next spring when we can do it right. Damn I hate not having money to do something right the FIRST time!

We did have to buy some fencing. Since we are containing teen-age chicks, we opted for thin opening mesh fence. We found a roll of 50 feet on clearance at Lowes for $40. We bought 4 new posts to run between the run & coop @ 9' apart, which cost $3-something a piece. We had all the staple nails so our fencing project was less than $50 with hubby's military discount. Yeah, baby!

One small problem. Smack dub in the middle of the run & pen is a water run off. Our property sits in the middle of a hill, small mountain, dunno what you would call it, but we get water run off though many parts of our property from above us to down into the valley. This was one of the eroded spots.


To keep the water flow, we found some old irrigation tubing the previous owner discarded on the property. We laid that in the natural made trench, and built the area around it with a board & clay dirt. LOL, I must admit, that was a fun day...playing in the clay. Anyway, as soon as we get a little $$, we are going do make a man-made water-way with pea gravel & stone to keep the erosion down. Plans. Lots of plans. *sigh*

Hubby workin' hard

So hubby set forth, and using the post hole digger, got the holes about 18" deep. Together we set the posts making sure they were plumb, and wetting the clay dirt to pack them in as best we can. We fixed the fencing that was broken & torn down in the pen, and installed new fencing where needed.

We dug a trench to bury the fencing a few inches deep. The rest of the pen & run were already done like this (thank goodness). That giant rabbit loves to dig, and we don't want him digging his way to freedom, now do we?!

The kids really worked hard helping on this project!

It took two days to complete the expansion. One day to dig & set the posts, and one to run the fencing.



But wait! We're weren't done after all..... 




We needed to build a gate to get in, and also needed to open up the areas to each other. On the third day hubby built a gate out of scraps of wood we had & left over fencing.



It's a darn impressive gate, if I do say so myself. He practiced making dado cuts with this & it turned out well. We had some hinges laying around that we took off some old bi-fold doors, and stole the latch from another gate on the property that wasn't working anymore. Recycling is a must with no money!

All that was left was to cut the chain-link fence of the old run, so the girls could run free in the expansion! We just sliced straight up the fence & pulled it back. We're not quite sure what we are going to do with it in the future, since we're planning on redoing this more permanantly, so we just left it like that for now. It's a wide enough 'gape' for both the animals & the humans to walk through.

The girls and Jasper were sooooo happy to have the extra room when we let them out. The total area they have now is prolly .15 to .20 of an acre. Not too bad for them to forage in. When we make a more permanent structure, we will expand on it yet again. But right now, it's MUCH better than what it was to say the least! They have lots of shade now, and breathing room. There are trees for them to roost in if they choose, and lots of tall grass to lay in (which the ducks love).



* Footnote: This project was worked on April 7th, 27th & completed on the 28th.

Whew. Next....the duck pond!

You're Doing it Wrong!

......... Yeah, I probably am.

But that's OK, 'cuz....

I don't know what I'm doing!!

Let me repeat.......

Whew. OK, I got that off my chest.

You see, we're new to this. This rural thing. Brand-spanking-new. That's why we called it, "Adventures in Deer Trail". It's our adventure of going from city to rural, with no knowledge, prior experience, or help.

.....OK, so we've gotten LOTS of help from our neighbors. :-) Thank you!!

We're going to do alot of things wrong. We don't know what alot of things are. We don't know how to do alot of things! And to top that off....I'm an un-lucky clover. Everything I touch, turns to....broken. Yup. Broken. And to top that off.....we're doing it on almost no budget. Ugh.

We come from the city. We are so naive about rural life. Even after ten months. Neither one of us have ever lived outside a busy city. We've lived all our lives in the hustle & bustle of city life. Not just any city either; Metropolitan. The South Florida metro area to be exact. Here's a place where there's a 7-11 or a Walgreens on every corner. You are walking distance from the gas station, the library, and the grocery store. There's a McDonald.s, Taco Bell, and Dairy Queen on every main road. You are pretty much spoon-fed every convenience known to man. This is what we're used to. Not dirt roads, wild animals, and crazy weather.

...........That is so not like what it is out here!

But it's always been a dream of hubby & mine to have land, live away from the congestion, have lots of critters, and to be partially self-sustainable. But, OMG! We had no idea how different it was going to be! Neither one of us had families that lived in rural areas. Friends? They all lived in the city too. Many things we've come across is shocking. Not in a bad way, just a surprise.

I've done alot of venting on my personal facebook page. I know I probably bother the rural lifers with my venting. Sorry. I'm not bitching, but sometimes things are such a shock, that I have to voice my surprise.....and I'll admit, sometimes it's with a negative attitude. Like when I found out that the fire dept (not ours, the next town over) charges to come out on a call. I handled my facebook post poorly, but it was so surprising. I mean, I know that if you are transported via ambulance, you get charged in the city, but not for the FD to just come out. But, it's different out here. The FD is on it's own, without much financial support of the county. Or the roads! Wow, have I vented about the roads. But please! Dirt roads?! I have  never, ever, driven on a dirt road in my life. I didn't know the sand could throw your car 10 feet over into the ditch in 3 seconds flat.

But I digress.... We will make alot of mistakes on our adventure. We not only moved to a rural area, but we purchased a 'fixer-upper' house. It needs alot of love and work. We'll do alot of things wrong. We won't know what some things are, or how to build it, use it, or fix it. We know nothing about wells, septic tanks, or raising animals. We know nothing of foxes & foxholes, hawks & coyotes. We will ask alot of questions, ask for a bunch of advise, and probably ask for alot of help. But, we will learn. It will take some time, and I'll vent often.

My posts, both here, and on my facebook page, will have what we're working on, and the mistakes we've made. Stories of how things went wrong, and how things are going. Some posts will be full of forelorning, and others full of accomplishment. We're taking everything in stride, but we are determined to get through it. It's a tough road to travel, alone, and with a measly income to make it happen.

So yes, I'm doing it wrong.

But we will learn, and eventually learn the way, and do it right!

The Dishwasher Disaster

Today's adventures....

So when we moved in here last July, we had to buy a shitload of appliances. We didn't have a washer, dryer or dishwasher. No laundrymat within 45 minutes, and you ain't gonna see ME outside with a washboard, so we needed those! We also had to buy a hot water heater as the one that was here was zzzz-zapping & tripping the breaker. The dishwasher was an indulgence.

Yeah. New appliances.

So today's story is about the dishwasher. In August, we finally got around to installing the dishwasher. Yep. All installed. It's not hard to install a dishwasher.....water line goes in, drain line goes out, same color wires get connected.  Binga, banga, boom. One hour, done.

Only problem is the house wiring is all frakked up, and the breaker trips. We didn't wire it wrong. I double checked. We went in the basement & found the electrical line up in the drop ceiling had been spliced here, and there, and who knows where. My guess, since the dishwasher didn't even get the chance to get turned on, is that the wires are flipped. Black/white. Ugh. Yeah. I'm not gonna try & wire it backwards just in case. We'll wait 'til we can higher a real electrician. I mean, we also have a sub-panel that has to be re-wired correctly so that we have working outlets in the exercise room & outside. *sigh*

So anyway, this means that the dishwasher has been sitting there, installed, but never powered on. Just sitting there. The water wasn't even turned on.

For the last few days, we've been complaining about a rancid smell in the kitchen. I've been checking everywhere....under the sink, under the stove, garbage area, etc. Couldn't find it. Today, I pin-pointed it to one area....the dishwasher. So I opened it up, just to see. OMG! There was a big scum coated puddle in the bottom of the dishwasher. And it REEKED! That was our smell.

How the hell? It's never been turned on. The water is shut off. ............

Then I saw it. The drain hose. The drain hose from the dishwasher runs to a little side spout thingie (I know, so technical) on the garbage disposal.  It seems - and to which it had never occurred to me - that for the last eight months, whenever the disposal would get filled with nasty water (from un-churned & chopping the food), it would go into the drain hose, and into the dishwasher to sit. Eight months! Nasty, food contaminated water, sitting in the base of the dishwasher getting rancid. Never draining.

So, I/we removed the hose, the water line, the electrical wires, and pulled it out. We took the dishwasher outside & let it drain. Let me tell you, that is a simple explanation as to what happened.  It wasn't that simple. The damn thing barely fit in there....getting it out was hell!

But it is done. The whole area has been sprayed with bleach, 'cuz the nasty water leaked a bit in the kitchen.

The worst of it.....knowing we were up close & breathing this nasty stuff. We were working on it for about an hour, up close & personal. Hubby kept joking that we could get airborne botulism from the foody-water. Yeah, found out he wasn't exactly kidding. There's a number of things in this whole scenario that could have made us real sick. Still may.

No one has puked yet, but we're still waiting to see if anyone gets sick. I'm wondering if the moldy water is what has had my throat feeling like it's being squeezed for the last month....not the chickies. Hmmmmmm

Foxy Lady

It was a pretty gloomy morning. Overcast, cold, foggy. Another blechy day.

..........At about noon the sun came out. Yay!

When the sun comes out, it hits the back of the house. I like to open the back door & sand on the deck overlooking the yard. Even though it was only 30 degrees out, it felt soooooooo good.

So, I was looking over towards the hill, and I see something orange. I squint. A fox! 

A red fox to be exact. Huge. It was the size of a dog, slightly smaller than say, a German Shepard. I actually looked the animal up on the internet, making sure I wasn't taking pictures of someone's loose dog!

He looks cold. :-(

I ran inside & grabbed my camera. He was looking in my direction, and I snapped a few photos. Yeah, my picture taking skills need some work.

...and sad.

After a few moments, he curled in & made himself comfy.

Oh, more pictures!

Silly me decided to go around the side of the house to see if I could get slightly closer. I mean, it's hard taking photos from hundreds of feet away when you don't know how to use the f-stop, thingamajig, and dohicky on the camera!  Well, let me just say, that walking in snow is VERY loud out here. I scared him & he ran away towards the creek bed. :-(

Well, I'm not gonna go hunting for it's den! 

It was a beautiful animal, and I cannot wait to get more pictures of it! I am OK with it being here, and it's family, as long as it stays on the other side of our small dry creek bed along the side of the house. I have cats & chickens & a bunny....don't want the fox around them thinking, "Lunch!"

See ya later, Foxy lady (errrrr....or guy *shrug*.)

The Start of Chick Season

Chick season has started! I'm so excited!

Feb, March & April are when chicks are hatching & you can order, or pick out chicks at the feed stores. True, you can buy chicks year 'round, but not only is spring is perfect time weather-wise, there are so many available!

Right now we have three chickens. We had five, but the two eldest were victim of what we think was probably a raccoon. We have decided on a dozen. So, we get to pick out nine more this season!

I have looked through the list of chicks that Elizabeth Country Corner has ordered and are coming in within the next three months. After a bunch of research, I know which ones I like & want.

I want another Aracana/Americana. We love Coconut & her green eggs are awesome. So one of those are on my list.

At the top of my list are these:

Cochins
Medium light brown eggs

Brahmas
Large light brown eggs

Silkie Bantams
Small light brown eggs

Frizzle Bantams
Medium light brown eggs

Polishes
Medium white eggs

Mille Fleur D'uccles

Also: Porcelain Bantams, Self Blue D'uccles, & Red Pyle Old English Bantams

Second down on my list are these:

Orpingtons
Large light brown eggs

Wyandottes
Large brown eggs

Mottled Javas
Large brown eggs

German Spitzhauben
Medium white eggs

Langshans
Large brown eggs

And Dixie Rainbows, which is such a new bread that I had trouble finding a picture.

And, being me, if I get there and none of my first or second picks are left, I have a 3rd & fourth wish list. ;-)

I can't wait to go chick shopping!