Thanks J3 - I love it!!
Discussion
I read in your bio about the animals and fruit trees that you have. Can I DM you about what has worked for you? I just bought 17 acres in Alabama and hope to move there, plant trees and get animals within a year.
Start with one animal. Build infrastructure for one animal. Give it at least a year & if you do good with that animal add in a second one. Build the infrastructure for the 2nd animal & give it a year. If it goes good add in a 3rd animal. I can’t stress this enough. If you try and do it all on day 1 you won’t be happy & neither will your animals. Take the animal from start to finish to make sure you have it in you to go all the way. For fruit trees I kinda winged it. They’re all over. Fruit trees, but trees it’s chaos out there. I’ve not been as successful in that realm as I have with the animals
Thank you! What animal did you start with and what kind of chickens, goats, rabbits and non wool sheep would you recommend?
Chickens are a gateway drug. They’re super easy to start with as they’re really hard to err with, and their turnover is easy so if you do have something catastrophic happen you can reboot easy. I like buckeyes, but I like buckeyes because I am in OH, my chickens walk in snow & need to be cold hardy, yours don’t. Buckeyes would be unhappy in your land. You need to find a heat tolerant breed to start with. What do you want? Meat birds? Laying hens? Dual use breeds? Look into heat tolerant birds who fit the bill. If you’re going dual use I recommend an incubator so you can grow some out if your females don’t go broody.
For sheep - I currently have shetlands which are gorgeous! They are also a wool sheep. Hubs & I have discussed switching to Khatadins over the next year, but I currently have no experience with them.
I like a California rabbits. I’d like to restart my rabbitry, but hubs has a real problem with rabbit dispatch so all I have right now is a male that I keep around for rabbit manure for the garden. If you go this route I’d recommend 3 does & a buck to keep you in dinners year round.
No experience with goats at all.
That is so helpful! Thank you so very much! I know it will be work getting started but we are looking forward to starting. My wife and I are both teachers (I’m a part time hospice chaplain also) so we’re looking to retire from full time within a year. Thanks again. I may reach out again in the future. Hope y’all have a wonderful New Year!
Oh and what kind of ducks also.