Monday, December 3, 2012

A Little of This and a Lot of That




The ranch remuda hasn't had to work too awfully hard lately. The cows are all processed and most are out on the desert permit for the winter. Randyman runs wells every other day which takes several hours. As usual, I am left to my own resources for entertainment.

It’s that time of year and this is my week for canning soup. Canning meals last year was an immense help for the days I wasn’t feeling well enough to fix dinner. Each year seems to get a little tougher, so this year I am hoping to get a lot more prepared in advance. Even though there was just Randyman and myself, I cooked a 16 lb. turkey. With some of the leftovers, I made a Turkey version of Chicken Tortilla Soup and canned 14 quarts of it.  A quart seems to feed two of us just fine. We bought a 20 lb bag of potatoes so I canned 7 quarts of potatoes and 7 quarts of Ham&Potato soup. There are still a few potatoes left over to be used up some other way, maybe steak fries or something. Nothing will have a chance to go bad or go to waste. BroccoliCheese soup was made and frozen, all that needs to be added is the milk & cheese when it's re-heated.

The rest of the left over turkey will be made into Pot Pie and Tettrazini.  Pretty good eats, for a minimum of effort.

Two of the roosters got canned today, which leaves 'Mr T' as the only man of the coop again. I am glad because having the other roosters around was making him mean and I don't like roosters that attack. I'm not ready to put him in the stew pot because he is such a big beautiful thing and should sire the best babies for us. It isn't much fun culling chickens as I have to skin them and clean them myself, then cut them up and part them out and can them. Meatie chickens I freeze whole but the dual purpose or laying chickens get canned as there isn't as much meat and it's so handy to have chicken on hand that is already cooked and shredded for casseroles, enchiladas, soups, salads and sandwiches.The dogs help with the clean up, as they take the heads, backs and innards away for me, so all I have to dispose of is feathers. It's ok to feed raw chicken with bone to dogs, as the bones are soft and they do fine chewing them. It's when the bones have been cooked that they are dangerous because they splinter and can puncture intestines and/or choke on them. Since these weren't meatie chickens, I can them with the bone in, except for the breasts. There isn't a ton of meat on them and trying to debone before canning is a lot of work. After they are canned, it's easy to pull the meat off the bones and use it. I save the backs and feet from the meatie chickens we eat, to use in stock. The feet are cleaned by peeling off the "socks" and it makes amazing broth.

I managed to get the chicken coop cleaned out and bedded for the year. I put deep shavings inside under the roosts. The chickens will pretty much keep it all stirred up and it will make good compost next winter. The old stuff I cleaned out got dumped in the garden and the moisture from winter will do its work and it will be ready to till up and plant next spring. Used straw and hay goes in the outside chicken run where they will have fun scratching and picking through it. This breaks it down so it will compost well too, along with keeping things from getting all muddy, so I can walk in to gather eggs without sinking. In early spring I will clean again and it will all go in the garden.

I took the last of the soaps off the racks and they are ready to sell. One batch is Cracklin' Birch and it smells GREAT and very Christmasy. Kind of a spicey, evergreeny smell. The other is a nice Apple scented soap. Homemade soap makes great stocking stuffers and Christmas gifts, especially in a gift basket with scrubby, bath salts, moisturizer and maybe a candle, wineglass and a bottle of wine. A great way to pamper someone. No, I don't sell gift baskets, I'm just making a suggestion of what would be nifty to have. To check out my soaps, just click the link on the word soap. The page will show what I have in inventory.

I have a good deal of sewing to get done before Christmas but am having problems getting some of the things I need online. In addition to that, I need to make clothes for myself because I have virtually nothing to wear and we are heading down to visit family in January.  Anyway, I've been getting a little uptight about things and feeling a little helpless, so I decided the best thing to do today was go hang out with the sheep and dogs.




I opened the gate and as we all filed out, Cletus took the lead, the sheep walked single file behind him and Bruno brought up the rear. As the sheep picked a spot to start grazing, the dogs headed South and did a quick check thru the willows and the creek bed. Seeing nothing of interest there, they headed back and took up positions quite a ways out in the tall grass, where they could keep an eye on things.




 I never get tired of watching them. They spent a bit of time observing from their different vantage points, then simultaneously walked a little closer to the sheep and sat together...













...it wasn’t long before they relaxed...
















...and then began a little horseplay.





 I honestly don’t know how people can get by with just one LGD. These guys are so attached to each other and play so hard and so often I’m afraid sheep would not fare so well if I had only a lone dog with that much energy. I don't know how I used to get along without them, as their affection for me and attentiveness has brought me immeasurable joy.



It really amazes me what voracious eaters hair sheep are. Even Thing1 and Thing 2 are enthusiastically consuming  grass, weeds, thistle and whatever else they come across. They've gained a LOT of weight since they were born just a couple of weeks ago. I grunt to pick them up anymore. Their little backs are already getting broad.





It was a beautiful day. After a couple of hours I figured I had best get back to the house and get some chores done. Cletus escorted me past Bennie-the-bull and got a drink before heading back out to the pasture to join Bruno in babysitting sheep. 

I returned to the house much less anxious.


Randyman had to  go to Burns and was gone for the day. I had to feed alone, which isn’t all that bad as long as I am mobile. The hardest part is getting the sheep back in their little corral, so I can get into the hay bales unmolested. I still have to go thru the sheep corral twice with buckets of grain for EmmaLou , which rarely goes well for me as they are always quite certain it's really for THEM. Next, I have to get grain to the steers. Actually only one steer is being grained now and finished as we can’t afford to feed out and butcher two, so he has to be separated until he is done eating his grain. This turns out to be the easier job. Moe, the big steer, has figured out how to open and close gates. We found him in with EmmaLouMoo several times before we found out he was actually lifting the gate handle with his mouth and pushing the latch back to open it. We've had to put a lock on it. There is a small alleyway leading to the steer pen, with a swing gate at the end of it. I found that if I go down the alley and pour his grain in a feeder inside there, he will come eat it while I exit the other end and push the gate closed to keep steer #2 out, because Moe can open the gate and let himself back out to eat hay with #2 when he is finished.
So, you ask, do I feel bad that we will be processing him?

Let me highlight a few points.

  1. He was destined for the freezer from the very beginning, this is one of the reasons we breed our cow, to provide both meat and dairy for us.
  2. He has had a really great life for a steer. He’s been well fed all his life, all his needs have been met, he even got to roam the ranch at large all summer with his buddy.
  3. His last moments in this life will be as pain free and anxiety free as is humanly and humanely possible.
  4. He has chased me out of the pen more than once, demanding his grain and does not hold an ounce of concern or affection for me. He is just a big, potentially dangerous, greedy steer.
  5. My family needs the meat.

So, yeah. I really DO feel bad...but I’ll get over it. Probably with a nice steak.

18 comments:

  1. I would have to agree on the steer. As much as you can get attached to them, they are BIG and not necessarily all smoochy. Actually, it would be more dangerous if they were! I get all wistful every time I read about your Maremmas. Some day... I also have a strong hankering for your Cracklin Birch soap.

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    1. The Maremmas are the BEST company. I have to keep reminding myself they are for the sheep and not bring them in the house with me :)

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  2. Your dogs work ethic is impressive. And I think a good lesson in their ability to relax and play. Did I miss something? I've been wondering how Cider is doing.

    I especially enjoyed the picture of the clouds on the Steens with the faded grass in the foreground. I always like your photos, but that one really appeals to me.
    Kristi

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    1. The old man is doing fine, other than getting himself stuck underneath the porch today!!! It took me HOURS to locate him as he decided not to say anything when I called his name. Sometimes he is the smartest dumb dog, but others he is the dumbest smart dog there is! I like that pic too. I was having a hard time choosing which one to put up top!

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  3. My brother says that animals are the biggest threat to boredom. Maybe it's why city kids are always so bored. I don't mean that you're bored but inactivity does things to you head. I'm going to get in trouble here, aren't I? Your inactivity is forced by what ails you and the dogs and animals offer solace. Not sure that's clear but I'm a mixed up teen, so there. To use your words, I'm the smartest dumb kid around. I can't stand to be coop up even for the minor bouts with asthma. Amy drives me outside because I drive her crazy. I love your blog and keep many pictures to use with credit so at least I do that right. It's that time of the year so I wish you and all your readers, Merry Christmas! Oh I used (ami) last time cos Danie told me ami is friend in French. Keep your head up Petey we are all behind you in many, many ways. just plain Dexter

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    1. You'd have to work harder than that to get in trouble with me! Nothing seems a good reason to be indoors for long, really. I drive Randy crazy sometimes, but he doesn't send me outside, darn it. Thanks for the support and encouragement, Dex. You are anything but plain or dumb! :)

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  4. I love the picture of the remuda out grazing and I always enjoy seeing your dogs and the sheep! It sounds as though some time with the dogs and sheep is just what you needed to calm you down a bit. I always feel better after spending some time out in the pasture with the critters too! :)

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    1. Thanks Candy. It is definitely a great way to decompress!

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  5. I sure wish you could bottle and sell *the day in the pasture with sheep relaxation! * you would make a bundle. :) I never was a farm girl but hold no affection for an unruly steer except for the mouth watering steaks. Mmmmm.

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    1. So true! It works much better than say, Xanax or any of those things :)

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  6. Great post. I think there's no reason to feel bad about your steer. That's why he's here, to provide food for your family, and you are doing it in a very humane and caring way. Love seeing your dogs. They are so beautiful, and such good friends for you. I have a big lab, he keeps me company and drives away the blues when they come calling. I take him with me whenever I can. He loves rides in the car, and doesn't seem to care if he gets out or not. I feel so much more comfortable when I'm out at night with him, the back roads don't seem quite so dark when he's with me.
    ~~Lori

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    1. Isn't that so funny? Cider loves going in the truck...he never gets out, never gets to play, but he's crushed if he has to stay behind! LOL The Polarbears on the other hand do not like leaving home. They just want us to stay too!

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  7. I understand your pure love for your dogs as they are certainly more than "just" dogs. Your Cracklin Birch sound amazing. Next time! I don't know about you, but I always have way more ideas than time. Looking at a stack of fabric knowing what I want the end result to be and little time to make that happen is some times daunting. I hope that your moments of peace outside have given you the energy to tackle the sewing. Take care! Staci, Stubborn Hill Farm

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    1. Oh I hope I can tackle the sewing too! I am down to 9 usable fingers to do a stupid little faux pas I had. You have a credit so I will send a Cracklin' Birch with your order :)

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  8. well next time you guys come down hopefully you will get to meet Mike and the new baby hope you guys are doing well

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    1. We are hoping for sometime around 2nd week in Jan. I hope we can all meet up!

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  9. Oh, I wish I could come can with you. It goes so much faster and is funner to can with a friend. My daughter isn't interested in canning yet. (I did get her to do a batch of blackberry jelly with me this summer, but I had to use a bit of guilt to get her to.) So it's just me. I've canned chicken tortilla soup, beef stew, white bean soup, plain chicken soup, chili and spaghetti sauce for meals. I have also done just plain beans to add to my chili and to make refried beans with. I tried canning potatoes this year as well but haven't tried them yet. The canning group on Facebook says they are good fried.

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    1. They are pretty good fried. They don't get quite as crispy as uncanned potatoes but they are fast.. I hear they are also great with butter and rosemary heated up in the oven but haven't tried that yet :)

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