Livestock numbers needed more now?

[Yooper]

We've been trying to cut back on our numbers of goats/chickens to have less to feed through the winter. BUT with things escalating, we may have to re-think things. Instead of selling off milkers and extra roosters, perhaps they should be kept. That means more expense in feeding. BUT, more food and barter.
How does one find a balance in times like this? We've been raising chickens for 10 years and dairy goats for 5 1/2.
Barn contains 16 milkers and five bucks. LOTs of work and hay/grain expense. Will the need for them this winter balance out?
Just wondering what all you livestock folk thought...
Thanks!
Yooper-wife

[Little RedRidingHood]

I tried to hold out with all my mares, foals, stud and riding geldings BUT ... just couldn't do it!
Keep them as long as you can. They will be worth their weight in gold ... soon! Just don't forget to have enough ammo on hand to protect them.
Good luck and I wish I had one of your bucks for my does!

[bgraham]

Hi Yooper.

I also raise dairy goats and chickens. And turkeys and occasionally pigs! lol

The cost for grain is already outrageous. I expect it will only get worse. I would recommend selling 6 - 8 of those milkers and 3 of your bucks. Alot of people who haven't raised animals before are now considering it. Let some of them go to others who will need them. You will save greatly on feed costs and you may need that money.

Are you breeding again right now? If you keep and breed 8 does you'll have approx. 16 babies in about 5 months to use for food/barter. I think it is worth saving on feed and making the extra money right now. Especially when goats can multiply so quickly.

I would can the extra roosters. By can I mean with a pressure canner and put them in the pantry. Then you don't have to worry about having electricity to run the freezer, you don't have to feed them and you have additional food preps. :)

We have some chickens that free range and I don't really feed them. They clean up after the other animals and do fine. Most of my hens, however are in an eggmobile (mobile chicken coop). We use the eggmobile because we have lost quite a few free rangers to predators in the past. Also, it makes it alot easier to find the eggs! We move it every couple of days to fresh grass. We do feed them grain. I really don't have room for anymore right now but I am getting ready to start up the incubator again due to what has been going on.

In the coming months I feel hens will be like gold. They produce eggs, meat and if they free range they can thrive on their own. They are easy to butcher and you can do one at a time so you don't have to find a way to preserve the meat. And they reproduce in just 21 days. All of these things will make them great for bartering.

Good luck!

Beth

[RevDoc]

Personally, I don't plan to get rid of any farm animals this winter.

They are too hard to replace, produce valuable fertilizer, produce, and protein, as well as give me a reason to get out of bed and outside first thing in the morning.

I've traveled and lived all over the world. To most people, money is an unobtainable item...but animals...in the eyes of the world's poor, a glimpse into any of our back yards or barns proves we are rich beyond dreams.

One hesitates to speculate, but if a financial crash occurs in the near future, what would a milk, egg, or meat producing animal really be worth to a family in trade, barter, kind deed, or survival.

No, I believe one would be wise to keep and care through the winter, in these uncertain times, with culling in the spring, when people are rejuvenated.

[Freeholder]

I agree with bgraham. I had a friend talk to me about goats on Saturday -- they have cattle but are going to sell them because they are losing money on them, and she wondered how much time goats required. They haven't had dairy animals before, but with the economy and all that's going on, she said she's thinking it would be a good idea.

The big issue for me right now is my two dogs. I don't really need two of them; one would be plenty. I can manage to feed one on extra rabbits and goat milk, plus an egg once in a while, but am not sure I can manage to feed them both. But it's awfully hard to get rid of a dog you've had for eight years, ever since he was a puppy (the younger female minds me better, and is smaller and needs less food). He's a sweetheart, a good watchdog, and still an intact male (I originally intended to breed him -- he's from working parents). Since most dogs are fixed nowadays, just having him intact could be a good thing as some point.

The rabbits I'm trying to increase. I need to build a few more cages. They can be fed on hand-cut grass and hay, especially if you include plenty of 'good' weeds and don't push for as high of production as when they are on commercial feed.

Kathleen

[Hardpan]

There is no decision that will be completely right, if we knew what the grain market and availability would be that would be a big help. I don't think any one will want to buy milkers until the grass greens up next spring, I think the only market will be for meat in the short run. Next summer if things are bad then people will get more interested in getting a sustainable flock or herd.

We're trying to just hold onto what our place can feed year round without buying hay or too much grain.

[Yooper]

We have a good steady source of nearby hay so we are thankful for that. However, we've had to rethink our breeding program. Normally, we let all the girls dry up by Dec 31 then enjoy the break until they start kidding in March/April.
This year? Things have changed. What we do NOW will affect our food supply in five months (a goat's gestaton). We are staggering breeding so that we will have a continuous supply of milk/cheese/ect. throughout the winter. Hopefully that will provide some barter opportunities!
Thanks all for your advice!
Yooper-wife

[momof23goats]

I am stagger breeding as well, and doing alittle more of it, since clyde one of my bucks, went a calling. but the rest of my breeding won't start until jan. i was going to get rid of some of my goats, but I think we will need them for milk, cheese, butter, so I am not going to get rid of many. I am getting rid of one female, she is a sweetie, but I am going to part with her, and maybe 2 more, I think. `

[Animal Lover]

We are trying to buy a years bulk supply of grain for our daughter's horses asap. She has a good source for excellent hay, but at an extreme price point too. Grain prices are going to up very high very fast we think. If I had a lot of roosters, more than can take care of your chicks, I think I would use them toward other meat, maybe rabbits, geese or pork. Geese are easy keepers too. Good luck everyone. Blessings to all. AL

[LMonty]

breeding goats earlier than I otherwise would have because of my concerns that I want a milk supply this spring.

I already kept one doeling I would otherwise have sold, because she can freshen as a yearling. Two smaller doelings I plan to breed in the spring to freshen in fall, for winter milk if needed. If all goes well, that gives me 5 to freshen this spring.

Have two doelings and a buckling on order for delivery around the holidays. Relatively inexpensive FF babies that have the genetics I want, to keep my gene pool viable.

I did it this way because I'm trying to build a show quality herd that can really put milk in the pail. I can get a decent price for the babies and hopefully pay for the whole project that way-if the market holds up, which I'm beginning to doubt. But my second reason was that if TSHTF, Ive got good producers that will hold up and be valuable because of their production and health, not just their papers or show records.

So I am looking at it both ways- getting rid of any that wont meet those goals, but keeping at least a couple of milkers thru the winter since they will be the most valuable in what they can produce for us, and as barter or sales potentials. We've got enough hay to carry them, but am working on getting grain and alfalfa pellets stock built up.

[Animal Lover]

Try working out your feed with someone who is willing to share costs with you for a share of the eggs, meat, etc. We are glady going to do that. Of course, we want the animals to be well fed and properly cared for. So, it has to be someone you trust to do it correctly. Pay extra as they are doing all the work. (physically we can't do the work anymore, but we used to have the best meat the butcher ever saw). AL

[Yooper]

AL,
Good thoughts. Maybe the days of having a hired farm hand will come back. In our early fifties, we enjoying most of everything ourselves, but it's getting harder every season. Right now, no one wants goat meat and folks still look at us strange when we mention goat milk. It's still all too readily available in the stores. For now.
Yooperwife

[Homesteader1]

We wrestled with this very issue. We downsized our layers due to the lack or eggs sales and the increase in grain costs( after we raised our prices from $1.75 a dozen to $2 per dozen and these are natural raised chickens) So..... we now have enough for us to keep up and still have a few dozen to sell( to loyal customers)

Call us crazy we also dried off our dairy cow, she'd been fresh for 1 yr 8 months and to put the blame somewhere it was I, the full time milker, needed a break for the winter. I froze milk, made cottage cheese and froze, butter and froze and stocked up on powdered milk for baking. We of course miss our fresh milk but will have it again soon enough when our new dairy cow freshens.

Turkeys we hatched two batches and have several sold for Christmas dinners, the hens we'll add to our breeding stock as well as a young tom.

[just me]

We have 3 pigs going to the butcher in Jan (the first butcher date we could get). 1 for us and 2 for other people. We are keeping 2 gilts and probably going to breed them next spring.

Right now we are selling enough eggs to pay for the chicken feed and then some. Everyone else's hens have stopped for the winter it seems, so we are one of the few still getting eggs. I wanted to butcher about 20 chickens, but I can't find anyone to do it - no this is something I cannot do without getting violently sick. I can butcher other things, but not chicken.

We sent one of the calves to the butcher because he kept bloating, so we have lots of hamburger. Next spring I am going to buy a weanling instead of a bottle calf, I think it will be cheaper in the long run. If we could get a milk cow, that would solve our meat calf problem - and we can use the neighbors bull.

We can't get rid of any of the horses - no one wants them, so we are going to feed them. I am going to put my mare down - she hasn't been doing well since she got EPM. We still have 9 horses.

I still want milking goats and a milk cow, but haven't found any that I would pay big bucks for - and everyone wants the big bucks around here.

DD wants to get sheep, but she is waiting until spring now. That will be her project and her cost. She used to raise sheep and misses it. Also her 5 y/o will be joining 4h this year and will need a project.