Luke and Samantha get new room mates

Dave got quite the surprise this morning when he took milk out to Luke and Samantha.  As he was pouring the milk in their bowl he looked in the back of their hut and saw big yellow eyes.  He looked again and saw that it was Onix, our pregnant barn cat, no longer pregnant with a ball of kittens. 

Dave came in to tell me that the two pregnant pigs we are waiting to have piglets had not had their litters but there was new life on the farm.  I immediately guessed that we had the kittens we have been awaiting.  He told me to guess where she had them.  I guessed a pig pen and he told me in the back of Luke and Samantha's hut.

We went outside to count the kittens and take pictures of them.  Luke and Samantha were lying right in front of mama cat and her new litter.  Mama was quite friendly, letting us pet her as she purred away.  The kittens all seem to be in good health.

Mama (Onix) and the father, Carmel are now proud parents of 7 new kittens.  Carmel is long haired and orange so I have been hoping for some calico kittens and it appears that I have gotten my wish. 

This Rain Needs to STOP

The rain is steadily falling and the pigs are all staying in their huts.  The property looks like one big mud pit.  In places the grass seed is coming in.  Hopefully when this rain is finished with us we will be able to move the pigs around to new clean pens.

When you come for customer appreciation day please do not where good clothes or sandals.  Nothing you care if it gets dirty.  Dirt and pig farm kind of go hand in hand.

Today we have someone coming out to price grading and stoning many places that have been rutted and ripped up this winter.

The work around here is never done and the rain is putting a damper on getting everything cleaned up before May 7. 

Our New Truck is Coming

Thanks to Rick Bayless and the Frontera Grant we are getting a new (used) and as you can see much larger truck.  We are going to be able to add upright freezers inside this truck so that we can be more organized and find items much quicker.  As many of you know having only the 2 1/2 chest freezers some items could take us quite a bit of time to find because inevitably what anyone wanted would be at the bottom.

Now we will be organized and be able to see what we do and do not have on the truck for easier restocking.  I spent a lot of time looking for a vehicle with the step down curb side door just like this to also make our lives easier for getting in and out of the vehicle.  We will also be able to stand up straight.  That in itself is a major plus. 

We will continue to use the van at our "smaller" markets but for markets like Lincoln Square and Andersonville where no matter how much we stock on the van we would run out of many items we will be using the bigger truck.

We are excited to be able to serve you better and faster this coming market season.

I will be flying to Columbus Ohio next Friday, April 29 to pick up our new truck. 

Clean Bill of Health

Let me start by saying that I apologize for the delay since my last post.  I have been sick for the past 5 days and just haven't felt like doing anything not 100% necessary.  Sorry!

Frankie (Franklin's son) got his stitches out today and received a clean bill of heath.  He is getting bigger by the day.  With piglets you can literally sit and watch them grow.  We brought another piglet in the house basically to keep him company but he did have an open cut on his foot so he is better off.  His little friends name is Lil John.  Yes, after the rapper that is on Celebrity Apprentice.  We are really scrapping for names these days so if you have any suggestions we are open to them.

At any rate, Frankie and I went to the vet today (an actual vet trip that cost me no money) where he to ooohed and aaahed over.  A little boy was enthralled with him.  An older couple couldn't believe it was a "real" pig, not a pot belly pig.  At 5 lbs now it is hard to believe that in a short period of time he will be over 300 lbs and ready to breed.  He got an ointment to soften up the scar but other then that he should be ready to go outside by Saturday. 

I have to tell you that I am really looking forward to having no piglets in the house for a while.

The Vet Gets More Money

Yesterday afternoon while I was at Andersonville I got a phone call from Dave on the farm.  He informs me that there is a new piglet in my office.  This little guy is one of 13 to a 3rd time mother.  He is also a Franklin baby.

In case you don't remember Franklin was one of Stinker Thinkers babies.  He was stepped on by Stinker and had to get stitches on his side.  Franklin is no longer with us but his legacy continues on.

Dave tells me that the baby was stepped on and you could see his guts.  I am thinking that this is not good and doesn't sound to me like he is going to make it.  This just goes to show that the guys should never try to describe the problem over the phone to me.

This morning I took our little friend to the vet.  It was not his intestines that Dave was seeing, it was mussel.  The little guy got stitched up and is doing very well.  He is set up in my office away from the other two, Luke and Samantha who are in the living room.  He is readily drinking goats milk from a bowl and enjoying the pillow he has to sleep on under the heat lamp. 

The vet has gotten to the point they don't even laugh at me anymore.  They have accepted that we are never going to be the "normal" hog farmer that would have hit him in the head with a hammer and disposed of his body.  They know that we are going to do whatever we can to save every one of these little guys.

That is why we are now Animal Welfare Approved!

The Morel Dilemma of Factory Farming

The Morel Dilemma of Factory Farming

Posted On: March 24, 2011

• Church Life

On Sunday, April 3, Mr. Gene Baur will speak at the worship service about the mission of Farm Sanctuary. Mr. Baue co-founded the Farm   Sanctuary in 1986 to combat the abuses of factory farming and to encourage a new awareness and understanding about "farm panimals."  Farm Sanctuary has grown to become the nation's leading farm animal  protection organization committed to ending cruelty to farm animals and  promoting compassionate living through rescue, education and  advocacy efforts.
On April 4, Mr. Baur will speak at Northwestern University School of Law. The event, which is sponsored by the Student Animal Legal Defense Fund and part of a week-long series of animal law programs, will take place from noon to 1:30 p.m. at Northwestern University
School  of Law in Rubloff (RB) Room 150 (located at 375 East Chicago Avenue.) This talk is free and open to the public. Gene will also be on hand to sign copies of his national best-seller, Farm Sanctuary: Changing Hearts and Minds About Animals and Food.