Categories: From the Farm This Week
      Date: Jan 21, 2011
     Title: 21 January 2011

The starlings are forming flocks early this year must be the dry weather. We like starlings because they are the best thing to combat grass grub.

At the start the week we had a visit from the international poultry judge Ian Selby to have a look at the rarebreed poultry and try and get some into the NZ standard. It was a good visit and Ian is always good to talk to.

I have been on the road delivering sheep and pigs for the market.So next week we will have lamb sausage and nitrite free bacon.

Its maintenance time... we are fixing the sheep and cattle yards new rails and gates smashed over the season. Samuel is still working for the next door farmer so its been Ruth Ila and I. Ila has been Nagging me to finish the back pen of the cattle yards so she can put her lawn mowing pet sheep away. That was completed today. Ilas pet sheep is called Mr Armond not sure why she called him that. He is a male Egyptian sheep and as a ram was a real pain in the butt. So I castrated him now he is the best pet ever. There is a message there for someone.

As well as carting to the abattoir i had to take some stud rarebreed pigs to Fielding to meet a truck to cart European wild pigs and Wessex saddle backs to the South Island.
Good to get another breeder, the Saddle backs are going for a new freerange outdoor venture. The Euros to an established breeder.

Talking of pigs i got the oil on those last two pigs yesterday, no way would they come near me so i missed the morning feed and in the afternoon put a stock crate with the door open on a long string put the feed inside and walked away. In they went bang went the door and on with the oil. The two best oiled pigs on the farm. Don't know how i will go in 3 weeks when i do them again to break the egg cycle.
Each day we trim 2 or 3 donkeys feet - any more and my back goes.

My Austin Gipsy is in town at the mechanics. Drove it in last week for its yearly spruce up, tune, oil change, needed a new water pump. Picked it up late at night only got as far as Toko and it seized - a water pipe had come off and all the water was gone. Totally cooked it. I was gutted as it had only done 60,000 miles and was a new vehicle in miles not age (near 50). Anyway now its back for a rebuild no charge. I am missing it as its our main farm vehicle, use it for everything. O well back next week i hope.

Talking of cars Samuel has had me looking at all sorts for him. Man there is some junk out there - lowered this, speedy that boom boxes big noisy exhausts NO NO
I think we will have to get a better one and put some money in so we can all use it.

See ya Sunday at the Farmers market, John.