Natural Animal Care It's All On You.

Lucy sleeping while getting a pedicure.
​December 2016

 Here on our farm we try very hard to be as natural as possible.  Most of our effort goes into preventative care, in the hopes of insuring natural products and animals. The number one lesson any new farmer needs to understand is clean is healthy. Your pens, houses, pastures, coops, feeders, and waterers must be maintained daily for good animal health.  Clean houses, pens, and coops help fight disease, parasites, and infections.  Making sure not only they are clean but properly vented, built well, and given prior thought to design will go along way to insuring healthy happy animals.  A poorly built or designed structure can add to higher infection rates.  By not considering space per animal and proper ventilation one will add risk of respiratory and parasite infections.  We have found weekly exams of our facilities has helped immensely in fighting against illness and injury.  We walk through the pastures looking for any down trees, rubbish, or fence repairs.  Check each structure for any needed repairs lose boards, screws, or nails popping.  Anything that may cause injury.  Check all feeders and waterers weekly to maintain repairs or replacements as needed.  The feeders and waterers are scrubbed and disinfected at this time to maintain cleanliness.  All the housing is cleaned daily here from simple pooper scooper sessions to new straw and bedding as needed.  Fresh feed and water is given daily or more often if needed.  We check all the animals three times a day for water, food, or attention needs.  The goats and cow are brushed out daily, hooves checked and maintained monthly, vaccines given annually or as needed.  The chickens and ducks are looked over and accounted for each evening.   Our poultry is given apple cider vinegar, probiotics, DE and electrolytes for over all health.  In the rare occasion an animal gets sick enough for antibiotics, they are officially retired from producing any future food products, they live out their lives as beloved pet.  We are strong believers in knowing your animals, we know instantly when someone is not feeling or acting right.  We have Dr. Dean on call ready to head out when needed.  If you don't have the time to maintain a healthy clean farm you should either downsize your animals or higher help.  Never stop learning better ways to manage and care for your animals they deserve it.