December 2015 – Small Plot, Big Ideas

Don’t forget the pigs

It’s been a little while since my last update on the progress of the 2 Tamworth gilts that we have kept for breeding. There has been much to learn particularly about feeding and land management because this is the first time we’ve taken on animals all year round.

Even though I’d expected the new pens in the woods to get a bit beaten up, I’d somehow not fully appreciated that they aren’t going to recover until next Spring (at the earliest). It looks like I left it a little too long before moving the pigs to some new ground.

These 2 gilts are the start of our breeding herd and as such will be almost pets because we hope they will be with us for quite some time. The permanent pens that were put up in the woods have been excellent but as noted above it didn’t take long for them to suffer too much wear and tear. As a result I had to subdivide the remaining much larger pen using electric fencing so that the pigs can be moved around a little to rest the ground through the winter.

After looking into the idea of sending the two pigs off to a boar, in the end it made more sense for this first time if we handled everything ourselves. Not least because it reduces the risks associated with mixing our 2 pigs with other pigs elsewhere although the same would have applied if we’d hosted a boar on our land.

Sissy was the first to suffer the indignity of A.I. and after waiting 3 weeks for the natural cycle it became clear that my efforts had been successful.With one of them now in-pig that meant I could turn my attention on Esther next. Following that was another interminable 3 week wait but that’s just finished with all signs indicating a second success.

Fingers crossed now for their farrowing around the end of February and also in March with planning already underway in case the weather is bad at that point and they need to farrow inside. If all goes well then we hope to have pedigree Tamworth weaners for sale around April or May 2016

First calving for the Dexters

Last Tuesday and a little ahead of schedule, the first Dexter (Nellie) started showing what looked to be signs of impending calving – she kept herself separate in a far corner of the field and was walking a bit like John Wayne or Gary Cooper in those old westerns.

There was little change or progress by the time it got dark but after our evening meal it was decided that a final check was definitely in order. This time I was greeted by a welcome sight through the dark and rainy night when I saw an extra pair of eyes reflecting in the torch-light from the back of the field – this new pair were considerably nearer the ground than the two larger pair of eyes.

Over the next 2-3 days much time was spent getting used to the new arrival and dealing with all the necessary government officialdom which comes with owning cattle. Finally I got myself organised and grabbed the calf into our small trailer so that I could check it over and apply the required ear tags.

On closer inspection while he was in the trailer (even to my untrained eye) it was clear that this is a bull calf and he seems to be really healthy. For the record, his name is OSCAR and even over this short period he has become much more mobile and active as well as very inquisitive.

One major task for the coming months is to make sure that, like his mother, he gets used to people being around so that the routine work can be handled safely and easily. Unfortunately the next big event on his calendar will be castration and disbudding but these are essential for the safety of both us and all the cattle.

These are full pedigree Dexter cattle so I still have to complete the registration with the breed society but that is just a matter of some online form filling and sending in some paperwork. Although the Dexter is no longer officially a rare breed, I like the fact that as with our pedigree Tamworth pigs, they are properly registered and in addition we can always get the support of the breed society.

In the meantime I mustn’t forget that the second cow (Daisy) is still to calf, currently expected to be around the end of January. She’s already showing some good signs for motherhood by helping to protect the new youngster when any strangers turn up. However when it’s just me around then she’s a proper softy with a real fondness for licking the pig feed residue off my gloves!

Luckily the winter feeding for the cattle shouldn’t be a problem as a neighbouring farmer takes the contents of our meadows each year and was quite happy to bring over a bale on request. Dexters are a small, hardy native breed so they don’t eat as much as the larger continental breeds of cattle but even better they certainly don’t need extra veterinary care, medicines or growth hormones. All they need is a good supply of grass (in any form) with water freely available and they seem really happy.

The first bale of silage took them almost 4 weeks to get through and the second bale has only just been delivered so the cupboard is now stocked through into January – not much of a Christmas meal in my opinion but they seem to like it a lot!

A stormy 24 hours

As luck would have it, a windy hill-top is a better bet than many other places when some stormy weather comes through. There has been some dramatic news coverage on the TV and the local newspaper website from places further to the west of us which puts everything into perspective.

It turns out that I’ve drawn the short straw when it comes to looking after the livestock though, whatever the weather. However it’s all a matter of wearing the right clothing to suit the conditions and I’d worry about them if I didn’t check so I really don’t mind. Many others have much bigger things to worry about right now with flooding so I remind myself to be grateful that I just have to deal with some wind, rain and mud.

The heavy rain over the last 24 hours or so means that the field drainage has being tested a little beyond its limits but in the grand scheme of things I think we’re getting off very lightly. Yesterday the water was coming on to our land faster that the drains could take it away but the balance is shifting this morning and the water levels are slowly falling again now.

Surprisingly enough given that the wind was supposedly gusting at 70mph or more yesterday, there has been relatively little damage on our little patch. The majority of the problems have been a range of small(ish) branches blown down and in places these have inflicted very minor damage to some permanent fences.

Even the fairly new electric fencing I put has been a bit battered but it was easily fixed this morning and the pigs have already learned to be wary of it so they didn’t notice that a section was completely out of action overnight.

Planning ahead makes all the difference though and, having moved the cows into the most sheltered field in advance of the bad weather, there was no danger to anyone when a 50-60ft tree came down in another field and took out a small section of the dry stone wall.

Free firewood and stone walling practice

I just need to get the chainsaw sharpened and enjoy a quiet, rain-free day by making a start on the free firewood for next winter. Repairing the stone wall will have to be done before the cows can return to this field but I’ll take my time and try to do a good job!