Buyers Letter

Part of getting ready for fair is writing a “Buyers Letter”.  It is a hated job but it is to attract interest in your animal.  After much grumbling from Teen Son and threats from Mean Mom, Darling Husband even had to step in and became Lay The Law Down Dad.  And the Buyers Letter was done. 

                                Fed grain ↑                                        Fed fodder ↑

My name is Teen Son (16) of FFA and I am raising two sheep for this year’s County Fair on completely different feeds. One sheep, Oh-bla-di, is feed the normal Show Maker Lamb Slam found in almost any feed store. However, as an experiment, Oh-bla-da (a twin to Oh-bla-di for optimal test results), is fed with something quite different entirely.  It’s called fodder, grown on our property in a 40ft cargo container set up specifically for growing fodder. The simple process starts with soaking seeds (barley seeds in our case) for 12 hours, then spreading them out on plastic trays, with holes in the bottom so water can flow through, and placing them on racks. After being watered there for about 5 days, the seeds grow into grass.  At this point we rip the fodder up into pieces small enough for our cows to handle and feed it to them. One tray of fodder is set aside for Oh-bla-da, ripped up into slightly smaller pieces and then fed to him with a handful of Alfalfa hay. Meanwhile, Oh-bla-di is fed the usual grain and hay.  Also, my Fair sheep, along with our other sheep, get to free range our 17 acres during the day, eating naturally as sheep should while gaining added exercise and muscle tone. All while being carefully watched by the dogs that protect them from dangers such as coyotes.

Free ranging sheep

  

                   

The Fodder Racks       Good daily crop        Top row for final day

When I bought these two sheep from my breeder, they were only five pounds apart, and otherwise identical. As of now, Oh-bla-di (being fed average grain) seems more muscular while Oh-bla-da (fed fodder) seems to be a little more round in his stomach area. Both are very energetic and are seen running, jumping and skipping quite often. I can hardly wait to see what their differences will be when the Fair comes around and I greatly hope, when sold, they go to the same people so I might get some feedback on whose meat was better. As you can see from the attached page, I pay about four times more to feed Oh-bla-di grain as Oh-bla-da’s fodder diet even if it does take a little more work. This could possibly be the future of feeding live stock both more efficiently and economically. It all rides on Auction Day, June 5, 2014, to see if it was all worth it and if fodder could be the key to less expensive and tastier meat for all.

Two Sheep, Two Feeds

Sheep, two triplets:       Oh-bla-di            Oh-bla-da

Feeds:                   Store bought Grain      Home grown Fodder

 Crude Protein:   17.7%                                      20.2%

Crude Fat:           4.2%                              4.3%

Crude Fiber:                  5.5%                              11.3%

Ash:                      7.2%                              N/A

Calcium:              .192%-1.3%                            .15%

50lbs bag=$20     50lbs cost $15.

50lbs=9.5 days     50 lbs of seed = 30 trays        

5 1/4lbs per day   1 tray per day

1.5 lbs of seed per day

$2 per day of feed         $.50 per day for fee

    

If a thousand sheep are needed to be fed, and you had the option of two thousand or five hundred dollars a day, which would you choose? Say you feed them strictly on these substances for a year. That’s an option of $730,000 or $182,500; a possible savings of $547,500 or being able to raise an extra 3,000 sheep that year.

For more information about fodder please visit: http://www.foddersolutions.net/. Want to know more about our ranch? Visit the blog at 

I am very proud of the finished product.  He worked very hard on it and it couldn't have been easy because Darling Husband and I kept giving him different advice.  I had trouble transferring it over to the blog so his letter is much better.  

Fillet

Fillet last Christmas.

We picked up the meat from Fillet, the first Dexter Steer we have butchered.  This is the steer I was worried about not being properly neutered so we had him butchered before he would have hit maturity, he was smaller than I wanted him to be but I felt it was time.  I had sold 3 friends ¼ his meat each and have us keep.  A week before we were to pick up the beef one of our friends realized he didn’t have enough freezer space and backed out.  That shouldn’t have been a problem because we had turned friends down of Fillet’s beef.  Darling Husband forgot to check with the closest friend that we had turned down so as I was dividing up the beef Darling Husband was making phone calls.  I had planned on 75 pounds of beef going into our freezer not 150 so I didn’t want to keep extra.  One friend came and picked up her 75 pounds and I delivered another 75 to a friend and we loaded an ice chest with the rest hoping for the best.  Yay it sold! 

Here is the break down on Fillet: We sold 225 pounds of grass fed Dexter beef at $5 a pound we earned $1125.  Purchase price is $500 + $533 for butchering and processing = $1033.  We came out $90 ahead and have 75 pounds in our freezer, except we fed him twice a day ($50 about month + $25 a month for fodder) , wormed him every 6 months kept him in water, fixed the holes in the fence he caused, hired someone to feed him when we were gone.  So I paid a little over $1000 or $13 a pound for my 75 pounds.  

Once again I am not being a successful farmer dollar wise. 

Fillet last month - he is furthest from the truck.

BUT the rewards of knowing we are eating healthy beef who lived a pretty happy life are priceless. 

Teaching my children the lessons and values we are learning by raising our own beef – also priceless. 

Hopefully as we continue our adventure we will have fenced our last pasture, be able to grow more fodder, possibly increase our cost per pound, and have a better system.  We are planning to butcher Minion in the spring he should be much bigger than Fillet was.

We had a chuck steak that we were eager to eat and so I only marinated it for about 45 minutes and it was the best steak I have ever eaten!  

Stick boy was full of questions for the butcher.

The Birds

Palm, Laurel, Hardy, and a Stooge

It has been a long time since I sat down long enough to give an update.  We were given the opportunity to purchase our neighbors house.  I had hoped to get it and keep it as a rental but it has turned out to be way too expensive for us to keep.  Buying it has allowed us to take care of some drainage problems it has that leads to drainage problems for our property.  It has been a lot of work but it will be worth it every time it rains. 

I will try to update you on all the animals as quickly as I can. 

Palm trying to impress the new ladies.  The Shrew told him she was not interested and to stay away from her and Tomas.  

Las time I wrote we had 1 Tom turkey, Palm was hopefully a girl, we had the 2 turkey hens, and four babies.  All the baby turkeys died; 2 died in their box, 1 ran off and we couldn’t find it, 1 went in to the roosters pen and was killed.  While we were fixing our Flip House we forgot to lock up Dakota and he broke out of the house.  He killed one of the turkey hens and one of the chickens.  A few weeks later a coyote got the other turkey hen.  So we were left with just Palm and Tomas.  Palm is looking like he is a boy but Palm still has not started getting any black marks on his feathers so I am starting to think he may be a different breed than the Royal Palm.  We were looking new turkey hens but it took a while to find some close. 

Tomas strutting his stuff.

 We found 2 mixed breed hens.  We brought home Lolita and The Shrew.  They are 1 year old and we are getting an egg about every other day from them.  I have made some awesome scrambles! 

The chickens stealing fodder.

Most days all the birds roam free so often we find eggs in unexpected places.  Letting the birds free range has cut down on our bug population.  I had hoped they would break up more of the sheep and cattle poop but so far they are not going into the cattle pasture unless they are stealing fodder in the morning.  

Fodder and H2O2

I love H2O2 or food grade hydrogen peroxide!  As soon as weather warmed up I started fighting mold.  I tried fans, bleach in the water and still mold problems.  Currently there is no way for me to a/c my fodder room.  Then I remembered when I first joined a fodder discussion board on Facebook they were talking about H202 and ordered it.  I have been using 4 drops in my soak water and 1 drop in each tray of seeds once a day.  Twice during this time the door to the fodder room has been closed so the air couldn't circulate causing the room to get over 100 one day and high 90's another and still no mold.

I apologize for no pictures.  My husband took the new camera on a kayak trip.   

Where Is My Phone

It has been Spring Break here so the kids and I have no school or work.  It has been very nice.  I have been letting the kids sleep in.  Dakota and I go take care of the chickens, turkeys, and fodder.  It is not easy to be around the birds with my dog but he gets a nice walk and time with me.  Then I go back into the house to get at least one child to help with sheep.   The new sheep are not easy to care for yet.  The first 5 sheep are easier but still little buggers.  I occasionally get knocked over or a sheep runs off while we move them from the night area or day area.  Some days this week I have done the cattle by myself some days I do it with the kids.  Most mornings I have been doing the animals in the morning in my pajamas because of getting so dirty especially IF we are going to something where I dress nicely.

Friday, I wanted to have a fun family day.  Thursday night Stick Boy was up all night coughing so I wanted to let the kids sleep.  I don’t have any pockets in my PJ pants so I grabbed a shirt with a breast pocket and put my phone in it in case the kids woke up and had a problem they could call me.  I let the chickens out, let the turkeys out, got the fodder, put Dakota back in the house, and fed the cattle.  I woke up Teen Son and Pre Teen Daughter so they could help with the sheep.  As we finished moving the sheep, Tomas and Butterball came walking down to watch what we were doing.  I reached into my pocket for my phone to take a picture and NO PHONE! 

I ran around all the places I had been in the morning except the cattle pasture hoping it wasn’t in there.  NO LUCK

Pre Teen Daughter and I start walking through the pasture.  We can’t find it.  I ask Teen Son to call me and we hear the ring tone very faintly.  Pre Teen Daughter walks up to Onyx and pushes her back a little (yes Onyx is gentle enough my 76 lb daughter can push her around) and there is my phone.  Slightly scratched up but mostly useable.  

Loving Spring

This week has been exceptionally warm.  The fodder sprouting beautifully, when we had the cold weather it was slow to sprout.  The turkeys love the fodder. 

The baby chickens are getting along wonderfully we have taken out the screen that divides them.  We have put the cage that holds the chickens inside the chicken coop that has the roosters in it.  Hopefully all the chickens will get used to each other and be able to be in one pen.

The cattle are in a pasture with a lot of grass in it right now but I am still giving them some fodder and hay to help the pasture last longer.  All the cattle except Onyx, our old Lowline Angus girl have been eating the fodder for weeks.  This week even in a pasture with a lot of grass Onyx started eating the fodder. 

The sheep are in an area with lush green grass and they don’t eat the hay or fodder we give them at night when we put them in their coyote proof enclosure. 

Life is beautiful in our corner of the world.  

I need to remember to reflect and be thankful. 

Fodder Room Part 2

Yes, these doors are nicer than the ones we have for my house.

Darling Husband put two vents in the cargo container’s roof and pulled off the doors and put in glass doors to let the sunlight in. 

We put foam with a reflective covering to protect the wall.  We made a pool out of 2x6’s and pond liner under the shelves.  Then we put together the shelves and put the fodder trays on them.  We have increased fodder production to 4 trays a day.

While Darling Husband and I were working on the Fodder Room; Stick Boy and Teen Son were tearing down a huge cactus that is taking over the next pasture we want to fence. 

Darling Husband put a sprinkler system to spray on the top trays then the water will drip through all the trays and into the pool at the bottom.  Eventually I will have a timer and an automatic system but for now I am turning on the water for about 10 minutes 3 or 4 times a day.  

Fodder Room Part 1

Darling Husband has a Bargain Finder Friend.  BFF found a couple cargo containers on a property that was being sold that needed to be moved before Christmas.  He wanted one and we would get the other.  We decided ½ of our cargo containers would be my Fodder Room.  The owner of the property was having emotional problems with cleaning the property the cargo containers were stuck in dirt behind a bunch of trees that needed to be trimmed to get them out.  We found a transport company to move the containers that would give us a great deal IF we got the cargo containers to the dirt road.  The DH and BFF trimmed the trees the end of December but the owner hadn’t finished cleaning the containers out.  Then the rains hit as the owner finished cleaning out the containers so they sunk a little deeper in the mud.  The guys used our forklift to lift the first cargo container onto short telephone poles and rolled it out of the mud (I am very sorry I wasn’t allowed to watch this and take pictures) and onto the dirt road.  They go back to lift the second container and it is stuck in the mud they keep trying and blow the seal on the forklift.  Now the company we hired to move the cargo containers had to bring something to lift the second container.  The price for moving the containers went way up and we had to wait until they have a weekday that works for them.  Darling Husband got a call at work saying “do it now” or we have to wait 3 weeks.  So DH took a day off of work to help move the containers.  We had graded a road to make it easier for the delivery of our container but Bargain Finder Friend didn’t realize how much the truck delivering the container would weigh and it started to sink in the mud.  So they dropped off the container left Darling Husband and Bargain Finder Friend to figure out how to get it into place.  DH and BFF then had to fix the forklift so they could move BFF’s container where they wanted it.