I'm not sure if there are any of you out there but I was looking to commiserate over how much farming sucks in the winter lol. Yesterday as I'm fighting frozen hoses, ice, a crabby 15 month old, my own pregnant body and a slew of very impatient cows all I could think was why isn't winter over yet!! And why do farm animals drink 10 times as much water in the winter! Ugh, I can't wait for warm weather. I'll take the flies over freezing any day! Can you relate?
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We farm but we don't have animals. I couldn't imagine having to be outside in this.
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I am not a farmer or even live on a farm but I just wanted to say I hope it doesn't stay too frozen for you. I am not a fan of winter weather either.
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If possible I would hire a helper. Maybe some high school student near by who would be willing to help out for a few extra bucks a week. That is if they aren't already to busy helping out on their own farm... I know how that all goes. I grew up in a farming community and EVERYONE had chores to do. Good luck Momma!
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Don't know where you're at, but I can relate! My hubby and I don't farm for a living, but we do own about 40 acres with cattle and goats so lots of things to do. We just moved hay the other day and even a simple task like that was hard to do in the freezing cold!!
Does your farm have a pond?
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@Sugar.Biscuit: I wish we could, but it isn't likely. We do have the help of my parents for morning chores which is major, but of course I'm complaining about afternoon chores which I do by myself (well with DS, but he isn't much help just yet)
@Alivoo01: Everything takes so much more effort when it is cold! We don't have a pond unfortunately. We do have a swamp that the cows will drink from in the summer if we aren't having a dry spell, but for the most part it's water troughs and hoses...or (don't remind me...) buckets once the hoses get to be too frozen or someone forgets to drain them good. For the chickens we haul buckets of water but thankfully they don't drink nearly as much!
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We have hogs (well, we rent out our barn and Mr. T/FIL do chores). Mr. T missed several outings lately due to having feed lines go down. The barn is enclosed, so that's nice, and there are waterers, which is nice, too, but we can still relate. The upkeep on the yard is brutal in winter. I was just wondering how many hours Mr. T spends driving tractor to move all the snow. Plus there are several people in town that depend on him to come blow them out (like his uncle). Most of them live on farm sites, as well, but don't farm, so there's a buttload of snow to move and they don't have the equipment. Maybe if we sign some sort of petition it can be spring already? I love sledding, but I've done it a handful of times, so winter can be done.
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@Beyond2: Booo on having to haul water. This would be a job for the spring, but what about installing pvc pipes that carry water to various troughs with open/close valves? Not sure how your farm is sectioned off (or if at all) so it'll take some logistic planning.
We section ours off to keep the heifers and bulls apart when they're in heat or to monitor the pregnant ones closely, etc. When we section them off, they don't have access to the pond and the water line is a lifesaver from having to haul buckets of water. Of course, it doesn't work too well if the pipes are frozen, but in the summer. Oh man! So much easier because it gets up to like 120 here!
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@Alivoo01: We don't have anything that permanent installed because we move pens and what not depending on our needs at the time but in the summer we have a system of floats and hoses and are a godsend
Unfortunately our temperatures usually hit freezing from October to May so it really limits the amount of time we can use them. It sounds like we have a similar set up though We have the cows and calves sectioned off in one area and our steers and bulls sectioned in another. We've pulled everyone off the pasture this fall so they don't ruin the grass in the early spring once mud season arrives. Not that they mind. Once that grass is gone our lazy cows don't leave the round bale feeder! I swear they just poop in a giant ring around those lol. I guess it makes cleaning manure easier though
Unfortunately our temperatures usually hit freezing from October to May so it really limits the amount of time we can use them. It sounds like we have a similar set up though Reply
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8 comments