Boomer
The old man of the farm is Boomer. He is an 11 year-old baby who loves to pee in the puddle he drinks from. He is part dog, part horse. Boomer will eat anything you give him and if we got a nickel for every time he had to go pee in the middle of the night, we could buy a new tractor.
Alex found Boomer as a puppy on the side of the road, abandoned in a cardboard box. Boomer is Alex’s dog from growing up on the farm, but when I joined the family, he quickly adopted me as his new owner.
Boomer is my garden buddy. He follows me out to my raised beds and barks constantly for more garden snacks. He sure loves his vegetables!
Boomer is known for being an anomaly. He once ate a broken jar of spaghetti sauce. All he left behind was the lid with shards of glass still attached. Glass and all, the floor was licked clean.
He also likes to eat tin foil and cardboard – anything that might have a hint of flavor. Boomer even managed to eat a black garbage bag and when it finally passed through him he barked and growled at it once it was out – like it was the bags fault….
If we can’t find Boomer, chances are he is eating manure out in the fields (and rolling in it) or stealing rotten produce off the compost pile. Despite his smelly, doggy habits, we love him so very much. Boomer was the first dog that loved me unconditionally and in return he is loved and spoiled with belly rubs and treats.
Trixie
Trixie is our three-legged, three year-old Shepherd Lab mix.
We bought a four-legged Trixie from the animal shelter, but after getting hit by a vehicle, she had to have her front leg amputated as a result of nerve damage. The limp paw constantly had an open sore from dragging on the ground.
I think she has gotten faster after the surgery. Having only three legs has not slowed her down at all.
Trixie was in a shelter for all of her early puppy years so she was used to playing by herself – she still occasionally throws her own ball in the air to catch.
Like her older brother, Boomer, Trixie has gotten into a fair amount of trouble. She likes to eat brand new fishing tackle – hooks, lures, and sinkers still in their packaging. She somehow has managed to open up Alex’s tackle box. Got any new sponges laying around? Trixie will gladly eat those too. Packaging and all.
I knew when I picked Trixie up from the shelter that she did not like cats. Bringing her home that day, it was difficult to get her past the meowing, furry creatures without her lunging at their cages. But we didn’t have any cats and we weren’t planning on getting any. So, this wasn’t going to be an issue… until there was a stray kitten outside. Trixie saw the kitten from inside and ran through the window, breaking it into pieces.
When I go out to the garden, Trixie isn’t too far behind me. Her role is to attack the water coming out of the spray nozzle when I try to water my plants.
With impeccable eyesight, Trixie can spot a deer or a bunny way off in the distance in the dark of the night. She bolts fast to protect us and our property.
When she notices we are about to go outside, she whines and runs in circles by the front door. She waits for us to open the door so she can quickly take her place by the old house – waiting for the reflection to run across the ground from the sun hitting the door just right.
She knows that the swallows live under the eaves of the garage and runs over there to scare them out of their nest. They fly away and she chases – not the birds, but the shadows they make on the ground.
Trixie is a special one, but she is our baby.
The Heart of the Homestead
Our family milk cow, Joy, is truly the heart of the homestead.
Her milk gives life to our family and to the other farm animals. She is the greatest blessing here on the farm.
Joy filled a void in my heart, as I was needing a little more happiness in my life. A simple three-letter word, “JOY,” was my main focus for the past two years. Having this one word to focus on, I was able to think more positively and appreciate the little, (and big) joyful moments every day. When I came across a family milk cow for sale and I saw her name was Joy, I knew instantly she was meant to come home with us.
Joy is a registered Jersey that was previously a show cow handled by kids. She is great on the halter and lead when she isn’t being too sassy. When she wants to be, Joy is about as stubborn as Alex and I.
Miss Joy is more than a cow. She is basically a big puppy dog. A companion. A best friend.
She came to us on her fifth lactation and calved a beautiful Jersey heifer calf, Jane, on July 3rd, 2021. Our plan for Jane is to raise her up here on the homestead as another milk cow for us.
Jane is growing up quickly and is full of curiosity. She loves to watch the chickens roam the yard and has a fascination with Trixie, who isn’t so sure about being close to the cows.
A Spontaneous Decision
We stumbled across an inexpensive Jersey cow for sale at the end of August and we quickly snatched her up, without even thinking about it.
It was the best decision ever.
When searching for a family milk cow, you should never settle for a “cheap” cow, but this purchase seemed so right and having some experience with Joy, I knew what to look for when buying a new cow.
We definitely were not seeking out to add another family milk cow to our farm. Just four months prior, we bought Joy, our first milk cow. Before that, having our own family milk cow was just a thought, an idea, a dream for us. And now we have two.
We are so blessed.
The first time milking her, we didn’t know what to expect since she was so timid when we first met her. But she was a champ at milking! No shuffling around or kicking. She is better at this whole milking thing than Joy is, and I didn’t think that was possible.
The first week on the farm, she kept getting out of the fence – there was a section that we later found out wasn’t electrified. She would stay in the yard, grazing the fresh grass or she would be out in the field and would come running when we called her in the morning for milking. She was our free-range cow for awhile. This sweet cow is even potty-trained – waiting until she is out of the parlor to do her business. Seriously… Best. Cow. Ever.
Since she was raised by the Amish, we named her Sarah – a common Amish name. One that means “princess.” This girl has horns for her crown.
Sarah is a beautiful addition to the homestead. She was used to the simple life of the Amish and when she was bought and transported to a dairy farm with 200+ cows, she didn’t fit in. She needed a more relaxed atmosphere. I hope she feels at home now with us to show her all the love and attention she deserves.
Sarah might just be my favorite cow ever (shhh, don’t tell Joy). I have a fascination (obsession, maybe) for the Amish and Mennonite communities so I may be a little biased towards her over Joy, but Sarah truly is easier to milk – both by hand and with the milker.
My heart is so happy – a piece of the Amish has joined our homestead.
The Hereford Herd
Shortly after getting Joy, we ventured out to Wisconsin to pick up two Hereford mamas.
Bell and Alma are purebred Herefords and came to the homestead VERY pregnant. Alma had a bull calf, Django, on May 20th, just three days after bringing the new cows home. Bell also had a bull calf, Taco, who was born on May 26th.
Starting our own beef herd here on the farm is an exciting adventure.
In August, we added two more to the herd, Ruby & Opal, both heifers that were exposed to a bull, but were later found to not be pregnant.
Opal has the strangest markings on her face – she has patches of red under both of her eyes. She is always going to look tired with her “dark circles.”
Alma, the herd leader and mother to all, was not happy when the new girls showed up. A couple hours of chasing them around and she settled down though.
Idaho Pasture Pigs
We added four Idaho Pasture Pigs to the homestead – Pork Chop, Pancake, Peaches, and Pepper.
Idaho Pasture Pigs were bred from the Kune Kune, Duroc and Old Berkshire breeds. They were developed to be true grass grazing pigs. We chose the Idaho Pasture Pig breed because of their gentle nature, compact size, adaptability to changing weather, and ability to grow on a diet of nearly 100% grass.
They are growing up fast on pasture and raw milk. We hope to get into breeding our own pigs and raising and selling farm fresh, organically-raised, pastured pork.
Poultry
I wanted chickens. Alex wanted ducks. We compromised and got both.
We currently have a dozen ducks that comprise of the following breeds:
- Buff
- Black Swedish
- Fawn & White Runner
- Pekin
- Rouen
- Silver Appleyard
Three ducks were lucky enough to get named.
James is our one and only runner duck, He is tall, handsome, and proper.
Giro is our male Black Swedish duck who is blind. He spins in circles and is the only duck easy to catch and snuggle with – this may be the only thing keeping him from becoming dinner.
Grandpa Munster is a male Pekin who has wry neck – a condition that hinders him from holding his head up fully on his own.
We have so many chickens that I don’t even know how many are roaming around (and I probably won’t be able to tell if a predator steals one or two). I wanted a variety of different breeds to have a colorful flock and a colorful egg basket. And when the minimum order per breed is five… that’s why we have so many. Along with having 25 Rudd Ranger meat birds, we have the following chicken breeds on the farm:
- Bielefelder
- Black Sex Link
- Buckeye
- Calico Princess
- Dominique
- Gold Laced Wyandotte
- Midnight Majesty Maran
- Olive Egger
- Silver Laced Wyandotte
- Sapphire Gem
- Speckled Sussex
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