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TOO Projects Thread

bowhunter1023

Owner/Operator
Staff member
48,879
274
Appalachia
My projects list is a MILE long right now, but I have a couple clear priorities: dog kennel and living quarters for our growing "herd" of winged buddies. Our grown ducks have roughed it outside all winter inside the garden enclosure. They go in the freezer within the next couple weeks. Our adult chickens ended up with a makeshift coop in the barn. I enclosed one of the cattle stalls and made due for the winter...

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But, we need more permanent digs. I've spent several hours since moving in thinking through layouts for the mini-farm and what made the most sense from a "flow" standpoint. There's a cobbled together network of fencing and gates here that grew with the farm and none of it was planned, so it's become a clusterfuck. About 2 weeks ago, I had the "ah-ha" moment I was after and everything from a layout standpoint feel in line. This is the east side of the barn. I have electric and water in there, so despite my desire to have the chickens/ducks close to the house for viewing, practicality won out. Plus, this area isn't much use, so it'll make good space for them.

I'll be building an 8x8 coop for the chickens with electricity for heat lamp and water heater in the winter. It will be elevated to create space for the ducks underneath. I'm going to build a platform to hold a rain barrel that I can drain into a pool for the ducks. I'll be tearing out all the random fence and moving all the stuff to make space for a 100'x150' enclosure with 6' fencing. The trees should give them all enough cover to hide from aerial predators and it'll be coyote proof. I handle coons and griners with marshmallows and dog proofs, so that hasn't been an issue. I bought the first round of materials yesterday and plan to start this afternoon. Looking forward to this one!
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bowhunter1023

Owner/Operator
Staff member
48,879
274
Appalachia
Right now, I have 22 chickens and 17 ducks total. I want them to have plenty of room and I have plenty to spare. The goats have a separate area that's already fenced in from the cattle days.
 

giles

Cull buck specialist
Supporting Member
Forgive me, I don’t recall but I know I’ve talked about it here. Any thoughts about meat rabbits? I have and think the return is hard to beat. Once I figure out my situation, I plan to start a batch.

Maybe I need to move this conversation to the homestead thread...
 

bowhunter1023

Owner/Operator
Staff member
48,879
274
Appalachia
Forgive me, I don’t recall but I know I’ve talked about it here. Any thoughts about meat rabbits? I have and think the return is hard to beat. Once I figure out my situation, I plan to start a batch.

Maybe I need to move this conversation to the homestead thread...

My ducks are in place of rabbits. I'm not a huge fan of rabbit meat, but love duck. It's not a clean trade in the Apocalypse because rabbits are far more prolific, but I'd argue ducks are easier to maintain. I've been shopping goats, but people are proud of their goats around here. $200 for a meat goat is steep!

This leads to my conversation with one of the bleeding heart liberals at work yesterday. I give her eggs fairly often, so we usually discuss my mini-farm exploits once a week or so. Yesterday, she asked me "why ducks" and I replied: "Well they're fun to watch and they're delicious."

She looks up from her keyboard with a horrified look on her face. Flabbergasted, she says: "You can't eat ducks!"

"Well, yes you can and I do. They're made of food you know?"

She frowns and denounces me by stating: "Well, not in my house!"

"I respect that, but in my house we know where our food comes from."

Picture her 🤬

😂🖕
 

"J"

Git Off My Lawn
Supporting Member
56,743
274
North Carolina
My ducks are in place of rabbits. I'm not a huge fan of rabbit meat, but love duck. It's not a clean trade in the Apocalypse because rabbits are far more prolific, but I'd argue ducks are easier to maintain. I've been shopping goats, but people are proud of their goats around here. $200 for a meat goat is steep!

This leads to my conversation with one of the bleeding heart liberals at work yesterday. I give her eggs fairly often, so we usually discuss my mini-farm exploits once a week or so. Yesterday, she asked me "why ducks" and I replied: "Well they're fun to watch and they're delicious."

She looks up from her keyboard with a horrified look on her face. Flabbergasted, she says: "You can't eat ducks!"

"Well, yes you can and I do. They're made of food you know?"

She frowns and denounces me by stating: "Well, not in my house!"

"I respect that, but in my house we know where our food comes from."

Picture her 🤬

😂🖕
😂😂😂😂😂

Fuggin people are clueless 😂😂😂
 

Jackalope

Dignitary Member
Staff member
38,841
260
My ducks are in place of rabbits. I'm not a huge fan of rabbit meat, but love duck. It's not a clean trade in the Apocalypse because rabbits are far more prolific, but I'd argue ducks are easier to maintain. I've been shopping goats, but people are proud of their goats around here. $200 for a meat goat is steep!

This leads to my conversation with one of the bleeding heart liberals at work yesterday. I give her eggs fairly often, so we usually discuss my mini-farm exploits once a week or so. Yesterday, she asked me "why ducks" and I replied: "Well they're fun to watch and they're delicious."

She looks up from her keyboard with a horrified look on her face. Flabbergasted, she says: "You can't eat ducks!"

"Well, yes you can and I do. They're made of food you know?"

She frowns and denounces me by stating: "Well, not in my house!"

"I respect that, but in my house we know where our food comes from."

Picture her 🤬

😂🖕

Maybe she prefers chicken. You know, a regular cock gobbler.
 

huntn2

Senior Member
6,090
157
Hudson, OH
Started the painting project after being in the home 10 months. Have a waterproofing issue to deal with but I guess that’s the joy of the American dream. Some before and afters...
 

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bowhunter1023

Owner/Operator
Staff member
48,879
274
Appalachia
I know you are into protein and nutritional values, what’s the difference? Is one better for you then the other? @bowhunter1023


It's a wash protein wise, but ducks have much more fat, which is an important part of my diet and certainly better to have in a SHTF moment. You can render the fat down for cooking other proteins and if you're truly in a dire situation, the fat is a great added bonus that you won't get on a rabbit. Plus you can use duck feathers for bedding easier than stitching together rabbit pelts for clothing.
 
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Riverdude

The Happy Hunting Grounds Beyond
Supporting Member
10,254
115
Ashtabula, Ohio
CJD3 and I have a hell of a lot of dropped wood to cut up. We did some selective logging on our property this late winter, the logger took the large main section of the tree and left a lot of great firewood and tops laying on the ground. It will take us years to clean up. These pictures are just the tip of the iceberg.

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Riverdude

The Happy Hunting Grounds Beyond
Supporting Member
10,254
115
Ashtabula, Ohio
Good to know Buckmaster................Thanks. I have also heard good things about Husqvarna chainsaws.

What size blade and cc's is yours?