Marcia, I'm sure thinking about you during these below zero wind chill days and nights!!! How do you do it??? The cold, and wind, if that danged wind would just stop howling for a while, seems to be getting harder and harder to manage the more years that pass by.

We have the standard plug in water bowls for the cats, dogs and chickens, plenty of bargain store comforters folded up for cheap dog beds, double tarps over the summer doors to the chicken house, and a ceramic electric heater with a thermostat for the milk house where all fourteen barn cats have plenty of hidy holes and boxes and beds with a heat lamp in addition to their heater, plus a hay loft full of square baled hay made into snuggly caves for anti-social cats that don't want to be in the company of others in the milk house.

The

-- Anonymous, January 15, 2004

Answers

Drat!!! Some I hit the wrong button, and away into cyber world it disappeared too soon!

The horses get all the second cutting hay they want during weather below 20 degrees, and the woosy boy has his Artic insulated turn out blanket on round the clock. We are lucky to have inmproved springs that don't freeze up during the winter, well, the cow spring does get some ice on top if it stays below zero for a few days in a row, I keep a sledge hammer and a four tined pitch fork next to the spring to remove the ice once a day, good thing it is just a short hike from the barn where I feed the cows (four Texas Longhorns). The horses and the cows don't seem to mind the cold for the most part, but they will hole up in their barns when the wind gets truly evil. It's the cats that seem to hate the cold the most, and Boogie (short haired Pit Bull) refuses to come out of her doghouse and her heated bed except for the twice daily walks!

Anyone have any special ideas or things that you do to make life easier for yourself and your critters in the winter months?

-- Anonymous, January 15, 2004

Yeah....sell em and move to town. ;) I carried enough water, unfroze enough hoses, cursed enough froze down hydrants, lost enough sleep checking on almost fresh mamas, thawed out my share of ice covered newborns with a hairdryer for one lifetime. I miss the spring babies, but I don't miss winter chores, not one bit. Y'all have my condolences for your cold weather. Those kinds of temps are pretty regular around here, but its been gettin milder every year.

Barns stay lots warmer with a hot pack of manure/straw. We never put any heaters anywhere during the winter, except in the waterers. I am amazed at how the critters dont mind the cold; our pyrenees LOVES it outside, even when its frigid. Our horses always stayed out (came in the barn to eat and to poop), even in freezing rain. Me, I hate it, and am perfectly happy freezing only when walking from the car to whatever building I'm entering.

Try to keep warm!

-- Anonymous, January 15, 2004

I KNEW there was a reason why I left the manure to pile up all winter under the straw bedding in the ewe barn!

-- Anonymous, January 15, 2004

Yep, we only clean out the manure in the cow run-in barn in the summer months, it's big enough that the round bales can be put inside so we rotate where we set them so the "girls" have the leftover and wasted hay for deep bedding. Good thing they don't stand as tall as the horses tho, the old barn has a low ceiling and the built up bedding makes it even shorter.

How cold is it were poor Marcia is? I heard that it was -44 on top of Mt. Washington Thursday, now that is just plain awful. I have been in -30 weather before (without power in it for 12 hours was more than enough!!!) and that was no picnic, usually doesn't get much below zero here in southeast Ohio, that was up in the snowbelt of northeatern Ohio.

Thank goodness that Cabala's makes insulated tall barn boots ( they call 'em hunting boots) in boys sizes since they don't make 'em in womens sizes, the sexist pigs ;-)!!! Speaking of Cabala's ( one my favorite stores to browse for hours and hours in, but usually just end up buying socks), we are getting one built in Wheeling, WV just an hours drive from here, now I won't have to waste money shipping back the boots when they start cracking from over use any more, I take their lifetime warranty very seriously, I am on my third pair thay they have replaced and if I whine enough, they reimburse the shipping them back as well.

-- Anonymous, January 16, 2004

Me, I hate when my nose hairs freeze together.

I moved my buck because he was becoming a real bully and I was afraid he would make some of my does lose their babies (the bottle baby aborted which was a blessing because I didn't want her to be bred yet) First night I locked him in his shed (Gary's old playhouse) and he broke out through the plexi glass window. I nailed plywood over it. Then he jumped the fence back to the girls so here I was, in the blizzard, at night, putting up a hot line on top of the fence (that's working) Man, you should hear the sound that comes out of this thing. Because he's still young, he still has a high voice which reaches a really high pitch.

The girls are doing really well in their shed. I found that since I opened the wall, it doesn't smell strong in there anymore. Better ventilation I guess. I keep the back door open so they can get to their water and they have nitches they can go between if they want.

The buck has a heated bucket, the goats have a metal tub with a heater and so does the horse. The chicken has been staying with the goats and since she grew back her feathers (still don't know why she lost them in the first place) she seems to be fine. I wonder where she is laying her eggs though. I gave the cat an old pillow between the hay that he is fine with. I have a heated water bowl for him too. Unfortunately, the barn mice and moles also drink from that bowl (I found one drowned in it)The rabbit is the only one with non-heated bowl so I change the water twice a day.

I have been putting the horse's blanket on at night and during the day when it's below 10. If it warms during the day, I take it off. She has a thick coat that I'm not looking forward to shedding her out in spring.

Hey, isn't it amazing that we think it's warm out when it reaches 20 degrees lately?

I have to get new boots. I keep forgetting that mine wore smooth until I fall on my butt again. (it's a little sore right now)

-- Anonymous, January 16, 2004

Buck jumped the fence again. Seems he uses the insulators on the barn as foot holds. I put a third strand up but he jumped it before he felt the shock (it think my fence may not be shocking strong again. What a pain) Now he is tied. Opened the wall of my tool shed, put down some hay and that is that. He's not close enough to anything to hang himself but my feeling lately....

At least it was nice out while I was working today. A heatwave at 25. Woo hoo.

-- Anonymous, January 17, 2004

you guys make me cold just by hearing about it! EM, you're right about it not being as cold lately. It only even freezes here once or twice a year now. Usta get cold, back when i was younger.

JOJ

-- Anonymous, January 20, 2004

We're "dealing" with the cold...no problem!! After all, it's part of life here. These single digit and sub zero temps only last a few weeks or so. It's the wind that's a killer!!! But all last year we had lots of wind. Couldn't even get out on the boat lots of times because of it (tide and wind combo can be deadly!).

I really don't do anything extra for my livestock during cold spells...except to make sure they can get out of the wind. I do make sure my barn cats have lots of hiding places in between hay bales and the chickens get lots of extra cracked corn and sunflower seed for internal heat. I also give everyone warm water twice a day, which I have to haul from my bath tub in the house 'cause the outside water is turned off for the winter. My horse and goats get extra hay, but I always make sure I feed some of their hay outside...even when it's windy. If I don't they get lazy and wont move around in their stalls too much. I make them go out and get some exercise so they can warm themselves up and keep digestion "motivated"!! Even my chickens will come outside and take dust baths in the snow (it's very dry snow). And actually, we only have a dusting or so on the ground right now...and none predicted!

All in all...it's not THAT bad and winter is half over...right?? And the animals are soooo much healthier in this cold. There are no bugs, flies, internal parasites, ticks, fleas, mites, etc.! And my chickens are laying like crazy. Much better than they do in the summer when it's 90+ degrees!!!

Mt. Washington in N.H. broke a record...I think. It was -100* with the wind chill one time last week!! That's COLD!!! The coldest we had right here was -12*, not figuring the wind chill. I sure hope all the "brass monkeys" in the Northeast went south for the winter :-) :-)!!!!

-- Anonymous, January 21, 2004