A Review on Housing Animals

             

A shed row barn can be less expensive to have built and can house horses, goats, alpacas, chickens or ducks, or dogs.  Consider your alternatives carefully.

   In difficult times, those of us who have the space may need to grow food or keep different types of animals for different reasons.   Chickens produce eggs, and can be used for meat.  Rabbits can be raised for meat.  Goats can provide milk, cheese, or meat, depending upon the variety.  Horses can be transportation either through being ridden themselves, or by pulling a cart.  Horses, donkeys, and other animals can also pull certain types of plows.   A horse or a donkey can also make it possible to patrol a property almost silently, which is something a vehicle simply cannot do.  A Shetland pony can be a great pack animal and can walk a great distance with you the operator holding a lead line.  Some alpacas and some llamas can also be sure footed pack animals depending upon what you need to carry.

For this reason I want to review some thing:

This is one of my earlier posts on fencing for animals and security:

http://rationalpreparedness.blogspot.com/2012/02/considering-varieties-of-fencing-for.html

A fencing alternative:

http://rationalpreparedness.blogspot.com/2013/05/a-new-alternative-to-conventional-horse.html

Corral panels as fencing, both for fencing post evacuations and if anchored, for regular use:

 http://rationalpreparedness.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-features-and-benefits-of-corral.html


This is a post on different types of augers which can make the fence post setting part of the task of fencing, much easier:

http://rationalpreparedness.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-value-of-excellent-auger.html

My posts on gates:

http://rationalpreparedness.blogspot.com/2012/04/gates.html

http://rationalpreparedness.blogspot.com/2013/04/consider-wright-farm-gates.html


On housing chickens:

http://rationalpreparedness.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-benefits-of-raising-chickens.html

 http://rationalpreparedness.blogspot.com/2013/05/what-is-chicken-swap.html

Related issues:

 http://rationalpreparedness.blogspot.com/2012/07/the-corn-crop-is-toasted.html


  The very best security system to your home and for your property is a dog or dogs.  They also, when selected carefully and given some training, can be excellent guards for certain livestock.
These are posts on dogs and on dog housing:


http://rationalpreparedness.blogspot.com/2013/04/a-safe-and-clean-design-for-canine.html


Prior posts of  mine on the subjects of kennel construction can be found at:




http://rationalpreparedness.blogspot.com/2012/01/notes-on-building-kennel-or-kennel.html

http://rationalpreparedness.blogspot.com/2012/01/notes-on-building-kennel-or-kennel.html


http://rationalpreparedness.blogspot.com/2012/02/more-information-on-animal-housing.html

Most of us will never know the loyalty a dog shows us, from another human being.

My posts on dogs:

http://rationalpreparedness.blogspot.com/2012/12/the-value-of-dog.html


http://rationalpreparedness.blogspot.com/2012/05/is-it-canine-dementia.html


http://rationalpreparedness.blogspot.com/2012/12/angus-and-follow-up-to-canine-dementia.html


http://learnedfromdaniel.blogspot.com/2013/06/the-story-of-benjamin.html

http://janebecomesanauthor.blogspot.com/2012/12/on-losing-friend.html


                Animals not only can help us to feed our families and to keep us alive, but they can help provide security, and in some cases, they can rescue us.   They also can be remarkable family members who can help us to understand many of God's lessons concerning loyalty, unconditional love, and devotion which are so well modeled by them.


 Cats can be very helpful in terms of keeping vermin down, especially on farms.

Sweet kittens

http://rationalpreparedness.blogspot.com/2013/01/the-view-from-farm.html


       Don't wait too long before considering the role of animals in your life, and considering housing for them.

Make room for whatever animals have a place in your own life.   Thanks for reading !

Preventing Heat Exhaustion in Animals

                         We have raised animals of different varieties in the Southern United States for twenty-five years, and there are some general rules which apply here, and in many if not most places.   The first is that all animals need access to clean water 24 hours a day 7 days a week.  This may sound obvious, but I do still occasionally see people who fill their pets water indoors only when they feed that pet, and the dish runs dry between feedings.  There are a number of devices, one can buy to ensure a continuous supply of water for your pet, even if you are away for a day or two.

This auto-waterer is for sale for about $24.00 US.   There are many other varieties inclduing one which uses a two liter soda borrle your provide and only has the base.   This can be used indoors, or even outdoors in a shaded region.

 The nicest thing about such containers is that although they are primarily intended for dogs and cats, they can be used for ferrets, chickens, ducks and many other types of animals particularly because these are sold in a variety of sizes. They are also fairly durable.



            For larger animals, I use a smaller durable bucket.     For alpacas I use a large plastic bucket for this purpose, and for dogs, I use a smaller one.

This is a flat back Fortex brand bucket which I use for alpacas waters. 

I use these smaller flat back buckets for dog waters.  These collect easily, fill quickly, and are easily cleaned.  One can carry multiple buckets when changing waters for many.  You would be surprised as to how much water even a medium sized dog can drink on a really hot day.

            Our vet says that sometimes, purchasing a large bag of ice and periodically adding some to dog water on really hot days can be a good idea.  She says that even an hour in really extreme heat can turn a dogs bucketed water into very hot water he will not drink.   She says the ice can make the water in the container drinkable for the dog longer than it would have been.

          I have a lot of inexpensive thermometers hung in our kennel and in a couple of hidden places where we rotate larger dogs on the farm as sentries.   These areas can get much hotter than you might otherwise believe.   You must make arrangements for even outdoor dogs who normally tolerate sun quite well, for shade in extreme weathers.

(  The plan for this particular run in can be purchased through horseloversstore.com  )

( This is their scaled down 8 x 12 version.  Plans can be purchased at  horseloversstore.com )

            The picture above is an artist's rendering of a horse run in.  We have a couple of these on the farm in outlying areas for alpacas.  This year, my husband built one, scaled down, for our large golden retriever male, Ben.    Ben's doghouse when he does sentry duty is way too hot for summer, but a scaled down run in, offers shade, and allows air circulation.     When it gets a little cooler, we plan to build an additional one for Skye, who also does outlying sentry duty.

This is another version of a hot weather dog house.  The overhang can be a good idea for a dog in hot weather.

The two pictures immediately above and below this label came from:

http://www.toolcrib.com/blog/2009/10/24-free-dog-house-plans-peaked-roof-a-frames-dog-shelters-kennels-and-more

             If a dog is ever disoriented, in warm weather, then he needs to come indoors to a cooler location.  We keep one air conditioned room for supplies, and we have been known to allow an elderly dog to rest there, or in an indoor room in extreme heat.  Dogs also should not go for a run with you, if they are already headed for heat exhaustion.  Remember that animals develop heat exhaustion little by little usually over days, not just on one day.  Their dehydration is usually progressive over days.

            I do make sure that my alpacas have salt blocks in all weathers.   Vets tell us that dogs and cats do not require additional salt and that it can be toxic for them.

            I did learn something this week about chickens though.  Normally chickens receive plenty of salt from their food sources.  However, a breeder from Texas indicated to me that when temperatures reach 105-110 or 115 F that chickens benefit from having three things available to them as well as their normal rations.    One is plenty of cool water. Second is a small dish of lemon gatorade for energy and shock.   Third is a very small dish of water with two pinches of salt.  Apparently a little bit of salt in extreme weather can be beneficial to them.   We have not lost any additional chickens to heat exhaustion since we began doing this in very hot weather.  It is now our "extreme hot weather protocol for chickens".   We have not done this with ducks.

Considering Varieties of Fencing for Animals, Privacy and Security

                Fencing is a complex subject.  People on farms or on forested areas can often have very different types of fencing than those of us in suburban areas, or even urban ones.   This is an overview of fencing, so that you'll have some ideas should you reach a point where you need to fence to enclose animals or to perhaps to stop foot traffic through your own property.
                 People in urban areas are somewhat restricted in the types of fencing they can use. Most of the time, their city, village, or neighborhood limits the type and purpose of the fencing you may use. I remember in London, seeing a lot of iron fencing.   Iron fencing is expensive but can be quite attractive.  In many places, a painted product which looks a lot like iron is sold, but is actually aluminum.  This might be worth looking into should you need to gate a small area in an urban area for perhaps security purposes.

Iron fencing.  This is heavy, durable and attractive, but also expensive.

          

at:   fencemeinrichmond.com

                       The aluminum fence above comes in many colors, is highly durable and not only provides high security, but installs quickly by the manufacturer.  A lot of people with swimming pools find that these meet the local requirements for protection of children.

                        One of the most popular and least expensive types of fencing in the US is chain link.
Chain link comes in aluminum, but also comes in brown, black or green vinyl dipped.   In my first house we fenced using brown vinyl dipped, and it looked very attractive.  It also required no maintenance, and lasted a very long time.

This is a vinyl dipped mesh.  This is not only attractive, but lasts a long time.   (Picture: Hoover Fencing Co.)

This is an example of a black vinyl dipped chain link fence.  (Picture: Bergfeld Recreation)

   Chain link also makes some really excellent dog runs. Some people bury it below ground to prevent an industrious dog from digging below, and getting injured trying to exit the fenced area.






                         Often surburban homeowners need fences for a variety of purposes.  Sometimes, they wish to allow their children to play without being seen, or they wish to keep dogs inside their own yard.  Sometimes, they wish to boost their backyard privacy or even boost their backyard security.    Sometimes wooden fences can do this job well, especially when they are a treated wood.   When our eldest children were small, we lived in a suburban house.  One year after receiving our tax return, we replaced our chain link fencing, with wooden privacy fencing very much like this.  We bought it, and my husband installed it at the cost of a torn rotator cuff.

nationalfencetx.com

   
           If you install wooden privacy fence in sections, make sure that you read up on how to make sure its level.  Make sure you follow your communities guidelines for avoiding buried pipelines of different varieties.  Make sure you have assistance to help with measuring and making sure the buried posts are plumb. Use a level.  Power tools are very helpful when securing each wooden screen section to the buried posts.  Plan your gates and gate hardware carefully.  Completing this task well can ensure your home selling for much more than you had planned, as a solid secure fence is a definite selling point when it's time to sell your home.



        Wooden privacy fences come in many varieties.

This is a commonly used and solid style of wooden privacy fence.  This requires more maintenance than a vinyl dipped chain link fence, but can last many years. (Picture: Advanced Fence Systems)

  

This wooden fence with post can have multiple gates installed. Some will allow a tractor or car to be driven inside and some are small enough to allow the passage of people or animals. (Picture: Advanced Fence Systems)

      

(Picture: Better Decks and Fences, Lawrenceville, GA)

This is a wooden fencing with wire fencing attached. In this instance it makes climbing the fence to get to the pool difficult, but this would also be an excellent fence to enclose a vegetable garden.(Picture: cwwconstruction)

             Those of us who live on farms have to consider some other types of fencing sometimes.  These are some of the fencing varieties used in rural settings.

This particular fence is a white vinyl and is very popular on local horse farms.  It is also possible to make such a fence in wood and then to paint it, although it would be more maintenance on a continuous basis. (Photo: Aiken-Augusta Fence) It is also possible to get the same fence in black. The vinyl fences also come with a lifetime warranty.

    

This is a 4 rail horse fencing which is often used for horses, alpacas, or donkeys or sheep.  This fencing can be painted with creosote to help to maintain it, despite the fact that this is pressure treated lumber. (Picture: Best4LessFencing.com)

    

Many time in rural areas, the area we need to fence is so large that it is financially impossible or financially impractical to fence in any other way other than this.  Posts are placed in the ground, and then wires run tightly on the inside or the outside of such fencing. This can also be coupled with conventional farm gates.  Keep in mind that when such fences are electrified, it is done less for the animals you wish to keep in, and more for predators you need to keep on the outside. I have been zapped, particularly on the back of the legs many times. This is simply a reminder to people and animals to keep in, or keep out.  (Picture: horsefencing.org)

This is the type of fencing we had the first year we had alpacas. This is called "Elk Exclusion fencing", and although elk are likely no longer found in our area, this is an excellent and relatively inexpensive fencing. We did not have the wore at the top, but many people include it. (Photo: informedfarmers.com)

     Most of us believe that barbed wire style fencing is unsuitable for animals, and can be dangerous. However, on large acreages it has its uses.  I have four rows of marked barbed wire on metal posts to help to remind others who may be trespassing, that beyond that point, is the portion of our farm in which we practice and target shoot.   Continuing to trespass beyond that point could be more dangerous than the barbed wire itself !    It's also a reminder to people on ATVs not to trespass in that area.

barbed wire   (Picture: wowhorses.com)

      

These are styles of barbed wire fencing.  It is essential if you ever install this, that you read all the directions, wear gloves, and wear eye protection while you do so. (Picture: afence.com  which is American Fence and Supply) I used the four row style on the top for the back of our forested farm.

       This should provide a smattering of ideas for fencing.  Fencing projects can be very small, as you might need for an herb garden, to very large as you might need for a rural property for horses.  Properly considered and installed fencing can be an incredible investment impacting not only the utility of a farm or residence, but the future saleability of it as well. 


UPDATE:

   This is another post including a new innovative ecological type of livestock and horse fencing.
   Please also see this post:

http://rationalpreparedness.blogspot.com/2013/05/a-new-alternative-to-conventional-horse.html