Harvest Time

Yesterday my wife and I started harvesting the wheat field. We hooked the sickle mower to the tractor and away we went.
Next step... gathering up the shocks and then we will be hand thrashing it.
End game... turn it into flour to make bread.

Milking Our Nubian Goats

Today I would like to tell you about what we do to keep our milk tasting the best it can. Milk by its very nature absorbs odor so, the process of keeping the milk tasting good starts before you start milking. Use only stainless steel milk pails. These need to be sanitized between milkings. After I sanitize my milk pail I let them air dry. Next the milk pail goes into the freezer(I will explain later). The next step in keeping milk tasting good is the location that the goat is milked. We milk our goats in a separate building from where they live, this keeps the barn smell out of the milk. The building that you milk in should also be sanitized after each milking. Now I am going to talk a little bit about the milk pail. As I said earlier, I store my clean pails in the freezer. The reason is the faster you cool the milk the better it will taste. I place a frozen ice pack in the bottom of the milk pail, again to speed up the cooling process. Next my milk pail has a plastic lid with a steel filter used for coffee placed in the lid. This helps eliminate debris and hair from falling into the milk. Preparing the goat for milking. Make sure that the goat is clean and with out alot of dirt on it or its udders. Take a pair of hair clippers and clip the goats bag. MILKING THE GOAT. I use a baby wipe to wash the teat. (I also keep them warm by using a baby wipe warming device). Next the teats get stripped of a little bit of milk so that I can check for any impurities. When I am done milking the goat I put a little iodine solution on the teat to prevent infection. As soon as the milking is complete the milk needs filtered and cooled. I use a cooking oil funnel with a cloth filter to transfer the milk to the glass storage container. (Glass is superior to plastic when it comes to taste). The milk is double filtered before it is rushed to the refridgerator. Please come visit me on facebook at www.facebook.com/heavenonearthranch Have a great week, Keith

Egg Handling Guidelines for Producers

I just thought that I would blog my ideas and practices on Egg handling for producers.
Egg Gathering;
Step 1:  WASH YOUR HANDS!
Step 2:  Gather eggs no less than twice a day when the temperature is between 32 degrees and 75 degrees.
Once in the mid morning and once in the late afternoon.
If above or below these temperatures gather no less than three times a day.
Once in the morning, once at lunch time, and once in the afternoon.
Step 3: Wash your Hands.

Egg Storage;
Step 1: Wash your hands.
Step 2: Separate the clean eggs from the dirty eggs.
Step 3: Wash your Hands
Step 4: Put clean eggs in new containers. ( Candle 5% of eggs)
Step 5: Brush off loose debris on dirty eggs. If egg is still soiled, wash with warm water in egg bubbler for no more than twenty minutes. Let egg air dry. Do not wipe dry as this will further remove the protective layer eggs naturally possess.
Step 6: Wash your Hands
Step 7: Repeat step 4 above.
Step 8: Wash Your Hands.
Step 9: Store eggs in refrigerator @ 40 degrees fahrenheit.
Sell your Eggs within one week of production to give your customers a good 2-3 weeks of shelf life.

It may seam that I am obsessed with hand washing, but the truth is that if you are touching clean eggs with dirty hands you are risking the health of your customers.

If your goal is hatching eggs;
Only brush them clean so as not to remove the protective layer. Put in incubator within 6 days of date laid.

1/06/2012

Today was filled with myself creating a new place for chicks to grow up in. We will still be keeping them in the brooder for the first 4-6 weeks but have decided that they need some place to get big enough before the are introduced to the main flock.
The facilities that I am creating can double has a rabbit hutch. The hutch also has a totally enclosed section for them to get out of the weather if needed.
We are expecting chicks to start hatching anytime now, some of the eggs are showing signs hatching. We are also expecting the rabbits to start kindling.
Stay tuned for more updates, they can happen at anytime.

2012

2012 has started off wonderfully. The temperature is very mild, we could use some moisture but we are thankful that we still have grass in some of the pastures and if winter stays this moderate we will have plenty of hay. We had family in town this weekend for Sandi's 50th birthday. Everyone seemed to have a good time. I got Luke & Logan (our nephews) up on Montana, our 29 year old Belgian/Quarter horse cross. They had a great time.
Next weekend we are expecting kits from our New Zealand Whites and the first couple dozen eggs should start hatching.
Wishing all a Prosperous New Year,
Keith

My First Blog.

Welcome to my blog entry. Let me tell you a little about Heaven On Earth. My name is Keith & my wife Sandi own & run the ranch. We are a little ranch in NE Missouri. Heaven on Earth raises Purebred Texas Longhorn Cattle, Nubian Dairy Goats, New Zealand White Rabbits, & Plymouth Barred Rock chickens.
We believe in raising animals they way God intended them to live. We use no anti-biotics or growth hormones. Our cattle, goats, and rabbits are grass-fed. Our chickens are free range, pastured raised.
We visit and mingle amongst the animals every day so that they are very friendly.
Stay tuned for the next blog which I hope to accomplish at least weekly.
Keith.