OFI 702: A New Fox, A Bag Of Beans And No Steaks In The Freezer

What Are We Talking About Today

For today’s episode I think I’ll just give you a update on what’s been going on around our place place.  I will tell you that there are some exciting updates coming in the near future, but I’m not at a point where I feel like I can announce them.  But some neat stuff is going on behind the scenes here at the Off-Farm Income Podcast and I will be excited when I do get to reveal it all.

I’ve had four events at our farm over the last week that I want to share with you. They involve a new fox, oat hay, our cattle and beans.

Shall we get started?

New Fox

Autumm and I were out putting up some electric fence late last week, and we saw a red fox walking through our pasture.  This was pretty frustrating because I had just got rid of a fox in September who had decimated our chicken flock.  Now, there was a new one in our pasture already.

The canal behind our property was just drained on October 7th, and when this happens it creates an area that predators can travel in with out being detected.  I am sure that this is what brought this fox to our place. When we saw it I ran inside and grabbed a rifle, but by the time I got back out with it the fox had gone up on to the top of canal, and left me with a shot that was too unsafe to take because of neighboring farms.  So, he got away.

We have been keeping our chickens locked up and really hunting this guy, but it seems as though he is out foxing us.  We have only seen him twice since this first day, and each time he has not offered us a safe shot at him.  It is almost like he knows where to stand.  So, the battle goes on with us keep the chickens locked up and keeping our eyes peeled for this new fox to make another appearance in our pasture.

Oat hay

I purchased oat hay to feed to our cattle over the winter.  I got a good deal on it because a farmer I knew had planted it as a cover crop to bring up a new stand of alfalfa.  He cut the oat hay early, when it was just starting to head out and brought it over to my place.

I have been really pleased with this hay.  After a little introductory period the cows seem to have really adjusted to it, and they seem to like it.  Also, their condition on this hay is great.  Just as good as I would expect to see from alfalfa hay.  Since I am transitioning to purchasing all or most of my hay every year now, I am hoping I can continue to find oat hay of this quality and at this price.

For those of you who are looking for a way to bring feed costs down, don’t be afraid to try out oat hay for your cattle.  I am having great results with it.  But, make sure to find out when it was cut.  This can make a big difference in palatability from what I have read.

Beef

I just delivered our steers to the butcher on Sunday evening for this year’s customers.  This is always a great time of year, and it brings 18 to 20 months of work to an end.  Moving and loading cattle is probably my favorite job on the farm as it is just something that seems to come naturally to me.  Everyone has a strength that they do well and enjoy, and moving cattle is one of those for me.

I am getting some looks around the house though.  We are running out of beef, and we currently do not have any steaks.  But, I could not resist, and I sold 100% of our fall beef this year.  So, none of what I took to the butcher is coming home to us.  We have a couple of steers that are going in, in January, and we have to wait until then for beef.

I am lucky that my wife really likes to eat beef, which means that I get to eat beef frequently.  But, my desire to sell that extra side of beef this fall seems to be getting me into trouble as a result.

Beans

At our local FFA chapter’s auction in September I bid on a 25 pound bag of pinto beans and won.  We are actually in the process of finishing up our first batch of beans and ham hocks from this bag.  I really like putting a bag of beans or a bag of rice in the pantry and having it there just in case.  They are both filling, nutritious and easy to make.

I suggest you all do this.  Just in case the power goes out, you can’t get to town or something causes you to lose your income, you will always have food waiting for you right there.

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