# Prepping for livestock/pets



## Jeep (Aug 5, 2014)

I know there have to be several people if not 99% that have house pets, that is part of this thread. But the bigger part is for those who have livestock. I am curious to know what you have and how many and what if anything your doing to supply them....after.

My situation is I am breeding my own flock of Poly pay sheep and Pygmy/Nigerian goats. I have 10 Sheep and 13 Goats and growing(both). I am considering getting 2 Gilts(sows). Raids by predators have left me without a bird one. But I will get more Chickens, Ducks, and geese. I currently have 2 small Dogs and one medium Dog. Two larger Dogs are in the works for livestock.

The Sheep and goats in this time of the year get by on some handouts from me and grazing. I haven't bought my yearly hay yet. Dogs and cats well they eat what they eat. 
I worked in a feed store for a while and I know that minus mice, feed in bags will last a very long time. I am planning on laying in a few hundred lbs, not to be touched, other than to maybe rotate out stock. Oh a few hundred lbs for each type of animal I should mention. Water is also my concern for them. Any thoughts or ideas, would be appreciated or if your newer than me to farm Animals maybe I can help you. Thanks


----------



## RNprepper (Apr 5, 2014)

Having livestock makes prepping much more complicated. We have 3 equines (1 horse, 2 mules) and chickens. Dogs and cats, of course, but the livestock is more difficult. With current drought conditions, the hay situation can only get worse. I have almost 3 years worth of hay stored now. We only get rain twice a year (summer and some in winter), and the annual totals are quite marginal. Last year our little place got only 6 inches for the entire year. I have large water tanks (13,000 total capacity) to catch the rain we do get, and if those tanks fill twice a year (so far, so good), we are sustainable for water. 

I am working on my own homegrown chicken formula with crickets, mesquite flour, and excess greens/garden waste. I think they will be sustainable in the near future. 

Bug out plans can be complex. We have enough portable water barrels, and can "load and go" in a short time, but travelling with livestock all depends on how congested roadways get. Worse case scenario, we hoof it out. But water is everything. My optional plan would be to have a fairly large cart/utility wagon that could be pulled by one of the mules. The mules can also pack and be ridden. Then you also have the issue of shoeing. My son is going to take some lessons from our farrier and hopefully be able to do some basic work if ever needed.

The best plan is to head out AHEAD of the crowd. We have a mountain cabin with plenty of well and spring water, unlimited grazing. A great place for a summer get away, but 250 miles away. It is a 6 hour drive with the horse trailer. Best bet is to head out early, but of course it is impossible to predict when the actual SHTF event will happen.


----------



## rice paddy daddy (Jul 17, 2012)

Two horses, 20 chickens, 4 dogs, one rabbit.
We had 3 horses but one had to be put down for medical reasons. And that brings up something some people might not think about - how to dig a hole big enough to bury an animal that big, and getting the animal in the hole. But that's a story for another day.
At the moment we don't have the storage capacity for more then a month's worth of hay. We are thinking about buying a twenty foot shipping container for storage.
We keep bagged grain in galvanized garbage cans (we leave it in the bags) this helps with rodent problems.
We also keep a back stock of meds and supplements along with bandaging materials, needles and syringes, animal first aid stuff, etc
Our chickens eat kitchen scraps besides the usual layer pellets. Interesting - they love scraps from our fried chicken dinner, it doesn't take long before the bones are literally picked clean.

As far as bugging out - we are already here, out past the end of the blacktop.:-D


----------



## Jeep (Aug 5, 2014)

Thanks for the response. I am pretty rural so won't be leaving, I'll be defending. 13k water is far more than I thought about. I have access to some not able to be sold water tanks from the feed store, they are just ugly or dented not leaking as far as I know, so they are cheap. I am buying 2 ton of hay, which will last me somewhere around 7 months, maybe longer if I let them lose a few lbs.


----------



## tirednurse (Oct 2, 2013)

My list of critters consists of 200-500 chickens at a time, 100 quail, 30 geese, 7 turkeys, 50-100 rabbits, 37 goats of different breeds, 10 pigs with one of the sows expecting in October, 30 dogs, 9 cats, 2 turtles and a stocked fish pond. 
If things were to get bad I would first of all cull out all extra animals down to only what I would need to get by on or trade with. I also have plans to take over the neighboring empty 20 acres if needed. With all of the animals we never get down less than a years supply of food in storage. For my livestock I have found people who sell whole grains like wheat, barley, and oats for 10 cents a lbs. (I have used the wheat to grind for flour also so I store a lot of it) I also get rejected human grade dried grains and legumes that I pay 16 cent a lbs for. I mix these all together to make my own animal feed which is fed to all of the livestock. I have more than a years supply of hay in shed. By getting the grains and mixing myself I can triple what I buy for the same price as you would buy feed at the farm store for. I store all of the grain in 55 gal barrels with lids that keep it dry.


----------



## Jeep (Aug 5, 2014)

WHere do you purchase this stuff from, the rejected human grade etc..


----------



## RNprepper (Apr 5, 2014)

Jepp, if you are in Montana, you are going to get a lot more water than we do here in AZ. You will not need the storage capacity that we do. Figure how much you use in a year (or need to survive.) How much rain/snow melt can you collect? When does it come? If you get water every month of the year, you only need capacity for 1/12 of your yearly total need. If your water comes 4 times a year, then you need 1/4 your annual need. For us, I need to store 1/2 of what we need, as our rain only comes twice a year. Does that make sense?


----------



## tirednurse (Oct 2, 2013)

Jeep said:


> WHere do you purchase this stuff from, the rejected human grade etc..


I get them from a lady not far from me. I don't know how she got started doing this but she gets the stuff delivered to her by the semi load. 
It comes from food companies that sell to companies like Campbell's that will order so many pounds of barley for instance. they run the barley through their machine. then the next item run through is lentils. a small amount of both end up getting mixed together in the machine and can not be used. they sell the mixed up stuff to people for use as animal food. 
I found her by word of mouth. Others selling the grains like wheat and barley can be found on sites like craig's list.


----------



## LunaticFringeInc (Nov 20, 2012)

Right now I only have Rabbits and a few bales of hay last an awful long time. But after watching "Frontier House" last week, I am giving this some serious thought. Harvesting hay with a sickle looks like hard time consuming work and if the SHTF there will already be plenty of that...hard time consuming work, to be adding even more to the equation. Its also making me reassess what type of live stock I want to keep too as I want to expand in the future. Luckily the winters here are much shorter than they were in Montana where Frontier House took place. But its pretty dry here and hay has gotten to be down right expensive here most seasons of late. Its not that unusual for those with Cattle here to make long trips two states away to pick up what little hay is on the market and paying what ever the asking price is due to limited availability and then trucking it back here.


----------



## Jeep (Aug 5, 2014)

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10202888837811056&set=pcb.10202888842731179&type=1

Hope this works, just another day at the farm


----------



## bigwheel (Sep 22, 2014)

Very glad yall thought of this. We have two cats and a shitzu. What is a Mother to do?


----------



## Jeep (Aug 5, 2014)

Did the attatchment work ?


----------



## James m (Mar 11, 2014)

Link no work
I save the pictures from Facebook then upload them separately.


----------



## Jeep (Aug 5, 2014)

K everyone, I am not a computer whiz, but I created a small album for people to see. Hope you like it


----------



## Hemi45 (May 5, 2014)

I have several 30# bags of kibble for the dogs on hand at all times. That won't cut it in the Apocalypse but since I don't prepare for *that* it should do for lesser issues.


----------



## Jeep (Aug 5, 2014)

Some on hand is better than none


----------



## Arklatex (May 24, 2014)

What's the best way to store dog food long term? 5 gallon buckets with 5 gallon mylar bags and o2 absorbers? Or will it last awhile in just a steel trash can?


----------



## Jeep (Aug 5, 2014)

Ummm, in the bag no rips should last a year. Dog and cat food is different than goat or sheep food. Dog food will get rancid if its gets to hot.


----------



## BagLady (Feb 3, 2014)

2 horses, both ride, one also pulls a small wagon/buggy. 2 dogs, that live outside. 1 pig, we'll call him BLD2015. (BreakfastLunchDinner for 2015)
We have 34 acres, and plant winter Rye grass. (and grain and hay) (In a pinch, I'll just turn them loose. They'll come when we call them.
We stock some dog food, but we also stock rice. Put some meat drippings on it, and they think they've gone to doggy heaven.
The pig? I figure he'll be in the freezer, etc., by the time anything goes down.


----------



## Hemi45 (May 5, 2014)

Arklatex said:


> What's the best way to store dog food long term? 5 gallon buckets with 5 gallon mylar bags and o2 absorbers? Or will it last awhile in just a steel trash can?


My guess would be like any LTS solution for dried goods but I keep mine in the original packaging and rotate through them. For what I keep on hand, the year-out expiration date covers any freshness/quality concerns. As a bonus, doing this also allows time for contaminations/recalls to come to light.


----------



## Arklatex (May 24, 2014)

I was thinking about putting together a 5 gal with mylar "bug out bucket" for each of the dogs. I would think I could get a few years storage if it's put up this way.


----------



## Jeep (Aug 5, 2014)

Its fine as long as it doesn't get hot. It will sort of ferment and go bad....And you can't drink it


----------



## RNprepper (Apr 5, 2014)

There are a number of sites that advertise long term storage pet food - like 25-30 year shelf life. Just google "emergency pet food" and you'll see lots. Might be OK for a cat or small dog, but would be pricey for big dogs.


----------



## indie (Sep 7, 2013)

We have winter 6 months of the year, but the way I figure it, I cull hard and mercilessly to get animals that are parasite/disease resistant, excellent foragers and high producers. I'm cutting down now to just a couple of goats, mixed breeds that will do better grazing and require less input for milk production. I'm working on my own breeding plan with chickens to get high egg production and excellent foraging, along with good predator avoidance. I'm phasing out all birds that don't fit the bill.

My rabbits are the big prep. They're raised in a colony where we bring fresh greens during summer and hay during the winter. I have a reel mower and could use that to cut hay but I want to learn to use a scythe. Once dried, it can be stored loose in the barn. Rabbits produce a ton of meat that can be fed to dogs. I have big dogs and am ramping up home meat production to switch them entirely to raw. Rabbits are for us, too - one rabbit can feed our family of 5 for three meals: a roast on day one and soup for days 2 and 3. I thought about storing dog food but with the worry about rancidity, plus the cost, I opted to move toward raising it all. 

You can find dead chest freezers to store grains in - airtight and hold quite a bit. We go to a local feed producer and buy 6 months of chicken food at a time. Next year, I'm hoping to add amaranth and buckwheat, along with more sunflowers, for home grown grains to feed chickens, goats and especially rabbits.

If you have a suburban yard, you can cut that to feed rabbits. In other countries, greens and garden scraps are all domestic rabbits get.


----------



## bennettvm (Jan 5, 2013)

I raise rabbits as well. They are one of the easiest and cheapest animals/livestock to raise. Best deal pound for pound.


----------



## Jeep (Aug 5, 2014)

Hope this works


----------



## oddapple (Dec 9, 2013)

I am working on my own homegrown chicken formula with crickets, mesquite flour, and excess greens/garden waste. I think they will be sustainable in the near future. "

Washed, dried and ground egg shells are the home version of "layena" in so far as shell thickness goes. I bet I add ours in micro amounts to regular feed rather than two separate mixes.
They can use natural wormers that we do.
Eucalyptus is their resperatory, external, kind of like Vicks vapor around a kid's nose. (VetRx may be a label to read for other breather ingredients for them, i can't remember what all?)
You can use diatomaceous earth to dust with too. Sulfur water sprayed around fights fleas in the grass.


----------



## BagLady (Feb 3, 2014)

indie said:


> We have winter 6 months of the year, but the way I figure it, I cull hard and mercilessly to get animals that are parasite/disease resistant, excellent foragers and high producers. I'm cutting down now to just a couple of goats, mixed breeds that will do better grazing and require less input for milk production. I'm working on my own breeding plan with chickens to get high egg production and excellent foraging, along with good predator avoidance. I'm phasing out all birds that don't fit the bill.
> 
> My rabbits are the big prep. They're raised in a colony where we bring fresh greens during summer and hay during the winter. I have a reel mower and could use that to cut hay but I want to learn to use a scythe. Once dried, it can be stored loose in the barn. Rabbits produce a ton of meat that can be fed to dogs. I have big dogs and am ramping up home meat production to switch them entirely to raw. Rabbits are for us, too - one rabbit can feed our family of 5 for three meals: a roast on day one and soup for days 2 and 3. I thought about storing dog food but with the worry about rancidity, plus the cost, I opted to move toward raising it all.
> 
> ...


I really like your sustainable program for feeding dogs and your family home raised rabbit. I am gonna steal your idea's! :-D
And Sunflowers grow good here, I never thought of it before. Thanks Indie.


----------



## BagLady (Feb 3, 2014)

Jeep said:


> View attachment 6854
> View attachment 6855
> View attachment 6856
> View attachment 6857
> ...


That's a nice herd of meat you got there, Jeep. Hope you get your chickens going again.


----------



## BagLady (Feb 3, 2014)

One more thing about rabbits. The manure that settles to the ground under the cages, is a worm heaven! Just dig.


----------



## oddapple (Dec 9, 2013)

Generally, we do the "1/3 meat, 1/3 starch, 1/3 vegetable ratio on dog food. We add their vits/supp and high nutrition foods they can eat in small amounts as the "entiched" part and it is laborsome, but they go nuts and stay healthy.
I like the "Beneful" type bag foods but they get pretty costy.
You just look more for stuff dogs can't eat and stuff like they make their own vitamin c like we do d, which is why you don't see dogs up fruit trees. Therfore, you only give them vit c in small amounts as a littlextra boost if they aren't feeling tops but not daily or in food recipes.
Search stuff like herbs for dogs and dog food recipes - you get all kinds of links to breed specific stuff too.


----------

