Dusting Off The Incubator

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Our poultry flock really expanded back in 2013 just after we left our life in the big city and set out to be farmers full time. Each season we’ve been adding new blood to the poultry flock to keep the eggs coming and it’s worked well for us so far.

After relocating our farm last summer, egg production abruptly stopped. I feel it was largely due to the stress of the transition. First, everyone was moved to confinement in chicken tractors. It took us days to catch all the poultry! Imagine us herding poultry up a ramp so they could be loaded in a horse trailer for moving. It was total madness.

I also think our drop in egg production can be attributed to the age of some in our flock and the natural molting chickens experience. So, this year we’re getting LOTS of new chicks. I’m out buying and hatching like a crazy chicken lady.

So far, I’ve added the following chicken breeds to our flock in 2018: 3 Sapphire Gem, 3 Lavender Orpington, 3 Asian Blue, 3 White Leghorn, 2 Turken and 4 Easter eggers. Lots of “chicken math” is happening as I visit the feed store every few weeks!

Chicken math: it’s an inside joke with chicken keepers. Your family agrees to get a small flock, but somehow it turns out much larger than you planned!

I’m also on our second hatch with the good ole Brinsea Mini Advance Hatching Egg Incubator It will basically be running non-stop from now until the summer. It’s such a trooper, though I wish I had a bigger incubator sometimes. It’s probably better that I don’t though

Our first hatch was less than ideal, thanks to the house cat knocking over the incubator… two Silkies, an Australop and a Buff Orpington hatched despite the cat’s curiosity.

With new chicks as part of the farm again I’ve been really itching to upgrade our chick brooder setup. In the past, I’ve always defaulted to whatever is the easiest to move around. Sometimes I’ve got a bird cage of chicks in the main chicken house, sometimes they are in a chick brooder hutch in the barn, right after hatch they go in a plastic tub or a smaller bird cage that is always moving. The setup is ever-changing and is largely dependent on their age, heat needs and the current temperatures.

Since last summer I’ve been thinking about ditching the heat lamps and investing in a safer more efficient system. Specifically this type of a brooder setup ->

The main issue I have with the pictured setup is the open top- my barn cats would be harassing the chicks all the time! Also it’s something simply we cannot pay for at this point… So I use rock slabs to elevate the waterer and I use cheap plastic tubs to contain the chicks. It’s crude but resourceful, it works for us.

However, I did take the plunge and order this warming plate from Premier1Supplies and I’m super happy with it! I got the 12×12 warming plate with the plastic dome, as pictured to the left. It’s rated to warm up to 20 chicks at once.

Yesterday I had been keeping about 22 chicks under it (oops!) but have since moved the bigger chicks to another brooder now that they have less heat requirements. Those bigger chicks were store bought and spent about 4 weeks under the warming plate before outgrowing it. I’ve left the chicks from my first hatch as well as my Turken chicks under the warming plate to await the hatch of 7 more of our flocks eggs.

Here is a video peek at the warming plate in action in our current brooder setup:

Why Goat Milk Soap?

Our journey with goat milk soap has been an adventure. We initially got goats to provide drinkable milk for the family. You see, only one person in the house can stomach pasteurized cow milk and buying raw milk can be pretty tricky where the law is concerned.

When we moved to the country and our raw milk sources were gone we knew we’d have to be our own milk source. No better place than a farm for that right? So we got a full sized, registered French Alpine that was in milk and we were getting a gallon of raw goat milk a day.

I pretty much have a whole fridge of just raw milk. We make cheese, ice cream, kefir, yogurt and still have left over milk, lots. Eventually milk gets frozen to save it but even the freezer gets too full of milk. This is how goat milk soaps began on our family farm.

I never thought soap making would amount to much because I’m not big on cosmetics and I don’t like too many scents or dyes but I’ll try most anything once… So, I made up a 100% from scratch uncolored, essential oil scented soap from our fresh goat milk for our family’s use. It cured for ages (almost a year!) and we finally tried it out. Dang, that is some good stuff!

Goat Milk Soap is Superior

Since switching to homemade goat milk soaps for our family our rashes from food sensitivities, the dry skin issues and the breakouts- are all gone! We kind of hate regular soap now.

“Why don’t you make some to try selling?” Nathan (my husband) asked when we needed to use up of another stockpile of frozen milk. I agreed to make a batch to test sell and we also gifted some soap to family and friends. Slowly we began to get some great feedback from folks.

One lady said her daughter’s sun spots are clearing up thanks to the goat milk soap. Another gal who has very sensitive skin and breaks out in reaction to most everything says her skin loves the soap too. I’ve seen how my husband’s dry skin has disappeared, he no longer needs lotion after each shower! My kids aren’t getting weird rashes anymore…

I’m not making soaps to fix ailments but I certainly believe that goat milk is very healing and nourishing, it’s why we drink it! The skin in your body’s largest organ, why not clean it with something nourishing, naturally moisturizing and free of harsh chemicals?

Over time I’ve tried various soap fragrances and colorants, they all sell quite fast but I’m always whipping up new batches. Our soaps are normally for sale at our Southern Illinois farm market stand in Golconda, IL and we can sell soap online and ship it to you.

Due to popularity, our inventory is constantly changing but you can see the latest soap scents that are for sale at: https://squareup.com/store/ryder-family-farm/

I was very interested in why the soap was doing all these great things for folks. I felt inclined to do some research on goat milk soap benefits…

Goat Milk Soap is best because:

It’s nourishing your body’s largest organ, your skin!

It’s got antibacterial properties- this helps with breakouts and with healing plus it is cleansing.

It is packed with vitamins for you skin to absorb- not harsh chemicals.

Reduces inflammation in the skin due to the goat milk’s fat molecule content. This also makes it super hydrating and luxurious feeling.

It’s loaded with alpha-hydroxy acids that delay aging.

On social media I shared some photos of the kiddos helping me make a new batch of soap. I was amazed by how many folks wanted to order the soap we were working on. That is basically how I arrived at offering soaps for sale here on the site that we ship to you.

I’m still working on the shipping logistics for the soaps. For now, the easiest and most straight forward option is a flat rate shipping cost regardless of quantity or weight. If you want a single bar or two and don’t want to pay the flat rate shipping cost you can contact me and I’ll calculate shipping & invoice you for the exact shipping weight of the soaps you want.

Dusting Off The Incubator

Chicken math: it’s an inside joke with chicken keepers. Your family agrees to get a small flock, but somehow it turns out much larger than you planned!

Why Goat Milk Soap?

Goat Milk Soap is Superior

Yes, you can order online!