The rabbit and a hare....

On May 14, 2013 our red San Juan rabbit gave birth to 9 baby bunnies.  I was so excited.  I just love baby bunnies.  On May 15, I found 2 dead in the cage.  On May 16, I found the last 7 all over the place - on the floor, in neighboring cages and some had bloody bite marks.  I tried  to put the babies back in Red's nest but she wouldn't have anything to do with them.  2 more died that afternoon.  Now, I have fostered puppies, kittens and chickens, but never bunnies.  I knew hand raising baby bunnies was usually not successful, but being the person I am - I just had to try.  I removed the last 5 from the nest and took them inside the house.  My husband just about flipped his lid, but one look from me and he shut up.  He knows better than to stand between me and animals.

I parked the them in the pantry because is has a door to keep the kitties out.  I put a heat lamp close to the nesting box to keep them warm but not hot.  I heated up some kitten formula that I keep on hand for just these kind of emergencies.  I started feeding them with an eye dropper.  Things seemed to be going well for a couple of days, then tragedy - 3 of the 5 babies died.  I was so sad.  What was I doing wrong?  Off to surf the Internet to figure this out before I lost the other 2.  After reading information from several different sites, I was able to determine that I needed to add heavy cream or half and half to the formula.  I didn't have exact measurements so I just eyeballed it.  It must have worked.

The bunnies are happy, healthy and full of spunk.  At the time of this writing, they are 44 days old.  They are eating pellets, carrots, grass, organic lettuce (I had some extra and thought I would share) and celery.  They also love the herb/weed known as plantain.  They are growing so fast!  Everyday, they get play time in the master bathroom. Why there?  It has tile floor (easy clean up of bunny messes) and I can close the door to keep stalker kitties and rough-housing doggies out!  They can run and jump to their hearts content without fear of being pounced on or used as a chew toy.

 I had to move them from the cardboard box they called home to a larger, better secured bird cage.  Now it seems it is time to move them to a more permanent home.  They need a hutch.  I don't have a hutch.  I am not going to buy a hutch because I think they are way over priced so I guess that means I am going to have to build a hutch.  It is going to have to built this weekend or next because I fear that they are going to get too big to get out of the cage!  I have to keep the cage door wired shut (unless it's play time or feeding time) because they can push it open.  Going to surf the net again to get some ideas then go raid the scrap pile to see if I have enough supplies.  I want to see if I can do this without spending ANY money.  I will post pictures of the bunnies as soon as my phone quits arguing with me.

Oh and the bunnies have temporary names Scratch -because of the terrible wound on his neck and his damaged right paw when he came inside. (which has completely healed and he has full use of his paw now.) and Spaz - I think you can figure this out.  My son and I want to change their names to suit their personalities, but they will still keep their nick names.

How do you depreciate the value of a pet's life?

When our house burned down, I never thought dealing with the insurance company could be so blood boiling.  I've mentioned how we have to write down everything we can remember that we lost and how much we paid for it.  Then the insurance company will depreciate it.  After that, they send us money to buy the item back, but things cost more these days.  If it costs more to replace than we paid, they supposedly will send the difference.  Ok so our sofa cost about $2,000 when it was new 5 years ago.  I don't know how to figure the depreciation, but say they will send us $1,000 for the sofa.  How are we supposed to repurchase the same sofa with only $1,000?  I don't understand.

Well, how in the hell do you put a price on the life of a pet?  Are they going to depreciate his value because he was 11 years old and a cat can live for more than 20 years? Is he less valuable because we adopted him? Because he was declawed? Because he was neutered? WTF?  I just don't get it.  He can't be replaced.  Zeke was Zeke.  Every pet is different their own special way.  His life was priceless.  

This was Zeke. I adopted him in 2004 from an animal shelter that, at that time, only charged $10 for any animal. He was fixed and de-clawed. The shelter thought he was about 4 years old when I got him. He was skinny when I got him and he never didn't gain any weight even thought I left the food bowl full all the time. Zeke was very independent, unless I sat down. Then he was all about being held and loved on. He was a snuggler. This picture was taken in 2010 shortly after we brought little Albert inside. At first Zeke would have nothing to do with him, but Albert was persistent and Zeke finally caved in. He really was a big softy, he just didn't want anyone to know it. We had him until October 7, 2011. I am not certain, but I think he perished in the fire. Lance said as he was running out of the house calling 911 and kitty, kitty, kitty, he thought he saw Zeke running the other direction. Zeke looked confused. I hope his death was quick and he didn't suffer. We have never found any trace of him. I know it sounds gross, but I would like to know for sure. It would mean closure for all of us. Some friends have suggested that maybe he did get out and is hiding somewhere. Even is he did get out he wouldn't have survived the winter. Zeke hated being cold. He always slept in front of the wood stove when the weather was cold. I miss him.

New Seed Catalogs

I can hardly stand it. New seed catalogs are spread around on the floor near my chair in the living room. I am getting overwhelmed by all the choices I have. AND there's even more choices online! What's a girl to do? I am going to have to narrow it down quickly so that I can get my seeds ordered. The sooner they get here the sooner I can start them in the basement. It's cool down there, but warm enough for germination. I am going to have to get another grow light. I had one that I bought last winter, but it was lost in the house fire. Bummer.

My biggest problem is going to be getting the 2 cats to stay out of my indoor green house! Last year I started seeds in the kitchen on the table that we never actually ate at. I had the UV light mounted from my hanging pots/pans rack. Talk about a redneck set up! I had little mini greenhouses made out of the covered trays that come from Subway (yummy!). I snagged those from work when they bought our dinners from time to time.

However, there were a few baking pans that didn't have lids and the kitties jumped on the table and ate whatever was sprouting like it was their own personal salad bar! I tried planting cat grass in a pot in another room to try to keep them away from my plants. They ate that too.

This year I think I will use one of the those multi-level drying racks for sweater and things. I can put plexi glass or something over the slats to keep things from falling thru. Using clear material will also allow more light to filter down. I will have to rotate planters to keep things growing evenly. I can then cover the whole thing with a clear drop cloth or plastic to keep the furry beasts out.... Sounds like a whole lot of work to me. Oh HONEY.... I need you to build something for me!

Meanwhile I will continue to dream about my garden to be. I can see it now. Rows of green beans, peas, carrots, radishes, more green beans, potatoes, tomatoes, green peppers, hot peppers, corn, cucumbers, squash, pumpkins. Don't forget about the flowers and herbs. A complete kitchen garden and a perennial flower bed that borders the house! Oh wait, there isn't a house yet. Okay so the flowers may have to wait until NEXT year. I can dream can't I?!

Looks as though Zeke has the right idea for these bitter cold days we've been having. It a bit warmer today than it has been. Looks like a balmy 26 degrees out there. The horses are enjoying 2 bales of hay and the ducks and chickens are enjoying some sunshine. Yesterday, after we discovered a broken frozen pipe, we called the plumber. They were able to fix one problem, but when we turned the water on, we found another. They asked us if we thought we could make thru the weekend w/o running water because if they came back on Monday it would so much cheaper. We are waiting until Monday. We shoveled snow in the horse tank. After that load melts, we add more. One strange thing that has happened since the plumbers were here though, is the outside cats have found a secret passage that somehow leads IN THE HOUSE!! I haven't found it yet, but I think it is around the old furnace. We don't use it anymore because it was so inefficient. The plumbers had to remove some of the duct work to get to some of the pipes. I am just sure that is where the kitties are getting in! AND if they are getting in - what else can get in- oh the thought!!!!!

I really hate not being able to do laundry. (did that sound sincere?) No - really - I like doing laundry. The only problem is since I didn't get to it last weekend from helping my mother, the mountain is growing! It will take a week to get caught up. We only use the dryer for my uniforms because of the lint. We even went out and purchased another wooden drying rack. Now I have three. I line them up in front of the pellet burner and let the heat from that dry the clothes. It also helps add moisture to the air. As much as I like the pellet burner, it really dries the air out!
Another drawback to not having water is that no dishes are getting done. We are trying to use compostable tableware, but unfortunately, we are eating out frequently. I am out of pans to cook in. I was holding out, trying not to buy water, but I am afraid we are going to have to get a couple jugs anyway. We are using hand sanitizer and baby wipes to clean up with. What about the bathroom, you ask - Well we have that covered as well. You see, a while back, my husband read about making a port-a-pot out of a 5-gallon bucket, wood shavings, and an old hose winder. You know the square kind that is supposed to look nicer next to the spiggot that a coiled up hose. Our plan was to take it with us when we went trail riding with the horses since, a lot of times there are not bathrooms close by. I guess you can say we are roughing it. It doesn't smell too bad.....you just have to layer in a bunch of shavings after you "go". It sure beats having to spend money on a hotel room or going outside!! Afterall, we are still going to have a hefty plumber's bill.

Thanks for reading. Leave a comment if you wish.

Budgeting help for organic shopping

Today, I actually got to go to rummage sales and take my time looking. I didn't buy too much. I found a couple of Pampered Chef things that I can use and 1 to give as a gift to my mother. I also found a shopping tote that says right on it "Organic". Of course I couldn't pass that up for only 25 cents. That was all I bought at that particular sale. After we got back to my friends house - I decided I needed to go to the store.

I grabbed my little shopping bag and headed in with my hastily written list. ( I wrote it in the parking lot) Even though all I really needed when I entered the store was cat food, litter and those dynamo label cartridges, I decided to revamp the household with some new organic/natural items. We as a family are also trying to find gluten free foods for our son.

I headed to the health and beauty aisle first. Even though Meijer is getting more natural and organic items, Tom's of Maine is most familiar to me. Purchased toothpaste-4.69, bar soap-3.49 and aluminum free deo-4.99. I have a bar of "crystal deo", but I am nervous about using it. I am sure some of the truck drivers I deal with daily wouldn't even notice, but I would know if it wasn't working.

On to the groceries. What follows is a list of current Meijer prices for anyone looking to change their eating habits. I realize there are probably other places I could have gone and may have gotten better deals, but Meijer was on the way home and we don't have a Whole Foods Market near us. (nearest is 30 miles) I have included the name, whether it is organic or not, quanity and price.
Florida Crystals organic cane sugar, 2lbs @ 5.58 on sale 2/5.00
Wholesome Sweeteners (fair trade) organic sucanat (dehydrated cane juice) 1 lb @ 4.09
Meijer Organics EVOO 17 oz 7.99
Meijer Organics Crumbled Feta 6 oz 4.79
Meijer Organics trad. refried beans 15 oz @1.19 each got 2 for 2.38
Meijer Organics Tomato Sauce 15 oz @ 1.39 each got 2 for 2.78
Meijer Organics Golden Sweet Corn 15.25 oz @1.09 each got 2 for 2.18
Meijer Organics Tomatoes with Basil 28 oz @ 1.59 each got 2 for 3.18
Meijer Organics Tomato Paste 6 oz @ .75 each got 2 for 1.50
Bob's RedMill GF All purpose Baking flour 22 oz 4.99
Bob's RedMill GF Almond Meal/Flour 16 oz 13.99
Bob's RedMill GF Tapioca flour 20 oz 3.89
Bob's RedMill GF Bread Mix 16 oz 5.39
Bob's RedMill GF White Rice Flour 24 oz 5.79
Bob's RedMill GF Creamy Rice hot cereal 26 oz 4.89
Tinkya'da GF Brown Rice Pasta Shells 16 oz 3.89
Blue Diamond GF Natual Almond nut-thins smokehouse flavor and cheddar flavor 4.25 oz 3.39 each on sale 2/5.00
World's best kitty litter (made from whole kernal corn) 8 lbs @ 8.25 each got 2/14.50 with coupons.
Meijer reusable shopping bag .99

The only non-organic/natural purchases - mailing tape, dynamo label refill cassettes, and cat food for the barn cats.

Total for the organic/natural items is..................112.54

This includes the bag and the kitty litter. That may sound like a lot, but if you think about it, the flours, sugars, cat food, litter, toothpaste, deo and soap don't have to be purchased every week.
That would lesson the bill by more than $85. This money could then be used to purchase organic cheese, meat and veggies. If you find a good deal on the meat, you can freeze it. This blog is merely here to help someone who might not think that buying organic is affordable when in fact it is. You have to shop wisely (it helps to have a plan). Still don't think you can revamp all at once? Then don't. Start small with 1 or 2 things that you think you might like such as EVOO and the canned veggies. Also remember that I am leaning toward a gluten-free diet as well. You can find organic regular flours, crackers and other goodies that might be a little bit cheaper. Gluten-free foods have to be processed and packaged in separate facilities to prevent cross-contamination. This means higher overhead and higher prices.
I will leave you with this thought - It is better to pay a little bit more money now for organic/natural foods and products than to pay with your health later because you didn't.