How do you get away?

I love our acreage, our animals, our gardens, but how does one ever go away? I have an opportunity that I would like to take, but there is no one to take on all of my chores! What has worked for you?

I usually call on family. Right now I have an ad out for a farm sitter because we want to go away for a 4 day stretch and that is too much time for my family to drive out and check things.
It is hard and that is another reason to limit chores, downsize a few things so they can last a couple days without anyone around. We have a great neighbor that checks on the place and will feed the dogs but that is it! No chicken chores, no cow chores will he do...

Best thing is if you can find a reliable farmsitter that is willing to come in and look after the place for you. They are hard to come by but I am hoping to find one that we can count on so getting away is not so hard.

Talk to your neighbors and friends nearby. They get away, so they must have someone....it's often a well kept secret. That's how I found my last home sitter. She stayed overnight and pampered everyone, no worries.

I have an awesome neighbor we call on. She is the best person to deal with all my chickens. She loves the birds. I usually end up giving her a few purebreds. Last year I gave her a couple bantams. Once we have my pens set up better I am going to set up a tank with hoses running to each pen with gravity fed waterers so that the chores are easier. I have feeders that hold enough grain to feed my birds for 3-4 days without refill so that limits the amount of grain she needs to haul.

When I get my milk cow things maybe different though

Milk cows are a big issue! There is a "circle" of neighbours who have milk cows and they all agree to milk one another's cows if one of them goes away but there are some nightmarish cows in that circle. So I am trying to avoid being part of that. I don't want to get kicked!

I have a hired man but as soon as I go away he likes to make everything "easier" so puts all the birds together, feeds them the same food, changes all the pens around, adds perches and cuts extra doors in the coop, etc. He thinks I am quite fussy and eccentric I believe. Something is always dead when I get home. Sigh.

DH says it is the cost of getting away.

heda gobbler wrote:

I have a hired man but as soon as I go away he likes to make everything "easier" so puts all the birds together, feeds them the same food, changes all the pens around, adds perches and cuts extra doors in the coop, etc. He thinks I am quite fussy and eccentric I believe.

this struck me as so funny Heda! I could hardly imagine someone (other than my parents maybe!) adding perches and cutting holes in coops while they were farmsitting for me!
made me giggle although im sure it is annoying to have it done to you!
We are lucky in that my two brothers-in-law ranch with us, so we plan our times away so that there is always someone here...

Well it is a good lesson for me because I am a bit of a control freak and I think he is sort of an anti-control freak. His wife is an ultimate controller and I think he comes and works for me and gets a little crazy. But my coops WERE so nice and worked so well and now they have all sorts of stupid doors and bits of plywood hanging on them.

But really, every time I bump my head on the massive perch he put in the hen house above the nesting boxes I think. ggrr. Well, you know.

But yes, sort of funny.

we dont get away if we do it is just a day trip
any time it is for longer something dies or the horses get out
or the stud gets in with the mares (dont know how that happens)
so I just dont go any where.
and I dont drive so darwin has to do it all

How do I get away? I slam my foot onto the gas, try and but some vehicles in between, make a few zig zag turns to throw off pursuit and head in an unexpected direction.

Oh... you mean get away from home and not get away from the cops...

I slam my foot onto the gas, try and but some vehicles in between, make a few zig zag turns to throw off pursuit and head in an unexpected direction.

Fowler wrote:How do I get away? I slam my foot onto the gas, try and but some vehicles in between, make a few zig zag turns to throw off pursuit and head in an unexpected direction.

Oh... you mean get away from home and not get away from the cops...

I slam my foot onto the gas, try and but some vehicles in between, make a few zig zag turns to throw off pursuit and head in an unexpected direction.

Oh, that was you? If I'd known, I'd have given you a more friendly hand gesture!
It is nearly impossible to get away with a milk animal. Last year I planned the pregnancy to have kids on the doe while we might go away, and of course, we never did...
It is a bone of contention with my hubby that we have to plan time away. Guess he'll have to suck it up if he wants real food!

I farm alone in a place I am not from. I have made a couple, well 3 friends here that I can call on in the event of emergency. They would take care of the farm and the animals, not as I do, but they would be fed and watered. The problem is my dogs. I have 5 beautiful ultra big dogs. I am quite sure they would not stay home more than a day without me. They would have to be tied up, but then they cannot work. The rough collie is the sky hunter (raven chaser), the border collie chases everything else (including things he is not supposed to of course), the Maremma keeps bigger predators at bay with the Maremma cross and the pup, the largest dog of all, barks now when he hears something that is not supposed to be there. I think when he is mature he will join the Maremma to kill.
But what do you do when you have dogs like this. We are a pack and I am the leader. They will look for me if I am not here. I just know it.

.

All good advice. Thanks everyone. Even you fowler lol. Somedays it is tempting... I don't think it will work. Was hoping to go to Toronto. Have never been there. Could have gone with the kids virtually for free for a week. I know I would worry myself sick though. Oh well. I guess we will go out for dinner tonight instead. It 43 with the humidity here and I don't feel like cooking!

Susan I have a hard time getting away with milk cows, dogs, chickens and the sheep/cows, but we make it work some way or another.
Kids don't stay kids long and it is so nice to have a few family trips they can look back on when they are older and tell their kids about. I was 20 years old before I was ever on a plane, I was never to BC until I was over 30 years old and only to Saskatchewan because my grandma lived there and visited her twice a year. We were a very busy ranch family growing up and although I loved the animals and would never trade the experiences I had, I would love to be able to tell my kids of trips we went on as a family.

If there is time I would advertise for a farm sitter, make them come out a couple days a week while you are home to get familiar with your set up and your animals, and get familiar with them. If it works out great, take the trip with your kids, and know that you will have someone looking after your animals. If your friends are willing to do "drop in visits" to see that everything is going well for the farmsitter that is even better.

I too know what it is like to worry about the animals but I also am not going to sacrific my kids enjoyment of childhood because of them. If I know I have a dependable person looking after the animals there should be no need to worry.

You are absolutely right about that HR. They do grow up so fast. They need opportunities....

Hi from beautiful sunny Winfield, BC. My wife and I are currently house setting for a lady here in Winfield. We arrived on July 1st, and will be leaving on July 18th. This is our first time doing this. Outside of a few problem when we first arrived, it has been very good. My wife and I love BC but it is very expensive to camp here or rent a place. We are hoping to be able to do it again in BC. With my wife retired, and myself working only 1/2 times it is a way we can have an extra vacation in the summer. All we are doing is feeding and picking up her eggs and putting in the fridge by her gate where she sells them. I also mow her grass and water her lawn. I thought it was an excellent chance to get two 1/2 weeks in such beautiful country.

We would consider it again, wouldn't mind a few other animals but I am not a horse person, or interested in milking. A few beef cattle, sheep, goats, or other small animals would be ok. I don't think too many people would want milk cows.

Perry

We're fortunate in that we have two good friends (a married couple) who are retired and she is keen to learn about homesteading and he is not so much but happy to help out whenever needed. They live in our cottage next door and it is fabulous arrangement. We can now go out for dinner and make plans for the weekend or camping holidays as long as we don't double book between us.

The sacrifice for us is that we've lost of privacy as the cottage is close to our house which has many windows but it far outweighs the freedom we've gained and they are good folks who are starting to feel like family. They have even expressed a desire to be here long term and continue to learn about growing food and raising livestock. They/she even seems keen about our plans to bring dairy animals into our life.

I feel very fortunate.

If you can afford to have a small comfortable dwelling for a 'farm hand', it's worth it the sacrifices if it's the right person/people. If not, maybe that person can cover the cost for building the building and then live rent free until the total amounts to the price of the building, which you keep in the end. There are people in the West Kootenays who love this lifestyle but can't afford the land and would jump at this kind of opportunity.

Perry, pretty sure I know where you are staying and housesitting. What a wonderful opportunity eh? How nice is that. How do we get away. Well, we don't want to very often . but when the wet coast calls us, we head back to our old homeland. Maple Ridge actually and stay at my youngest Sister's home with all her 6 kids. Our Niece gives up her bedroom for us and sleeps on the couch. Picture that. A 19 year old gal with such niceties, such a sweetheart. As we live on our Daughter's farm, we farmsit when they go away, which is every month at least, for a few days, to go to barrel racing events with their horses and in the winter, cattle penning events. We farmsit alot. When we go away, the tables turn and they housesit our farm stuff. Which is my chickens, smiling. The dogs come with us, so it is only chickens and she is darn good at it. She is very attention detailed, like me and I know that she will look after every little bird, big and small, like they were her own. I am a fortunate woman. So, yes, unless they are travelling, we can really go anywhere, anytime that we choose. If they are away, our oldest Grandson will also come and housesit, but don't know if I would trust him in summer with so many little bird babies and the adults too, and oh yes, the hens on eggs, brooding their babies. that might tip the barrel. But then....I have my other Daughter, which is his Mother, that could come and help too. Although she thinks that chickens stink. Go figure. Do they stink? I've never noticed a smell . Maybe she just has ultra sensitive nostrils. She was born farm girl, don't know why she doesn't like chickens and cute little fuzzy butts, but she just thinks they are stinky things that lay eggs that she loves to eat . go figure. Ooops, rambled on a little too much about me and mine, off to another topic. Good one. Hard to find good farm setters for surely. Have a beautiful day, CynthiaM.

Usually either my husband or myself stays home (mostly me) to watch over everything.

This year since we only have the grumpy cat, my neighbor is going to come down and feed him and water my plants. She has also offered to do it next year when we have chickens again. I have also offered to watch her place if they ever go anywhere.

We're heading to the Haida Gwaii for a couple weeks. It will be our first Family Vacation DH, Kids and I) ever and I am so excited that I can hardly sleep! Last year I took the kids and we went with my husbands family there and my husband stayed behind to hold down the fort.

Wonderful news Silkie Bantam!
Yes, trading chores with a neighbor has been the best solution for us over the years. I also have some wonderful in-laws that are willing to help, but try not to take advantage of their kindness.
We try to do a family vacation every year and time it for when there is the least amount of animals to care for. In the winter our few cows and goats can eat on a bale for a week easily, so we put out 2 for them and the chickens are consolidated into as few areas as possible to to make it easy for someone to come once a day to collect eggs and water them. I prepare ahead by filling a pig feeder for the hens which will keep them fed for a week. Iknow some people are quite happy to do this just for the eggs. Our 2 dogs would never roam, so its quite manageable.

Keeping options open for vacation and travel is important to us, so I always have that in the back of my mind. It is so easy to get yourself into a bind by getting too many pets and animals, and then you are tied down. For some that isn't a problem, but for us - we want to maintain some balance between having animals on the farm, but still have the flexibility to leave for a week if the opportunity comes up.

for me I found that picking a time of year when not much is happening is a big part. I also often ask friends to take dogs who need a little extra care to their homes, that way people are babysitting a couple of dogs and not a dozen. Friends with sled dogs are a big part of it, we can switch and swap and help each other.

For the rest of the dogs and the chickens etc, I make sure everything is stockpiled and I use huge waterers/water buckets, and big feeders. When I had horses/alpacas/llamas I either had them on pasture or brought in a round bale.

I strip down everything, completely muck out the kennels/stalls/corrals/coops. This way the people mostly come to check the animals and maybe feed, not to clean. I found that the big thing people DONT want to do, what makes them say no, is having to muck. The chickens can go a week before needing more food, water is good for a few days to a week plus pans of water for easy quick watering. For the dogs I have big horse buckets. I will put out two, and I have what I call "dip buckets" around the kennels. If someone spills thier water, you only need to dip the bucket into the tub, you dont need to run the hose or haul. The dogs and birds can be fed from OUTSIDE the pens so people dont have to walk in. I have run my kennels, which have been quite large at times, by myself for the most part. I can top water and feed out 75 dogs in 15 to 30 min depending on what needs done.

I dont aks my keepers to clean pens or kennels. They have large pens and kennels for a reason. If people dont have to feed or clean and only check on them, maybe water, they are often more than happy to come out and help me for a few days to a week, even more. If I leave on Friday morning, then I can have someone check them 1 day on Saturday, and I am home Sunday.

Being alone and working full time, I have everything set up efficiently so that if I am late, sick or injured, or if I need to call in a friend, everyone can be fed and watered very easily and quickly.

The people I call are fellow mushers/breeders, friends, family, neighbours. I have had friends come out and stay for a week for really seriously modest pay (I cant afford anything!) because they wanted to stay on the farm for a week or something. Trading off with fellow fanciers is really a great way of doing it. Many are happy to trade services for eggs (All the eggs you can collect while im gone and more!), broilers, turkey, beef sides etc.