Dread Pirate Farms

27/04/2024

Oh, the things you can do with milk 😋

18/04/2024

Don’t worry, they’re okay!! Today was disbudding day on the babies - 10 in all. This is to prevent their horns from developing which is safer for the goat and the owners.

My vet puts them under anesthesia to lessen the stress on the poor babes while it’s done. They’re fine now, little milk mouths to prove it 😜 Thank you Dr Swink - you’re the best! Hoof and Horn Mobile Vet Services

19/02/2024

Be mindful this spring!

This is a honey bee. The pollen on her legs is from dandelions.Her tongue is sticking out due to what killed her that was on the dandelions. It's spring, dandelions are the bees first food. This bee is dead from w**d killer spread on what we see as w**ds, but what nature sees as food. Please don't spray for w**ds until vou see the blackberries blooming. In this area, w**ds, flowers and fruit trees are bees only source of food until midle of June. There are FAR more w**ds than flowers or fruit trees, so it's their only food source. No bees, no food crops for us and we all starve.

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Doctor's Book of Survival Home Remedies
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The US Army’s Forgotten Food Miracle
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Self-Sufficiency on 1/4 Acre
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The Homestead Canning Cookbook
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Edible Landscaping
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05/12/2023

Little miss

30/11/2023

Baby siblings. The boy on the left is ufd as a wether.

11/11/2023

There are two seasons for me, summer tshirts and winter parka time - there is no in between! 😜

01/11/2023

Put those after-Halloween pumpkins to good use! Dread Pirate Farms is part of the Pumpkins for Pigs program and we have a convenient - at your leisure drop off spot located outside of Pittsboro.

If you’re not in the area and still want to donate to farms across the country - the Pumpkin for Pigs program expands every year! Check them out: https://pumpkinsforpigs.org

🎃🐽

DM me for drop off info! We also accept gourds, squash, acorns, and straw.

26/10/2023

Found a perfect lion’s mane mushroom on my goat walk yesterday. Perfect addition to dinner 🤤🤤

A few of the many purported benefits of lion’s mane:

• Contains compounds that stimulate brain cell growth and may protect them from damage caused by Alzheimer’s disease.

• Studies suggest it may help relieve mild symptoms of anxiety and depression.

• Lion’s mane extract may protect against the development of stomach ulcers by inhibiting the growth of H. pylori and protecting the stomach lining from damage.

• Contains a compound called hericenone B, which can decrease the rate of blood clotting and lower the risk of heart attack or stroke.

25/10/2023

Autumn colors on the farm.
#

17/10/2023

Ahh these beautiful autumn days! 🍂

24/09/2023

Tonight’s sunset on my way to milk the goats.

20/09/2023

Ham it up pup!

19/09/2023

Keep an eye out for this one in your pastures. Perilla Frutescens/Perilla Mint - highly toxic to livestock if ingested. Easy to spot, shallow roots make it easy to yank out after a good rain.

I don’t remember seeing it in previous years, but this year it popped up everywhere. Spent the last few days pulling up patches and patches of it. It was right about to goto seed, if left for another few days it would’ve proliferated everywhere.

Having plenty of other browse the goats had completely avoided it, but they will eat it if other browse is sparse.

29/08/2023

Adga registerable yearling doe and blue eyed, bottle baby doeling available. See website for more info: http://dreadpiratefarms.weebly.com

27/08/2023

Have had a huge influx of these tags/notifications lately. I want to make everyone aware of them - these are scams. DO NOT click on any links. FB will never tag you like this. I always report and block.

29/07/2023

Miss little cutie face. Introducing Wings & Caprines MG Peaches aka Princess Peach!

19/07/2023

Snaps from around the farm.

1. A serious discussion going on in the coneflowers.
2, 3. The tiniest of anoles in the blueberry bushes. Those are regular sized blueberries for size reference
4. I’ve lost count of the amount of pumpkin vines that have sprouted up around the property from the pigs.
5. Velvet ant -aka cow killers, actually a wasp, usually pretty easy to spot. Avoid at all costs.

06/07/2023

Dread Pirate Farms has tested negative for CAE, CL, and Johne’s for June 2023. Disease testing is important, even for small backyard herds!

I do my own blood draws and although it can be scary at first and of course some goats make it easier than others, at this point I’ve gotten pretty comfortable doing it. Doing my own blood draws helps save $$ on an already expensive necessity!

01/07/2023

This tank of a goat 🥰, Dread Pirate Trouble. Daughter of Little Tots Estate Tater *B, also includes Sinai Thunder, Caesar’s Villa, and Wooly Dog lines.

28/06/2023

Ohh, what to do with you hen…. 🙄

05/06/2023

A nice way to end a day of pasture cleanup - next to the fire with some scrumptious “Wildfoam” mead from ! Tastes like marshmallows!!

30/05/2023

I shall name you Behemoth.

16/05/2023

The amount of hats us farmers wear!

Female farmers are the ultimate multi-taskers! 👩‍🌾💪

15/05/2023

There are risks involved with comforting newly disbudded babies - worth it!

15/05/2023

Disbudding is one of those dreadful tasks that goes along with breeding dairy goats. While I wish I didn’t have to disbud and have brought polled goats into the herd to help with that, having a horned goat on the milking stand and in the pasture is a safety issue for me, the goat, and the other goats.

After being in the goat world for a long time, I’m convinced that there’s currently no better way to do it (if you’re going to do it) than under anesthesia. We disbudded babies ourselves one year in the beginning and would absolutely never do it again. Nothing like strapping a few day old baby goat into a box while taking a hot iron to their head while they scream and their whole body goes rigid with pain. Yes, it’s over quickly, but it’s horrible.

For years, Dr. Swink and her team at Hoof and Horn Mobile Vet Services out of Apex have handled our disbuddings. The baby is put under anesthesia, the head is shaved and numbed thoroughly, the buds are burned, and the anesthesia is reversed. There is no screaming or thrashing, and the numbing agent continues to provide relief for an extended period, allowing the baby goats to resume their happy, hoppy little lives. Dr Swink does a great job and I don’t have to question my sanity of owning goats every year!

We bring these animals into the world, it’s our responsibility to treat them well.

11/05/2023

Two super cute boys for FF miss Selene.

02/05/2023

A gorgeous evening on the farm today.

04/04/2023

Looks like these two found their own little perfect ray of sunshine! Cuddled up in a sweet embrace, they make quite a sight!