Agnes is due to deliver her first calf sometime in the next few weeks. Between March 7th and March 28th. Put your guess in the poll below. Person who gets closest will get a few packets of my favorite seeds. I'm guessing March 13th because I will be gone the whole day... 😂

Predators ate my last two chickens (after they had survived 3 years in a different enclosure). In general I am re-evaluating the entire direction of the farm, and so I am giving hard consideration to IF I will replace them or should I just go all in on ducks. Below are some factors that matter in my choices. This can be applied for anything new added to your system, including new plant crops, or slightly modified and could apply to a new hobby, job, or relationship. 1. What additional roles can they play besides just the single initial product (eggs)? - I build my farm based on full systems, so where do they fit? What foods do I already have for them? How will their waste products be used? And the big Permaculture question; do they solve a different problem? 2. How much time, money and mental energy will they take? Will their multiple benefits be worth it? Will I literally lose sleep over them? 3. What physical space do they actually need? Could that space be better used for something else? 4. Are they in line with bigger goals or am I chasing dopamine? 5. What is the long term commitment? 6. How easy will it be to change my mind later if it really doesn't work? (Some animals are really hard to sell). For chickens, they have the bonus of converting kitchen food waste into more food (eggs), which ducks can't do. They also eat fly larvae in the livestock pens. They are super simple, and I will lose the same amount of sleep over ducks or chickens. They need less space than ducks but they smell worse and are more destructive. My bigger goal is to reduce the number of animals over 40 lbs and have the farm be automated enough that I can leave for a long weekend. Chickens win over ducks, because ducks don't go into shelter at night on their own. But it is adding more mouths. Both are super easy to sell if I change my mind. Different breeds are more hearty to weather. This week I keep seeing people talk about how fragile chickens are. Some breeds are (like the Easter egg layers).