Goat & Chicken Feed

YIKES! Prices have just SKYROCKETED! My feed store had been biting the bullet for a few months and hadn't said anything. They have had to raise the price and the goat feed has gone up over $2/50# bag. Along with that, the sunflower seeds are no longer included! The reason is corn prices have escalated again and there is now a huge demand for corn. The other is that corn is being bought by other countries and China and Russia had BAD growing seasons last year and are buying up as much as they can. Chicken feed as also gone up, but I feed more to my goats and a mix that helps them balance their physical needs and either milk production or a developing pregnancy.

The chicken scratch was cheaper than the goat feed so I got it for the poultry. The problem there is I have goats with the poultry so that it discourages hawks, owls, etc from preying on my chickens. I'll have to start making a soy meal mash for the poultry to up the protein for the layers. I have to come up with a way to keep the goats out of it though.

Now I'm wondering how much chick starter and grower is going to have shot up! I think I used about 8 bags of starter last year with incubating.

I went and got stocked up a bit on feed today as we have gotten some warmer days the last couple days and will have for about a week. We're going to have a couple 50 degree days that the night temps will stay above freezing. So the snow is melting fast and that means the frost line will warm too and we will change seasons to MUD season. Then I can't drive to the barn to unload feed. So today is "do it all" day and get my van back to the house on the drive and "firma terra". Mud season is hard on getting to and from the barn at best. I have to buy it and have a load so when we have some nippy nights I can drive out in the morning before the ground thaws back to mud and unload it quick. Sometimes I end up with filling a couple of buckets and carrying out a day's feed.

I sure could have done without the extra grain expense! I paid more last time I was there too and thought that would be the increase! NOT SO. Not good!

I need a productive money tree that is hardy in zone 5 and 6!