Winter is back!

Well, it’s finally here! After a slight delay, we’re jumping right into winter. I’d have preferred a slower introduction to the sub 10-degree weather, but we don’t have much of a choice, do we? I know my animals don’t appreciate it as well. Our horses especially don’t seem to enjoy it all that much! A little extra hay can go a long way in helping with that. Remember your horses and cattle depend on lots of forage to keep that internal furnace they have going full blast which will keep them warm!

Winter chores have come upon us as well. As we put away our rakes and lawn sweepers we used to pick up those last fall leaves it is time to pull out those winter implements and prepare our equipment. I know for myself it is something I often put off too long and end up putting on those lawn tractor tire chains in the snow I need to plow rather than prepping ahead of time when it is warmer and snow free outside!

With my extremely limited physical resources it will be even more important this winter to try more labor-saving tools and methods. Last year the snow plow I purchased for my lawn tractor was a huge improvement over my ATV and plow. The labor involved with raising and lowering the blade for the ATV was extensive. A electric winch would have been a great solution, but it was too expensive to keep the ATV (it was made in ’94) going and obtain a power winch for the blade.

To add to my lawn tractor and snow blade I obtained a powered “snow shovel” (I am trying the cordless version to avoid dragging a cord) to clean snow off the areas inaccessible to my plow such as the outside steps and back deck. I look forward to seeing how well this works as opposed to shoveling. It is a bit heavier and more cumbersome to use as opposed to a regular snow shovel.

For the livestock, poultry-wise I obtained a automatic coop door opener as well as a larger waterer (doubled from a 1.5 gallon to a 3 gallon) and a heated base. Previously we used a 3-gallon black rubber feeding tub to hold the water. During winter weather we would have to break the ice out of it and fill it each morning and night. Obviously, this took a great deal of extra time for someone such as myself limited in energy. As the winter months go forward, we will see if the extra investment in the poultry equipment will pay off. I’d love to only have to trek to the coop once a day to check on the girls and then only have to fill the waterer every 4-5 days! The door opener will be great as well to let them out and close them in daily, although on colder days I will have to turn it off. Too bad they don’t have a thermostat on these auto door openers for extreme weather!

Feeding the horses I cannot change much. Unfortunately, I lost my auto feeder from last winter. (my son-in-law and my daughter moved out of our house to their own place last spring after living at our house during the winter months. Boy was it nice of him to take care of the horses all last winter). Watering them can also prove challenging. Carrying buckets of water to the water tank every 4-5 days or so will be very taxing. I am hoping to try to use a regular garden hose. My plan is to attempt to blow all the water out after every use with my air compressor. I’ll report back how well this works.

**Unfortunately I could not get this to work, not sure if I’m doing something wrong but we’re back to using the sled!

In addition to these tools, I also obtained a lighted winter beanie hat. I don’t know why I haven’t got one of these sooner. It is a wonderful tool to have available. Since sometimes I have to do chores in the dark, I would often use my cellphone as a light source which was cumbersome. I bought the hat only last week and it has proven invaluable!