Uses for a smallholding

Tiglath

Hello hivemind - we're in the process of buying a one-acre smallholding in Kent and are hoping to move in in the New Year. At the moment the owner has 6 or so geese in the orchard, and just a couple of hens in a henrun approx 20' x 30.' Assuming he takes his livestock with him, we're considering our options but are beginners with livestock (although hubby did have a few chickens when he was a child).

Hens - we want to rescue ex-commercial hens and are thinking 5 or so on that fenced-in henrun with a solid henhouse already there. Does that sound feasible?

The 50' x 40' apple and pear orchard seems to suit the geese already there - they have a pond/wallow place that we spotted on our first lightning-fast visit. We're going down next weekend to check out what structures are already there, and we have an aerial view of the property that gives a good idea of the size.

There's a former pigrun which is approx 30' x 25' with one of those half-tunnel shelters - the current owner ran a smokery and raised his own pigs, we think. I'm not keen on keeping pigs and wondered if this area might be suitable for pygmy goats if we made sure suitable fencing was in place.

The polytunnel, veg beds and area for a soft fruit cage are already in place, so it's really the animal areas we're thinking about.

Any words of wisdom? We have 14 cats, some of which are semi-feral and may decide they prefer the haybarn to living in the house. Does anyone know if there would be any issues between the cats and the livestock we're considering? All of the livestock would just be pets - we wouldn't be raising them for meat, although any eggs would be gratefully appreciated. Most importantly, we don't want to do anything unsuitable for the livestock (because we want them to have happy lives) so want to do our research first.

Davesnave

For hens to be 'free range' they need a minimum of 4m2 each, but of course you can be more generous than that. Too generous, though, and you will be cutting the grass a lot, which isn't smart.

Bear in mind that rescue hens won't maybe feel safe in a large grassed area, or even recognise it as a 'normal' environment to start with, so they may need to be acclimatised to it gradually. All hens appreciate trees above them as shelter from the sun and flying predators, even if the latter are theoretical. Other things can also be employed to give shelter, such as that pig ark you're inheriting.

If your fences aren't tall or strong enough you may lose hens to foxes/badgers, especially at night. You either live with this or spend out and prevent it, but either strategy costs! Everyone we know with hens has lost some or all, and the only reason we haven't is because our hen orchard is like Fort Knox and our foxes/badgers just don't bother.

Unfortunately, many fence posts have a very finite life span, so all of our hen area posts will need replacing next year. Luckily we switched to more expensive 15 year guaranteed posts for the field areas, which are fine, so it really is worth seeking out quality in that department.

Geese are good watch dogs, but I've no idea what use pygmy goats are, if they aren't going in a curry! One thing's for sure, they'll escape if they can. Like sheep have a death-wish, goats are just bent on going where nothing else has gone before....That may include up the trees, but someone called Dafty will tell you about that. Both goats and sheep will eat trees and kill them by bark-stripping.

It's unlikely your cats will harm the chickens; they'll scope them out and probably then conclude they're no fun. My cats co-exist with them and so do others. Indeed, if a cat moves too quickly near my chickens, some of the feisty ones may have a go at it.

We all want farm animals to live happy lives, but remember that their 'happy' is mainly just about having their needs met and their illnesses spotted in time. Also, think hard about what you'll do when you have a sick animal, like a chicken, which isn't really an economic proposition to take to a vet. (and the vet may have no answers either.)

Apodemus

How close are your nearest neighbours? Pigmy goats can be pretty noisy and your neighbours might not find them as endearing as you do...although I guess the same could be said of the geese!

Tiglath

Our house is a semi, so the people living in the other half, but no neighbours for about half a mile. The goats would be at the far end of the acre. I gather the current owner has had geese for about 20 years so they must be used to them by now.

Davesnave

Apodemus wrote: »

How close are your nearest neighbours? Pigmy goats can be pretty noisy and your neighbours might not find them as endearing as you do...although I guess the same could be said of the geese!

The OP said 'smallholding' which is pre-existing, so I took to mean 'in the countryside.' If in a built-up area, its more a big garden and slightly different considerations might come into play.

In the countryside, it's generally accepted that stock will make noise; lots of it sometimes. Add to that large machinery, which might be working through the night just now under arc lights, low flying military jets and shooting competitions etc and idyllic rural peace can be something of a lottery!

Edit: I went to make a cup of tea and found OP had just posted, but I'll leave the post.

Apodemus

Davesnave wrote: »

The OP said 'smallholding' which is pre-existing, so I took to mean 'in the countryside.' If in a built-up area, its more a big garden and slightly different considerations might come into play.

In the countryside, it's generally accepted that stock will make noise; lots of it sometimes. Add to that large machinery, which might be working through the night just now under arc lights, low flying military jets and shooting competitions etc and idyllic rural peace can be something of a lottery!

Edit: I went to make a cup of tea and found OP had just posted, but I'll leave the post.

I largely agree, but I can think of occasions where conflict arises between recent arrivals and old-timers on noise. New arrivals can be insensitive to “productive” noises, like those you mention, while born & bred locals can find “unproductive” noises irritating (such as pet goats and peacocks).

Davesnave

Must admit 14 cats next door would worry me more than the odd peacock, or even a flock of guinea fowl! :rotfl:

I nearly had to relocate just one a couple of years ago, but he calmed down, which was fortunate for him.

bouicca21

Seems to be more animal sanctuary than small holding. I used to live next door but one to 4 cats and that was bad enough, the thought of 14 is horrific. Then there's the hens (one of whom will start to crow), the geese (Canadian or native?) and the goats. I see an episode of neighbours from hell in the making.

Tiglath

The guy there at the moment has cats, dogs, chickens and geese, and he's lived next to his neighbours for more than 20 years with no problems so I'm assuming there's no issue. He used to raise pigs there. Obviously we don't want to annoy the neighbours (we'll just have the people in the house next to us - I don't know if they have animals). Yes it's in the countryside.

Helen2k8

Don't jump in too soon with multiple species that are new to you. It takes time to work out what is normal, or not, or "normal for THAT one". You need to be up to date with Defra regulations, which means translating Government-speak into actual plain English. You might find that the pig run will make a nice enclosed cat run?
I'd be more concerned about 14 cats moving in next door, to be honest.
As for whether they'll bother livestock, nobody can tell you for sure. You just have to supervise introductions and be prepared to intervene.
Also be aware that ex-battery hens come with a lot of issues, and the survival rate is not fantastic. This is fine if you're aware and just want to give them a nice retirement home; but if you are relying on them for eggs you need to take a lot more than you plan to keep.

Tiglath

Thanks guys - we've discussed this over the weekend, and we're going to get settled in first, then look at chickens in a few months, but leave it at that for the foreseeable future until we know what we're dealing with timewise and decide we have enough resources to add extra livestock and do it properly. I'll be focussing on veg and fruit growing when I'm not working; I know what I'm doing with that as an ex-allotmenteer. In the meantime I've joined some chicken groups on Facebook to get the skinny on what's really involved.