More Fair Pictures..

When we first got to the Erie County Fair.. we walked into a display of model trains.. only got one good picture.  My camera isnt good for moving things.. lol..

Then we walked out and saw the Siberian Tigers.. I love wild cats!  and one of them was a youngster.. he was trying to wrestle with the older one.. and kept getting smacked.. LOL!. reminded me of my cats..

So decided to use Tigers as a Etsy Treasury.. do check it out!!  Got to love those Kitties!!

https://www.etsy.com/treasury/MjE0Nzk3Mjh8MjcyNDA3NjQxOQ/tigers-on-the-prowl

Chickens at the Fair..

One of my favorite spots is the Chicken, Duck, and Rabbit barn.. Of course this year my main focus was getting pictures of chickens for my blog series.. lol.. Here are some of the breeds I saw..

Rhode Island Reds are a utility bird, raised for meat and eggs, and also as show birds. They are a popular choice for backyard flocks because of their egg laying abilities and hardiness.  They generally lay 5 - 7 brown eggs per week.

The Belgian Bearded D'Uccle is renowned for being a calm bird. Bearded D'Uccle eggs are notably small and are coated with creamy or tinted coloring. The breed is known for being very broody, and a typical hen can lay her eggs over a two-week period, though others have taken as long as three weeks.

Plymouth Rock is a dual-purpose, cold-hardy bird and therefore makes a great breed for the small farm or backyard flock owner.  There are many different strains of this breed.  They lay a large egg that varies in color from light to medium brown with a touch of pink. The birds continue laying throughout the winter but with decreased production. The amount of eggs laid is dependent upon the strains of the birds.

These are Silkies.  They are mostly used as pets and to hatch other birds' eggs as they are quite broody.  They generally lay about 100 white to beige colored eggs per year.

Polish Chicken - These are considered ornamental birds.. not very winter hardy.. Generally lay about 2 small, white eggs per week..  

#myeriecountyfair

Being Self Sufficient! Part 4

#4 Raise Chickens

All the pictures here were taken at the Erie County Fair, when we went yesterday.. We go almost every year.. as I love it.. smile.. 

As much as I would like to have a chicken or two.. I can't... one, my neighbors are too close to me and two, my boyfriend isnt for the idea.. but if I could.. I would.. there are so many benefits to having chickens, even in the city..  They are a natural source of fertilizer for the garden, as well as a wonderful way to control insects!  Plus you get farm fresh eggs.. cant get better than that! 

This chicken above is the Rhode Island Red, which many consider one of the best breeds for the back yard.. You can read more about them HERE.

Here are some links for advice on starting this.. 

Why A Great Garden And Raising Chickens Go Hand In Hand - Old World Garden Farms

Raising Chickens in the City - Urban Farming Guys

How to Raise Backyard Chickens - Backyard Chickens

Raising Chickens for Dummies - Cheat Sheet - Kimberly Willis, Rob Ludlow

And there are alot more!! Just do a websearch.. 

Next, I am going to discuss some of the breeds I and pictures I took at the fair.. See you tomorrow!

#myeriecountyfair

Just been busy..

Been helping out a friend doing a housesitting job for her.. so tied up alot.. but that is ok.. sure helps me get my crocheting done.. lol.

Anyways.. I did make to the fair this year.. mostly to go and see the Three Dog Night.. nice concert.. I did make it to a couple of buildings.. of course the Agricultural Grange building.. where I saw a ton of veggies.. smile.. just wanted to know how it compared with mine.. lol..

And I went to the Creative Arts building.. have to say I wasnt impressed this year.. only half the entries from last year.. I took pics, but need to wait to get some batteries to download them.. burned out the batteries.. grin..

On the Crochet front.. I finished the pink sneaker slippers.. they came out nice.. hope to get pictures done tomorrow or so.. and I started the cupcake slippers.. they are coming nice.. almost got the first one done.. working on the cupcake topper now.. and then got the cherry.. cant wait to show you the pictures of those too.. smile..

Well.. that is my update now.. talk to you all later..

Moving Slow Today..

I am not doing much today.. moving slow.. tired.. and a bit under the weather.. so you can say I am relaxing... lol.. actually I like to read and crochet.. and will be doing both in a while.. For now.. just gonna finish listing my photos from the fair.. smile..

The first picture is of a Percheron.. one of my favorite breed of draft horses.. smile.. I love roans.. 

I love Ponies.. never heard of this breed.. of course I cant remember now what it is.. 

Then.. we also hit the chickens.. lol.. these two are just beyond funny.. that is all I could think of was The Beatles.. grin.. 

Pictures from the Fair

I dont know if you know this.. but I am a retired LVT (Vet Tech).. so naturally I have to go and see the animals.. smile.. First picture is of the Alpacas.. I love this animals.. first of all they are sooo cute.. and secondly.. their fur is used to make yarn.. and makes some of the softest garments you can feel.. smile.. 

Next came the rabbits.. I used to pet sit a bunny just like this one.. smile.. unfortunely for this one.. it was listed under fryers.. so I imagine it was a meat rabbit.

 This is a brown swiss cow.. their milk is really creamy.. and is used for making cheese generally.. 

These are your typical dairy cows.. they are called holsteins.. and they produce most of the milk you drink.. 

Had to get a picture of the piglets.. smile. they are so cute..

Final pictures tomorrow..

More Pictures of the Fair..

 Besides the giraffe.. there were alot of items I liked and wanted to save the ideas.. smile..  More tomorrow...

More on the fair and a busy day!!

Busy day today.. had to pick up my cat, Gabby at the Vet today.  She had 6 teeth pulled... poor baby.. and she isnt even two years old. one of the typical problems with cats with Feline Aids.  Then after that.. I had to take my brother in law for his road test.. of course he wanted to drive for a bit too.. so by the time I got that all done.. and got to where I needed to be.. I was beat.. and took a nap.. Grin..

Pulled the Winner for my contest.. that I had up on Facebook.. for my Old & New Shoppe Facebook Page.. You can see about it here...  The Winner was Paula Smith.. just emailed her..

Now more about the fair.. while I was there.. of course I hit the craft area.. one of the best items up there as a Tricolor winner was this giraffe.. incredibly made by a 18 yr old girl named Abby.. I had to take a picture of it.. and yes, it is as big as it looks.. 8 feet tall.. Here is a blog entry at the Erie County Fair Blog about it..
what do you think about this?? LOL.. more coming again tomorrow..

Had a great time at the fair..

Well.. I wont put it all here today.. lol. very long.. we got there in time to eat dinner.. so first we had some hot dogs and Loganberry Soda from Louie's Texas Red Hots.. that really filled us up.. smile.. then we started walking.. first thing we saw were the clowns getting ready for the parade.. I had to get pictures.. smile..

Then we hit the Baby Wild Animal Exhibit.. unfortunely most of my pics didnt come out well.. (they dont like to sit still.. lol.. ).. but here are the best of the young cougar.. the tiger cubs didnt come out well at all.. :-(

Certainly reminded me of my kitties.. just ALOT bigger.. grin.. More tomorrow.. 

FACEBOOK CONTEST!!

Just doing a quickie here today.. since I dont have alot of time.. we are going to our fair today.. YAY!! so trying to get everything done before we leave.. I plan to take a ton of pictures.. smile.. so come back later tomorrow to see them.. 

Doing a contest for Likes on my Old & New Facebook Page.. I am raffling off a crochet pattern for free.. 

Contest: You can have this pattern for free for Liking my facebook page.  https://www.facebook.com/OldNewShoppe

Bellefleur crochet pattern, thread pattern, size 10 thread
Directions to crochet 3 kinds of flowers
                                    http://www.buysellcommunity.com/sale/ZKBWVEAU/

Just like my page and tell me where you saw this ad.. smile.