Photos from the Farm #21

Welcome back!

I hope you are still enjoying the warm weather! Are you having fun playing outside in the sunshine?

We are getting ready to build our new greenhouse! I'll be posting more about that in a few weeks.

 First we have a message for Sebastian:

Misty says, "Happy Birthday Sebastian!"

Stew says, "What? It's your birthday! Happy Birthday Sebastian!"

All the goats and animals wanted to say Happy Birthday, but they were very busy eating their breakfast this morning and didn't want to look at the camera. They think you must be a very lucky boy to have your birthday so close to Valentine's Day when everyone wants to show love to everyone else.

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Here are the first two questions:

Question #1

Good Question!

The chickens need to stay warm for the same reason you need to stay warm. If you get too cold, you will get sick. Farm animals that get too cold will not only get sick, they might die. We don't want that to happen.

Question #2 was, "How hot is the light bulb for the chickens?"

That is a good question but it was written on a paper that was so long that I couldn't scan it! Now that you are learning about measuring and using a ruler, please measure the paper you are writing your question on. It is easiest for me if the paper is 8" or shorter.

The light bulb that we put out for the chickens is a 100 watt light bulb. It can get to be 477˚ Fahrenheit. That is hot enough to start a fire if it is near paper. We have a special lamp that makes sure that the light doesn't touch anything. We also turn off the light when the temperature is above 32˚ Fahrenheit (that's the temperature that water turns into ice). The light can't get very hot in the freezing weather, but it can get very hot if the weather is warm.

This is what our light looks like. Do you see how the bulb can't get close to anything because of the metal shade?* The chickens won't get too close to it to get burned, but they stay close enough to it so that they stay warm.

Chickens stay warm in the winter by having extra feathers under their long feathers. The extra feathers are called 'down.' Chickens stay warm by staying dry and out of the wind. They stay warm by having food and water available all the time. If they don't have enough to eat or drink they will get cold. People need food and water to stay warm, too! That's why you eat lunch before your long recess.

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I think you are asking if we take the animals for a walk like we take dogs for a walk. We don't take farm animals for a walk unless we are getting them ready for a show. We walk them around the barn yard, but we don't take them on a walk on the sidewalk.
We teach the animals how to follow us when we hold their halter or their collar.

We teach them where they need to go when they come in the barn, too. They all have their own spot for breakfast just like you have your own desk at school. You know right where to go, so do the goats and the cows.

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I wanted to show you more about a goat's mouth and teeth.

Did you know that goats have baby teeth just like people? A goat's baby teeth are called, 'milk teeth.'

This is Penny's mouth. The two teeth in the middle are her "1 year old" teeth. That's because she's almost one year old. The other teeth are her milk teeth.
The ones on either side of the center teeth will fall out next year and she will get her "two year old" teeth.
Then the next two will fall out and she will grow her "three year old" teeth.
The last two will fall out and she will get her "four year old" teeth. That's how we can tell the age of a goat that is under four years old, by looking at their teeth!
A goat has eight front teeth.

This is Misty. She has all her adult teeth because she is four years old. Yuck! Misty has her breakfast in her mouth!!!
Do you see her top teeth? No? That's because she doesn't have any! You have teeth on the top and bottom of your mouth. Goats, cows, llamas, sheep, camels, and other animals like that only have teeth on the bottom in the front.

Her mouth doesn't open very wide because she doesn't eat anything very big. She eats hay and grain. In the summer she 'grazes' in the pasture. That means she eats the grass and weeds that grow in the pasture. She doesn't need a big mouth for biting grass or picking up hay or grain.

Goats have top and bottom teeth in the back of their mouth. That is so they can chew their food, just like you. We can't see them because it's hard for them to open their mouth that wide.

Here is a picture of Miles' teeth. They are sharp and pointy. He has teeth on the top and bottom like people do. His teeth are dirty, we should take him to the veterinarian and have them cleaned.

People go to the dentist each year to get their teeth cleaned. Dogs should go to the veterinarian each year to get their teeth cleaned. They should have their teeth brushed every day like people do. We give our dogs a special treat that works the same as brushing their teeth. 

Did you know that both people and pets have an easier time staying healthy if they have clean teeth? We brush our teeth so we don't get cavities, but it also helps us stay healthy when we have clean teeth.

Next week Matt is going to bring some photos of a dog that is having his teeth cleaned. You can see what a pet's teeth look like before the vet cleans them, and after. Would you like that? 

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 There was another interesting question, but I didn't get to scan it. "When are you going to get a new animal?"

We will probably have new animals in April when the new kids are born. Do you remember which goats are going to have kids?

Have a great week!

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*The photo for the Clamp Light was from Harbor Freight