Homestead mailing list

["Lisa K.V. Perry" <lisakvperry AT gmail.com>]

On 12/4/06, EarthNSky <erthnsky AT bellsouth.net> wrote:
> I am going to say that the new chicken coop is done, even though it
> still needs another coat of paint.


Good, know that makes things better for guys and your  chickens.

I've known that bears sometimes wander through-I don't think they are
> permanent
> here, but a mother and a cub on the move can't be a good thing.  To me,
> that says she is hungry, and if she is hungry, she is willing to take a
> chance and act more boldly that she might otherwise. ... Fewer people hunt
> these days, so there is a lot of deer in the woods.  The recent warm winters
> have caused more bugs
> and mice/rodents to survive as well.  The forest service planted some
> green fields with native plants to attract wildlife, and it has worked
> to entice bears.  Now that I think about it, the last year we had any
> sign of a bear in these parts was several years ago when we had a really
> bad winter...I hope this bear thing is not an omen of a cold winter to
> come, but all signs seem to point that way.  At any rate, it's a good
> thing I've been practicing with the rifle, I might need it.


The VA  Dept. of Forestry tells us that there is no place left to relocate
bear. We've been on a path off/on since we moved in 6 years ago September
30. We've had a bear 'sighting' every other spring (late). The most
aggressive thing the bear did was tear a lower limb off the peach tree,
which is inside a fenced garden. This was a limb that extended over the
fence on the outside. The first sighting, she ripped off a metal
self-service dog food container that was attached to the barn, it held up to
a week's worth of food. Now all animal food,even laying mash, is kept in our
new basement we built under the addition. My husband saw a cub late spring
this year meandering through the blueberries before they were ripe. We've
always seen a bear before fruit is ripe, so we figure they are scouting out
the place--we've found a few nice piles of dung (scat?) with evidence
berries were eaten a couple to a few weeks after initial sightings, but
never any more sightings.  Forest Service told us that the bear is afraid of
us as we may be afraid of it. They will run away from you and only come
towards you if you're doing something stupid like holding food in your hands
or blocking their only exit. The only time in VA that someone has been hurt
by a bear was when it was practically their own fault.

...for 3 weeks now, my sciatic nerve has been twitching, and
> with woodsplitting, moving, and shoveling chicken crap, it doesn't look
> ike I'll find any relief for a while.


Take care of yourself...respect the  back.  It  enables you to keep you
going or  makes you stop and lie  flat on the couch. A accupuncture doc
we've used has us lie down on a rolled up towel. Fold a bath towel in half
lengthwise and roll it up as tight as you can. 2-3" in diameter (may have to
adjust, my husband can stand a larger roll than I can, but also has a larger
back). Put under the small of your back, as low as you can stand. Lie on it
for up to 5 min, but 10 is better. Probably have to turn to your side and
roll off to get back up. This helps to open up the lower spine and needs to
be done for any healing. This works and you can't beat free.

Lisa