So it looks like all of that storm prep that I did a few days ago was just a practice run. This is the most recent map of the impending blizzard. Do you see the bright yellow splotch to the right of Worcester? I live there, right in the epicenter of the storm.

Once again, I’ve cleaned the coops and added fresh bedding.

The goat stall was a particular mess. The goats eat second cutting grass hay. Not timothy. Not alfalfa. Not first cutting. Second. We recently bought a few bales. We were told it was second cutting. The goats tell us that the hay dealer is wrong. They tell us by looking miserably at us when we put a flake in their manger. They emphasize their dissatisfaction by stomping it into the ground.

They won’t starve. There’s plenty of good things to eat in that hay pile. But it is wasteful. I shoveled out all of the mucky hay and gave them a nice deep bedding of dry shavings.

No doubt unwanted hay will add to the cozy stall while the blizzard blows in. But, in the meanwhile, while I work, the goats play.

My sumo-built rabbit is looking forward to the blizzard.

Bring it on! says Phoebe.

Please note that ITGuy has added windspeed to the live cams. It should be rather dramatic here tomorrow! Please share my site with your friends – the more people who watch, the more Steve’s work pays off! Hopefully, we won’t lose power and we’ll be able to broadcast all day.

If the weather report is accurate, we’re in for a doozy of a storm tomorrow. There will be sleet and snow accumulation. It’s the sort of heavy, icy precipitation that causes power outages and dangerous roads. Today there’s no hint in the blue skies of what’s to come. I took advantage of the nice (albeit below-freezing) weather to prepare for the storm. I let the animals out to wander and forage while I readied the barns.

There is frost on the ground, but the hens pay it no mind. A half-foot of snow, though, will be another story. They’ll be inside for at least a day, and I want to make sure that their coops are dry and fully stocked.

Water is more essential than food. We don’t have running water in the barns in the winter (the pipes would burst, and so they’re drained and turned off in November.) But, there is electricity. So, instead of hauling water out daily, I’ve installed a large heated bucket for a water source. It’s so much more convenient to fill the waterers from this than to carry them inside the house. Each barn has a tub, and they’re filled once a week – on our schedule, on a nice day, not in the middle of a storm!

The hanging feeders needed to be topped off.

Manure, even frozen, is too full of moisture to leave in a coop, especially if the hens have nowhere else to go and the pop-door will be closed to keep out blowing snow. This is only two days worth, it’s what drops down when the hens sleep, and they usually stay out of it during the day. But it had to go before the storm arrived. I mucked out and refreshed bedding. Unfortunately, the manure that is frozen on the ground outside is stuck hard. That will have to wait for a thaw. But, I was able to sweep the goats’ patio clean. That will make shoveling the snow easier.

Dust bathing outside won’t be possible – so I added fresh sand to the inside dust baths.

Sunshine is essential to your flock’s well-being. I can’t imagine keeping hens in winter climates in coops that don’t have large windows (all too prevalent in small, prefab coops!) Coops do get dusty, and so I swept off the windows to let the full amount of sun stream in.

Not a bad place to weather a storm.

It rained on Saturday, which washed away much of the snow. This is called the January Thaw. It is not always a good thing. Cold and wind followed the rain. Black ice coated the roads. Driving was hazardous. So is the walk to the coops.

Even the dogs step carefully. Lily is smart enough not to chase squirrels.

The hens, however, are fine. It’s 20° F, and they’re outside. They don’t stand still on the ice, but they do walk about on it, with no ill effects.

Those dinosaur feet do just fine.

I, on the other hand, worry about falling. I wear treads. I don’t go outside, not even to the mailbox, without them.

It is just as bad at the stable where Tonka lives. He has studs on his shoes so that he can safely walk out to the paddock. Yesterday at the barn, three of us were talking and comparing winter footgear. Conversations about such things can go on at great length! We all had some version of these rubber pull-on ice cleats. The ones on my boots are from LL Bean, but I think that the next pair that I get will be these. What do you wear when the walking is treacherous?