Want to own a small farm?
                                (small farm: = lifestyle block, small-holding, hobby farm.)

By being a farmer:             
 - You care for your animals needs:
-You ensure they have adequate & nutritious feed.
-It's the farmers job to prevent diseases, and accidents occurring in his/her animals. 
 -This also may include correcting mineral deficiencies .. often cause by lack of, (or even an abundance of) nutrients in the soil.
 -Animals appreciate shelter, rather than being exposed to the blazing sun, or icy cold wind.
If  choosing to have newborns on the farm: Select birthing dates to fit in with pasture growth rates. (Lactating mothers need an abundance of feed)
Rarely he may need to assist at birthing. 
Basically:
                 Farming is not just about "TODAY"..       You're continually planning  &  working  for  "TOMORROW".
                              - You:-   Plan, manage, budget, and work for today, and the seasons and years ahead.
             
 -very  importantly - You  can't farm well on: - “the smell of an oily rag"
      .
-             You need  $   $   $  -  MONEY  -  $   $    $   

Can you combine Farm work and your regular work?:
Do you have time to do farm work and also have a full time job?
Is it O.K. if you take a ½ day off from work, or be late for work some mornings? and some jobs are "fine weather only" tasks.
Can someone look after your farm, & animals while you take a well earned holiday?
Can you cope if you're ill?
Disease Prevention is essential:
Many diseases are fatal to your stock.
Fortunately many diseases can be prevented by drenching, and vaccinating.
Some health complications can be avoided by correct stock/farm management.
Weeds, rubbishy grasses, and low fertility soils :
Raising soil fertility may help get rid of some weeds, as the grasses will respond well to fertilizer applications.
With good management grasses may tiller up.
Other weeds may need a herbicide, and perhaps your labour. There are biological control methods available for
some weeds eg ragwort.
Small farm / lifestyle block Services:
In some districts ex farmers have set up a business that specialize in working with/for the small scale farmer.
The yellow pages should have a list.

Actual Farming - lots of help on this website: http://www.grazinginfo.com

 

Animal welfare:
Your animals depend on you: for adequate feed, health, and safety.
It’s up to you to learn/know about the species you farm.
You MUST provide proper food,  shelter, &  water.
You must not neglect an animal, or allow it to suffer.
You must not keep an animal alive when it is cruel to keep it living.
Animals must not be thirsty, hungry, or malnourished.
Injured & sick animals need diagnosing and treatment started as soon

as possible.
You’ll need to prevent diseases in your stock. (by management, drenching, and by vaccinations)
You animals need to be free from stress.
Fences:
These are for separating areas of land, and an aid to farm management.
Boundary fences need to be sound. This is an arrangement between you and your neighbour. It is usually a 50-50 agreement for maintaining/renewing costs.
 Sheep and goat will soon learn which wires are loose. 
Deer are great athletes, and all fences on deer farms need to be deer fenced, and deer gated
Dangerous areas need  fencing off. Hungry animals search for food.. & can get themselves into all sorts of trouble. (steep banks, boggy + areas, ect)
 Animals on the road are dangerous!!!  ( for both animal and motorists.)
Fences:- An even bigger challenge for those who farm fertile cattle.
Keeping non pregnant heifers & cows well separated from the neighbouring high libido bull. (Bulls can “sniff out” a cow on heat)
Communicating, with the neighbour, and a willingness to shift stock, reduces the likelihood the bull jumping a fence.
It’s far simpler if your neighbour farms sheep, goats or deer..!!
Your horned animals: There should not be areas where horned heads can get their through, and the width of their horns
prevents them from backing out of the gap. Some netting fences, can be a danger.
Choosing  A  Farm.
  * * If you buy an existing farm:   The hard & expensive work will have been done.
    Water  .... water  ...... water: 
When searching for bare land to buy, or a farm already set up:
Remember these words:  Water supply: -"Clean  and  Copious”
-You’ll need a reliable source..
-You may have to depend on the water supply through the driest of summers.
-Both the house and animals use oodles of water. (better to have too much than too little)
Common water problems:
Too acid. (Acid water will rapidly corrode your hot water cylinder)
Water with a high iron content: You’ll notice washed whites (particularly cotton) will have brown tinge ..
Hard Water: Where minerals (usually calcium, and magnesium) are dissolved in the water.
There are methods to fix these common problems.. It will mean extra expense.  
When searching for your new farm:
 Ask lots of questions: Don't be shy.. It's you money, your future.
Ask about: The previous land use.
The farms fertilizer history:   Ask to see receipts.
Ask if a soil test or herbage test has been done.
If it has, then ask if you can see the results. (It needs to be a recent test) Ask from whereabouts on the farm the soil samples were taken.
Observe:
You can get a lot of clues by studying the animals that are farmed on the land.
Do their coats look healthy? What condition are they in?
Make a point of speaking to the owner. (ask the land agent to arrange this.)
Are there any empty containers lying about eg (supplements, herbicides, pesticides, antibiotics ect)
Study the pasture.
Note the grass species (if you can see the seed heads) The amount of clover, and weeds in the pasture.
Check the pasture re-growth in a paddock the animals have previously been in.
(It’s just a guide, as soil fertility, and the season of the year will influence grass growth)
*** Take your camera with you and take lots of photos. When you're at home you can “look over the farm again”.
Check at the regional council for details  re:  Previous land use and possible contamination.
Buying bare land… There are many things to budget for:
Costs: that are a part of buying bare land:
Legal:-
Lim report. Engineers report.
Electricity:
Power poles and wire . (They are not cheap and the further your house is away from the road the more expensive) If you have a water pump, you may need electricity (and power wires and poles) running to it.
Buildings & structures:
House & garage.
Perhaps a pump shed to protect your water pump.
Implement shed, Hay shed.
A laneway (or race) .. It's ideal if the surface has metal on it to prevent it from converting to mud.
The raceway will need to be fenced.
Some form of stock yards/treatment yards will make animal handling easier:
If it has a lane leading to a crush:(A crush is a sturdy structure, built to accommodate the type of animals you farm..
Frequently these are made from piping. If it has a head bale the animal cannot escape, or wriggle around.
Some crushes are designed so that the vet can perform abdominal surgery on an
animal, or the vet, or even an AI technician can work on the animals "back end")
A cattle/sheep ramp:
There will need to be a metalled turning area for trucks. Portable ramps are available.
Choose the location of stock yards carefully.
Perhaps close to the house, and yet close to the road so it is convenient for trucks,
and vet, or animal health visitors.It is best sited so animals can easily “flow” "move" into
it from a race or a corner of a paddock.

Turning your bare land into a farm:
Take your time to work out the layout of your new farm. Take photos.
Be aware of the costs of: the house, sheds, power poles, water pump, (tanks, piping, troughs) fencing, cattle yards, gates.
Metal on the raceways, trees.
Some thoughts for consideration:
Shelter from the prevailing winds, (for house and your animals)
Perhaps you have a great view. Or you can site your house so you can view your animals. (Binoculars will give you a closer look)

~"Move-around-able Plans":~
Plans that can be altered,..and are "to scale".
1. Have an idea of "measurements" of your land, plus the measurements of any planned buildings, or structures.  It my mean pacing "it out" along the boundaries.
(There is a "tool" for measuring: basically as you walk you push a wheel along.. and a meter shows the length.)
"Google earth" may be of some help re area..
2. Use coloured paper or cardboard.. (which is cut out to the same scale
as the land area) or you can estimate..
In the photo: the dark pink paper (cut to scale of the planned shed, and house) is used to represent

 buildings.
The yellow for stockyards.
Cardboard was cut in strips, and was arranged to represent the driveway, the race/lanes.
The white background represents the area of land.
For larger, or odd shaped land, use a newspaper cut to scale of your land, or even use fabric as a background.
If you have a hilly area, you can pack underneath the paper, or fabric to represent the hilly area/areas.
The prevailing winds:
Ask a neighbour about these. Sometimes you can get a clue by the bent shape of trees. (If the trees are very bent expect some very strong winds!!
The direction of the sun is marked in.
With your "scale model" land and buildings, plus cardboard strips, you can arrange, and rearrange.
Take your time.
There may be merit in taking a photo of your effort for reference prior to rearranging your plan.

On your plan you can use coloured string to represent the fencelines.
In the model above:
The red xx's with a line through represent the gates.
If the gates are the same width as the race/lane then the open gate can be used as a barrier across the race/lane.
The house is handy to the road, the shed, and the cattle yards.
Cattle yards are best situated in a corner of a paddock so its easier to move stock towards them.
(The paddocks have their gates at the corner of the paddock. Its easier to move stock that way.)
There needs to be a generous metalled area around cattle yards, so stock trucks can maneuver.
Stockyards, and sheds, as they are reasonably close to the house, then you can easily see when the vet arrives,the
stock agent.. or a salesman!!
The shed: Is away from the prevailing wind, and it gets lots of sunlight. It would be suitable for rearing a few calves.
its in a handy position to keep implements.
The troughs. (blue circles.) In this illustration there is one trough between 2 paddocks. Also they're half way up
the paddock.. There is merit in this positioning especially when it comes to dividing the paddock up for "break
feeding", and back fencing.. Your animals need water.
I've added some trees: ^ ^
The house:
It can be designed to get the sun. Also to get the best of a view, or just a good view of your farm.
(Binoculars are a handy tool, they can be used to check on your stock from the comfort of your house.)
Often farmhouses have a roofed over area.. and area for taking your farm boots off
before entering the house. This particularly handy in wet windy weather.
An outside water tap, or access say, to the laundry
(with a tub), and even a second toilet in the laundry, are worth considering in the planning stages.
It just means that these facilities are easy to get to without having to traipse through the house, with
your less than clean work clothes on.
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Grazing (an idea):
While your deciding how to use your land, consider grazing other farmers stock on it.
This depends on the size of the land. You will become more familiar with stock. You'll learn a bit about farming.
It will be some money coming in.

More about buying Land:

Buyers competing with you:
If you’re interested in buying quite a few acres in an intensively farmed location, you could be competing with “big” farmers
who want a “run off” for their stock.
(A “run off” (New Zealand) A separate area of land usually used for grazing cattle.)
There may be several people interested in the land. The land agent who is working for the seller (and wants the
highest price) may well auction, or sell it by tender.
The Land Agent:
He/she needs to know what you’re looking for. Give him a basic idea of your price range.
Land agents are sales people not farmers.
He/she will have knowledge of the properties boundaries, and the exact area of land for sale,
the government valuation and the rates.
He’ll have knowledge of the land, and house water supply.
You can ask about the lands fertilizer history, and the reliability of the water supply.

(eg in a dry summer will there be adequate water for the house and the stock)
This information will have been obtained from the farmer. (You can ask to see proof)
The land agent earns his money from selling the land, so make him work for it.
If you have children, ask about the local schools, and the school bus route.
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Do you need a dog?
There may not be enough work for a dog on a few acres.
Not all stock are familiar with a dog.
They may gather around to study your dog. (as per the photo) Cattle may even kick a dog.
A sudden bark may cause cattle to stampede.
Using a dog on deer is a No NO.. Unless:
The dog responds well to your commands, and is used to deer.
Also, deer must be used to the dog.
The sound of your bike, a regular routine, an open gate, will all help you farm without a dog.
Dogs have been linked to spreading a disease which can cause abortions in cattle.

Your local Vet:
Make the most of your vet's visit....He/she is the expert:
On your type of animals, their health, and preventative treatments. They also know your district; the weather, the seasons,
and any soil deficiencies.
When they're visiting your place, have a list of questions you want to ask.
Ask him/her to explain, or describe/show you how to do any animal/health related tasks.
The vet’s sell common drugs 'over the counter':
What is available and what is NOT is all tied up with LAW.
With some stock ailments you may be able to describe the signs and symptoms to a vet over the phone, (make sure you
speak to the vet) The vet will have the appropriate medication courier/rural post to deliver them.
Don't forget your other supplies: needles, syringes, meths, cotton wool.

Implements:
Motorbikes:
You can move around your farm rapidly on a motor bike.
Cycles:
They’re very inexpensive and don’t require fuel..
They’re very quiet, and cattle have been frightened by a cyclist silently arriving beside them.  -If a frightened animal responds
by fleeing the rest of the herd/group may do likewise.  A group/herd of frightened fleeing cattle is called a stampede,
possibly a dangerous situation.
Quads: ATV’s:
You'll get a lot of use from a quad bike..
They can tow.. and with a shelf at the back they're handy for "carrying".
Many farm implements are designed to be towed by a quad nowadays.
If buying second-hand, choose a popular model.
 Using second-hand parts may lower your repair bill (and they do break down!).

Bike Spreader: Handy for applying urea. You may be able to hire a spreader when necessary.
Trailers: They can easily be towed by a quad, and they’re so very useful.

Tractor:
Do you really need one?
With some jobs (e.g. haymaking) you can employ a contractor.
<<< A tractor with a front end loader can be useful.
Tractors can last for years!!
If you buy a common make and model, your repair bill may be lessened by using good second-hand parts.

Where to buy implements:
Farm trader magazines, and local buy sell and exchange magazines.
Regional advertisers and Newspapers also advertise implements and tractors.
You could advertise in the “wanted to buy” columns of a newspaper.
There are on line Auctions sites~:
Take every opportunity you can to ask the seller questions. Go and see the stock first. (take someone with you who knows
about the stock you are buying)
New implements (NZ made):
New Zealand:  http://www.metalform.co.nz/TowNMow/index.aspx#
 Trademe:  http://www.trademe.co.nz/Business-farming-industry/Farming/mcat-0010-0395-.htm
USA:   Ag Auctions:http://ag-auctions.com/ Farming, tractors (& parts,) mowers, implements,
gardening and more.

~~Buying Animals:~~
If you wish to make money by breeding and selling off stock the perfect animal would be a fertile very healthy
animal that gains weigh rapidly. She or he pass this quality on to their offspring. Animals that have very few health problems, are ideal!!.
Pedigree animals:
Pedigree animals are recorded by a breed society.
A pedigree won’t necessarily do better than a non pedigree (grade) animal.
Be cautious when buying a milking cow..
(Particularly if she is an older cow.) Ask if she has ever had mastitis. Avoid buying her if she has had several bouts of mastitis..
(She will probably get mastitis again!! She may even have sub-clinical mastitis.)
Ask about her health.
Has she ever had milk fever? (She may have a predisposition to milk fever, she can pass this on to a
heifer calf. She may go down with milk fever when she calves at your place.
Is she a late calver? and why .. perhaps her fertility isn't so grand.
If a commercial farmer is selling her off because she is one of his low producers .. that's OK,
Ask about her temperament. An ideal animal is easy to handle.
If your planning to have her calf feed on her. .Remember: Dairying breeds produce too much milk to just feed the one calf. (You could feed an extra calf,
or milk her.)  If you just want her for the calf then there is merit in choosing a beef breed
.

Avoid horns.
Horns may add to the "looks" of the animal but:
-They can be dangerous to humans.
-They can damage other animals when being transported in a truck.
-"Truckies" may refuse to transport animals with horns.
- Dangers for the Animal:
Animals have been known to get caught up with their horns in netting fences, and even the plumbing around the trough.
(There should not be areas where horned heads can get their through, and the width of their horns prevents them from backing out of the gap. )
Herd and flock behaviour:
Sheep, goat, cattle and deer don't naturally live isolated from other animals. They're naturally group animals (herd, or flock)
Do consider this when you choose stock for your farm.
 
~Small Farmer’s auctions:~
Go "shopping" for stock with someone who knows about them.
That fleece the sheep is carrying may be covering a bag of bones.
Look and listen:
Check the condition of animals.  Study their faeces on the ground. (are the faeces firm, or "runny")
Listen for animals coughing. Interview the owner if you can.
Don't buy a calf because it's small and you feel sorry for it!!!
Sheep may be covered in fleece...but check that it has got fat on it's body!!
A poor scrawny calf.. IT may NEVER catch up. 
The photo left: Was taken at an auction.. These animals were very clean, and were in good condition..
"Small for dates" animals..
Perhaps it's parents were closely related, (inbred) It could be because it didn't have a
good start to it's life.. It could have been weaned far too early.
If you're very new to farming, and buying animals, then there is merit in asking a commercial farmer to
help you "shop".
Better still, buy directly from a commercial farmer.
-There are stock agents who will sell just a small number of animals.
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Which species of animals to farm?
Sheep:
Sheep are reasonably "easy-care".
They’re going to need shearing, crutching, drenching and docking.
What “sheep are called” .
These words refer to the sheep development rather than age.
Lamb – the young of sheep.
Generally they’re referred to as a lamb until they develop their 2 font teeth.
Then they’re referred to as “2 tooth”
Weather –sterilized male sheep
Ewe – female adult sheep
Ram – male adult sheep
Hogget: basically big lambs - sheep about 6-24 months old.
 Their body fat has altered, and they’re more meatier.
They’re being shorn for the first time.
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Goats:
To farm goats,  a sense of humour, and  the ability to forgive and get on, (and generally a love for these creatures) is a must.
  You can use sheep handling facilities for your goats.
  Goats dislike getting wet, and therefore they need shelter.
  They love heights also, so any shelter huts you use need to
    be strongly built, as your goats will enjoy sunning him/herself on the hut roof.
Goats are very susceptible to internal parasites. Goat are browsers. They are a natural weed control.  (Great for getting rid of thistles.)
They can be farmed in addition to cattle.
Goats will find any faults in your fences. They’ll climb up your fence stays.
They'll stretch up the trunk of a tree and nibble its foliage.
Goat breeds include:
Milking goats - Saanen, and Toggenburg.
Meat goats - Boer, and feral.
Fibre goats - Angora, and cashmere.
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Cattle: If you decide to farm cattle, you have the choice of: a beef breed, a dairy breed, or a  small breed.
 If you choose a dairy breed, she can produce a great volume of milk.  Milking a cow each day, or twice a day can be a tie. 
Older dairy cows make great foster mothers. If buying an incalf dairy breed, to play "foster mother" for several calves. Make sure her calving matches the dates when local cows calve.  When she has finished feeding calves, you may have to hand milk her, until she is "dried off".  If you want to use her as foster mum the following  season she will need adequate condition for her to cycle again. (as in ready for mating) You will also need a bull, or be able to recognize when she is "on heat" so she can be artificially inseminated. (AI is organised with well before mating)
Cattle: have huge appetites, especially lactating cows. (They need extra feed to maintain their body weight and produce milk.
Calves need disbudding (dehorning). 
Cattle need drenching & TB testing (NZ).
Cattle may be too heavy for soils that are prone to pugging.
Miniature cattle are becoming a popular choice for small farms.
Keeping bulls: Some can be more of a challenge than what they’re worth.
You may be able to lease a bull. (But don’t use big bull to mate small cows)
You could use artificial breeding. But "heat detecting" when you have a small number of cows is difficult.
Steers are easy to manage.
Jersey cows are the most well known dairy breed. Their milk has a higher fat content. They’re smaller than Friesians.
Friesians do produce bigger quantities of milk than jerseys. (They eat far more than a jersey!!) They are also valued
for their meat. Think carefully if choosing a dairy breed..they do produce large amounts of milk.
What cattle are called:
Calf: The young of cattle.
Weaner: Means it the calf no longer depends on milk for it’s nutriments. It is weaned. It is now a ruminant.
Yearling: Refers to being about 1 year old.. (male and female cattle)
Heifer: Female cattle are called heifers from birth to when they become adults.(cows)
Bull: Male cattle.. Regardless of age.
Rising 2 year old: Almost 2 years of age.
Steer: A sterilized bull.
Freemartin: This occasionally happens with male &female twins. The bull will be fertile, & usually the female is sterile.
The female twin is called the freemartin.
VIC: (you'll see it mentioned when selling an in calf cow) It means "vetted in calf." in other words the vet has done
the pregnancy check.
Cattle breeds:
 http://www.thecattlesite.com/breeds/beef/
http://www.thecattlesite.com/breeds/dairy/
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Deer:
If you are new to farming, then there is merit is working with a deer farmer, before you
decide to farm deer. Working with a deer farmer you can find as much as you can
    about deer before setting up your deer farm.
Your property will NEED  to be deer fenced.
Granted: When farming deer, it can usually fit in with your regular work.
What deer are called.
Fawn: the young of whitetail (Virginia) or fallow deer,
Calf: The young of Wapiti/elk.
Cow: A mature female of the wapiti/elk
Doe: Mature female fallow, whitetail/virginia deer,
Hind: female red deer.
Buck: The male of fallow, and whitetail deer.  
Stag: Adult male red deer.
Bull: The male of the wapiti/elk
Yearling; the young at about a year old.

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Trees and shelter.
Your animals NEED shelter during the sunny hot days, &  shelter from the rain and wind.
High temperatures especially with humidity can cause stress in your animals.
Trees can enhance the value of your property.
Be aware that a few trees pecies may  poisonous to your stock.. (Yew, rhododendron ect)
(Stock poisonings are often the result of garden trees which hang over the
garden fence, or when cuttings are discarded over the fence.
New Zealand Plant Finder: www.plantfinder.co.nz    
Deciduous trees:
Give shelter from the sun.  During winter their leaves have been shed..
The leaves decompose and contribute to the soils litter layer, and soil health.
So, deciduous trees wont be shady during the winter months.
Ever greens:
Some ever greens are popular for shelter belts. However some grow so well, and they may need trimming from time to time..
Their leaves are permanent, so with many species don’t expect the grass to grow under the tree.
*Caution with macrocarpa, as it can cause abortions in cattle.
Buying & Choosing young trees from a nursery:
Here's your opportunity to ask lots of questions.. Such as:
-The height an width of a fully grown tree.
-How fast does the tree grow?
-Is any part toxic to stock?
-Does the tree need any particular protection & therefore need to be fenced off from stock?
-To stop stock nibbling leaves. To protect the roots from heavy weights.
the RD1 store:
The RD1 stores supply farmers with their needs.. Have you checked out their informative website??
http://www.rd1.com/web/main
The RD1 website if SO full of helpful information for farmers farming on all sizes of farms..
and all species of animals.

Elise@2farm.co.nz
www.2farm.co.nz