Chickens, easier to care for than write about.

 Chickens

           At night there are a few things you need to take care of chicken wise; Refilling the water and the feed are the first things, here they use a mix of grain and corn. Next you go on an egg hunt, usually the chickens will lay their eggs in the nest boxes but sometimes you get a spare egg floating around. Then you have to check the bedding, if it smells like ammonia or is thick and clumpy when you kick it they need a whole new layer of wood chippings. The bedding keeps the chickens clean, which in turn keeps the eggs clean. Also you want a good mix of chicken poo and wood chippings as it later gets used as compost. Finally you tuck the hens in for the night, latch the gate and your done until morning.

           In the morning there are chicken tasks as well; You need to check the water to make sure its not frozen, and refill if necessary. Give them fresh produce, they like anything green but will also eat pretty much everything! They don't really like citrus fruits or root vegetables raw, though if you cook them they may eat them. But even if they don't eat everything their bedding will be used as compost later on. Another egg hunt before you leave the chickens for the day, keeping the windows open as they like most creatures enjoy sunlight.

        Some other chicken information: Chickens are night blind, they roost and then stay put once it gets dark. They like to roost up high because it keeps them away from predators; you also want to keep their feed high to keep vermin like mice and rats out of their food. Most laying hens will lay every other day, with older chickens laying less often. Their eggs are usually dirty and you need to wipe them clean, but the cleaner you keep their bedding the cleaner the eggs will be.

(will add more the more I learn)

Wwoofing: What, how to start.

 A start to an adventure; where do I begin?
What is Wwoofing? Well http://www.wwoof.org/ says:
"WWOOF is a world wide network of organisations. We link volunteers with organic farmers, and help people share more sustainable ways of living."Although, I've seen it as Willing Workers On Organic Farms as well. What ever it is called it is a exchange of labor for food and lodging.

 Now the food will be (mostly)organic. Sometimes the host will cook, sometimes you'll cook. The lodging can be a house with running water, or it can be nothing but a campsite to pitch a tent. The labor can be a variety of things. It can range from easy to back breaking labor.

 What you do is go to http://www.wwoof.org/ and pick the country you want to go to that has wwoof. For a small fee, it was 30$ for the USA, you will be privileged to a directory of farms. You'll also get a profile. From what I've read you want to make your profile like a honest dating profile. Talk about yourself, the whys behind you wwoofing, what you did before wwoofing, what you look to gain, what you enjoy. The host is going to use this after you email them to get a feel for you.

 Then you figure out where you want to go in your selected region and find farms in that area. Pick out the farms you like and send them some emails.

 Currently I have yet to send out any emails to farm so I don't know much further in this process. I plan on sending out emails and making calls in late December as I want to be on the road in early march. I've seen it suggested that you get in touch with the house 2-3 months before you want to arrive. I'll let you know how it goes once I get there!