Leaving your animals with a babystitter?

airotciv · #1 07/24/12, 06:12 PM

My Son will be babysitting the farm for a week, we need to go down and visit DH's family. My son has no clue, he has been off the farm for many years. Now every animal has a different feed and routine that I do. How do you tell someone else how to take care of all the animals? The animals have thier little quirks, Yes and I baby them all. The dog that barks at the back of the SUV, because she wants you to open the back door so she can sleep in the back of the car to the goats. Rocky pushy and Lilly shy (Goat), they are fed in a certain order, not counting the chickens and ducks. I don't want to overwhelm him.

Sonshine · #2 07/24/12, 06:24 PM

We always leave written out instructions for the care of our animals and if possible we have the care giver walk through the routine with us once or twice.

julieq · #3 07/24/12, 06:31 PM

Agree with Sonshine, written instructions and be available by phone if you son has any questions.

For us, DH would be going alone at this point. Our only DD who lives nearby has two young children and is pregnant with #3, so there's no way she could handle feeding bottle kids, milking, and everything we do on a daily basis.

Minelson · #4 07/24/12, 06:32 PM

This is what I did...
Critter sitter woes and some ideas

plowjockey · #5 07/24/12, 07:28 PM

Don't worry, your animals, will miss you while you are gone.

They are smart enough to realize someone else, is feeding and watering them and will adjust accordingly.

You need to do the same.

Nesser · #6 07/24/12, 07:47 PM

I agree ...

written instructions and if possible a walk through ...

tinknal · #7 07/24/12, 07:55 PM

Simplify and don't sweat the small stuff

chewie · #8 07/24/12, 07:58 PM

take a clipboard with you next time you do chores. write notes as you do them. helps to remember those tiny details you do an auto and may forget to put on a list.l

HorseFeatherz · #9 07/24/12, 08:03 PM

Another thing I have done is take pictures - like of each of your three goats - print the picture and write the information needed next to the picture. Name, feed type/amount, ect.

littlebitfarm · #10 07/24/12, 09:16 PM

I make things easy. I don't leave very often and maybe for 5 days. The horses don't need grain. The sheep don't need grain. I make sure to put a fresh big round bale out and show where the small squares are if they need more.

Fill all the water tanks before I leave but they will still need to top them off. Show them where the chicken feeders and waterers are. Show them how to collect eggs. They can keep or sell the eggs they collect and keep the money.

Current farm sitter is the 8 year old next door! She know all the chores and where all the hens hide eggs. I take dad around the day before I leave just to refresh his memory. As long as there is hay and water and the gates are closed, I'm good!

Kathie

KyMama · #11 07/24/12, 09:25 PM

I agree with the detailed notes. I'm currently taking care of my neighbor's dogs and cat. Doesn't compare to farm animals, but they have their routines that I'm trying to keep. She left me 5 pages of notes that include emergency contacts for her and the vet. I'd rather have all that then have a question and not be able to get ahold of her.

And I love the idea of the pictures with individual notes. Maybe put the pictures in the order you want them fed. I don't think you could include too much information for your babies.

Callieslamb · #12 07/24/12, 10:22 PM

I'd simplify as much as you possibly can. Make it as easy as possible. Your animals will adjust. I usually feed 2x a day just to keep an eye on the critters. My hired guys only did it once. I mixed my own grain - oats, corn, sweet feed and alfalfa pellets for the sheep and calves rather than having different grains. Lowered their portions to the same - 1 gallon for each type of animal. Water tanks are on floats. I instructed to feed 1/2 bale of hay a day - on the ground for everyone. We were gone 11 days, so it was only a matter of six bales if they didn't eat it. Better for them to have feed and waste it than not have it.

Put watering the garden on a timer - 2 hours every other night. If six teen aged boys can figure it out - I think your son can. It won't be the same as the care you give, but they'll all survive it.

Chris. · #13 07/24/12, 10:52 PM

being a farm sitter many times, make it simple as possible, and dosnt worry about your animals getting babied. They will survive, and after a few days know your son as the one with food and thats all that matters to them, not all the extra stuff.

ai731 · #14 07/25/12, 12:36 PM

Photos are a great idea. These are the instructions for our chickens that I did up a couple of years ago when we had house sitters:
Chicken Care Redux/

We're going camping for our annual summer vacation next week, and the neighbour kids will be feeding the chickens and the cats, and watering the vegetable garden while we're away. They're coming over tomorrow morning so I can walk them through what they need to do, and I'm going to give them a written checklist - and I'm also going to email a copy of the checklist to their mother!

airotciv · #15 07/25/12, 04:21 PM

Thanks everyone, the Son is coming down this weekend to do a walk though and I have started a list. I had to LOL, never thought to tell him to collect eggs every morrning, not sure he even knows how to get into the chicken coop to collect the eggs. So many things you do out of habit/routine, that you don't think of. My DH said this morring " You need to tell him, Rocky will head butt you if you slap him on the head and that Lilly knows how to use her horns". That brings up safty issues, so many things that you just do everyday and never really think about. My list has made me aware of how much work we do, but it just becomes a routine. Up at 5:00 am and by 6:00 feeding and taking care of my amimals.