[big rockpile]

All we have now is few Rabbits, Chickens and two Dogs. Takes most a half hour to Feed, Water, Collect Eggs, Open and Shut them up, give one Dog her Medication, feed and water them. I have a Pan I water my Chickens it, it holds 3 days worth of Water. Rabbits I have Regular Water Bottles for them, will keep them in water two days.

Me and my wife have left for couple days before. Our Son says don't worry he would take care of them. Always come Home to find he had over Fed them. No biggy just tell him not to worry if their not eating it all just make sure they have some.

This time me and my wife was gone several days. Come home everything was out of Water and Food, the Rabbits were begging for water, I had never seen them do this. One Does door wasn't Locked were Babies were taken out and played with.

We figured what had happen our Son got busy doing something else, had his Girl Friend doing it which she didn't. I figured they hadn't been fed or watered for at least 3 days.

No I'm not very happy, my wife told me not to say anything, she will talk with our Son.

big rockpile

 

[Danaus29]

Happens to Mom all the time. Come home and critters are either overfed or not fed at all and have no water. (I can't care for them for her, too far away)

Is this the same son you had a disagreement with a few weeks ago?

 

[JoePa]

Gee Rocky - I don't want to sound mean or anything but your son sounds like a real piece of cake - from what I've read about him -

 

[lmrose]

Twenty years ago we could hire a reliable person to stay at our place and care for the animals if we wanted to go away for a few days. Now there is no one left to hire! The younger generation are not interested and the older ones are crippled up or passed on! So now we can't go any where together for more than a few hours. Animals can't be left unattended very long. Just like children they get in trouble when left on their own! So we take turns going if we want to and the other stays home to tend the farm. At least when we see eachother we always have plenty to talk about! Times certainly have changed!

 

[mrs whodunit]

I would be making a waterer with a float thats hooked up to a barrel for something. Then one could be gone a number of day and not have to worry as much.

I have a large tub that holds about a 100 pounds of grain. I keep that in the chicken house open. The chickens can then help themselves as they want.

The goats I also over feed and they can go a week+.

Same as when we had donkeys.

The horses need a bit more checking as they arent as smart as donkeys and are more inclined to get themselves hurt.

The large dog is capable of staying outside by herself if we leave for a few days. The little dog we bring with.

It looks like I am getting a small milk cow. I have a neighbor who will help me out with her as she wants milk And if the neighbor goes with me say backpacking I have a friend who will cowsit at her place for me.

We are covered.

 

[big rockpile]

Ok I talked with him and he says he was taking care of them. Wife said well maybe the Baby Rabbits are drinking more but this don't explain the Buck being out of water. Could be if they had water he didn't give them anymore because their water will be half empty and I will empty them all out and give them fresh.

Like I told my wife if he wasn't taking care of them he will now or making extra sure.

Still don't explain one hutch being left open. They said maybe this one Guy don't have Food or money and might of got in it but like my wife said she would go after a Chicken first.

I don't know but I worry about my animals, like my wife says some times too much.

big rockpile

 

[Danaus29]

I won't go into how I feel about people who neglect animals but it ain't nice.

That said, out of water is still out of water. If the temps had been warmer you might have come back to a bunch of dead animals. He should have refilled bottles.

 

[light rain]

You need a responsible person to take care of your animals if you go somewhere. If you can't find another person you should either stay home or get rid of the animals... Simple, really.

 

[dizzy]

BRP, I feel your pain.

I do self care for my horses and at times, have left the farm where I had them late because I'd get a call from someone else, they couldn't make it, so could I please do such and such a thing for them. I always did, whether it was feeding, putting on or removing a blanket, taking care of a wound, etc. Not anymore.

A couple of years ago, I had to have an operation on my knee. Everyone said it would be no problem to feed my horses and take care of my chickens while I was laid up. One of my guys had thrush, and needed that hoof taken care of daily. He gets fed 2x a day, everyone else gets fed once. I not only left complete instructions, but also had the feed all in ziplock bags w/their names on it. All they had to do was grab the bags for each of the horses, fed them, lock them in their stalls, clean out a hoof-he stands w/out tying for that-then let them out when they were done. They didn't bother to read the note, didn't use the hay pellets for the old guy w/out teeth (which were also in bags) and didn't clean out the hoof. I was told my note was too long and it was too much bother to read it and I was lucky my horses were fed at all. So as soon as I could drive, I was out there on crutches taking care of them. And I no longer do extra for others.

 

[Rustaholic]

WOW Dizzy
This coming weekend I will be horse setting for a friend.
Reading through this makes me understand why my friend has told me many time how he really appreciates my care.

I love it when he leaves notes and he always does if there is any changes.

 

[FarmerKat]

I am sorry to read all of these stories ... Honestly, I think it is worth paying a reliable animal sitter. I used to do that with my dog before we had farm animals but the woman I found (she was absolutely AWESOME) took care of farm animals as well. She went beyond just taking feeding, she would ride horses, etc. if the owner desired for her to do so. She was also available for last minute calls if you got stuck somewhere, etc. It took a while to find her (I interviewed many pet-sitters) but she was worth every penny and I had a peace of mind.

In all honesty ... I would probably try a family member or a friend first too, but - unless they kept their word - I would not ask them again and find a sitter.

 

[Use Less]

If you are willing to pay enough, someone will take the job and do it thoroughly and to your specifications. It can take a lot of looking to find that person, though. If you have a vet you trust, maybe a technician from the office could be hired?

 

[highlands]

Me thinks the problem was long ago.

 

[wr]

big rockpile, I'm sorry your son is not responsible enough to look after you animals for a couple days. I do disagree with Tina and perhaps her desire to avoid a confrontation is part of why he is so irresponsible. Does she not understand that he could be charged if the animals died from his neglect?

 

[TraciInTexas]

I am tasked with dog, garden and house sitting whenever my father goes out of town - even though his wife's mother, nephew, niece, and brother all live within 1/8 of a mile from their house. I drive 45 minutes to get there... Spend an hour or two there, playing fetch with the dog, weeding the garden, picking maters, pruning patio plants, drinking a cold beer, and 45 minutes back home.

It is hard to get reliable help.

 

[RichNC]

big rockpile, I'm sorry your son is not responsible enough to look after you animals for a couple days. I do disagree with Tina and perhaps her desire to avoid a confrontation is part of why he is so irresponsible. Does she not understand that he could be charged if the animals died from his neglect?

I am right there with you on this one, if he can't or won't take care of them properly then don't leave your home or pay someone reliable to do it...and your wife seems to be just enabling him.

 

[gibbsgirl]

sorry you're going through this. we've had so many problems over the years relying on people for anything that we just try hard not to.

my2cents is that I think you should look into feeding and watering that would let you leave your animals for a few days without care. just so you could just have someone at the most swing by and give them a looksee.

this summer we were able to rehab our barn and chicken house. now I have feed and water and paddocks set up so if I had an emergency I could leave them for 5-7 days without them running out.

the bonus is we don't have to do our chores with them as often and we don't have to do as much heavy lifting which will be awesome come winter.

it will also help me if we need to go away overnight or for the weekend. the funny side of that though is that we're so used to not going anywhere and having someone home almost 24/7, I don't know how much we'll actually need the convenience. :happy2:

 

[RebelDigger]

I have a guiena pig, an Angora bunny and a cat inside, two dogs that have a doggie door and about 3 dozen chickens. When we go away for a weekend (Civil War reenactors) I am fortunate that my BIL lives just up the road and he takes care of the critters for us. In exchange I have him take all the eggs and buy him a carton of smokes. I still worry though, the first thing I do when we get home, even before changing into modern clothing is a head count. Don't feel easy until I see each and every critter and know they are OK. BIL is having mobility issues now though so I think my reenacting weekends are numbered. No one else around here is trustworthy enough even if you pay them!