Hello All. A brief introduction needed I think.
We live in a semidetached in suburban Surrey. We have 3 Weimaraners at present (2 of which are rescue) and we work them on pheasant shoots during season. We have had chickens for a good many years but always hankered for ducks too.
We were flooded Christmas Eve 2013 and unfortunately lost our chickens - not through drowning but through stress of the ordeal & temporary rehoming. We, like the chickens, had to vacate our home for 8 months while it was being fixed but once home again, wanted to get back to some normality with a new flock of chickens and maybe some ducks.
To cut a long story short, we may have gone a bit overboard. We now have 7 chickens, a young cockerel, 7 ducks, 3 ferrets and 2 pygmy goats, as well as our 3 hounds. Have I mentioned the tropical fish?
We have a veg plot & greenhouse, 2 apple trees & a pear tree and all rainwater off house & outbuildings feed to a reservoir/pool for pumping onto garden. I also fly fish (when I get time) and my good friend shoots deer on a regular basis, so freezer generally stocked with trout, pheasant, venison and occasionally woodcock, pigeon & rabbit. To be honest, the family totally tired of trout in any form so do a deal with the local fishmongers on way home. Salmon steaks, king prawns, scallops or smoked haddock much more appreciated by the family than trout again!
Anyway, that's us. Totally accidental small smallholders and very new to it all. Hoping joining this forum will give us the support & advice we need and just maybe we could help others with what we've learnt so far too.
Cheers
Dave & Jacquie Marr