Goodin Family Farm

01/03/2022

Everyone, horse's included have free choice hay right now. Duck's and geese who refuse to utilize shelter, have straw on the ground to keep them off of the wet, cold ground. Not to mention warm concoctions of oatmeal, blueberries, peas, and corn for birds/pig to warm their bellies 💓

I can’t stress enough how critical extra hay for feed and hay, straw, or shavings are for bedding for livestock right now. The snow is finally melting but the ground is still cold and wet. Animals can’t maintain their own body temperature if they are sleeping on bare, snowy or wet ground.
A good rule of thumb is to increase hay by one half pound for every 5 degree drop below 32F. More hay is necessary if the animals are old or infirm. Horses need 2% of their body weight per day in hay (long-stem roughage) for maintainance.
If animals become recumbent on wet ground from illness or trauma (or being trapped in fencing) their body reserves decrease significantly very quickly. Hypothermia and dehydration is profound and loss of electrolytes leads to kidney and organ damage. Ruminants (cattle, bison, sheep, camelids etc) quickly lose digestive functions and require veterinary intervention to live.

Winter conditions aren’t usually as extreme on Whidbey as they’ve proven to be in the last 2 weeks. Don’t forget to provide the extra management to prevent their suffering and loss. 🦬

01/03/2022

Long time no see! And Happy New Year! It's been a hot minute! I'm switching back to a more personal platform I guess you could say, of homesteading, horsemanship, farm life, etc. This last year has been a MASSIVE year of growth for me with horses being at the forefront. They've taught me so much and changed me for the better.

Tomorrow I start a new job at a veterinary hospital I've admired for many years as a relief equine veterinary assistant. A position I hope will fill both my heart and soul, while giving me the potential to be at home a little more. I'm so damn excited for new experiences, adventures, and learning opportunities I'm presented with in 2022.

Now for the farm ....we still have our menagerie of critters. Sheep, goats, cows, pigs, chickens, ducks, geese, etc. However, our focus is going to be more about being self sufficient. Back to doing things for our own enjoyment and to feed our family. This fits much better for my own mental health (still a struggle of anxiety and depression, especially this time of year) and for my family.

I hope to continue showing you this crazy thing that is my life 🥰💓

#2022

11/08/2021

If any of my old piglet customers are wanting piglets, this is my friend that bought our breeding stock!

We are now accepting deposits for our Gloucestershire Old Spot piglets! This litter will be ready for pick up in mid-December at 7-8 weeks old. GOS pigs are docile, friendly and have flavorful, marbled meat. First come, first served.

Click here to reserve your piglets:

http://www.willowridgefarmwa.com/shop/ols/products/gos-piglet-deposit

09/19/2021

Juarez and Tukka are incredibly social, snuggly, and curious! We got them from a friend of ours this summer when they were a few months old.

Enjoy the crazy commentary from Elsa! 🤣

09/19/2021

I haven't made a farmy kind of post for a bit! Been so focused on the horse ventures. Our farm has it's newest employee, Torvi! She's 1/2 Anatolian Shepherd, 1/4 Maremma, and 1/4 Caucasian Ovcharka. She's being trained by Stoick, who is probably our best livestock guardian dog. I'm so incredibly pleased with her sweet and mellow temperament! She was raised with livestock since she was a babe and it's evident that Feral Woman Farm did a fantastic job with these puppies.

Elsa's puppy, Chip, enjoys going in the pen for little puppy playtime visits. They are pretty adorable together.

Torvi is so far very submissive and gentle with all of the livestock. She's taken a real liking to the emus which is interesting. They seem to like her too. Oh yeah....we have emus 🙈🤣 Juarez and Tukka. They are hilarious and sweet!

The last 3 pictures of when Torvi was 5 weeks old and she picked us as her people 💓

08/01/2021

"Believe in your horse, so your horse can believe in you." - Ray Hunt
We've got big plans and dreams....and I believe we can do it.

07/13/2021

For anyone who has bought piglets from me in the past, here's a great opportunity for some amazing piglets from our pigs! You may remember when we sold our breeding pigs to my fellow farmher friend at Willow Ridge Farm. Contact them if you're interested!

Want to raise your own pork? We have GOS/Berkshire "bacon seeds" looking for greener pastures. This lovely heritage breed cross produces flavorful, marbled meat with fat that literally melts in your mouth. More info in comments.

07/06/2021

It's been a long time and will probably be a long while before we have this to offer again but we have pork shares available! Del Fox Meats will be doing custom processing (we highly recommend their sausage links and country sausage 😋) and they will be coming out July 14th! I've really left this down to the wire to find freezers for these guys! 8 whole pigs available! If you're interested feel free to fb message, text, or call me! We feed locally milled feed from Conway Feed. They are purebred Gloucestershire Old Spot pigs. Our last litters born and raised here. This is not lean, grocery store pork but well marbled with flavorful fat. If you've ever wanted to render lard, these pigs are amazing for that.

Cost is $4.50/lb hanging weight for a half or whole pig. $150 deposit required to reserve your half or whole. Pigs usually hang at 200 lbs give or take. Custom cut and wrap to be paid to Del Fox Meats in Stanwood.

Thank you!

06/17/2021

Scenes like this make me feel rich.

05/31/2021

Well....let's be honest. Those who know me aren't surprised by this. And yes, I made my first

05/11/2021

I can't believe it! I'd completely given up hope that my geese would ever have any goslings but today we finally got some! 2 females so far. These are extremely rare Shetland Geese. They are known to have poor fertility but there are a few breeders in the US that are trying to improve that. These babies will either be retained or exchanged with another breeder that's working on preserving this lovely breed. I can't believe how excited I am over these little ones!

04/19/2021

Well good morning little one! A new little ram lamb with a mumzy that actually loves him and let's him nurse! 😀 One more ewe left to lamb and we'll be done for the year.