[Gabe Ayers]

I have fixed the permissions on this. You can now edit your avatar in your profile.

[Gabe Ayers]

Thanks for bringing this to my attention. I’ll fix permissions now.

[Gabe Ayers]

You can change your avatar by clicking on your name in the right column. You’ll be brought to your profile page where you can click edit in the left column. If you scroll all the way to the bottom of the page you’ll see a place to change your avatar.

I’ll move this question to the FAQ section.

[Gabe Ayers]

I use a bobsled in the winter up here in VT and you can really get a lot of wood on that tool. I have found that I can get more than 1000 bf of pine on a load, less for hardwood. The trick for me is the start – if your team can get it moving then usually they will move it along OK. Positioning of the sled at the loading area is critical. Having the runners pointed slightly downhill really helps as that first pull can be really tough if the sled is sitting in a depression of even on a flat. Snow helps to eliminate some of the friction, as I don’t use the sled much without snow cover, as an arch is my tool of choice in the non-winter time. Like others have said, going often with small loads is beneficial, but there is something to be said for a team that can take a days worth of logs out in 1-3 sled loads. Remember that the same load on the ground and then on a sled or arch may produce very different outcomes, and slope and ground conditions also make a huge difference. In general, I have found that it does not matter as much if you have the biggest, heaviest team, but rather if you have the team that is the willing to muckle on to a big load and go for it. But, in the long run giving your horses loads they can manage confidently is one of the best things you can do as a teamster. If the horses trust that you are going to make it manageable they will be willing to pull every time. Good luck!
-Brad

[Gabe Ayers]

After a great deal of consideration, I have decided to just rest my mare for the rest of the fall and winter. She is growing good hoof now and I want to see how she does with time off. I am making arrangements to have her housed for the winter and I have two possibilities for horses to pair with my gelding for logging work for now. I hope that she will come around with time and rest, and maybe in the long run I will keep three horses so that if one is unable to work I can continue on with the healthy pair. Thanks for all the advice, as it helped to make a good decision.
-Brad

[Gabe Ayers]

I can’t find the minutes to August meeting, what time is the meeting tonight?

[Gabe Ayers]

We use a drying rack made of 10′ long 2″x8″ with PCV pipe sections 12″ in length set into the board. They rest up there will they are nearly dry and then each bird is patted dry with a clean piece of towel. If the iced cavity is cold then they can stay on the rack in the shade until they are almost completely dry (15-20 minutes). Each is vacuum sealed and then they go into a cooler with ice and when the cooler is full they head up to the freezer. The sealer does not seal well if the birds are not dry…
-Brad

[Gabe Ayers]

Billy-
We do 400-500 broilers and 35-75 turkey each season, processed and packed here on the farm. We also rely on the Featherman plucker and feel like it is very effective for both chickens and turkeys. For scalding, we use a simple propane burner and large stainless pot with a floating thermometer. It works well, but you have to really keep and eye on the temp. As far as ice tubs, we use three plastic 15 gallon tubs. Birds come off the gutting table and get ice in the cavity, then into the first tub. When that tub is full we move them on until they reach the third tub. By then, the ice in the cavity is gone and the flesh is very cold – the water hurts your hands if you are in the water too long! Then, they to the drying rack and to the vacuum sealer (from Cabelas). This system ensures that you have a properly cooled carcass heading into the bag. We have a waiting list every year for birds and they are a great product to offer to your customers.
-Brad

[Gabe Ayers]

Ben’s gelding, Ted, has been sold.
-Brad

[Gabe Ayers]

Kat-
That design lots neat. But, do you find that you lack lift on the front of the sled runners? I know on my logging bobsled that this lift from the pole on the front of the runners is pretty important with a large load on the bunk. Also, the pole is important for turning the bob…
-Brad

[Gabe Ayers]

Lots of good ideas here. I will add that we process 500 chickens a summer, and have from time to time, had to compost dead calves or lambs. We use aerobic composting, and it is amazing how effective it is. In less than 10 weeks, we can turn all the offal from 225-250 broilers into nearly finished compost. The feathers and bones take a bit longer, but not much. Of course, the speed is greater mid-summer when temps promote excellent conditions for decay and bacterial/fungal growth. We use a heavy dose of pine shavings for carbon and the offal provides lots on nitrogen. Lots of oxygen from turning and a little water completes the recipe. A bin made of concrete trash blocks works well for us, and a sturdy lid will keep most critters out. This material is, by far, our best compost (better than the pile that has household food waste) and we use it all on our garden and pasture.
-Brad

[Gabe Ayers]

You will have to give Stuart a call for more info.
-Brad

[Gabe Ayers]

Trailer has sold.

[Gabe Ayers]

This conversation reinforces the notion that for every tool there is a “right tool for the job.” Sometimes that is a pair of horses and sometimes that is a large machine. Success and failure depends not so much on the tools themselves but with those who are using them in the woods, right?
-Brad

[Gabe Ayers]

Ethan-
It makes me a little sad to hear about your experience with the mechanized boys up there, but we do need the mechanical operators who are responsible. I know that horses are not the right tool for every job, but they could be used much more often for the right tasks with the right teamsters. I have a hard time imagining the we have enough forests resources left to have operations like that cutting 200,000 bf a week in New England, but maybe I am just being pessimistic.

I do hope that, as a forester, you will be willing to work with folks who use animals in the woods. As much as there is a shortage of professional teamsters, there is an equal or even greater shortage of foresters who understand the unique qualities or animals in the woods – both the advantages and limitations. More and more I am running into foresters who cannot move beyond the traditional, industrial model enough to recognize what horses can bring to the table. Instead, they simply see the limitations…we just don’t fit their model very well, and that needs to change.
-Brad

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