The Christian Homesteading Movement
(Page 7 of 8)
March/April 1971
By Hal Smith
FARM REMEDIES
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For diarrhea in cattle, use clean hardwood ashes. For newborn calves, sprinkle a little on the milk. I have no measurement for this, but if you don't get enough the first time give some more at the next feeding again for up to three or even more doses. I have used this for a cow, about a pint in a quart bottle with water. Two doses, a day apart, cured a condition the local vet couldn't.
Kerosene is a good and economical disinfectant when castrating and for minor cuts, etc.
Keeping plenty of salt before the stock when on lush pasture helps prevent bloat.
Make a bridle of a piece of string and a stick of wood for a bit and if you see a cow that is bloated but not in the last stages, put the bridle on the cow and as she chews on the stick she will burn the gas accumulation in her stomach.
If the cow is in the last stages, there may be no alternative to tapping the cow, but this has not been too satisfactory for me.
To cure milk fever in a cow, disinfect a goose quill and tape it to a tire pump. After disinfecting the cow's teats, pump her udder so it fills out but not too hard. This will prevent her from secreting milk while the calcium in her body rapidly rebuilds itself. If this helps at all, a cow that you think is dying will be up and looking well in a half hour. Never milk a fresh cow dry for a few days and you can prevent a lot of milk fever.
Don't dehorn cattle that have been fed any amount of sweet clover hay as this prevents the blood from clotting.—Leo Johannessohn.
A SOUR DOUGH RECIPE
4 cups flour
2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons sugar
To the above add 3 or 4 cups of potato water and let stand loosely covered in a non-metal container for 2 days at 89 to 100 degrees. After this time it should be bubbly and sour smelling.
Mix this "starter" with flour and water for either bread or pancakes. Save one cup of this dough for the next batch. (Do this every time you bake.) Next, add any other ingredients you'd like and then let it raise in a warm place overnight.
METHODS OF TANNING
Skins from wild and domestic animals are made into useable leather through the process of tanning.
The Indians tanned their skins by curing them in a smoke house for several months. The skins were first cleaned and soaked in lye water obtained from ashes. This loosened the hair, making it easy to scrape off.
The early Americans used lime water instead of lye to decompose the hair, and then after scraping, laid the skins in watertight boxes or vats with ground oak bark between each layer. They added water to the vats and left the skins to cure for six months.
HOW TO MAKE CLAY POTTERY
Making cups, bowls and pots from clay is one of the oldest and simplest crafts.
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