For many of us who grew up in rural America, sometimes chasing our dreams calls us to live in the city for a little while. Both my husband and I grew up raising livestock but right now the view from our back porch is apartment buildings and we live closer to a Macy’s than a pasture. For many rural gone urban people like us, owning livestock simply just isn’t feasible. I know that we aren’t the only ones for which the struggle is totally real so this week we are sharing 11 things you do when you’re obsessed with livestock but can’t have them.
#1 Window Shop Online For Livestock Constantly
You stalk Breeder’s World, Superior Livestock, Facebook Groups and more. You are like a girl who just discovered Pinterest. You might even have a Pinterest board of what you could buy if you had the money, time or space to keep livestock.
#2 “Help” Your Friends Purchase Livestock
Since you spend so much time stalking sale websites, you know what’s for sale, when and how much they should pay for it. You pull them into your cyber creeping of sale websites when you just need to show them “one more” that they “really should take a look at.”
#3 “Accidentally” bid in an online sale and then panic and hope someone outbids you
You confidently fill out the bidder information knowing that you won’t actually need to use it. Then after you push the button to bid you panic. What if you actually win?!?! Although secretly you wouldn’t be terribly upset if the auction ends in your favor. It’s just telling your spouse or parents what you may have done that’s the real issue… and then of course finding a home for the animal, figuring out how to transport it and wondering if the couple in the apartment next door would notice if you had to bring a goat into the apartment for a few hours.
#4 Create a backup Network of friends and family who might be able to “host and/or feed” the livestock you aren’t supposed to buy
You’re friends and family think you’re joking until you tell them that you’ll be there tomorrow and to ready a pasture or pen. You tell your spouse, “Well if we see anything we like, we could always send it to so and so’s house,” anytime you head to a show.
#5 Consider buying interest in an animal
You only need to find a partner that is okay with them feeding and housing it and you just coming to visit and helping make breeding decisions.
#6 You open Livestock Publications and flip straight to the ads
You HAVE to see what livestock sales may be happening near you and evaluate the quality of the livestock you definitely can’t afford and totally are not going to buy.
#7 Consider how you would breed and feed the livestock you see for sale.
You then share these thoughts with other like-minded friends who debate with you best mating decisions and which shows you could win if you purchased the animal you can’t afford or keep.
#8 Try not to ooze with Jealousy when a friend brings home a good one
Then you fawn over their new purchase together.
#9 Silently Judge Other People who do have Livestock
You think to yourself, if that was my hog/cow/bull/lamb/goat I would be able to feed/breed/maintain/grow/care for it so much better.
#10 Dream and plan for the day you’ll finally have your own again
You’ll get there someday and when you do, you’ll be more than prepared.
#11 Share this blog post because it totally describes your life.
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