Category: Traditional Skills/Fieldcraft

Letter Re: Lack of Large Animal Vets Even in Rural Areas–Be Prepared to Do It Yourself

James and Memsahib, In reference to LL’s letter posted yesterday, you and the Memsahib are right on target again. My wife, a licensed Vet, says that a recurring theme at Veterinarian Continuing Education Conferences is the call for more Vets to consider specializing in large animal care. At a recent meeting she spoke up giving several reasons why it doesn’t pay to treat large animals, and others agreed with her. For many Vets treating large animals there’s little money to be earned. The travel time between billable calls in a rural area, the difficulty some owners have locating their sick …


Letter Re: Lack of Large Animal Vets Even in Rural Areas–Be Prepared to Do It Yourself

Dear Mr. Rawles, We are presently in the middle of lambing season here. The day following our shearing, one of our ewes looked quite ill. She was glassy eyed, was shaking, and unsteady on her feet. A quick consultation with our Merck Veterinary Manual made me think that it was likely milk fever. Merck said the stress of shearing and delayed feeding is a trigger. Death could result in as quickly as 6 hours without treatment. Therapy recommended was an injection of calcium. It was then I discovered that the availability of large animal vets does not go hand in …


My Seven Favorite North American Edible Wild Plants, by Paul C.

In light of the impending economic and social crisis, a knowledge of edible wild plants is essential. I have included a list of seven easily recognized plants in this discussion, but keep in mind there are hundreds of edible species. These seven are common throughout much of North America. When foraging, one must remember that if you need a field guide to identify a plant, you are not ready to eat that plant. However, field guides with color photographs are necessary for anyone interested in this activity. In my opinion, the best field guide on the market today is The …


Letter Re: Consider Volunteering at a Homeless Shelter

Jim, I read Doc’s article about volunteering in a homeless shelter and meeting some of the occupants. That brought back memories of when I was in my early teens. My Dad worked for the railroad and we lived near the railroad yards and I met a number of hobos in the woods behind our house. Most of them knew my Dad and had a lot of respect for him. He would sometimes give them spare change and cigarettes. The hobo’s slept in small dugout caves in the woods and would never steal from us. But they would steal chickens from …


Letter Re: Vehicle Maintenance is an Important Part of Preparedness

Mr. Rawles, As i am very new to your blog,(although it is now a morning ritual), I haven’t had time to read all of the back posts. I was wondering if you had ever done one on vehicle readiness. One of my concerns over TEOTWAWKI is that my loved ones will go to their vehicle to get back to our retreat, and have it disabled in some way, dead battery, flat tire, et cetera. As I am an automotive technician(with some engineering background) by trade, I have some advantages that others may not have. Our vehicles are always serviced at …


Letter Re: Consider Volunteering at a Homeless Shelter

Sir; I once had an opportunity to volunteer at a homeless shelter in Denver, Colorado. What started as a chance to be of service, turned out to be a lesson in survival. I was surprised to learn that many of the “guests” at the shelter had become experts at existing comfortably, on a permanent basis, without benefit of a home. Here are some of the things I learned: 1) The first lesson is – The quality of your bags determines the quality of your life. If your possessions are contained in fragile garbage bags, you are limited in how much …


Letter Re: Practical Bookbinding for Your Downloaded Survival References

Hi Mr. Rawles, I hope you’re having a great day! I was tumbling around the Internet and stumbled upon a site on do-it-yourself bookbinding. It’s got a great deal of information on binding your own books simply and easily using two bolts, two wing nuts, some wood scraps, a wet cotton ball and some Gorilla Glue. I tried it and found that this is a great way to EMP-proof my PDF collection of [public domain] WTSHTF books. Have a great evening. Best, – Ian


The Elephant in the Room, by Norman Church

“I’m right there in the room and no one acknowledges me.” “We must face the prospect of changing our basic way of living. This change will either be made on our own initiative in a planned way, or forced on us with chaos and suffering by the inexorable laws of nature.” – President Jimmy Carter (1976) Before we discuss this Elephant in the Room we must first briefly consider the notion of ‘sustainability’. Too often people debate sustainability issues from an understanding that is vague, incomplete or frankly flawed. “Just exactly what is meant when the word ‘sustainable’ or ‘sustainability’ …


Letter Re: Self-Sufficiency–How Do We Do It All?

Dear Memsahib and Jim, I am a daily SurvivalBlog reader and contributor, along with my husband. I am very interested in learning more how Memsahib and other retreat women manage to do all that they do. How does a day or week in your life go? How do you can, bake, cook, shear, spin, weave, knit, sew, teach, et cetera and get it all done? We are moving to our retreat soon. I have baked, cooked, knit, learned to spin and weave, and have canned in the past, but not all at once. I forgot to mention clean, wash, take …


Unconventional Bug-Out Transportation Methods, by A. Taylor

I read with interest the inquiry about, what I term a “Bug out Boat”. I made this recommendation several years ago, in numerous survival forums. Most readers seemed unable to process the potential for this kind of plan or it seemed to be impractical to them compared to hunkering down or egress by vehicle. I would advocate that the more eclectic methods of egress from chaos may hold greater potential for success than some mainstream ones. Traditional modes of travel in the modern age are easily controlled by the powers that be, accidents, infrastructure break down, computer problems, electricity (can …


Letter Re: The “Invention Nation” Documentary Television Series

Jim, I don’t know if this has been posted here or not. I have finished watching a series on the Science Channel called “Invention Nation“. The show primarily feature inventors who are inventing ways to “go green”. Many of these inventions and ideas fit in perfectly with being self-sufficient. Some of the topics are; used cooking oil for diesel engines, solar power technology, passive solar for heating homes and water, bicycle generators, etc… The series will rerun starting in March and may be worth a look for the preparedness minded. See the Invention Nation web site. Thanks to you and …


Letter Re: How/Where Can I Learn About Fiber Arts?

Dear Memsahib: In your biography, I noticed that you wrote: “I also have taught Fiber Arts. I can shear a sheep, angora goat, or angora rabbit and wash, card, dye, spin, knit, weave, (and/or felt) the wool into socks, mittens, a hat, scarf, or a sweater.” Speaking for those who happen to have a small herd of Angora goats, but no practical knowledge of shearing or weaving/knitting, to say nothing about “wash – card – dye – spin,” are there any books you can recommend? Or perhaps, alternatively, a DVD? Thanks, – Pete M. The Memsahib Replies: I think hands-on …


Letter Re: G.O.O.D. by Canoe or Other Boat

Jim, I have been reading your blog for some time, thanks for all the great info. One idea that I have not heard much about is using medium size rivers as a way to Get Out of Dodge (G.O.O.D.). I know that it would require just the correct locations for both your work as well as your retreat. But a lot of large cities are near some sort of river or lake. In the best case if you work or live upstream from your retreat you could have a small flat bottom or a canoe stored some place to get …


Letter Re: Advice on a Whole Life Insurance Policy and Firearms

Jim, I’m a newbie to your site and I love it! Read it every morning instead of the newspaper. I’m a single female horse rancher living in Alabama (not originally from Alabama). I attend a home church and have been preparing for our future events for several years before reading your blog. After reading the blog I realize how much farther I have to go. Especially in the home defense area. I own two .22 rimfires and a BB gun. LOL! Thank you so much for all the time and information your providing us. I’ve referred many of like mind …


Two Letters Re: Thoughts on Overseas Retreat Destinations

Mr. Rawles, In looking through your great web site I can’t tell if you’ve ever addressed the issue of having a non-US retreat. There are some notable characteristics of the USA that make it a less then optimal location in a TEOTWAWKI type scenario. I think specifically of very heavy reliance on personal vehicles and fossil fuels, a general ignorance about growing food, preserving food, raising livestock. There is a tremendous demographic heterogeneity (“diversity”) that in a crisis situation would become a very sore spot and possibly a source of violence. Also a Federal government that has shown an inclination …