Beginning Bee Keeping, by A.B.

I always planned to have a bee hive someday but someday had not come until I mentioned my interest to a friend who promptly told me he was splitting a hive (taking a few hundred bees out to prevent them from feeling over crowded) in one week and that he would share the “split” (a couple pf hundred bees) with me.  I promptly ran to the library and checked out three books on bee keeping.  Many questions and concerns kept floating around in my mind, a few of which included:  I know nothing about bees!, What equipment do I need to start a hive?, How do I care for them?,  How will I get the honey out?    Following is the answer to all of these questions.  This will hopefully guide you in your steps to managing your own apiary (scientific name for bee keeping).  It is important to start beekeeping now and make mistakes before you really need the honey.  But if  you are reading this post TEOTWAWKI there are still ways that you can obtain a honey bee hive that I will address. I now have one hive in production and plan to build more.

  
I KNEW NOTHING ABOUT BEES
Bees live for one purpose only and that is to work.  They spend their entire lives working themselves to death.  During the summer, when bees are the busiest they can live up to 6 weeks.  If a bee is born during a non-busy season they will live up to 6 months.  Within the hive you have three types of bees: Queen, drones, and workers.   The Queen bee is bigger than all of your other bees.  She looks different with a shorter thorax (the middle of the 3 sections on a bee), small wings, and a longer torso which enables her to back up her behind into a cell and lay an egg.  She puts off pheromones (a scent) that inhibits all other female bees’ ovaries from working.  She can lay up to 2,000 eggs daily. 

A drone is a male bee that exists in the hive at a ratio of 1 drone to every 100 worker (female) bees.  The drones exist for the sole purpose to mate with the queen.  They are not able to feed or care for themselves and are cared for by their kind sisters. 

Worker bees, once hatched from a cell, start their work within the hive cleaning cells,  (a queen will only lay an egg in a clean cell), feeding and caring for baby larvae, grooming and feeding the queen, removing dead bees to the front of the hive, cleaning dust pollen and debris off other bees,  building wax from wax glands (located on the underside of their abdomen) and rendering it to honeycomb, capping pupae and ripened honey from their secreted wax, fanning honey in the cells to remove water which preserves the honey, and placing propolis (a sticky substance they make) in any crack that needs to be filled.  Once a worker’s mandible and stinger are fully formed, at three weeks, they can work outside the hive foraging for pollen, nectar, and water and protecting the hive from impending dangers.   

The life cycle of a bee starts when a queen lays an egg in a cell.  The eggs, shaped like a small grain of rice, are hard to see inside each cell.  A pair of reading glasses may help a beginner spot the eggs easier.  The workers regulate the ratio of males to females by constructing larger cells for males and smaller cells for females.  The queen recognizes the cell size and deposits the correct egg within.  Usually drone and queen cells are on the edges of the frame and females are concentrated in the center of the frame.  Eggs develop for three days before moving to the larva stage where they look like small pearly white semi-circles in their cell.  The top of their cells are sealed to enable them to spin a cocoon around themselves and turn into a pupa.  They will emerge 7, 10 or 14 days later depending on if they are a queen, worker, or drone.  A queen takes 16 days from egg to maturity, a drone 24 days, and a worker 21 days.  
This is a brief overview of the life and function of a honey bee.  There are great resources to learn about honey bees if you decide you are interested in bee keeping.

WHAT EQUIPTMENT DO I NEED TO START MY HIVE?
It is important that you obtain a hat with a veil.  There are many options but I like an XXL (I normally wear a women’s medium)  jacket with the veil attached.  This way the back of the jacket will cover me at all times no matter how much I bend over.  I will have no chance of being stung on the back.  You will need a hive tool to pry apart the boxes and the frames.  A smoker is used to induce the bees into a more submissive state.  Smoking a hive takes a lot of practice and has not come naturally to me.  You also want white gloves.  Bees do not like dark colors and if you can find white goat skin gloves it is best. 

The type of hive I have is called a Langstroth hive named for the man who invented a way to obtain honey and avoid ruining the hive each time honey was harvested.  For the hive itself you need a bottom board.  They come solid or screened.  Where I live in the Rocky Mountain region I have chosen to go with a screened bottom board to prevent significant condensation inside the hive in the winter that would drip and kill the bees.  You will need 2 hive bodies called brood chambers.  The height on these boxes are 9 1/2 in. and most of the eggs, growing larva, and pupa reside within these chambers.  When these boxes are full of brood, bees, honey, and pollen they can weigh 60-80 pounds.  On these brood boxes “supers” are often placed.  These boxes are shorter at 6 5/8 in height which makes them easier to carry and move around when they are full of honey and you are ready to extract.  Full they can weigh 40-45 pounds.  Within the boxes you will usually have 10 rectangular shaped wooden frames that contain foundation sheets stamped with a honey comb pattern to guide bees in building regular combs with uniform cells.  There are many types of foundation including:  pure beeswax, plastic with beeswax overlay, and plain plastic.  The foundation can be bought separately or already in the frames.  An outer cover rests on the top to protect the hive from rain, hailstones, and snow.  There are many other parts that can be added to a hive but these are the basics.

WHAT EQUIPTMENT DO I NEED TO START A HIVE AFTER TEOTWAWKI?
You will need to fashion from a net like material a hood that will keep your head and neck covered to prevent being stung.  Light colored gloves are preferable but any gloves will work.  Many beekeepers do not wear gloves because a stinger left in the glove will put off a scent that tells the other bees to sting. 

Early settlers frequently  used “bee gums” or hollow sections of a tree with a board placed over the top and the bottom to house their bees.  The problem that occurs with this type of hive is it will have to be destroyed by breaking it open in order to obtain the honey.  When you chop down the tree keep a few sections of the it to be able to replace the section that is dismantled every year to obtain the honey.  Make a few openings in the front of the hive small enough for the bees to enter but not large enough to allow mice or other small rodents that are looking for a warm house.
A smoker will be difficult to come by but a big torch from a branch will work just as well and will assist in helping the bees become more docile.  Over the centuries, wildfires have trained the bees that when they smell smoke they gorge themselves on honey and then leave the hive to find a new home. 

HOW DO I CARE FOR BEES?
Placement of a hive is important.  You want good drainage around your hive.  Raising it off the ground onto cinder blocks or wood will usually keep moisture from getting inside the hive due to run off.  The hive needs to be in an area that you can get around and access easily.  You need to have water accessible.  Water is crucial to a bees survival.  They may need a float in your water source to prevent drowning your bees.  A windbreak will help them maintain their temperature during summer and winter.  A southeastern exposure is ideal to provide morning sunshine to stimulate the foraging bees to get up and get busy. 

Putting the bees in the hive
Early spring is the best time to start beekeeping.  This gives the bees all summer to build their stores for winter.  During the first year you will likely not extract honey.  The bee population is usually not high enough to produce extra honey and the bees will need the top and bottom brood boxes full to feed themselves from during the winter.  Bees are shipped in a box with a wire screen (also called a nuc box), with a can of syrup that will feed them on their journey through the postal system.  Be prepared for an early morning phone call from the post office to come pick up your buzzing package.  The queen will be in a small cage inside the package with several bees attending to her needs from the outside. 
            1. In the late afternoon or evening put on your protective gear, open the hive up to have access to the frames, place the nuc box near the hive and light your smoker
            2. There are 2 ways to do the next part, either a) splatter a syrup mixture onto the wire cage.  This will calm the bees.  Continue doing this until they quit eating. or b) Spray a sugar water mixture onto the bees.  This will not hurt them but will make it difficult for them to fly.  The sugar water mixture will also give them a snack as they will clean it off of each other.  Rap the cage onto the ground and let the bees fall to the bottom of the cage.
            3. Take the cover off the cage, remove the queen, and put the lid back on to prevent escaping bees.  Make a small hole in the candy plug that will allow the bees to eat their way through to the queen and release her.  Wedge her small cage between 2 frames within the hive making sure the candy plug is accessible to the bees. 
            4. Again rap the cage on the ground, then remove the lid and pour/shake the bees onto the frames in the hive.  At this point they are not going to be territorial and try to sting you.  They currently have no home and are not going to try to protect this hive.  It will take a few days before they call this new box home.  After you have poured most of the bees onto the hive, lay the box on its side to allow the other bees a way to crawl out and get into the hive.  Put the lid on top of the hive and then leave them alone.  Bees do much better without our help. 
After 3-5 days you want to make sure the queen has been released from her cage.  Open the lid during a warm sunny afternoon.  Hopefully most bees will be foraging and not at home.  If she has not been released, pull the candy plug out or push it carefully into her cage being careful not to squish her.  After this, leave them for a few weeks.  It is not prudent to check them more than every 2 weeks and many people wait 4 weeks.  When you do open the hive it will be hard to separate the boxes and the frames.  Bees use a sticky substance called propolis to glue all openings and frames together.  You will need to separate the box lid and the box with your hive tool, then put a little smoke into the crack.  This will induce the bees to go down into the frames and gorge on honey making them more sluggish.  After you take the lid off, lean it against the hive.  Pry a frame apart and lift it up, being careful to keep it over the hive so the queen does not fall off onto the ground.  When you look at your frames you want to make sure there are eggs and brood (growing baby bees).  The egg should be in the center of each cell and there should only be 1 egg in each cell.  If there are more than 1 egg in each cell it could mean your queen has failed and the worker bees have taken over by laying non-fertile eggs.  This will produce an all male (drone) hive which will die off very quickly as they are not able to care for themselves. 
In the spring before bees have a lot of plants to forage from they may begin to starve because they have eaten their reserves and have nothing to forage.  At this point it is a good idea to feed them.  There are many contraptions you can buy to feed them but last year the method I chose was to make a syrup with a 2:1 ratio of sugar to water, place it in a gallon zip lock bag, lay it on top of the frames, and then cut an X in the top of the bag.  The bees will land on the bag and eat from the syrup oozing out of the X.  My only expense was the sugar.  There are other recipes and substances you can use to feed bees but the important thing to remember is that during early spring you may need to feed your bees.
When working with bees use slow and gentle movements.  If you are quick or abrupt they will feel threatened and are put on high alert.  If a bee stings the stinger rips away from the bees body and the bee dies.  The stinger continues to pump venom into your skin so brush the stinger off quickly.  If you grab the stinger to pull it out you will force all of the venom into your skin. If a bee is squished this sends the bees into high alert and they are more likely to sting.  To get the bees off of the rim of the hive before putting the lid on use the smoker and they will bury back down into the frames, to again gorge on honey, you will be less likely to squish the bees and they will not try to harm you. 

POST TEOTWAWKI – OBTAINING HONEY BEES
In the event you do not already have bees, you can try robbing a hive to get your bees.  If you see honey bees around your property and are not sure where they have their hive hidden you can try this trick.  To do this you will need to make yourself a box with a glass or plexiglas top piece that will fit onto the box by sliding into grooves.  Place honey, molasses or a syrup mixture inside the box and place it somewhere you think the bees might come.  Once a few bees are in the box filling up on your sweet substance sprinkle them with flour.  Let them fly away and watch where they go.  They will go back to their hive and recruit other bees to come get food.  Other bees will come to your box.  Once your original flour coated bees come back to the box place the lid on the box and walk in the direction the bees flew off to.  This will bring you closer to their home.  At this point the bees will be full and ready to fly away.  Put the box on the ground when you no longer know which way to go, take the lid off, and let them fly away.  The bees will be confused for a minute, once they find their bee line they will head off towards home.  Watch them to see where they are headed and make a note of the landmarks you should walk to that will bring you closer to their hive.  When the floured bees come back do this again.  Put the lid on, walk their bee line (the path they take to and from their hive), let them out, watch them.  Do this again and again until they lead you to their honey tree.  Likely the tree the bees are in will need to be chopped down.  Doing this at night will be easier because the bees won’t be active.  They will be sluggish and sleeping, especially if the temperature is a little cooler.  When you chop the tree down, place your hollow log (with a board nailed to the bottom) next to your main body of bees.  You want to find the queen, which is much larger and has small wings.  When you find the queen, deposit her into your hollow log and the other bees will follow.  You can take a stick and pick up bees on the end to shake into the log being careful not to squish your queen.  Place the lid on your hollow log and place them in their new location during the night.  At this point you would want to also take all the honey you can. 

HOW DO I GET THE HONEY OUT?
There are two ways to extract your honey.  The first way is to buy or make an extractor.  Using centrifugal force the honey is spun out of the frame, collects in the bottom of a vat or bucket and then can be poured from a gate/nozzle near the bottom of the bucket into containers.  The second way to extract honey is to crush the comb and honey together and then strain the wax out of the honey.  One reason most people use an extractor is to save the bees the work of making beeswax.  For every pound of beeswax formed in the hive the bees could have made around 10 pounds of honey.  By using a machine that will spin the honey out of the frames the bees do not have to work to make more beeswax.  They spend their time and energy refilling the wax that is ready.  Extractors bought from a bee supply company range in price from $199.00 to $2,000.   Many people make their own extractors out of scrap metal, a food grade bucket, and a tool like a grout mixer that fits onto a drill and allows the frames to spin.  Many plans can be found online how to make an extractor.

Post TEOTWAWKI, unless you have an extractor, you will extract honey by crushing the comb and honey.  When a frame is 80% capped off (the bees seal the honey with a white/ yellowish waxy seal) you can harvest the honey.  Materials for your gravity extractor include two buckets, one of those buckets needs a lid.  To get a mental picture of what your setup will look like when you finish you will have two buckets stacked one on top of the other.  The bottom bucket will have a lid for the top bucket to sit on.  Poke or drill 3/16 in. holes in the top bucket to allow honey to drip down through.  This bucket will be placed on a bucket of the same size that has a lid.  Cut the middle section out of the lid.  This will allow the honey to drip down from the top bucket into the bottom bucket while sitting comfortably and securely on the lid of the bottom bucket.   If your frames have plastic foundation inside them you will cut or scrape the comb and honey into a pot or pan.  If you have wax foundation in your frames you can cut the foundation right out of your frames and place it a pot or pan.  Working in small batches crush the comb honey in the pot/pan and place it in the top bucket.  The honey will separate from the wax, for the most part, and move down through the holes into the second bucket.  Once your honey has moved to the bottom bucket, which can take hours to days depending on how warm the honey is and how much you have, it is a good idea to strain it again using a cheesecloth or strainer.  Make sure you do this in an area the bees can not get to.  They will rob you of your honey quickly if allowed the opportunity.  
Once you have completed your project, put your sticky tools and buckets outside near your hive.  The bees will usually clean the honey off of them and take it back to the hive.  Bees can not reuse their wax.  You can take the beeswax from the top bucket and use it.  Here are a few recipes for bees wax:

Candles:  Place wax in a pot or a crock pot and heat until liquid.  Use old metal food cans or small jelly or half pint jars, place a candle wick inside and fill with beeswax

Taper candles:  Cut a long piece of flat braid wick.  Heat beeswax in a pot and dip the wicks into the wax to make them the desired length.  Tapers are made in pairs because you dip both sides into the wax which allows them to hang while drying.  For the first dip leave them in the wax one full minute to allow the wick to soak up the wax.  Thereafter keep dipping until they reach your desired width.  When you pull them out hang them over a dowel or a rolling pin to dry.  This process will usually take a few hours so give yourself ample time.  Let them sit for a day before using them. 

Hand lotion:  1 part beeswax, 4 parts olive oil- heat the beeswax and mix in the olive oil.  You can add essential oils but that is optional. Mix thoroughly, place in a small container while still liquid.  It will harden up.

Chapstick:  2 parts coconut oil, 1 part beeswax a few drops of vitamin E.  This can also be used as a hand salve.  Use a cheese grater to get small pieces of beeswax.  Heat these, mix, then use.

Honey is amazing when I think about the health properties it has.  It is full of vitamins, antioxidants and minerals.  It tastes great and can be substituted for sugar in smaller ratios.  I am fascinated as I stand by my hive watching them come in and out interacting with each other.  Whenever someone asks me about my bees I tell them, “I don’t know why I didn’t do this sooner.  They are fascinating little creatures.”  If you have thought about bee keeping in the past, just start.  Honey bees are very easy and beneficial to have around.      

Recipes using honey: 
Cough and sore throat remedy: 1 T of honey, 1 T of lemon juice, 1 c. of hot water

Soft Whole Wheat bread
2 1/2 c. very warm water
1 Tbsp. yeast
3-4 Tbsp. honey
1 Tbsp. vital wheat gluten (secret ingredient)
1 Tbsp. dough enhancer (opt.)
1 Tbsp. Lecithin (opt.)
2 tsp. salt
1/3 c. softened butter
6-7 c. freshly ground wheat flour
Put water in mixer. Sprinkle yeast on top, then drizzle honey over it. Let sit for 3-4 minutes, or until yeast has bloomed and risen to the surface.
Mix in vital wheat gluten, dough enhancer, lecithin, salt, butter, and 1 cup flour. Slowly add 5 more cups flour. Let mixer knead dough for 8-10 minutes, then add more flour if the dough is still sticking to the sides. Add flour until dough pulls away.
Take dough out and knead on OILED surface. CUT, do not tear dough into 2 equal parts, and shaped into loaves. Place in greased bread pans, and allow to rise 1 hour uncovered. Place in cool oven and turn on to 350°F.
Bake for 30-35 minutes.
Remove from pans immediately, brush tops with butter or spray with a fine mist of water. I usually let them cool to room temperature while enjoying a few pieces with jam or honey, then slice completely and store in bread bags. I recommend freezing and thawing out the pieces as you need them – it is not hard, they defrost very nicely. Just make sure not to put it in the freezer while it is still warm, or the pieces will stick together and break when you try to pull them out.


References:
Adams, John, 1972: Beekeeping: The Gentle Craft
Delaplane, Keith, 2007: First Lessons in Beekeeping
English, Ashley, 2011:Homemade Living: Keeping Bees with Ashley English: All You Need to Know to Tend Hives, Harvest Honey & More   
MacBride, Roger Lea, 1995: In the Land of the Big Red Apple (Little House series)
Readers Digest, 1981: Back to Basics

Letter Re: Advice on Retreat Properties in Southwestern Oregon

Dear Mr. Rawles,
We relocated from the San Francisco Bay Area at the end of 2012 to southern Oregon, as I was able to find a job with [deleted for OPSEC] in Medford.

We have been spending part of each weekend looking for a retreat property, while renting a modest home in town. We were even under contract for a lot outside of Jacksonville, but the well produced just 0.16 gallon per minute and other wells surrounding were over 400 feet and were also low producers, Oregon has plenty of water not to struggle with that unknown outcome of re-drilling. So we have been looking again, and what we keep finding is, pot growers!

There was a nice seven acre parcel with an upper and lower meadow, leading to a stream and wooded back 2 acres, on our second visit the next door 10 acre farmer greeted us and proclaimed that he and many neighbors were “growers”, and they have a “great neighborhood watch, with armed guards 24/7  for 3 months a year.” Okay, no thanks to living next to the farmer with the creepy armed dudes camping out in the pot field with guns, before the collapse.

Another homestead outside Jacksonville, in Ruch, population 840 had potential we thought until Internet research revealed it was “8 seconds” by car on Google maps from a September 19, 2012 DEA raid than netted “truckloads of plants.”

So I am discouraged. I know the Lord has blessed us to be able to leave the San Francisco Bay Area, and by awakening us to the potential for societal collapse. Our preps now measure in not just pounds but tonnage thanks to a few years of Bay Area double incomes, and now my wife is able to stay home with our baby daughter, and her development is really taking off, by being with mommy and not in daycare.

But we are sure that Medford is still large enough and depressed economically to be a serious disaster when the collapse of the dollar takes full hold.

Can you offer any recommendations on areas surrounding this community which are less prone to be riddled with pot growers?

Thank you for any insight you might share. Sincerely, – C.D.

JWR Replies: Unfortunately, most of western Oregon is infested with pot growers. That is one of just many reasons why I did not include it when I delineated the American Redoubt region. (Along with factors like high property taxes, crime, welfare dependency, statist attitudes, etc.)

In any of the western counties in Oregon, the chances are fairly high that you will have pot growing neighbors if you buy land outside of city limits unless your neighbors are legitimate traditional produce farmers or stockmen. If you could find a property with mostly farms or ranches around it, then that would be your safest bet.

Letter Re: Taxes for Millionaires: Food For Thought

Jim,
How many times has the President said that we need to raise taxes on those making more than $1 million per annum?
Some believe that the government will also confiscate gold and silver.
As many know, our government already confiscated gold in America, circa 1933.
Even so, collectable coins were exempt, which is reason enough to own gold/silver coins that have value beyond the base metal – a discussion topic for another day.
 
Many of us at retirement age receive some form of retirement income from the federal government.
Some receive disability pay as well, but the feds would take a massive hit for even thinking about taxing or reducing disability pay.
But in that same vein, our government has NEVER met a tax they dislike.
If any of the foregoing is true, or even close, congratulate yourself – you just might be a millionaire!  
 
If you can work backwards for a moment (something left handed people have always done) consider this:
 
     A federal retirement paying you $33,000/year would require a private sector principle of $1,100,000, and paying 3% annually to maintain the principle.
     Finding a safe 3% annual yield in this economy is just about impossible, excluding 30 year bonds and junk paper.
     If my left handed calculator is correct, that is more than a million dollars – congrats, you are a millionaire.
     Even though you may not feel like a millionaire, but you sure look like one on paper.
     Remember – this is the same government that tells you that social security is sound.
     Bernie Madoff would be pleased.
 
For those of us that are or will be “quintuple dippers” (military, civilian retirement, disability, TSP/401 K plans, and Social Security) we look like fat on paper.  
Nationalizing not just federal retirements, but all retirements would be far easier than confiscating gold or silver.
Of course, the program would be couched as a measure to ensure that everyone receives a fair share – But you’re a millionaire, quit complaining.
Food for thought.
 
– Dan X. (A retired U.S. Navy Commander.)

Economics and Investing:

H.L. sent this Reuters article: More US States Weigh Gasoline Taxes. Unfortunately this superficial article failed to detail the aggregate gas taxes–it only talks about the recent and planned increases, such as Wyoming’s 10 cent cent rate “leap.” But this map from 2012 gives a more complete picture. In fact, Wyoming merely normalized its gas tax rate with its seven contiguous neighboring states. It is noteworthy that the Northern Rocky Mountain states have taxes that range from 40 to 46 cents per gallon, which is well below the national average of 48.8 cent and far below the west coast states which range from 49 to 67 cents per gallon. It also failed to mention that Wyoming has no personal income tax. Also, keep in mind that gas taxes are road use taxes. Data from the Census Bureau shows that the average American has a 25.1 minute commute to work. Most Wyoming workers would consider that a dream job. A 45 minute commute (at 70 miles per hour) is not unusual in Wyoming.

Jim. W. sent: The National Debt to the Penny and Who Holds It. (These are truly frightening numbers when you consider that the only way that this debt could ever be repaid is via The Weimar Solution–mass inflation.)

Physical Silver – Record Industrial & Investment Demand

Items from The Economatrix:

The Federal Reserve May Be Responsible For The Biggest Financial Meltdown Yet To Come

17 Signs That A Full-Blown Economic Depression Is Raging In Southern Europe

Retail Sales Rise But Consumer Is Not Back

Odds ‘n Sods:

Reader C.D.V. mentioned this handy online table: How many cups in a pound of…

   o o o

Drone Strikes On American Citizens: Peter Schiff / Rand Paul Interview

   o o o

Census shows record 1 in 3 US counties are dying off. (Thanks to Tim J. for the link.)

   o o o

Reader C.D.V. sent some more demographics: America’s sadness belt: Alarming map shows residents in South and Midwest are far more likely to be depressed, obese and hate their jobs

   o o o

Kevin S. pointed me to this prototype: Quadski. [JWR’s Comment: In our heavily-wooded part of the Redoubt, we often crawl our quads over small downed trees. And then there are the rocks. Something tells me that that the Quadski’s plastic boat-like underbelly would not fare well here. But your mileage may vary. OBTW, Gibbs Amphitrucks is located in Auburn Hills, Michigan. That is apropos, given Michigan’s 11,000 lakes and its automotive history.]

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“The church used to be a lightning bolt, now it’s a cruise ship. We are not marching to Zion – we are sailing there with ease. In the apostolic church it says they were all amazed – and now in our churches everybody wants to be amused. The church began in the upper room with a bunch of men agonizing, and it’s ending in the supper room with a bunch of people organizing. We mistake rattle for revival, and commotion for creation, and action for unction. ” – Leonard Ravenhill

Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 45 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize: A.) Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate, good for any one, two, or three course. (A $1,195 value.) B.) A course certificate from onPoint Tactical. This certificate will be for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses. (Excluding those restricted for military or government teams.) Three day onPoint courses normally cost $795, and C.) Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $350 value.) D.) a $300 gift certificate from CJL Enterprize, for any of their military surplus gear, E.) A 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $300 value), and F.) A $250 gift certificate from Sunflower Ammo. and G.) A $200 gift certificate, donated by Shelf Reliance.

Second Prize: A.) A gift certificate worth $1,000, courtesy of Spec Ops Brand, B.) A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training. Together, these have a retail value of $589. C.) A FloJak FP-50 stainless steel hand well pump (a $600 value), courtesy of FloJak.com. D.) A “grab bag” of preparedness gear and books from Jim’s Amazing Secret Bunker of Redundant Redundancy (JASBORR) with a retail value of at least $300, E.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials and F.) Two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value).

Third Prize: A.) A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21. (This filter system is a $275 value.), B.) A large handmade clothes drying rack, a washboard and a Homesteading for Beginners DVD, all courtesy of The Homestead Store, with a combined value of $206, C.) Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy. This is a $185 retail value, D.) A Commence Fire! emergency stove with three tinder refill kits. (A $160 value. E.) A Tactical Trauma Bag #3 from JRH Enterprises (a $200 value), and F.) Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security.

Round 45 ends on March 31st, 2013, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

Out of Options — Get a Guard Dog, by T.J.

We came late to the prepping party.  We didn’t own any guns.  We lived paycheck to paycheck in a suburban area.  We couldn’t afford to buy property in Idaho, while it’s still a dream.  We have slowly stocked up on short term and long term food and water, bought heirloom seeds and learned to garden, loaded up on firewood for two huge fireplaces for cooking and warmth, but that’s about it.  Recently our son, honorably discharged from the Armed Services, came home to start his life as a civilian.  He owned a 9mm and promptly proceeded to purchase a .22 handgun for ma and pa.  The problem was, we couldn’t find any ammo, anywhere.  We are a long way from being prepared, but better off than most people we know.  We decided to get a guard dog.  The difference between a guard dog and a watchdog is the guard dog is trained to protect the family using aggression, while the watchdog will alert the family by barking and making a fuss (with not much to back it up).  Our Brittany Spaniel is a good watchdog.  She barks at every new sound, when she needs to outside, and when she thinks it’s time to eat.  I think she trains us.

After searching for the right dog, we stumbled upon good fortune.  An acquaintance, a breeder and trainer, was looking to place her prized purebred German Shepherds trained in Schutzhund (google it or youtube it) with good families for personal reasons.  Schutzhund trained dogs learn to control their drive and learn to obey the owner even when very excited.  We gratefully met the dogs and selected a lovely 5 yr old gal who had won awards in self-defense, provided puppies over the years, and who was ready to relax with a good family.  If you didn’t know this gorgeous animal, she would scare the daylights out of you if you met her in a dark ally.  Our experience with her so far, is that she is obedient, playful, loving, and loyal.  She bonded quickly with our small family, including our existing family dog.  Our Brittany Spaniel was quite put out with the very big Shepherd invading her space, but the Shepherd helped her along by being respectful and careful.  They now can eat and nap in close proximity to one another.  It only took 48 hours for the dogs to come to terms with one another.

Our goal is to ensure our new dog doesn’t forget her good training and we have some planned exercises with her former owner to learn the Schutzhund commands and routines.  It is amazing that you don’t need to collar or leash this dog.  She responds immediately to voice commands and hand motions.  One afternoon she decided to explore the neighbor’s backyard (we have very low fences between yards).  With one firm call of her name, she turned around immediately and raced back to me, almost apologetically.  Impressive.  I’m not sure my Brittany Spaniel would have been so obedient.  She would have played hide and seek for a while first.

Schutzhund training includes tracking, obedience, and protection.  The most important part to understand about protection is that the dog has been trained to attack upon command, but more importantly to quit the attack by command.  The bite force of a German Shepherd, depending upon size and ferocity, is quite strong as compared to other dogs.  However, this is not an out of control attack dog.  This is a dog that works on command and quits working on command.  She only barks if confronted with a threatening situation.  She hasn’t made a peep since we’ve had her.  We are learning the German commands, but were assured by the trainer that she is very smart and will adapt quickly to our version of the commands without a problem.  This gave us a great sense of confidence. 

Some people believe that getting an aggressive-tempered guard dog is the right way to go, but how do you know that dog will not attack one of your
sweet grandchildren, the mail carrier, or a neighbor walking his or her dog?  One of my daughters is terribly afraid of German Shepherds having been bit by the neighbor’s Shepherd when she was a young teenager.  That dog took a huge bit out of her thigh, requiring a trip to emergency and many stitches.  She still has scars and is terrified.  The dog was not teased or threatened in any way; it just decided to attack for no good reason while the children were playing in the front yard.

One of the web sites I found that provided good information on what type of dog to get for personal protection was Cesar’s.  Cesar listed the top 10 dogs in this order from best to least protection dogs:

1.       Bullmastiff – very big dogs
2.       Doberman Pinscher – need room, very fast, very smart
3.       Rottweiler – big, loyal
4.       Komodor – needs socialization to become a family pet
5.       Puli – very active and love to bark
6.       Giant Schnauzer – requires strict training
7.       German Shepherd – calm, smart, reacts quickly to threats
8.       Rhodesian Ridgeback – strict training required
9.       Kuvasz – very territorial
10.   Staffordshire Terrier – requires strict training and socialization

You can do your own research and talk to other dog owners.  Our choice was to find a highly trained and skilled German Shepherd for family loving and protection since we didn’t have the fortitude or experience to train one from puppyhood.  Every family is different and has different needs.  We wanted to snuggle by the fireside with our protection animal, as well as expect her to attack an intruder.  Purebred Shutzhund trained shepherds can cost into the thousands of dollars.  We were graced with a great deal by a loving trainer after searching for months online for the right dog, so I don’t suspect you will find the same kind of deal.  However, selecting a guard dog should be part of your preparation plans. 

Should SHTF, home invasions are expected to commence by the have-nots. The CCW By State web site provides home invasion statistics for 2011.  According to the web site:

“…1 in 5 homes in the US will be broken into or experience some sort of home invasion – in other words, more than 2,000,000 U.S. families!”  Other statistics cited: 8,000 home invasions occur every day in North America, 720 forcible rapes occur every day (that’s 1 every 2 minutes), 1,440 robberies occur every day (1 every minute), 4,320 violent crimes per day (1 every second), 2,468 grave assaults per day (1 every 35 seconds), 8,640 burglaries per day (1 every 10 seconds), and 28,800 property crimes (1 every 3 seconds).”

You may live in a low crime area, as we do, but should SHTF expect the aforementioned statistics to skyrocket.  These statistics cover all of North America, but just think about it.  I confessed to my husband that I had slept better than I had in a long time, since we brought the Shepherd home.  She hears what I cannot and is alert even while resting.  We all need our sleep to remain alert and make good decisions.

While you, like us, wait out the ammunition shortage, think about investing in a guard dog.  I would rather have our dog scare off would be intruders prior to using what little ammunition we have and save those bullets for worst-case scenarios.  Do your research and understand your family needs.  Understand your own limitations in regards to breeding, raising, and training a guard dog.  It is a huge commitment.  Don’t think you can go to the pound and pick up a Doberman or Pit Bull (which are plentiful at the pound) and hope for protection.  The dog may turn on you, your family members, or neighbors if not properly trained and socialized.  And the neighbors will sue.  You don’t want to stick out as the one house in the neighborhood everyone is afraid to walk by and be subject to a police visit for suspicion of having an aggressive and dangerous dog.  We made the choice to invest in a mature, fully trained animal rather than go it alone.  Good luck and good hunting.

Letter Re: Useful Space Weather Updates

James,
Many folks have an interest of viewing solar information and typically subscribe to raw data feeds; however probably do not understand a lot of
the science behind the numbers. There is a gentleman who produces daily morning youtube forecasts typically from 3 to 4 minutes long which covers the
gamut of space weather and it’s impact on terrestrial weather.

These broadcasts are extremely informative and he does an excellent job breaking down all of the information. His Youtube channel is called Suspicious0bservers. I have become a regular daily viewer of his short yet extremely informative broadcasts.

Warm Regards, – Dave in Florida

Letter Re: Colorado’s Magazine Ban

Hi,
I saw that the Colorado law banning magazines of greater than 15 round capacity passed – outrageous but not unbelievable for this state. Colorado  used to be a great and conservative one, but no longer.

[Regarding the law’s limited grandfather clause,] I have written out documents for all of my magazines, which I have had notarized, transferring ownership of the magazines I own to my children. This way, when I die, it can easily be ascertained that the magazines were actually their property before the law went into effect. I am not a lawyer, but this sort of thing is done with many other objects so it should be acceptable with these as well. Only time will tell, but this was the best I could do or come up with on short notice.
 
All the Best, – Tim P.

JWR Replies: I urge Colorado SurvivalBlog readers to relocate to one of the American Redoubt States, if possible. The laws in Colorado will likely get a lot worse. Vote with you feet!

Odds ‘n Sods:

UN Arms Trade Treaty 2013 – It’s Back…

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Some news from Utah: ‘Constitutional carry’ law could create showdown between governor and legislators

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This retreat property, recently added to our SurvivalRealty spin-off site, is proof that there are still some great rural properties in Northern California: New Long Valley Retreat. If work or family commitments have you stuck in California, then this is about as good as they get.

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Wary of Attack With Smallpox, U.S. Buys Up a Costly Drug. (Thanks to G.G. for the link.)

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F.G. recommended an interesting, if quite opinionated, read: So you want to buy a 1911? A basic primer

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“Remus respects vegetarians, sort of, although he thinks vegetarianism is an unalloyed crock and its adherents are being rather silly, or conflating appetite and hunger, having known one but not the other. What they really need is a ‘teachable moment’ and some fresh road kill. He suspects vegetarianism started when somebody lost a World Series bet, maybe during the Harding administration. Or perhaps it’s a holdover from the Sylvester Graham-Charles Post agri-marketing fervor of the nineteenth century. Are we allowed to mention Hitler was a vegetarian? ‘I’ll have the barley soup with alfalfa tips and a side order of Czechoslovakia.'”- Ol’ Remus, The Woodpile Report

Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 45 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize: A.) Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate, good for any one, two, or three course. (A $1,195 value.) B.) A course certificate from onPoint Tactical. This certificate will be for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses. (Excluding those restricted for military or government teams.) Three day onPoint courses normally cost $795, and C.) Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $350 value.) D.) a $300 gift certificate from CJL Enterprize, for any of their military surplus gear, E.) A 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $300 value), and F.) A $250 gift certificate from Sunflower Ammo. and G.) A $200 gift certificate, donated by Shelf Reliance.

Second Prize: A.) A gift certificate worth $1,000, courtesy of Spec Ops Brand, B.) A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training. Together, these have a retail value of $589. C.) A FloJak FP-50 stainless steel hand well pump (a $600 value), courtesy of FloJak.com. D.) A “grab bag” of preparedness gear and books from Jim’s Amazing Secret Bunker of Redundant Redundancy (JASBORR) with a retail value of at least $300, E.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials and F.) Two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value).

Third Prize: A.) A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21. (This filter system is a $275 value.), B.) A large handmade clothes drying rack, a washboard and a Homesteading for Beginners DVD, all courtesy of The Homestead Store, with a combined value of $206, C.) Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy. This is a $185 retail value, D.) A Commence Fire! emergency stove with three tinder refill kits. (A $160 value. E.) A Tactical Trauma Bag #3 from JRH Enterprises (a $200 value), and F.) Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security.

Round 45 ends on March 31st, 2013, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

Caring For Moms and Babies in Disastrous Times, by EMT Tina

Having a baby under normal circumstances is a great and beautiful thing, but when disaster strikes there’s going to be some issues.  Obviously in dark times one might not be able to deliver at a clean, safe hospital, or run to Walgreens in the middle of the night to get formula and diapers, or to Target to get extra pajamas for baby.   As a mom (and EMT 3 years, 8 years as a First Responder before that) I feel a certain responsibility to help others and to encourage preparedness in others.  Here are some helpful shopping tips, knowledge, and other items that are always good to have on hand for moms and babies in times of emergency. 

I live in a state where we have disasters and evacuations every year, so the concept of getting out of Dodge quick is something that we are familiar with.  As an EMT and as a Venturing Scout I have responded to and given aid to those struck by disaster many times, and in between I teach others how to be better prepared.  I know that sometimes response to emergencies can be delayed, resources get stretched thin at big disasters and you may not get help at all if your problem isn’t immediately life threatening.  This is why everyone should have a bag ready with supplies and waiting by the door readily accessible and more importantly a place to go to that is safe.  As a parent and wife I have a responsibility to protect and care for my son and husband and vice verse, this should be your priority too.   
 
If you have a member of your group who is pregnant and or has small children you’ll need to take extra care for them.  While pregnant women can do a lot of things, they will need help and, for certain duties, partnering up for safety.  Some light duty jobs you could consider are working the ops desk, the communications desk, KP, or watching the groups other children.  Jobs that you might have a partner for could be laundry, gardening, milking cows or goats (no horse riding if it can be avoided), feeding livestock, water hauling (with cart, don’t push to hard) or other not too strenuous work.  There are going to be some exceptions to this list as pregnancy progresses and morning sickness gets better or worsens.  For instance I couldn’t handle the smell of raw meat when I was pregnant, so I couldn’t cook certain things. 

There are also some comfort items that you can keep at the retreat for anyone who is or becomes pregnant.  Candied ginger and ginger ale are always great to help with nausea.  Saltine crackers are also good for this purpose.  Pregnant women will also need a good multivitamin with folate in it to ensure good gestational health and neural tube development in the baby.  A good stool softener (such as Colace) and extra fiber in the diet are both highly recommended and pregnant women will also need and extra 300 -350 calories a day.  Some pregnant women might become anemic and requite an Iron supplement.  There are also some things that pregnant women should avoid like cleaning the litter box, over exertion/lifting, and excessive stress.  Taking care with your words and actions can go a long way (like not saying that the pregnant woman is a burden or implying it).  Stress can adversely affect not only the mom, but also the baby.  When you are stressed your body secretes a lot of hormones that then affect the baby and put it under stress which can then affect fetal health.  All pregnant women should have regular Blood pressure and blood sugar tests throughout the pregnancy.  You will especially want to monitor for preeclampsia and diabetes.  Make sure you get a thorough medical history prior to delivery especially important are has the mother had a ultrasound and if so what was the placement of the placenta, medical issues like diabetes or preeclampsia, past pregnancies and any complications with those, and finally any signs of possible health issues with the baby.  

In times of disaster there is a great likelihood that the mortality rate will rise when it comes to deliveries and pregnancies.  So it is here that I shall list a little about miscarriage.  According to The Everything you need to know about pregnancy book, “up to 20% of all detected pregnancies miscarry before week 20.”  After week 20 your chances of miscarriage greatly decrease, but are not totally eliminated.  Sometimes miscarriages happen because of trauma to the baby and mother, but other times the baby could have genetic abnormalities.  Some bleeding does occur after implantation and is normal, but all bleeding should still be taken seriously.  If it’s bright red blood then this would be the time to seek out a professional.  If there is a doctor or midwife in the area then get the mother to them quickly.  A paramedic from the local fire department would have some training in child birth and complications and could also assist.  Signs and symptoms of a miscarriage are: Bright red bleeding in copious amounts, severe abdominal cramping, low back pain (contractions), high fever, extreme nausea and vomiting beyond morning sickness with quick onset, amniotic fluid leakage, and severe headache.  One of the first things that you can check for, before advanced help arrives, is a fetal heart rate by using a stethoscope. If it’s a good scope you should be able to hear the heart rate post week 10.

If the mother does miscarry or lose the baby after the delivery this will affect her not only physically, but mentally as well.  It doesn’t take long to fall in love with your baby, and when a woman miscarries or the baby dies post delivery she’ll go through the full spectrum of mourning plus additional guilt, doubt, and depression.  Again other members of the group should support, offer help, prayer, and counsel the mother.  Allow her and the father time for grieving.  It is also advisable to let her rest and recover so that she can deal with her loss.  Don’t let her rush off to work to avoid grief as this may compound the problem.  Grieving is a very individual thing and only that person will know how they need to deal.  Most importantly watch for depression and suicidal symptoms and get the mother professional help and medications if at all possible.
 
I won’t comment on the actual birthing process itself as this was well covered in Mr. Rawles’ book.  Some additional helpful reading if you are interested thought, would be any Recent EMT Manual published within the last 3 to 5 years as these have a detailed chapter on field childbirth and complications.  You can find used copies on Amazon.com or BN.com.  I would also advise taking a Emergency Medical Responder (previously First Responder) level aid course and few ambulance ride-alongs or hospital clinicals.  These will give you a lot of valuable training and experience and can make all of the difference in a bad situation.  Volunteering at your local hospital in the birth center can also provide you some valuable experience and you can gain helpful knowledge from the experienced RNs.  Above all else keep your head cool and mind calm, your most important tool is the one on your shoulders.               

Now let’s talk a bit about some supplies for baby.  As a parent you learn to budget (money, time, sanity), and prepping for an emergency is no different.  You must have a budget and plan in mind well before you head to the store.  When it comes to baby clothes a great, frugal place to buy is the second hand store.  From 25 cents to a dollar an item secondhand stores are a great place to stock up.  You can find all seasons of clothing, shoes and toys there for a fraction of the cost new.  Just use your head and watch for the quality of the items you buy.  Usually for a baby all through the toddler stages you want 6 outfits, 3 PJs, 6 pair of socks, 2 pair shoes, a light and heavy jacket, and a few hats and mittens per size (Remember little babies grow at a very exponential rate through years one and two,& go by months).  You will also want a stuffed animal or two, some pacifiers, extra sheets, and at least 5-7 warm blankets with 3-4 light ones.  Look into a decent port a crib (either foldable mesh or collapsible fixed material) a new one can cost as little as $20 new.  It is not advisable to co sleep with infants as there is a high risk of smothering.  The only time you might consider co sleeping is if you are on the run and sharing a sleeping bag, even then much caution must be taken.     

Let’s talk bathing and medication for baby.  Go to your local big box store (Costco/ Sam’s Club) and get the double pack of baby body & hair soap.  This will last you two years if used conservatively.  You might also want to buy extra of this for wound cleaning, trade or charity.  As far as babies go there are some basic must haves for your kit: baby acetaminophen (Tylenol), baby Vic’s vapor rub, nasal saline, Pedialyte, band aids, Neosporin, and Baby Ora-gel for teething.  Children’s Benadryl would also be prudent to have, but check with a doctor on dosages for children under 4 years of age.  When babies are sick, these are the top fall backs, a humidifier would be nice but if the power is down you can use a few tea pots and a towel or bed sheet to make a steam tent.   

Making sure that babies stay hydrated and fed is a must.  Here are some good things to have:  lanolin ointment, a manual breast pump or if there is power a portable pump (I like Madela), in case of latching difficulties a nipple shield, nursing and sleeping bras, feeding and storage bottles, and a firm pillow for nursing.  A note on the shields, these are very handy for women who have odd shape nipples (flat tops or inverted) when babies have a hard time nursing, if you don’t use them you can always trade them.  If there is a problem nursing don’t be afraid to employ the pump and bottle feed off and on, get that sustenance and hydration in the baby.  Long term storage of liquid formula may be difficult and costly, but having even a little on hand can be handy in case something happens and mom can’t nurse (the powdered formula stores longer, but you will need a clean water source).  When babies get bigger you can use a hand grinder to make fresh baby food. 

Diapering can be a difficult topic to broach when it comes to emergencies, do we use cloth or buy bulk disposable.  I say do a bit of both.  During the first week or so while you’re waiting for the umbilical stump to fall off and getting through those first very dark and sticky poops my recommendation is disposable.  This will save you a bit of time while mom is healing up and decrease the risk of infection.  After this time I would go with cloth (disposable diapers might become hard to come by in a long term scenario), but the eventual decision will be up to you.  A note on the cleaning of cloth diapers, boil to rinse and then dry in direct sunlight if you can.  Between the sterilization in the water and the UV rays the bacteria should be killed.  You will also want to stock up on the big box store wipes, if not for baby then they work well for general hygiene needs.  My husband was deployed to Afghanistan for a year while I was pregnant with our son and one of the top 3 things he would ask for was baby wipes.  His unit was often assigned to FOBs (Forward Operating Bases for those who don’t speak Army) that were little more than flattened earth and concertina wire so he used the wipes to bathe. Disposable diapers also make for very absorbent abdominal wound pads so keep a few in your field first aid kit.  I would recommend getting the big box store double pack of diaper cream, at least 2 of them (it lasts forever & it’s good for trading). 

Let’s talk about some things we can do for Mom post partum.  Good things to have for sore mommies are tucks pads (or witch hazel and gauze), sanitary napkins, pain killers (Ibuprofen [Advil] or Acetaminophen [Tylenol] are generally considered safe but check with a doctor first; aspirin should be avoided), Epsom salts, stool softener, disposable ice packs, seat cushions, and a back brace or girdle.  Buy in bulk and you can always trade later.  When it comes to post partum pads the bulkier, cheap variety work best for this purpose (burn after use).  For moms who have had to get sewn up a sitz bath at night, ice packs, and the tucks pads/ witch hazel go a long way for relief.  The girdle will help shore up a new mom while her abdominal muscles repair acting as a back support.  Moms should ideally take a good 4-6 weeks off minimum to heal, but can perform light duty tasks during that time.  Don’t let the mom over do it and hurt herself (Been there, done that, Got the PT bill to prove it).  If you need to have a new mom up and on duty put her at a watch desk for short watches and make sure she takes a nap in between, eats, and nurses or pumps. 

Lastly I wanted to mention a few things about children and getting out of Dodge.  Kids don’t like big sudden changes, so keeping them apprised of any plans would be prudent.  If they know the plan it’s easier on them mentally and they know what’s going to happen.  You may have to leave in a hurry and leave many things behind, but don’t forget their lovie (security object, toy never seen without).  It may be the only thing they have to play with and their only comforting object if you have to leave during an emergency, so don’t forget it.  Have copies of birth certificates, updated family pictures that show you all together as a family, and any other important papers in your go bag (preferably in a waterproof box like Otterbox or Pelican).   If you become separated from your children you may need proof that they really are your kids when you find them again (as seen in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina).  You might consider sending copies of your papers to the family members you will be staying with if you trust them implicitly (if not then a bank safety deposit box near them could work also).  When leaving town one of the better options is to go at night and right away, don’t hesitate and don’t wait.  If possible take those back roads and avoid the highways as these will not only clog up but become targets for looters and banditos.  When driving out have an adult in the back seat with the kids ready to help them bail if it comes to that.  Above all else remember operational security and do what you have to do to protect your family.  Hopefully this knowledge will be helpful and informative for any preparedness savvy parents out there.