Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 38 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize: A.) A gift certificate worth $1,000, courtesy of Spec Ops Brand, 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 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $275 value), and E.) A $250 gift certificate from Sunflower Ammo.

Second Prize: A.) A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol. It is a $439 value courtesy of Next Level Training. B.) A FloJak F-50 hand well pump (a $349 value), courtesy of FloJak.com. C.) 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, D.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials, and E.) two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value) and F.) A Tactical Trauma Bag #3 from JRH Enterprises (a $200 value).

Third Prize: A.) A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21. (This filter system is a $275 value.), B.) Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy. This is a $185 retail value, C.) A Commence Fire! emergency stove with three tinder refill kits. (A $160 value.), and D.) Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security.

Round 38 ends on January 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and articles that relate practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

Off Grid Waste Management and Sanitation, by Brother A.

Recently, due to financial considerations, we decided to end our garbage collection service. It wasn’t a large expense, but our budget is tighter than ever these days and with some planning we realized that it was actually a luxury, not a necessity. Besides, those of us who are preparing for the likely future of a breakdown in society shouldn’t really expect to have convenient curb waste disposal services, now should we? How were you planning on handling that day when it comes? You have 500 trash bags and you’re just going to stack bags of trash in some out-of-the-way corner of the barn for vermin to sort through and spread health hazards? What about sanitation? When your water service cuts off and your toilet won’t flush you can pump or haul water, or maybe you have plans to dig an outhouse. Let me propose some better solutions to you.

Now, I live in a rural area, in the unincorporated area of a county and not within any city limits, so much of what I propose is applicable to my situation here and will not apply to city dwellers. You need land to be sustainable in any real sense. Over years of living a preparedness lifestyle, I have realized that in the long run preparedness blends into sustainability. I have solar and wind power, a wood stove, a biofuel vehicle, a large garden, and now a composting toilet not because I’m an extreme environmentalist, but because the less I depend on the infrastructure of society, the less it matters to me whether it’s there or not. If/when “something bad happens”, I don’t have to do anything special. My fuel supplies stay stocked, my food supplies are rotated constantly as part of “normal life”. If the grid goes down suddenly the extent of my panic will be to turn on the shortwave and scanner to start collecting news. However, in this article I will try to contain myself to discussing the subject at hand, which is waste management.

The first step to dealing with “waste” is mental. You need to adjust your thinking to realize that hardly anything is truly “waste”. Almost everything can be reused or recycled, and then it’s not “waste” any more, it’s useful. Also, on the front end the less packaging and non-recyclable items you bring into your life to begin with the less you’ll have to deal with on the back end. As our family lifestyle became more sustainable over time, I was amazed at the reduction in volume of “trash” that we had. I’ll now cover each disposal method in turn.

First, there is burning. Let’s say you just pulled out a frozen dinner to eat, or a new product from the package. Most likely the package was either paperboard or corrugated cardboard, perhaps wrapped in plastic (we’ll get to the plastic). Let’s start with the obvious: paper and cardboard burn very well and fairly completely if given sufficient oxygen. In our house we have a wood stove, and I use waste paper and cardboard as kindling to light it. Now that we’re in the heating season I can dispose of quite a lot of paper waste this way. Several months before heating season starts I begin stockpiling all the paper, paperboard and corrugated containers, newspapers, and non-glossy sales circulars so we will have sufficient kindling all winter long. A note to stove owners: newer catalytic stoves are picky about what you feed them. Check your owner’s manual for information about burning paper, because you don’t want to poison the stove catalyst. My understanding is that if you stick to non-colored paper such as office paper this should be okay even in catalytic stoves. The rest of the paper and combustible waste I burn in the burn barrel. My wood stove ash gets used to make lye, and then lye soap with, so I try to only burn clean materials without brightly colored inks or glossy paper, as these could contain undesirable chemicals. The remaining depleted ash has less potassium content but is still a useful fertilizer, so I spread it on the lawn and around trees. A side note: I once calculated the fuel value of the paperboard container of a package of macaroni and cheese. It’s easy enough to weigh the empty box with a kitchen scale, and the resulting weight is pure dry carbohydrate biomass, with an energy content of 4 Calories (that is, kilocalories or 4184 J) per gram. I discovered the box had about 200 Calories of energy! If you burn the box, that’s less Calories of food energy you have to consume in winter to stay warm. Think of all the extra heat you’re missing, just lurking in everyday “waste” products….

Now, the old familiar burn barrel has been well known ever since shortly after the introduction of steel 55 gallon drums. It suffers from low combustion temperatures and limited oxygen, leading to dirty and incomplete combustion. I have constructed a “turbo” burn barrel with a few simple modifications. I took an old rusty open-top drum and cut a 4-inch round hole in the side just above the bottom. This is easily accomplished with a power drill and jigsaw with a metal cutting blade. Even this one improvement will go a long way toward making the barrel burn better since air can now flow in the bottom, but this wasn’t all I had in mind. I then attached a length of 4-inch aluminum flexible duct, the kind that’s used on clothes dryers, and a small blower motor. I had a bathroom vent-type blower left over from another project, and it handily fits onto a 4 inch flex duct. Now what you have more closely resembles a blacksmith’s forge than a regular burn barrel. Of course, for true off-grid use you’d need a DC blower instead, but I have about half a dozen different ways to generate AC. For 12 VDC, I’m sure a salvaged automotive ventilation blower could be modified to fit the bill, or perhaps even a computer-style axial fan, some of the larger ones can move quite a bit of air.

Regardless of the air source, you now have a burn barrel that breathes much better and will combust materials much more completely. It’s perfect for disposing of any combustible waste materials including paper and yes, most plastics. If you look at the recycling symbol found on most plastic packaging you will learn what it’s made from. Here’s a quick guide:

1 – PETE (polyethylene terephtalate), combustible
2 – PE-HD (high density polyethylene), combustible
3 – PVC (polyvinyl chloride), non-combustible
4 – PE-LD (low density polyethylene), combustible
5 – PP (polypropylene), combustible
6 – PS (polystyrene), combustible
7 – Other (often polycarbonate or ABS), non-combustible

Remember that plastics are made from oil. Most forms of plastic, under proper high-temperature combustion with adequate oxygen, happily just melt and burn like oil. The problems with plastics are the ones containing chlorine in the formulation somehow. This includes plastics like PVC. If these are burned, hazardous chlorine compounds are formed. If no other means of disposal is available, these plastics will have to be given the second disposal method, burial or landfilling.

I am not technically qualified to offer advice on landfilling, but US Army Field Manual 21-10, “Field Hygiene and Sanitation” does offer some guidelines. Some items will have to be landfilled, such as the ash left over from the burn barrel, and those plastics which are not safely combustible. Currently, I am still able to drive to a nearby town and pay for disposal by the pound, so right now I am not having to landfill anything.

The next disposal method I will cover after burning and burying is composting. Any organic material can and should be composted. Composting is nature’s own recycling mechanism, capable of turning waste back into useful materials and neutralize a wide variety of harmful substances! A properly built compost pile will heat up to sterilizing temperatures and not only kill bacteria and other harmful organisms but also neutralize many harmful chemicals too. All kitchen scraps, yard and garden waste, dead small animals, waste oil and grease, and other organic materials should go in the compost pile. Yes, many compost experts have long advocated the “don’t” list of forbidden materials in the pile, normally including things like meat, fats, and pet and human wastes. At this point let me stop and strongly advocate that you go and read “The Humanure Handbook” by Joseph Jenkins. It’s available free online, or you can buy a printed copy inexpensively from the usual sources. I can’t recommend this book highly enough. In it the author does a thorough job of debunking many of the compost myths. He quotes a long list of sources and research studies to prove his points. In fact, most of the book is about composting in general, not just the title topic. Please do yourself and your family a favor and read this book.

[JWR Adds an Important Caveat Lector: While some of the advice given by Jenkins in his Humanure Handbook is good, I soundly reject his assertion that “humanure” can be used in vegetable gardens in all climates and at all times of the year. Outside of the tropics, in three seasons there is simply too much risk of disease transmission. Unless all of the waste from carnivores and omnivores gets above the viability temperature for bacteria, then it is a biohazard. If you must use “humanure”, then use it only for flower beds and shrubbery. And for that, be sure to use a separate, dedicated set of spades and buckets that have their handles marked with red tape. Never use those tools in your vegetable garden!]

After reading the book, I constructed a three-bin compost system similar to the one shown in the book. Each bin is about 5’x5’x4′. You start constructing a pile by laying down a foot or more of absorbent organic material as a buffer. In my case, I had numerous cubic yards of wood chips left over from other projects, so that’s what I used. Then on top of that you start building your compost pile, adding to it a little at a time as materials become available. The active materials stay covered with a thick blanket of dry high-carbon materials (think hay or straw) on top to retain heat. A long-stem compost thermometer is a useful tool to tell you how your pile is doing, and within days mine had heated up over 120 degrees. Most days it hovers between 120 and 140, and this is even with the arrival of fall weather and cooler temperatures. All known gastrointestinal pathogens die within 24 hours at temperatures of 120 degrees..

This ties in naturally with my next topic, sanitation. As part of my long-term sustainability plans I have a rainwater collection system and a large cistern, but if I lose my utility water supply my quantities of water will be very limited. Even with a modern efficient toilet, flushing water is still a major demand. I had been researching for a long time to find better alternatives when I learned about the humanure handbook and got an education in composting. However, my plans for a “plan B” got accelerated when my old gravity flow septic system started having problems. I won’t describe all the details, but now we are at the point where it barely works and the choices are either to dig up and replace the drain field at huge expense or decommission it. Enter “plan B”, front and center. My old farm house already had a gray water drain connected to the clothes washer, but now I have rearranged the plumbing so the kitchen sink, dishwasher, and shower drain into it as well. Thank goodness for an old pier and beam farmhouse, and a generous crawl space, that makes retrofits like this possible.  For the toilet, I constructed the “lovable loo” according to the plans in the book.  You can also buy it pre-made online if you don’t like woodworking.  It uses 5 gallon buckets as the collection receptacle, but all the composting happens in the large pile in the yard where it can be done efficiently at high temperatures.  It’s amazing, but just adding some dry high-carbon material to the bucket to cover after each use keeps the contents aerobic and completely stops odor, flies, and other problems traditionally associated with portable toilets and outhouses.  Sawdust, leaves, straw, newspaper, finely shredded mulch, all work perfectly well.  It just needs to be relatively dry (to offset the moisture content of what’s going in the toilet) and have a high carbon/nitrogen ratio (to offset the high nitrogen content of what’s going in the toilet).  What else can I say?  It works.  Read the book.

Another aspect of sanitation is feminine hygiene. Instead of stockpiling large amounts of necessary products ahead of time, we found it made more sense to just go sustainable instead. Plans are available on the internet to make your own feminine pads, but for the time involved I think it just makes more sense to buy instead. Many thanks to the folks at Naturally Cozy, we can testify to the quality of their products. That’s one less thing to have to worry about. For actual washing, we have a number of options but normally choose to use the spin-type pressure hand washer from Lehman’s for small amounts of soiled articles like this that you might not want to mix with your regular loads of laundry. This works for future off grid use as well, since it’s hand powered. More or less the same should apply to families with young children in diapers too. It doesn’t make sense to stockpile the large quantities needed, and then to have a waste disposal problem on the other end. The best way to dispose of waste is not to have it in the first place.

For large-scale clothes washing in a grid down situation, we should still be able to use our electric washer (but not dryer) since we have several ways to generate electricity. We have two generators, one truck with a beefy inverter, and a large 120 Volt AC inverter on the solar power system. Any of these should run the washer at least occasionally. We have a significant stock of detergent and a very nice clothes line. For return on dollars invested on renewable energy improvements, you can’t beat the good old fashioned clothes line.

Okay, we have dealt with the combustible trash and plastics, but what about metals and glass? Currently there are recycling centers close by, and some of these materials can even put a little money back in your pocket, but in the future these will need to be dealt with differently. For aluminum, probably the best “disposal” method is melting and casting. I am not currently equipped to do this, although it is one of the next areas of preparedness/sustainability I plan to tackle. A small furnace can easily reach aluminum melting temperatures. In fact, my turbo burn barrel can probably reach aluminum melting temperatures. Hmmm, use trash to dispose of trash? Now there’s an idea…

I have not seen much in the way of glass melting and casting/blowing information, but I know that people do this for a hobby so information has to be available. Reusing existing glass bottles, jars, and containers as much as possible is probably the best interim solution, but what do you do with extras, or broken pieces? Being able to turn them back into useful goods would be much better than landfilling.

After all that has been dealt with, there is still hazardous waste. Broken electronics, batteries, chemicals, and other things we don’t want to mess with. For now it usually possible to turn these in at special hazardous waste collection centers, or at special “collection drives” that our local governments sponsor a few times a year. When this is no longer possible, encapsulation and storage will probably be the only option. I should also note that any very old painted wood could possibly contain lead-based paint, which should not be burned. It probably shouldn’t be landfilled anywhere except in a properly designed landfill either, so if you have some, get rid of it now or you may be stuck with a problem. Computers can be parted out into components and the remaining circuit boards take up much less space. There is nearly a pound of aluminum in an average hard drive, and one or two really useful rare earth magnets.

A disclaimer: we don’t live completely off grid for electricity or water. We have a 600W photovoltaic array and small wind turbine that together run a 900 Ah battery bank and Sun Frost 12 Volt DC refrigerator and SunDanzer 12V freezer. The rest of the house is on utility power. If the utility goes down, the food stays cold even without me having to start the generator. I designed the system for 12 volts instead of 24 so I can recharge the battery bank from a vehicle if necessary, or even jump start a vehicle from the constantly-charged battery bank. Likewise, we use utility water but I can throw two valves and in a matter of minutes run the house plumbing from a 10,000 gallon cistern with rain water. The pumps (two, double redundant) can be run directly from the PV system, and the water goes through 5 micron filtration and a Sterilight UV sterilization system. In other words, the grid is still “Plan A”, but I can implement “Plan B” very rapidly and have tested it.

Living off grid doesn’t have to be onerous. In most cases it’s more work than the convenience of living on grid, but then what do you do when the grid goes down? Besides, the work is mostly good exercise and enjoyable. I like cutting and splitting wood. I love the warm radiant heat of the wood stove. I love the security of having my own power company, my own water utility, and my own gas station. Most people just rent their lifestyle month by month, but I own mine outright. Take away either the monthly income or the infrastructure, and “plan A” ceases to work rather rapidly.

Letter Re: Thefts of Bug Out Bags From Vehicles

Mr. Rawles;
I have had several customers coming into my store, lately, that have had their windows smashed and their bug out bags taken. I encourage all to have something in their vehicle to survive in place or to get them home, but DON’T ADVERTISE IT by leaving it in plain sight in your vehicle, especially if there is a firearm or ammo inside. Put it in your trunk, floorboard with a dark colored cover or vehicle interior color cover over it, or in an area with tinted windows.

Thieves are starting to get a clue that BOBs or G.O.O.D. packs are high value targets.

Sincerely, – Jim L.

JWR Replies: If your vehicle’s window design forces you to leave the contents of the cargo compartment in full public gaze, then camouflage what is there! Put your G.O.O.D. pack or dufflebag inside a cardboard box and prominently mark it to make it sound like something absolutely worthless, such as: “Newspapers – Recycle” or, “Rabbit Bedding Wood Chips”, or “TV Guide 2005-2010” That, in my opinion is better than simply putting an opaque cover over your gear, with the end result of making it look like you’ve tried to conceal something of value. And truly valuable items such as firearms should be well hidden behind interior trim or upholstery, where only the most determined thief will find them.

Letter Re: Learning More Than Just Weak Hand and Shooting

James Wesley:
Regarding the recent letter, “Learning More Than Just Weak Hand and Shooting”: As one who has been on crutches several times due to surgery, had my left arm in a cast three times, a broken ankle, had a concussion, and many sprains throughout my athletic years, I tell people that you don’t realize how much you do without thinking about it, and to think about it every day. Brushing your teeth, getting up and down from a toilet, taking a shower, going up and down stairs, working with tools, caring for your family (children, dogs, spouse) and friends, getting in and out of bed, getting dressed, and on and on and on. I tell people to try not using an arm or a leg for a few days, and go as far as wearing bandages or air casts. Pretend that one eye is injured, and wear an eye patch for a week. Try not to be able to talk (to mimic voice issues), and carry pad and paper and learn to gesture your thoughts — it’s like playing Pictionary and Charades.

I know from experience the amount of inconvenience any injury can cause. I know I would rather have a broken bone than a soft tissue injury 9 times out of 10 because they heal a lot faster. – Lee

Economics and Investing:

B.B. recommended this at the Jim Rogers Blog: We Should Take The Pain Now And Not Wait Until The Market Forces The Pain On Us

$15 Trillion, and counting: US Government Spiraled Deeper into Debt This Fiscal Year. (And that doesn’t include long term pension and interest obligations!)

Yishai and several other readers sent this: Treasury plans for euro failure: The Government is considering plans to restrict the flow of money in and out of Britain to protect the economy in the event of a full-blown euro break-up. Yishai’s noted: “If I were British, I’d be trying to move some money offshore now.”

Items from The Economatrix:

How Goldman Sachs Sees 2012

S&P Drops Second Downgrade Clanger on Goldman Sachs

ECB Blew Away 500 Billion Euros, and the Markets Still Fell

London Trader:  There are Tremendous Silver Shortages

Odds ‘n Sods:

At least once a week, I get another one of those endlessly-forwarded e-mails about the “China buying up Idaho” rumor, with a note attached, to the effect of “Well, Jim, that destroys any hope for the American Redoubt…” That is balderdash! Not only was the “Chinese Invasion” an exaggerated tale, but the scheme was dead before it ever got started. Read this piece from The Idaho Statesman, and then this one. Please don’t let those wild rumors change you plans to move to any of the American Redoubt states.

   o o o

Rick. R. sent this: Health Story of the Year: Salt Vindicated

   o o o

KDD mentioned an interesting series of early Kodachrome images, titled: Dugout House, Pietown, New Mexico, 1940. JWR’s Comment: Obviously a clever and adaptive response to hard economic times,

   o o o

Avalanche Lily pointed me to a brief piece over at Survival Mom that mentions a source for miniature condiments and other products: Minimus is your emergency pack’s best friend. Coincidentally, mini bottles of Tabasco sauce were recently mentioned in SurvivalBlog–primarily as a barter item.) But remember: True preparedness emphasizes convenience packaging for bugout purposes, but make-it-yourself self-sufficiency once at your retreat.

   o o o

Tricia R. forwarded this headline from Chicago: Mentally ill flood ER as states cut services. JWR’s Comment: Just wait until antidepressant and antipsychotic drugs become unavailable, in a large scale disaster.

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“The founders wanted to set a high bar for the government to overcome in order to deprive an individual of life or liberty,” Paul, the libertarian congressman, said Monday in a weekly phone message to supporters. “To lower that bar is to endanger everyone. When the bar is low enough to include political enemies, our descent into totalitarianism is virtually assured. The Patriot Act, as bad as its violations against the Fourth Amendment was, was just one step down the slippery slope. The recently passed National Defense Authorization Act continues that slip into tyranny, and in fact, accelerates it significantly.” – Congressman Ron Paul

Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 38 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize: A.) A gift certificate worth $1,000, courtesy of Spec Ops Brand, 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 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $275 value), and E.) A $250 gift certificate from Sunflower Ammo.

Second Prize: A.) A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol. It is a $439 value courtesy of Next Level Training. B.) A FloJak F-50 hand well pump (a $349 value), courtesy of FloJak.com. C.) 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, D.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials, and E.) two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value) and F.) A Tactical Trauma Bag #3 from JRH Enterprises (a $200 value).

Third Prize: A.) A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21. (This filter system is a $275 value.), B.) Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy. This is a $185 retail value, C.) A Commence Fire! emergency stove with three tinder refill kits. (A $160 value.), and D.) Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security.

Round 38 ends on January 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and articles that relate practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

Horse and Rider, by D.O.

After reading “Survivors: A Novel of the Coming Collapse”, I thought I would share a few experiences with horse ownership. I really enjoyed the book, a real page turner. And I wanted to weigh in on the techniques and experiences outlined in the book concerning horses. Let me first say that what was portrayed in Survivors is indeed real and doable, however the techniques and experiences in the book require a good deal of experience and training.

For the beginning first time horse owner who isn’t sure how tight to cinch a saddle, I would say getting a horse to lie down is a daunting, near impossible task at best. Getting a horse down is difficult because the last thing a horse does before it dies is to lie down, not something they are naturally inclined to do on command. Also, horses are a prey animal and think in those terms, that is, when you can get them to think and not react.
My horse journey started in my mid-teens on my uncle’s horse ranch in northeastern Ohio. He had a slew of them, stallions, brood mares and geldings. His top stallion was a grand national reining champion and was not a horse for the casual or timid rider. He required a firm, experienced hand. My exposure to this level of horsemanship kind of escaped me at the time and looking back I would have made better use of this experience. Fast forward 35 years or so and I regret not taking the opportunity to really learn from the best.

Today, I own three horses, two geldings and a mare. The mare came to us when my wife adopted a wild mustang who was with foal at the time. The foal was born on the farm and on my daughter’s birthday so it is easy to keep track of her age. Two summers ago, we were able to take the mare’s mother to a wild horse sanctuary and set her free as she was unbreakable. By unbreakable, I mean unusually harsh methods of training would have had to be employed to get her to accept a bit and saddle. With her being raised in the wilds of Nevada (Alkali Flat Region) this resulted in her being hopelessly on high alert. We believe in a more humane, natural horsemanship method whereby the horse becomes your partner and a willing participant with will broken but with spirit intact.

Training is a real big issue and should not be skimped on in the beginning. When we realized that our knowledge and experience were woefully inadequate, we sought out info on the internet and found several trainers with programs that you could buy. My two favorites are Clinton Anderson and Chris Cox. (See SurvivalBlog’s DVD page.) Both are outstanding and are past Road to the Horse champions. I have been to many Clinton Anderson events and training clinics and his methods are very adaptable to even a green horn with little or no training or experience. Both of these horsemen are the real deal and have proven methods at an affordable price.
A word of caution on choosing a method and trainer as there are many people in the market place who make lots of big claims. Our experience after having been taken advantage of a couple of times as we learned about trainers is results. If you look into the two horsemen above, you will find they are very stingy with their endorsements. They do give them but it is after the new trainer has been under their direct supervision for several years. The internet is full of wannabe “Horse Whisperers” who will take your money and not produce any lasting or tangible results. Just keep in mind that horse owners and trainers are like firearms owners, everyone has their own opinion and way of doing things and are not afraid to tell you.

Today, seven years later, our mare is a top notch, do anything, bomb proof ride that is eager to please. My wife just completed a nine month saddle series for barrel racing, pole bending and hairpin at our local horse club. While she didn’t place high enough to win a saddle, her 14 ribbons out of 27 possible, speaks to my wife’s and the mare’s ability. She is not a barrel racer per se but chose this nine month event to truly develop her skills and relationship with her horse. The journey to get them there was not always an inexpensive, pleasant or easy one. The lesson here is that if you are considering getting into horse ownership, it comes with many hidden challenges. Depending on your level of experience, an older well trained gelding is probably best. In a survival situation, western is the preferred style of tack and riding, in my humble opinion.

The geldings are quite different from each other and the mare. The paint is about 8 years old, beautiful to look at but a handful, we call him “Dennis the Menace”, he’s always in trouble. The quarter horse is 18 years old and you can leave him in the pasture for months on end then decide to saddle him and off you go, no worries. The quarter horsewas a rescue and we got him to keep the paint company as the mare will beat them both to a pulp if pastured together. Hence, you need multiple pastures if you have mixed genders. Stallions are only for the most experienced owners and have their own special requirements. The average 1,100 pound stallion is not to be trifled with under any circumstances. Wrecks happen in a snap; you “will” not “can” be seriously injured or killed in the blink of an eye. Even the best, well trained gelding can spook without warning resulting in injury for the horse or rider or both.

Veterinary care is the next big issue. Just this week Dennis the Menace, who can be very colicky when the weather changes, had a particularly bad episode of colic. A cold front moving through with 20 degree temperature changes can wreak havoc on a horse’s digestive tract, don’t ask why just be aware it is a real phenomenon. We treated his early symptoms ourselves with some Banamine which usually helps him through. After several hours he showed no signs of improvement and a call was put in to the vet. After examining the bowel by hand (yes, long plastic glove and up the rear, armpit deep), intubation and pumping water and meds down the nose, 2 shots, one to sedate him and the other an anti-spasmodic, he was put in a paddock to watch for the rest of the night. And yes they’re like kids, they never get sick at 9 in the morning, it’s always after dark and in the rain. The cost was $285 which was not that much considering that a trip to the university vet hospital for a surgical remedy can run in the thousands. You have to be prepared to make some difficult choices to treat or to put down. These are real issues and can’t be sugar coated. As much as we love Dennis, he is not worth several thousand dollars in veterinary costs for one episode. The mare probably is at this point but I pray we never have to make that decision. You must be prepared for this eventuality.

Tack, grooming and housing are other serious expenses that must be considered when deciding on horse ownership. Tack can be a huge cost to get into; we recommend used tack until you firm up you discipline choice to keep the cost of entry low. There are many good deals to be had on used tack and Craigslist is an excellent resource. If you choose to take the plunge you should choose which avenue of horsemanship you want to travel. Western, English, Western Pleasure, Reining and Dressage are just a few of the different disciplines you can try. In a survival situation your choice should be adaptable to light draft work like pulling a buggy or cultivator or other small implement. If you intend to have a horse pull anything bigger than a small buck board or one or two row cultivator you will need a big draft horse or mule. My neighbor has a big (19 hands, 1,800 lbs) Percheron mule that can really lean into a plow and work all day. When in a crunch situation every extra mouth had better be in a position to carry its weight. Horses are big vacuum cleaners that suck up large amounts of food and resources, plain and simple.

There are many intangibles involved in horse ownership and choosing the right horse. Each discipline requires its own set of tack, temperament and tools. In my way of thinking, horses are like employees; I would rather hire for attitude and train for skill than hire a talented but high maintenance prima donna. When looking at horses for sale, it is important to look at a lot of them as this will give you an idea of what a good temperament is and how to spot it. After you have narrowed down your choices don’t be afraid to show up unannounced or on short notice to make sure no shenanigans are afoot with drugging and such. I have heard on more than one occasion of people getting home with their new horse only to have major problems after the drugs wore off. All reputable sellers should be willing to spring for a vet check when you are ready to get out the checkbook and buy.

It is worth noting that there are over 100,000 unwanted or under-wanted horses in America alone as I type. The BLM manages the Wild Horse and Burro Adoption program. There are many more horse rescues throughout the USA. I would suggest that anyone seriously interested in ownership with the time, skills and energy can find many opportunities to come up to speed very quickly. If you think you will find yourself in need of a horse in a crunch situation, do it now while things are pressure free. Trying to harness Ole Shiloh to get to the General Store after the flag goes up could be a life threatening proposition if you’re not prepared.

In closing, it must be stated that inexperienced riders and green-broke horses “Green on Green” leads to “Black and Blue”. We have the scars to prove it and want to make sure if you are heading into horse ownership you’re forewarned. Go volunteer at a rescue or find someone who will let you muck stalls in exchange for training and riding time. That said, we have had a wonderful and pleasurable journey with our horses. They can be very troublesome at times and make you scratch your head in worry. They can also give you many wonderful times of enjoyment. There is nothing as satisfying as spending the day at an event or on the trail with friends. One last thing, it is very easy to be all gung ho in the beginning, it is also very easy to get sidetracked with other things and end up with an expensive pasture ornament. Horse ownership is a serious commitment and should not be taken lightly. Happy Trails!

Letter Re: Learning More Than Just Weak Hand and Shooting

Mr. Rawles, 
In many of your posts, and the posts on other sites, I see a recurring theme to practice with weapons using your “off-hand”, but I don’t see this same advice put out for any other activity.

All right, so a bit of background: I’m a pretty hard-wired preparedness guy, I prep, I practice, and I thought I was pretty well covered for just about anything until just recently.
 
I was at work and while transiting from one area to another I slipped and slammed my hand in a large steel latching mechanism on one of the blast doors in our facility. Now, I didn’t have an ice pack available, but the temperature was pretty low, so I just took my glove off, cursed a bit, and went easy on my hand until I got home.
 
Fast-forward to the next day when ice packs, elevation, and compression have done nothing to ease the swelling or pain, and I figured “Maybe I should see a doctor about this.”
 
Turns out, I had broken the second metacarpal in my right hand (the bone in the big part of your hand connected to the index finger). Now here’s the bad news, I’m right hand dominant, and the cast they put you in for that sort of thing immobilizes your index finger, middle finger, and wrist. Plus it tends to get in the way of what little grip you do have with your ring finger, pinky and thumb.  Also, even though the cast is fiberglass, the padding can’t get wet, so you have to try to keep the whole thing dry.
 
Basically it renders your right hand useless. And that’s where the lessons started:
 
At first I thought that other than slowing down my typing, I’d be good to go. I was wrong. You see… turns out pretty much everything is built for right-handed people. Want to start your car? Cool, be ready to lean in to the passenger seat so you can reach the ignition to turn the key. Want to use the pen pocket on your jacket? Too bad, it’s on your left forearm. Want to get something to eat? All right… open up a can. Wait, the can opener takes two hands to run (one to hold it closed, one to turn the crank). Okay, Plan B… use the can opener on your Leatherman…. Huh…it’s set up so that if you try to use it left-handed the body of the tool gets in the way. Fine, just use the darned thing upside down. Well, crud! Now how do you hold the can still? (hint: it involves sitting on the floor with no shoes on.)
 
And the list goes on and on; now I have practiced shooting off-hand, and even reloading and like one-handed… but it had never occurred to me to try to shave left handed, or tie my boots with one hand, or make dinner one handed, or for the love of all that is holy in this life, open a jar one handed. 
 
In this case, there was no real emergency, just a huge inconvenience for me, and a good deal of cheap entertainment for my friends. But had this been a critical situation, I wouldn’t have had the luxury of time to get the learning curve smoothed out, or the ability to just run down to the store when I broke half my glasses trying to wash them.
 
So what did I learn? I learned that I should always plan for the eventualities.  In a bad situation, a mechanical injury to your hands or arms is a distinct likelihood. And even the short term, partial loss of use of a hand is a huge limiting factor; more so if it is the dominant one. Meanwhile taking a little extra time out of your day to do something like shave with the other hand, or open a pop-top soda can one handed, or even just cut an apple with the “wrong” hand will give you valuable insight into your own abilities (or lack there of) and will help to reinforce the skill should you need to use it.
 
And frankly, I’d say it would be time well spent. – Jim S.

Economics and Investing:

Kevin K. forwarded this piece by Jim Willie: CME/COMEX Grant JPM Temporary Waiver for Reporting Positions Exceeding Speculative Limits

Another nail in the coffin: Yen-Yuan Trade Plan to Cut Dollar Dependence of China, Japan. (Thanks to G.G. for the link.)

Callie sent this: MF’s Lagarde warns global economy threatened

Also from Callie: Yuan hits all-time high

Items from The Economatrix:

Worse Than 2008

Mark Faber:  “I Am Convinced The Whole Derivatives Market Will Cease To Exist And Will Go To Zero

Gold The Protector As Democracies Move Towards Totalitarianism

Investors Lose Faith In Stocks As Billions Pour Out Of Funds

Odds ‘n Sods:

Tamara suggested the latest WorldNetDaily piece penned by Patrice Lewis: Peace on Earth, now buy a gun. (OBTW, be sure to also check out her blog, Rural Revolution, which is very strong on family preparedness.)

   o o o

Glenn Greenwald: Three myths about the detention bill.

   o o os

The inevitable rush, now that Iowa’s CCW permits are no longer at the whim of county sheriffs: ‘Unbelievable’ rise in weapons permits. (Thanks to SurvivalBlog’s Editor At Large Michael Z. Williamson for the link.)

   o o o

R.B.S. suggested this: How SOPA Will Destroy The Internet.And some related news: Visualizing SOPA, the internet blacklist bill. Here at SurvivalBlog, we are taking some proactive measures. Please take a minute to bookmark SurvivalBlog’s dotted quad address (http://64.92.111.122), just in case. I further recommend that you do the same for your other favorite web sites. You can find their dotted quad addresses at IP-Lookup.com.

   o o o

Reader T.E. wrote to mention: ” I found a company that sells bundles of 1,000 green polypropylene sandbags, for about $275 — a very good deal.  The company is NYP Corporation.”

Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 38 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize: A.) A gift certificate worth $1,000, courtesy of Spec Ops Brand, 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 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $275 value), and E.) A $250 gift certificate from Sunflower Ammo.

Second Prize: A.) A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol. It is a $439 value courtesy of Next Level Training. B.) A FloJak F-50 hand well pump (a $349 value), courtesy of FloJak.com. C.) 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, D.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials, and E.) two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value) and F.) A Tactical Trauma Bag #3 from JRH Enterprises (a $200 value).

Third Prize: A.) A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21. (This filter system is a $275 value.), B.) Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy. This is a $185 retail value, C.) A Commence Fire! emergency stove with three tinder refill kits. (A $160 value.), and D.) Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security.

Round 38 ends on January 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and articles that relate practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

How to Make Homemade Dog Food, by D.M.D.

How do we feed our pets when there is no dog food at the grocery or pet stores? Do we give up our pets or panic? Neither, we go back in the days before Iams or Purina and do what our grandparents did to feed their dogs. Now we can fed our pets in a balanced and considered way from what is now known about pet nutrition.

So what did people fed their dogs? People fed mostly table scraps or their developed their own recipes. There weren’t the hundreds of dog food varieties as there are now.

After World War II, Gaines and Kennel Ration began the pet food trend with canned horse meat. Mostly as a way of getting rid of surplus horses and using up cans made for the war effort. It wasn’t until the 1960s and 1970s when dog food really come into its own.

The ironic trend is now going back to natural dog food. After the poisoned grain episode from China and the increasing cost of dog food. My dog, Adam, who I adopted came with multiple bags of very expensive sensitive stomach dog food (that he upchucked anyway). I decided I’d try my friend’s homemade dog food recipe she used.

With a degree in Animal Science, I decided to put my education to a practical use. So after several versions of the following recipe, here is the most balanced one. My German Shepherd dogs love it. My pup Adam went from 56 to 104 pounds and his liver functions have improved 100 points. This recipe is simple and versatile and far less expensive than canned or dry food.

I call it the “Third Recipe”, because all the portions are in roughly thirds; Rice, Vegetables and Meat. Once you get into the routine, it is very easy and you’ll know what amounts you are regularly using.

Important point to remember is dogs are omnivores, not carnivores, which mean they eat all sorts of stuff, not just meat. A meat protein diet will make a dog hyper and overly aggressive plus damage their kidneys. Feeding dogs is being sold as an “exact” science now. The basics of good nutrition are covered in this formula and inexpensive to feed.

The “Third Recipe” for Dogs

  • White rice boiled with an optional chicken bullion cube – carbohydrates for energy, easy digestion and bullion cube for favor. You can substitute potatoes occasionally. No pasta, will ruin a dog’s teeth.
  • Vegetables – frozen or canned or fresh – green beans or peas/carrots or mixed vegetables – I prefer frozen over canned – and green beans are best. Easily digested and have fiber.
  • Meat – chicken, turkey, tuna or beef or wild game or eggs
  • Two half meals – morning and evening- and the cup portions depend on the size of your dog(s).  All ingredients are roughly in thirds, but if you have an active dog, use more rice.

Rice
The most inexpensive way is to buy 25 to 50 pounds of rice is from Costco or similar retail outlet. Those little bags in the grocery store are quite pricey. I store rice in “Vittle Vaults” porthole screw top lid hard plastic dog food containers. Buy on these storage units on Amazon.com–the least expensive and free shipping and you use these for all sorts of bulk food storage.

You’ll need to make more rice every third day as it gets watery and becomes a great bacteria medium. You can use a rice cooker, which I don’t like to clean. Or make it from scratch in a stock pot. White rice recipe is usually 2 cups of water for every cup of rice.

If you are not used making rice, it takes a little effort at first.  So for two big German shepherds, I make four cups of rice at a time – eight plus cups of water, bring to a boil with a bullion cube and then add 4 cups of rice. I have on designated big stock pot Brown rice is harder to digest, tastes like cardboard and the point of the white rice is carbs for energy and easy digestion.

Vegetables
Green beans are the best all around vegetable. Green beans are fibrous, full of nutrients and pulls particles through the digestive tract. Mixed vegetables, peas and carrots are fine also. Vegetables, like corn and lima beans, aren’t broken down in the digestive tract and a waste of money. Shop around for the lowest frozen vegetables or seal-a-meal or can your own. Broccoli is fine if you are willing to perish from dog gas attacks.

Meat
You can use a variety of meats in this food. It depends what your dog will tolerate. Be careful not to rotate types of meat until you have a feel for what your dog can tolerate. I always cook the meat. There is too much contamination to take a chance on causing a hemorrhagic intestinal bug from raw meat. When adding to food, cut or pull the meat into smaller portions for better digestion.

Eggs
Eggs are a very cheap and inexpensive protein. I hard boil the eggs and add one or two to the meal. You can fry or scramble if you want to spoil your pooches. Eggs and rice are the ingredients of expensive ID (intestinal diet) dog food from the veterinarian.

Chicken – is great, it is easy to digest and inexpensive. I crock pot or broil a $5 pallet of 10 chicken thighs from Wal-Mart. Chicken thighs have lots of meat and only one bone to remove. I add one chicken thigh per meal serving for my German Shepherds. When traveling I bring cheaper canned chicken breast to open and add. Chicken with bones removed is the perfect meat.

Turkey is inexpensive. Cook a turkey up when they are on sale, then package the meat into portions, freeze and take out as needed.

Tuna – I give this for only one meal a week. It is inexpensive if you buy the store brand and the oil/water is good for their coats. Too much processed ocean fish has mercury. So limit the amount.  Fish oil capsules from what fish? Goldfish? Natural fish is best.

Beef – Beef is hard for dogs to digest. Crock pot up beef stew meat until tender and broken down. So if you insist on feeding beef, crock pot for tenderizing and easier digestion. Hamburger is fine in limited amounts, but can be it is a little greasy and pricey to feed regularly.

Wild Game– Feeding your dog, venison or other game is okay. Just make sure it is thoroughly cooked. You don’t want your pet to get sick from some weird intestinal bacteria or parasite. Some wild game is very rich and less is more with pets. Just make sure your pet can tolerate this meat to avoid diarrhea and other intestinal episodes.

Vitamins
You can supplement your dog’s nutrition with a daily over the pet counter vitamin. A money saving tip is to buy the senior dog vitamins. They contain twice as much vitamin per pill. So, buy the senior dog vitamins, break them in half and you get two vitamins for the price of one.

Tips
As in all things in life, balance is the key. Dogs don’t mind eating the same thing daily. Do not give your dog gravy or lots of fatty food, as this can cause pancreatitis and could kill your pet.

This food can be put it into zip lock bags and frozen. Don’t blend this food into a paste that is bad for the dog’s teeth and causes the food to lose all the nutritional value.

Dry Dog Food
I do have some dry crunchy kibble dog food out. I prefer Purina, mostly because they are an all American ingredient dog food and never had recalls from overseas tainting like Iams or other brands. Purina One chicken and rice is a good all around dry dog food. Old Roy is a suspect dog food made in China. Science Diet is mostly corn based and not as digestible. Friend with kennels call Science Diet the poop making food, since it all gets eliminated. Eukanuba is a very fatty dog food and should only be fed to active bird dogs or dog with similar energy burn levels.

For three days with two meals a day, it costs me about 75 cents a day per dog on average. This is for the rice, green beans and chicken, even less with eggs or more with beef. Once you get into the routine, making your own dog food it is a very healthy and economical solution and better for your pet’s health.