HomePosts Tagged "SHTF" (Page 17)

 

Living below poverty level, has, in a sense, forced me to prepare for anything coming my way. Learning the value of plants has saved me more than once. The one thing I believe all preppers should know is the art of herbal medicine. Mother Nature has always been a tried and true way to heal what ails you. Native Americans did it, the Chinese do it, and every holistic doctor out there can tell you that Mother Earth has provided for her children like any good, nurturing mother. No matter where you’re located, you can always locate plants for cultivation. Plants found in your garden that you’ve probably thrown away as weeds, (I hate that word!) have amazing curative powers. Even if you live in an area that is densely populated, you can still find plants such as Purslane, Dock, Bindweed, Dandelion, Plantain, Chickweed and more. But the number one rule of herbal gardening and gathering is: KNOW YOUR WEED.

1. Know Your Weed – Mother Nature can be tricky when it comes to identifying her bounty. For example, Purple Loose-strife, excellent for treating diarrhea associated with typhoid fever or dysentery, has a copycat called Rose-bay Willow. To rookie Rose rustlers (my word for plant foragers) the two plants are one and the same. This could be potentially dangerous, as each plant contains different properties. The best thing to do if you’re unsure is to bring a field guide with you for quick identification.

2. Pick One Mile From Highways – For obvious reasons, lead levels being one of them. Also, you might want to keep a low profile and stay clear of areas that are out in the open.

There’s so many reasons why you should start learning how to forage for medicinal and edible plants, but the main thing, is to start NOW. You’re going to find that once you start, there’s no turning back. When I first started, foraging became my obsession. Every plant I saw I HAD to know whether it was edible, medicinal or both, and then how to use it. I learned something new every day. But during times of trouble, not only will you always have food and medicine; you also have healing knowledge to barter with. Think about it. With no way to go the pharmacy and pick up a prescription, people will be willing to give you everything you need for that knowledge.

A wild plant field guide could be an invaluable resource if traditional food supplies dried up.

Take those suffering with asthma, for instance. Without the use of inhalers, what will they do? They will come to you because you know of a plant called New England Aster that will ease that elephant sitting on their chest. People will hear through the grape-vine of your amazing healing knowledge and be willing to barter with you for medical help. Much like the olden days when you could trade fur pelts and even a good meal for medical care. But in order to have that knowledge, you must start now.

Let’s do a little recap of the benefits of plant foraging. Besides the ‘now’ factor, knowing where to look and what to look for is extremely important. You don’t want to poison yourself or others. Just remember that most plants have look-alike impostors.

Stay at least a mile away from highways to keep lead levels down and out of the sights of strangers.

Mother Nature’s pharmacy has literally hundreds of plants and herbs people can use for healing. In this section, I’d like to talk about six of them that everyone who is a prepper should know and be able to identify. The first is:

Aloe Vera- I think everyone should have this plant for its miraculous healing properties. Just break open one of its fleshy leaves and use the gel inside for pain relief and a soothing feeling. By extracting the gel of a large leaf into a glass of water you have yourself a mild laxative as well.

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Aloe Vera has miraculous healing properties.

Dandelion- Not only are Dandelions delicious, its leaves full of beta-carotene and Vitamin C, this awesome herb also has bile stimulating properties which in turn enhances the body’s ability to get rid of toxins. This comes in handy if having trouble locating fresh; running water and your body is constantly bombarded with bacteria.

Lemon Balm- I highly suggest growing this aromatic plant. I was delighted with this plant this year which yielded a bounty of fragrant, lemon leaves if when used as a tea, can calm and sooth agitation and irritability. It can be used just before sleeping as it has a calming effect. Lemon Balm is also good for stomach ailments. Not good for pregnant women, though, as it will stimulate the uterus.

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Have a sour stomach? Try Lemon Balm.

New England Aster- This beautiful, aromatic flower grows just about anywhere, but mainly in such places as abandoned lots and fields. It has a variety of amazing uses, especially for those suffering from asthma or COPD (Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease). New England Aster is primarily used as an expectorant, relieving cold induced coughs and expelling phlegm. Eating its fresh flowers produces a relaxing, sleepy feeling.

Blood Flower- Now here’s a handy plant for those of you eating poisonous berries or other plants you’re not sure about. Related to the milkweed, its milky sap can be used as an emetic. (It makes you puke). Not only that, but the sap can also be used to relieve the pain of stinging nettles and bug bites.

Catnip- Besides driving your cat crazy, medicinally, I think it will blow your mind. It relieves cold symptoms much like NyQuil, it can stop bleeding and swelling, and it’s also a fever breaker as it promotes sweating. Part of the mint family, this plant can relieve gastrointestinal problems, menstrual cramping, and migraine headaches.

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The sap of the blood flower can also be used to relieve the pain of stinging nettles and bug bites.

Sage- My last pick for ‘must know’ plants is Sage. Most of you, when you think of Sage, thanksgiving stuffing comes to mind. But when it comes to super healing plants, this is my top pick. Sage is anti-fungal, anti-inflammatory, and anti-oxidant. Before the invention of the refrigerator, sage was used to preserve meat, perfect if you’re hunting for meat. Sage fights colds, aids in digestion, fights diarrhea, reduces inflammation and swelling, dries up phlegm, relieves cramps, can be used as a salve for cuts and bruises, kills bacteria, and it’s even said to bring the color back to graying hair.

I hope by now I’ve convinced you of the importance of knowing your plants in a world that could turn on us in an instant. The time to learn is now, and the benefits are invaluable. Next time you get an urge to pull a weed, why not look it up and be pleasantly surprised by what that weed can be used for.

  Living below poverty level, has, in a sense, forced me to prepare for anything coming my way. Learning the value of plants has saved me more than once. The one

Before I start this article, I want to make it plain that I am not a combat trained individual, at least in a military sense. I am a retired deputy sheriff with 25+ years service, a long time prepper, and a person with an innate distrust of our government and politicians, the latter two with good reason: first, personal experience, and second I am a wide-eyed, open-minded individual that has been lied to, brain washed and tricked repeatedly over the span of my life.

My law enforcement experience has given me training in many areas that are pertinent to this article, as viewed from the “other side.” As a solo resident deputy in a very rural area, I took calls ranging from loose dogs up to and including homicides, frequently in remote areas, and I had to have the tools and equipment to handle all aspects of the call, usually with little assistance. I had to carry with me everything I might need and being a prepper really paid off in many cases. It is my firm belief that the day is coming when we conservative patriotic Americans are going to find ourselves on the receiving end of actions initiated by our government and the associated agencies they have created, DHS, FEMA, TSA, NSA, and all the associated agencies that have recently been armed. These agencies may act independently or with the assistance of the UN or foreign governments and troops, but there should be little doubt as regards their targets! Factor in the new breed of law enforcement officers, those that will gleefully do what they’re told even when they know their actions are unconstitutional, the ones that go to work hoping for a shoot out, and We the People had better be ready, far beyond planning to make it for two or three days or even long-term, if the supplies and other “stuff” we have amassed become “public property.”

As to the theme of this article: I have talked with and worked with many preppers and survivalists over the years, and many, if not most, will “publicly” deny making preparations to do battle with an out of control government, or with UN troops, or whoever. In private, this is not the case. The out of control government scenario is discussed, planned for and prepared for, even expected. Many of those involved in the discussions have prior military experience, combat experience, and others are law enforcement, often with SWAT experience, while many others are free thinking Americans that see the need to be prepared for all eventualities. While the level of training will vary widely, one thing all have in common is an innate distrust of our current government and the feeling that things are going to change, for the worse; people are scared and they realize they will be dependent on themselves and their friends and families to survive. The rise of citizen militias in the 90’s, continuing to this day, and the view of these by our government speaks’ volumes for the fears of Joe America. Add to this the phenomenal success of all manner of prepper and survival books, from basic field craft to guerrilla warfare and improvised explosives and it’s easy to get a feel for what is happening with many people. Fear is a great motivator!

So its’ finally happened…..a big time SHTF event, with little forewarning; it is basically an overnight happening. For whatever reason, the government has declared martial law, the provisions of the NDAA have been implemented, and along with all the executive orders floating around, Americans have become prisoners in their own country; patriotic American citizens have been declared the enemy….you have become a criminal and a target! The internet is down, radio and TV programming is being handled by the DHS, which means you hear only what they want you to. People in need are being told to report to fusion centers, relocation or refugee centers, prisons’ by any other name, the centers which the government swore did not exist, and many people have no choice but to comply. Their existence depends on society in general and the government in particular. Credit cards won’t work, few people have physical money, limited foods, little training and no hope or ideas. Locations have been set up to receive guns and ammunition, excess food stuffs, stores of gas and oil, any and everything you have worked for and stored over the years. And this all happened overnight? Hardly, it’s a plan coming together….But you won’t need your “stuff” in the immediate future, as driving for personal use is severely restricted and the government promises to take care of any needs you or your family might have in the immediate future! The old adage “There are two types of people, those who think the government will take care of them and those who think!” comes to mind. The people running these sites are from the myriad alphabet agencies written into existence by our government, and as it was known that law enforcement and the U.S. military, for the most part, would be unlikely to go against the Constitution and their own people, U.N. troops and other “foreign” troops, who have no such qualms about violating rights, are in evidence and assisting. Roundups of known and suspected ‘dissidents and terrorists” have begun, and house to house searches have started! Now the truth about the UN troops and foreign troops being in America comes out, but our government claims “It is fortuitous that we had these people training in America, because they can now help us in our time of crisis!”

PrepperWatching

As you, your family and your friends and associates have no intention of reporting anywhere, nor any intention of turning in anything, you have to do something. And you are sure, at least sure enough to spur you into action, that you and your politics are known to the government, making you an almost certain target. It is readily apparent that this is not an unexpected, isolated event, but a prepared and choreographed operation. You have got to bug out, have to leave……attempts to contact others in your group are unsuccessful, all circuits are busy, and heavy interference makes radio communication problematic, so you and your wife and possibly your kids, have to go it alone. The patriot grapevine brings news that lethal force has been and is being used to displace and round-up non compliant individuals and several gun battles have erupted, leading to numerous deaths, mostly on the part of government officials that met unexpected resistance from people and groups that refused to comply with “hand it over demands.”

You had the foresight to cache some supplies and hardware at a “central” location, and as this is also the rally point for you and your friends, you head there, taking with you as much as you can carry. Your ATV’s and trailers will not be used: roads, main, secondary or backwoods, will possibly be under surveillance, and the route chosen to get to the rally point is through very rough country; this will be shanks mare all the way. Thank God for good boots!

Garmin GPSMAP

As the rally point/cache location was set up with the one tank of gas rule in mind, it is approximately 25 miles from your home. A short distance with a vehicle, but on foot it is a trek. So what do you take, your Bug Out Bag/72 Hour pack? These are better than nothing, but were never intended for what you are facing. You will be hiking cross-country, possibly through areas patrolled by hostile forces, possibly being pursued by these same forces. With personal safety and preservation in mind, what do you take to insure your safety and the safety of your family during your trek? Unless you plan on running helter skelter through the woods trusting to luck that you will not been seen, you are going to need more than a 72 hour pack…..a “battle pack” will be needed to make the rally point without getting captured or killed!

Start with the Basic Bug Out bag…it is highly unlikely it will do more than let you “camp out” for a few days. It is far better than nothing but may offer false security.

So, dump it and get a bigger pack, one with a frame. Grab your first aid kit, double the contents, and make sure you have at least two blood stoppers and a combat application tourniquet; there should be blood stoppers and a CAT for each person in the group. Add more water and a compact water filter if you have one. Food will be important, but not that important so three or four MRE’s or similar, a bag of snacks and you should be good. While matches and other fire starting equipment should be carried, you WLL NOT be sitting around a campfire! Socks, gloves, a med weight jacket and a rain poncho, cold weather clothing if appropriate and shoe strings. Don’t forget a hat or beanie and face camo! A map of the area you will be crossing through and a compass, and POSSIBLY a GPS. The civilian GPS system might not be working or reliable in a SHTF scenario, so the map and compass are vital. Night vision if you can afford it is a definite plus and a good set of binoculars are invaluable. A thermal blanket or smock is not a bad idea because you won’t be carrying a sleeping bag, but you should have a military type shelter half. There are some very good ones that come in a variety of camo patterns. Don’t forget hand-held radios and spare batteries! A hatchet and a machete or large knife will be a near requirement as your trek progresses.

You have a combat harness, right? Every good prepper has one! A harness, or a vest, complete with a combat knife, field dressing and a compass pouch and a small flashlight, a belt with canteen(s) or a water pack, two pouches for rifle magazines, a pistol, holster and a pouch for spare magazines completes this set up. Many people are dispensing with the harness and are going with a combat vest or plate carrier. These have good points, but they can be heavy and hot and they can be problematic with a pack.

Back to the back pack: You are not going to war, you are not entering into battle, but there is a very real possibility that you will b

BaoFeng UV-5R Dual Band Two Way Radio

e defending yourself and your family from hostiles. Your sole goal is to reach a predetermined location that offers relative safety and comfort. What you have with you will be ALL that is available, at least till you reach your first way point cache…hopefully you have a couple, and hopefully they are spaced to allow you to reach them in a reasonable time. Having several caches that are so far apart as to require a vehicle to reach then is not going to work in this scenario! And don’t space the caches’ at a distance based on hiking to them in good weather, lightly loaded, wife and kids in tow and under other ideal conditions. While you MIGHT make 8-10 miles a day under ideal conditions, conditions are not likely to be ideal. The caches’ should contain items which you might determine to be beneficial, but which you don’t want to or can’t carry. Sleeping bags, extra ammo, food, water and first aid supplies and extra clothing, boots and batteries come to mind. A spare rifle or other firearm is not out-of-place, because your primary weapon can easily be damaged or lost.

In addition to the food, water, and shelter items in your pack, you are going to want more ammunition, as much as you can reasonably carry. Not at the expense of other needed items, but in addition to. In the event you and your family have to defend yourselves, the well can run dry quickly. Have a small cleaning kit and make sure each person has a multi tool.

As I said before, you are not going into battle or starting a war, in fact, your main focus should be on avoiding any type of conflict. If you go against armed and trained forces, chances are you will wind up dead! Even against a second-rate group of “government brown shirts” you might be in trouble! This brings me to the last portion of the pack: Every prepper, especially if they anticipate bugging out, being on the run or being pursued, needs to put together several anti pursuit packages. When you are evading, especially if being pursued, anything you can do to slow the pursuers down will be to your advantage. If you have to stop and sleep and you probably will, you need something to tell you if you are being stalked. Anti intrusion devices can run the gauntlet from simple noisemakers to actual booby traps that can cause injury and death. Noise makers are available commercially, or you can make your own, other “items” can be made, but you should have them and know how to use them! Types and plans for making them are available, and while possession and manufacture might be a violation of various laws, we are talking about a world “wrol” Without Rule of Law…….Capture or arrest will certainly mean detention, more than likely death, so violations of law will probably be a moot point! You need to avoid capture by any means possible. Anti pursuit devices are limited only by a persons’ imagination, and as can be seen in any of the “police actions” America and the Soviet Union have been involved in over the past years: booby traps are a force multiplier! For vehicles, caltrops, welded metal “jacks,” are effective and easily made, and will slow vehicles with tires. Wires stretched across trails and roads are effective to a degree, especially against ATV types of vehicles. For foot pursuers, trip wires. Real or decoy, dead falls, punji stakes, home-made mines, again, imagination is the limiting factor, but you need the knowledge and materials before the bubble pops. Remember, your life and the lives of your family members might depend on your ability to slow pursuers!

Contact! A Tactical Manual for Post Collapse Survival

In the event you are forced to fight, hit and run tactics will be your best option. As your “group” at this stage will be very small, standing and fighting will be suicidal. A “Bounding Over Watch” type of tactical retreat will be required to allow disengagement and movement. This is a very basic type of military maneuver, there are many others, but most people are not trained and proficient in military maneuvers, but, they should have at least a basic knowledge of them. There are many books available that describe military tactics, and while actual hands on is best, learning through reading is second best. Many militia groups DO train in military tactics, and it would definitely be beneficial to get the training if possible. To give the reader an example of what the powers that be think of Joe American getting training like this, several states, California being the one I am most familiar with, makes it a criminal offense for two or more people to get together and train, as shown in the following penal code section from California: Obviously, the politicians are afraid of trained citizens!

11460. (a) Any two or more persons who assemble as a paramilitary organization for the purpose of practicing with weapons shall be punished by imprisonment in a county jail for not more than one year or by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000), or by both that fine and imprisonment.

As used in this subdivision, “paramilitary organization” means an organization which is not an agency of the United States government or of the State of California, or which is not a private school meeting the requirements set forth in Section 48222 of the Education Code, but which engages in instruction or training in guerrilla warfare or sabotage, or which, as an organization, engages in rioting or the violent disruption of, or the violent interference with,
school activities.

(b) (1) Any person who teaches or demonstrates to any other person the use, application, or making of any firearm, explosive, or
destructive device, or technique capable of causing injury or death to persons, knowing or having reason to know or intending that these objects or techniques will be unlawfully employed for use in, or in the furtherance of a civil disorder, or any person who assembles with one or more other persons for the purpose of training with, practicing with, or being instructed in the use of any firearm, explosive, or destructive device, or technique capable of causing injury or death to persons, with the intent to cause or further a civil disorder, shall be punished by imprisonment in the county jail for not more than one year or by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000), or by both that fine and imprisonment. Nothing in this subdivision shall make unlawful any act of any peace officer or a member of the military forces of this state or of the United States, performed in the lawful course of his or her official duties.

(2) As used in this section:
(A) “Civil disorder” means any disturbance involving acts of violence which cause an immediate danger of or results in damage or
injury to the property or person of any other individual.
(B) “Destructive device” has the same meaning as in Section 16460.
(C) “Explosive” has the same meaning as in Section 12000 of the Health and Safety Code.
(D) “Firearm” means any device designed to be used as a weapon, or which may readily be converted to a weapon, from which is expelled a projectile by the force of any explosion or other form of combustion, or the frame or receiver of this weapon.
(E) “Peace officer” means any peace officer or other officer having the powers of arrest of a peace officer, specified in Chapter
4.5 (commencing with Section 830) of Title 3 of Part 2.

To close, start thinking outside the box! Most preppers do, but relatively few go to the lengths I have outlined. The rules are changing, have changed, and an enlightened and informed populace is not something the PTB can tolerate! This explains the need for control or heavy censorship of social media. Almost any site you go to is going far beyond telling people to prep for just natural disasters, temporary grid down events, temporary financial bumps…… Civil war, potential invasions and other “tin hat” theories are now something regularly discussed as more than theories. Not long ago, EMP/CRE events were fantasies among everyone but preppers, then the government admitted the possibility, Koppel wrote a book, and everyone was aghast and on board. We have entered a political era where an out of control executive branch is doing an end run on the constitution, with the assistance and cooperation of a compliant and incompetent justice department and a weak and ineffective congress! It is abundantly clear, or should be, that a line is being drawn, and “We the People” are being dared to cross it. The amount of injustice a government will heap on people is directly proportional to the amount they will allow! We are fast approaching the allowable limits!

Before I start this article, I want to make it plain that I am not a combat trained individual, at least in a military sense. I am a retired deputy

The Prepping Community’s most active discussion revolves around preparing for disasters. Not that disasters or zombies are our only focus. The broader topic of prepping involves a lot of discussion and debate on various subjects. At the end of the day though, it comes down to how prepared you are when that disaster that forms the motivation behind our prepping, strikes. We can talk tactics and strategy all day long. We can debate which firearms are best or even necessary if the grid goes down. We can plan to defend our neighborhoods from looters or scoff at the notion that something like that could be necessary. We could write tomes on a thousand ways to build a fire out of nothing more than belly button lint and a tennis shoe, but when the disaster happens you are going to be playing the hand you are dealt. At that time, you will not be able to run to the store most likely for those last-minute supplies and what you have in your pantry or stored in your basement will be what you have to ride out that disaster.

Whatever skills you have learned will be at your disposal, but those plans for that tactical pistol class you kept putting off will be just that, plans. The best intentions to take that Wilderness First Responder class that you had meant to look into for the spring would be of no value to you. The garden you had been putting off for 10 years never got created and now, that grassy patch in your backyard is still not producing anything that will keep you alive.

Time’s Up! How Prepared Are you?

One of the motivations that drive my prepping efforts is the concern that if something happened today I would only have what I have. Don’t get me wrong, I wouldn’t be that bad off, but I wouldn’t have everything I think would be ideal in my ideal situation. I also know that having a couple of years’ worth of freeze-dried food doesn’t ensure you will live through any disaster, but every little bit helps.

Prepping is a series of steps that you can take toward a set of goals. You can start at a million different places and I know that there are different situations each of us face that make our personal preparation story different from person to person. However, there are some things that I think are universal that we all need in order to live.

There are certainly other things you need to live in an ideal state. For example, the list above doesn’t take hygiene or medical needs into consideration. You certainly won’t find an entertainment option above; that is unless your idea of fun is shooting water bottles, but the list above is what I consider the most important categories for survival.

If disaster happened today, how prepared are you? If you faced TEOTWAWKI this afternoon as you pulled into the driveway, how would you fare? Try this exercise when you get home tonight. Sit down with a piece of paper, take a look at all of your various prepping supplies,  grab a pencil and ask yourself the following questions.

Before you start, here are the ground rules:

Assumptions – First off, when the disaster strikes, you are not able to run out to the store for anything. Some crisis has happened. The power is out and you are unable to leave your immediate area out of safety concerns. You are unable to bug out at the present time and are forced to shelter in place. There is no imminent danger but all services are completely inoperable.

Rain barrels are a simple way to easily collect rainwater. This can be used for gardening or for drinking after purification. Sure beats under the bed.

Water

Q. – How much water do you have stored for each person you are prepping for?

Q. – Do you have a source for water when your stored water runs out? Do you live near a lake, pond or have a stream nearby?

Q. – Do you have a means to purify your water?

How prepared are you when it comes to water?

Now that you have asked yourself the questions above, where do you stand in the water category?

    • The recommended amount of water stored is one gallon per person per day. If your water supply is contaminated like the several instances that happened, specifically Charleston, VA will you have water to drink, cook with and bathe?

It doesn’t get much simpler – just add water.
  • Water is more easily stored in larger containers, but this is a space consideration. 7 gallon water containers that stack are easy to use, carry and allow you to begin your water storage plans.
  • Water Containers should be clean and ideally have not had any other chemicals or liquids in them.
  • Unless you have a NORAD style bunker under your home, I would bet money you don’t have a ridiculous amount of water stored so whatever you have will run out.
  • Bodies of water and even rain barrel systems provide the best redundant source of water, but you will need to figure out how you will carry water to and from. I recommend a heavy duty yard cart to easily carry the weight of even a few dozen gallons.
  • There are many ways to make water safe that are detailed on several posts from Final Prepper. My personal preferred method is gravity filters. For home use that can easily handle several gallons at a time, I have a Big Berkey. If I am on the go, such as bugging out, I think a filter like the Platypus GravityWorks makes getting safe water, nearly effortless. This method could work for home too, but the Big Berkey has a much higher capacity.

Do you need to stock up more or are you OK? If so, for how long? Evaluating this list of questions myself, I admit I am not where I would like to be ideally. I have several hundred gallons of capacity, and plenty of renewable resources, but I would like to increase my in-home storage. I am also looking to increase rain storage capacity with a 250 gallon tank. Something for me personally to work on.

How prepared are you when it comes to food?

Food

Q. – How many calories do you have stored for each person you are prepping for?

Q. – Do you have a source of food once your stored food is gone?

Q. – Do you have capacity to store foods that do not require refrigeration?

How prepared are you with food?

Now that you have asked yourself the questions above, how are you doing in the food department?

By having a stable amount of food stored up prior to any disaster, you will have more time to work on those renewable sources later.
    • Averaging 2000 calories a day for a grown person who isn’t doing intense physical labor is our baseline. I know I eat more than that on any given day, but I certainly don’t need to. Inventorying your food with an eye towards calories takes some work but can open your eyes. For example, one of the easiest ways I think you can quickly and economically stock up on food is to buy 50 Lb. bags of Rice. Each bag is about $20 and has 504 servings. Divide that by the number of people in your family, then the number of times a day you plan on eating rice and you will get an idea of how many meals (at least the rice part) will provide.
    • Freeze Dried foods are sold different ways. In some cases, like with Mountain House and other backpacking friendly meals these are sold to feed one or two people so those are easy to count. MRE’s would be simple too, but if you have bulk freeze-dried foods you will need to do a little more math. I purchase mine with the understanding that I was buying a person’s rations for a set period of time so I already have that amount calculated.
  • What about canning food or keeping it after you don’t have the Sam’s Club? Do you have canning supplies? Do you have years’ worth of lids or reusable canning lids?
  • Do you have a garden that is already producing fresh vegetables, that you actually eat? What about seeds to last a few years? Have you looked at the calories of your seeds and how much that will provide assuming you have zero crop issues?

Once I went over my own inventory, I think we are pretty good in the short-term for food although, even a great garden that is producing gang busters isn’t going to be enough. Additionally, our garden plot right now wouldn’t support us so it would need to be doubled most likely. The good news is that we have the room and capacity to do that if needed and enough food stores to last.

Shelter

Q. – How close do you live to major metropolitan areas?

Q. – Do you have a safe room or other hardened structure?

Q. – Do you have backup power?

Q. – Do you have backup heat?

Q. – Do you have alternate ways of cooking food?

How prepared are you with shelter?

Now that you have asked yourself the questions above how are you in the shelter category? In my assumptions above, I said that you were forced to shelter in place so what could we consider if your home really was your round the clock location?

    • You are forced to shelter in place, but that doesn’t mean others will. If you live close to major cities, you could have to worry about the Golden Horde. How does this factor into your plans?
Being prepared means options – A small camping stove like this and some spare fuel canisters could heat meals or boil water.
  • In the assumptions there is no need to defend your property now, but as much as possible, how will you harden your home to prevent access by bad people?
  • Most backup power solutions revolve around generators and keeping a lot of fuel stored. Do you have both? Do you have a solar option that is robust enough to do more than charge a cell phone, in 8 hours? What will you do when the fuel is gone?
  • For some, cooking outside will be difficult. What if you live in an apartment? I would look into camping stoves or stocking propane for that grill on your deck.
  • Backup heat is best from a wood burning stove, but many of us don’t have that capability. Kerosene heaters and when all else fails, wearing warm layers would be necessary. Do you have plenty of each if that is the case?

Shelter is a mixed bag for me because I do live in a suburban setting like so many of you. Our home can only be made so safe and that is a concern that would require me to escalate actions according to the situation. I won’t be barricading the front door and windows with sandbags just yet, but that would be a worst case option. Cooking wouldn’t be an issue for us because I have several methods and plenty of wood. Heat would be an issue with our existing gas log fireplace. Even if the gas was out, the chimney would need to be cleaned before I could safely burn wood in there again. It does me no good to burn the house down.

The AR-15 is a very popular choice for a Prepper firearm.

Security

Q. – Do you have any experience with firearms and/or specialized training? Air-soft doesn’t count guys.

Q. – How many firearms do you have on the premises? How many rounds of ammo do you have for each caliber?

Q. – Do you have any spare parts for your firearms? What about cleaning supplies for your weapons?

Q. – Do you have force multipliers like communications, night vision, and body armor or surveillance systems?

Q. – How many able-bodied defenders do you have in your prepping group?

How prepared are you with security?

Now that you have asked yourself the questions above how are you in the security category? In my assumptions above, I said that there is no imminent danger but all services are completely inoperable so I can imagine that with that chaos, there would be danger eventually.

    • When bad times happen, bad people do bad things. I know that sounds trite, but it is one of the most easily predictable human behaviors. Chaos and fear will cause irrational behavior and even deadly attacks can be viewed as justified in the eyes of a mother with hungry children. Charity and grace is something we have addressed in other posts, but you will need to be able to defend yourself if you truly expect to make it through TEOTWAWKI. If you do not accept that simple principle, you will be taken advantage of.
Gerber eFECT Military Maintenance Tool
  • You have to be able to use any firearms you have. That means three things to me.
    • You must have the will to use them if needed to defend your life.
    • You must know how to use them properly in high stress situations.
    • You must have ammo to use them at all.
  • There is strength in numbers. No matter who that group is, generally speaking the more people you have to defend yourself, the better able you will be to defend yourself.

Security is one area I think I am pretty well off in one sense but still have a way to go in a lot of other ways. My “group” is largely my family and not a bunch of Navy Seals. We have training and capacity, but it isn’t like I have a bunch of guys who will go screaming off into the woods to attack anyone. Security for now will be focused on defense and I still need to work on offensive capabilities and training.

What’s your score?

Yes, this is a nod to the scoring system that National Geographic’s Doomsday preppers had on it, but that system was problematic to me. Even so, I think it does make sense for each of us to try and figure our how long we could survive. I put my own efforts at well over a year but that is what I think on paper. Reality gets a vote so I could be wrong. We could have some pest infestation in our garden, or while I was taking a siesta, deer could eat all my tomatoes. You never know, but starting to visualize where you are now will help you get to where you want to be.

So the question is, how prepared are you?

The Prepping Community’s most active discussion revolves around preparing for disasters. Not that disasters or zombies are our only focus. The broader topic of prepping involves a lot of discussion

What is “Gunsmithing”? It is the process of repairing or modifying firearms. You can do it on your own firearms without any problem, and you might be able to do it for friends and family, especially if you don’t get paid for it. But if you do it as a “business”, then you will need to be licensed by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE).

There are three aspects necessary to do successful gunsmithing: Knowledge (what to do), Skill (capability to do it) and Tools (what to do it with).

Tools are perhaps the “easiest” aspect to achieve. After all, it is a binary condition. You have the tools you need or you don’t have them. If you need a tool and don’t have it, all you need to do is track it down, and be able to afford to buy it (or rent it or borrow it) or be able to make it.

Tools for Disassembly and Reassembly

Gunsmithing tools are often similar to “regular” tools, but sometimes there is that slight, critical difference. For instance, the “first” type of tool to consider is the lowly screwdriver. No you can’t go down to the big box store and buy their no-name cheap screwdriver set. Or go to the fancy tool store and buy their top-of-the-line screwdriver set. Most “regular” screwdriver sets have a limited number of sizes AND their blade shape is a blunt wedge (taper ground). And this is a recipe for disaster when working on firearms. They have a lot of screws, often of the slotted persuasion, and in a wide number of sizes. Your “standard” tapered screwdriver set probably won’t have a blade of the right thickness or width, and without this degree of fit, the screwdriver will mar up the slot. Even if by some lucky coincidence the screwdriver is the right size, the tapered sides of the blade have a tendency to cam the blade out of the slot, which messes up the top edge of the slot. And firearm screws are often blued so any marks you make tend to really stand out. If you are looking at a gun with buggered up screws, the odds are someone who did not know what they were doing (and had the wrong tools) has been monkeying around inside of it (or failed to get inside).

What you need is a screwdriver set with a wide number of sizes AND parallel sides (called “hollow ground”). Because of the number of sizes, the best choice is usually a set with one or more handles and a large number of bits.

Their beginner’s sets are not cheap, and their top of the line set with 75 standard, 4 Phillips, 17 hex (Allen), 11 Torx®, and 13 specialty bits for sights, scope mounts, grip bushings, Ruger ejectors, and other unique applications, along with 7 assorted handles, runs $320. You can get cheaper hollow ground sets, but they usually won’t have the variety of bits and may be of lower quality than the Brownells sets, but can still be quite adequate. It is a reasonable methodology to start out with a small set, and add additional bits as you need them, although when you find you need a bit, you “should” stop what you are doing until you can get the correct bit. But this is often unacceptable in the real world. If you are gunsmithing professionally, get every bit you can; otherwise, get any new bits you need every time you access a new firearm. If there is a bit which you use “a lot”, having a spare of that bit is wise. Note that if you don’t have the right sized bit, you can grind a bigger one to size.

You may find some Phillips screws, particularly in rifle stocks, and Allen (hex) screws have become fairly common. Thus having Phillips screwdrivers (or bits) and a set of Allen wrenches is recommended. Allen bits are available, but the “L” shaped wrenches tend to be more durable.

Another thing found in abundance in firearms are “pins”. These can be solid or “roll” pins. To get them out and back in, you need the “second” type of tool to consider, a set of punches in various sizes. For solid, flat end pins, you use flat face, constant diameter “pin” punches. For roll pins, roll pin punches with a little bump in the middle of the face are strongly suggested. If you will be doing a lot of roll pins, a set of roll pin “holders” would make things easier; since each holds the pin in position and drives it part way through. Occasionally you will have a pin with a rounded end, and a “cup” face punch is optimal for these. If you have a pin which is stuck or extra tight, a “starting” punch is often suggested, but I don’t trust these. They are tapered, and although they do reduce the chances of bending or breaking a punch, only the face is the correct diameter, and I’m concerned they could deform the pin hole. Pin punches come in various lengths; shorter ones tend to be more durable, but if not long enough to drive the pin all the way out, less useful. A non-marring (brass) pin punch set may be useful, but for me, the deformation they could suffer outweighs the low mar factor they offer. However, a non-marring “drift” punch of brass or nylon (or both) should definitely be included.

Weaver Deluxe Gunsmith Tool Kit – beginner set with basic tools.

By themselves, punches are of limited use. When driving a pin in or out, you need a way to provide some impact force to the punch, and you need something to support what you are driving the pin out of, and a place for the pin to go without running into anything. These aspects are provided by a small hammer or mallet, with brass and sometimes rubber or plastic faces, and a “bench block” with holes you can drive the pins into.

To handle small parts, a selection of hemostats, large tweezers and precision “needle nose” pliers is in order. I also include a pair of parallel jaw pliers, a small Vise-Grip and a strip of thick, raw leather (to protect the part from the Vise-Grips) in my pliers assortment, but these are usually not required for normal disassembly or assembly. Assorted picks and probes can help you get gunk out of a tight space as well as help to manipulate small parts.

These are the “universal” basic disassembly/assembly tools. Specific firearms sometimes have specialized tools which make it easier (or in some cases “possible”) to disassemble or reassemble that firearm or class of firearm. If you will be working on that particular firearm, some of its specialized tools could be considered “basic”.

Tools for Maintenance and Testing

In order to keep a firearm functioning optimally, you need to maintain it. Maintenance usually involves cleaning it after use (or after it is exposed to an adverse environment). A cleaning kit is in order to clean out the bore. This includes some solvent, a caliber specific set of patches (squares of cloth), “mops” (fuzzy cylinders) and (soft) wire brushes, and a rod to push these items through the bore. Cleaning rods can damage the muzzle (and thus accuracy), so some sets have a bore guide included in them; some others use a coated rod or a very soft rod material. Some sets, particularly those intended to be carried with you, use a cable to pull the cleaning elements through the bore instead of a rod used to push. Alternatively, some people prefer to use a “bore snake” these days, claiming these pull-through combinations of mop and brush are quicker and safer (than rods). To clean the rest of the gun, a selection of brushes and cloths is in order.

The bore of a firearm is critical to its performance, so a way to check out its condition is necessary if you are considering acquiring a particular firearm. And for that matter, after you clean the bore, you want to check that you did a good job and that no damage has occurred over time. The reasonably priced way to do this is with a bore light; a lighted bulb which fits, or a drives a fiber optic tube which directs the light, into the bore. Alternatively, you can use a mirror, prism or “light pipe” to direct an external light source into the bore. For the well-heeled, there are even “bore camera” systems. If you see crud in there, you need to do (or redo) bore cleaning to get the crud out so you can see if there is any damage under the crud.

Once you get a firearm clean, you want to lubricate it with the appropriate grease and/or oil, and perhaps give it a wipe down with oil or other protectant to provide some protection against rust to the finish.

If the firearm is operating correctly for you, then it is sort of “self-testing”. If there is a new (to you) firearm for which you want to verify the functioning, or an existing one which it seems might be having problems, testing is in order. For testing feeding function safely, some “dummy rounds” are wise. Polymer dummies are cheap, but I prefer machined aluminum ones, or even better (if you can still find them these days), ones made of actual brass and bullets, but of course, no primer. Avoid ones which are “painted”, as the paint tends to flake off in the firearm. If you reload, you could even make your own; just mark them so you can tell them from active ammo at a glance. For testing the hammer and/or trigger function safely, a brightly colored “snap cap” (or six, for revolvers) would be useful. In order to verify a firearm is correctly headspaced and thus safe to fire, “GO” and “NOGO” gauges for that caliber are useful but costly. A complete set for a caliber, with GO (measures against the minimum factory specification), NOGO (measures against the maximum factory specification) and FIELD (measures against the maximum safe headspace after lots of use) will probably run $90 or more. You can buy the gauges individually, but do NOT mix brands of gauges for a caliber.

This is a good starting set of tools. Tune in next time for a discussion of Knowledge and Skills.

What is “Gunsmithing”? It is the process of repairing or modifying firearms. You can do it on your own firearms without any problem, and you might be able to do

Guns and ammo are undoubtedly at the top of the list when it comes to many preppers’ inventory. Lots of us in the prepper or survivalist scene love our guns and gadgets. But simply buying a gun and putting it in the closet or the nightstand drawer does not guarantee anything. In fact, handguns can be potentially, more dangerous to the owner than the bad guy. In particular, if the owner never practices with them.

We all have busy schedules and life gets in the way sometimes preventing us from getting to the range to train. Or some people’s budgets may not allow them to shoot as often as they would like or need to.

But folks, there is a solution… Wanna know the secret to becoming a better shooter? Actually, there is no secret, but dry fire, can significantly increase a person’s shooting ability.

Practice Practice Practice

What is dry fire? Dry fire is simply practicing everything related to running a firearm, without actually firing a live round. You can practice everything from drawing your pistol from the holster, to reloading, trigger press/squeeze, target transitions, shooting from awkward positions, engaging multiple targets, moving while shooting, from behind barricades, etc, etc. It’s endless what you can do. And one of the best attributes of it, is that it costs nothing! Only as much time as you want to put into it.

To be good at shooting, you need to be consistent. You have to do everything the same every time you do it. How do you improve consistency? Repetitions, depending on how good you want to get, as many reps as you can possibly do, perfectly. I’m sure you all have heard the saying, practice makes perfect? Well, to be analytical, if you are doing something wrong and practicing it 1000’s of times, you are practicing to suck. You have to be sure you are practicing the technique correctly in order to be perfect. Please be aware of that.

For all the beginners and even intermediate shooters, I recommend getting some professional instruction. That way you can be sure you are doing everything correctly. Any of the big shooting schools in the country is money well spent. But also don’t overlook possible local instructors, just do your homework and vet them so you know your not gonna get robbed of your money and getting crap instruction. The NRA is also a good resource.

 

S.T. Action Pro Inert Safety Trainer Cartridge Dummy Ammunition Ammo Shell Rounds with Nickel Case – Pack of 10

 

If you live near a gun club that has monthly USPSA (United States practical shooting association) or IDPA ( International defensive pistol association) matches, seek out the grand master, or master class shooters for possible help working with your skills. Grand master and master class shooters are very highly skilled shooters. A person does not make those levels unless they want to get there. I.e. they put in the time and work to reach those levels. YouTube can be a good source of info as well, but that is only after you have a grasp of the basics after having had professional instruction so you understand what the video is explaining.

Dry fire can be done pretty much anywhere, but there are some safety rules you MUST adhere to. The priority safety rule when it comes to dry fire is to not have ANY ammo in the same room. Double and triple check your weapon that it is empty of any live ammo. I do recommend snap caps or dummy rounds to help replicate the weight of a loaded handgun. But one must be diligent in making sure there is no live ammo in the dry fire area.

 

Practicing using a wall that will stop bullets is also a good idea, like a basement wall or foundational wall as they’re usually some form of concrete or stone. If you don’t have a wall like that to practice with, be aware of what’s behind the wall you are using, just in case. Now, the whole dry firing training, consists of NOT using live ammo, but it’s always better to be safe when it come to firearms.

Safariland 6280 Level II SLS Retention Duty Holster

OK, on to the meat and potatoes! You can print out any variety of targets downloaded from the web. You don’t even need to tape or pin targets to the wall. You can use a light switch, or a mark on the wall. I use post it notes as you can get them in all sizes, they adhere to the wall well and remove without ruining the surface of the wall. I use the smallest size post it note I can find which are 2″x2″. I also like them because I set up different arrays to practice different things. Or you can hang a full size silhouette target. I like the idea of aiming small.

Once you have your target/s up, it’s up to you to decide what to work on. A good place to start is the fundamentals. Learn to establish a good grip on the weapon. Draw quickly and smoothly. Another saying in the training industry you may have heard is, slow is smooth and smooth is fast. WRONG! I vehemently disagree! Smooth may be fast but slow is slow! I don’t care how smooth your draw is, if it’s slower than your adversary, YOU LOSE! It’s good to start slow, to learn the movements and feeling, but ultimately the goal is to start to speed things up. Shooting a round on target at 7 yards from the holster in under a second is very achievable! It just takes practice.

So a suitable basic drill is to establish a good grip on the weapon, smoothly and quickly draw from holster, acquire a good sight picture, that means front and rear sights are equal height, and there is equal light or space on each side of the front sight, in the notch of the rear sight. Take that sight picture and align it on the target. Slowly take up the slack in the trigger, and break the trigger without disturbing the sight picture. Now, re-holster and do it again, and again, and again. Dry fire is a great way to develop the toughest part of shooting, the trigger press. Without the BANG of the round going off, the tendency of beginners to flinch will be absent.

 

 

The idea is to do it until it becomes subconscious. That is ultimately the level you should achieve. To be able to run the gun subconsciously. You shouldn’t have to think about how to operate and shoot your weapon. If something bad happens in real life that warrants you drawing your weapon, you’ve got a lot of other information to process without having to think about how to run your weapon. One piece of gear I recommend getting at some point is a shot timer. It can give you cues when to start your movements, you can set par times to help develop your speed. It is a great way to measure progress. Not to mention you can use it when you live fire as well.

All professional competitive shooters practice dry fire. The average ratio for most pro shooters is for every time they press the trigger on a live round, they press the trigger 5 times in dry fire. Even the special ops guys do dry fire. When they practice new drills, or tactics, it’s done dry first, until they get it right. Then they do it with live fire to practice the real thing. If you carry concealed, practice drawing from your concealed holster. If you have battle nylon, like a battle belt or a holster mounted on a plate carrier, put them on and practice dry firing from them!

 

 

Most of us love the guns, but how many practice with them? By that I mean actually train with them. Going to the gravel pit and blasting off rounds as fast as you can pull the trigger is not training. That’s just making noise and it is not developing any skill. It would be cheaper to just buy firecrackers if all you want to hear is noise. Have structured practices to develop your skill. You can also do the same with rifles. So if you get bored with the pistol, pull out the AR or AK! If someone dry fires for 15-30 minutes a day, 3 days a week, in one month you will see a notable improvement the next time you go to the range.

Guns and ammo are undoubtedly at the top of the list when it comes to many preppers’ inventory. Lots of us in the prepper or survivalist scene love our guns

Packing heat is always a good idea because you never know what this world is going to throw at you next. Revolvers make an excellent choice as a Concealed Carry Weapon, backup or self-defense piece. Here are seven reasons why the wheel gun excels.

Dependability

Revolvers have the earned reputation of being dependable under pressure.

A wheel gun can put up with a lot more abuse than an auto-loader. Drop it in the dirt. Roll it around in the mud. It is still going to function. Semi-autos are a lot more finicky about dirt and dust.

Even a cheap revolver is going to shoot a round that fits correctly in a cylinder chamber. New ammo or reloads, it does not matter. You can mix loads too. Load the first one or two out the barrel with a hot JHP to avoid over-penetration. Then, lower power loads behind that like lead ball to fill the rest of the cylinder.

Auto-loaders definitely express preferences in ammo. I once had a 1911 that digested factory JHP and FMJ just fine. Drop some hand-loaded round ball and it jammed every time.

 

 

Revolvers do not jam. Auto-loaders can. Misfeeds can be caused by a bent lip that you didn’t notice before slapping a new mag home or a weak mag spring. Auto-loaders are also susceptible to “limp wristing”, a problem that a revolver never has.

Fits your hand better

Even a cheap revolver is going to shoot a round that fits correctly in a cylinder chamber. New ammo or reloads, it does not matter.

Revolvers come in all sizes from the diminutive North American Arms .22 and .22 Mag to the behemoth North American Arms BFR in .45-70
Auto-loaders do get small, but not as small as the NAA revolver.
The BFR is not suited for concealed carry, unless you are about 12 feet tall. A lot of people say the NAA revolvers are also not suited for concealed carry. If you must have maximum concealment and minimum size, the NAA offers fit both categories. If the choice is between no gun or an NAA revolver, these pocket powerhouses win every time.

Read More: Top 5 Firearms you need to get your hands on now!

Auto-loaders do not reach the sheer size of the BFR either.
A new generation of auto-loaders with different grips is out. Revolvers have had this for years and the choices are much broader.
A good revolver will also fit in the best hunting backpacks as a backup.

Shooter Friendly

 

Light loads are the perfect way to get used to shooting a revolver and to teach newbies. Shoot light and carry hot.

The revolver is more shooter friendly than an auto-loader. Because the revolver does not require recoil or gas to cycle, you can load revolver rounds very light. If you load auto-loader rounds light, you run the risk of a jam. The slide may not come all the way back. It may come back just far enough to begin the ejection of spent brass, but not complete it. There is another jam.
Light loads are the perfect way to get used to shooting a revolver and to teach newbies. Shoot light and carry hot.

Auto-loaders have a slide that comes back to cycle the weapon. More than one person has been pinched by the slide, usually because of limp wristing.

Easier to repair

A revolver has just a few parts. Most revolver parts can be milled in short order by any good metal shop.

Greater Durability

Revolvers have the least chance of failure of any handgun except single shots and the derringer.

The revolver is older than the auto-loader. What we know from a century of using both firearms is that the revolver lasts longer. Shooting does wear both firearms, but a well-built wheelmen will last longer than all but the most expensive semis.

The move to polymer parts on handguns in the semis is another reason many of these guns will not last as long as a wheelgun. Plastic, call it what it is, won’t hold up the way steel does.

Put another way, revolvers have the least chance of failure of any handgun except single shots and the derringer.

Safer

The revolver does not have a safety by and large. A few, like the Heritage rim-fire, do have a safety, but this is not common. Why no safety? Not needed. To make the revolver fire, the hammer-firing pin has to hit the primer hard enough to effect a detonation.

Double action revolvers do take some strength to pull that trigger to cock the hammer. Single action means you have to manually cock the hammer.

If the hammer is back, you know the gun is ready to fire. In a semi auto, especially with no exposed hammer, you have no idea if the gun is ready to fire.

Easier to Clean

Cleaning a wheelgun means running a patch down the barrel and through the cylinder chambers. Cleaning an auto means field stripping and putting it back together. For experienced shooters, this is not a problem. For someone who is new to guns, it can be daunting.

Law Friendly

Getting a permit to carry a revolver is easier in states that link a carry permit to the type of gun. Even New Jersey is more likely to issue a permit for a wheelgun than an auto. If you live in a state where the permit is keyed to you instead of the gun, a revolver still makes a good choice.

Conceal-ability

Hiding a revolver is easy. Modern holsters hide the profile very well. The holsters also come with features that make the holster snag in your pocket when drawing. You come out with the gun, the leather stays behind.

Revolvers also carry well in a shoulder holster, if that’s your thing.

I carry a Cobra hammerless snub .38 in a Bianchi 152 holster. The pistol is rated for +P ammo. The little holster fits most snubs. This is the second .38 snub I’ve had as a carry piece. The first one was traded to lady who wanted something for her purse and had a rifle I wanted. If I ever trade this one, its replacement will be a .357 snub hammerless or shrouded hammer. That way I can carry .38 Smith & Wesson, .38 Short Colt, .38 Special or .357.

 

 

 

Packing heat is always a good idea because you never know what this world is going to throw at you next. Revolvers make an excellent choice as a Concealed Carry

Livestock keeping requires some research. It seems obvious, but it’s apparently not. It really merits researching in great depth, because there are a lot of investments and there are some issues that regularly crop up, having somehow have escaped a fair number of the people who choose to get livestock. I developed this article because I’m running into some of the same issues, regularly from people who really ought to know better. This is basically a primer on those situations. The information is not hidden, but seems to somehow end up overlooked – repeatedly.

I’m going to hit a few things that I run into (regularly) in quick little bullets. They’re tips for animal safety, the protection of genetic lines (ours and also a buyer’s), and successful breeding. They may be taken at face value, or they’re points for research.

I don’t mean to insult anybody’s intelligence. Some of them just keep repeatedly cropping up. With any luck, old hats will read it as well – if nothing else, maybe for some commiseration. I’d really like them to add the trends they see as well, though. The more information available, the better off all livestock keepers will be.

The Biggies BLUF Style

First off, I’d like to say: Do the research. This article and every other TPJ article about livestock in general and specific species and breeds should only be part. “Back To Basics” is only a primer. There are too many resources, completely free in many cases, for folks to end up as overwhelmed as they sometimes do.

Second: Go buy one of the type you’re going to raise or breed, just one. A spring kid, a rabbit, an aging-out hen, even a calf – although I suggest the smaller animals. Care for it for a season or longer. Then slaughter it. If you can’t, there’s only one animal eating you out of house and home, not a pair or a handful that can continue to multiply until it’s out of control. Even if you hunt, even if you slaughter poultry, make sure you can do it with the next livestock type – a lot of people can’t.

Hobby Farm Animals: A Comprehensive Guide to Raising Chickens, Ducks, Rabbits, Goats, Pigs, Sheep, and Cattle

I mention these two because I’ve volunteered for livestock rescues, I consult on sustainable systems (which include livestock), I’m on several forums, and I have personal relationships with livestock keepers. I have run into livestock costs and numbers getting out of control in numerous ways.

Rescues end up taking on the burdens in a lot of cases – when it’s just too much work or too much effort, too much expense, when it’s too hard to kill and eat an aged-out hen or the fluffy bunnies, when things spiral so long that the whole experiment fails and people lose their homesteads.

So beginners and expanding keepers: Start small – very small.

The Birds & The Bees

Sperm wilts in Summer. This is especially true of rabbits, who already face a lot of physical stress from heat. Litters will be typically smaller and there will regularly be fewer fertile eggs in the hottest periods for all stock. In some cases, you’ll need to plan more frequent and longer exposures to studs to have a pregnancy take.

Hens make eggs. They don’t need males to do it. Males are only needed to make more birds.

Dairy animals need “freshened”. Cattle, sheep, llamas, yaks, camels, and goats…

A.) Must have a baby (and thus be bred) before they make milk.

B.) Only produce that milk for a period of months before it dries up, and they have to have another baby.

Animals lack sexual mores. Livestock has no qualms about inbreeding with parents, siblings, grandparents, and close cousins. Wildlife ends up spread out and thus genetically diverse by numerous mechanisms. They cover more territory than domestic equivalents, and in some cases – like science is proving for wild ducks – they’re rampant adulterers even when forming seasonal or lifetime partners. We take that away from livestock. It can lead to serious genetic faults.

Livestock breeds early. By species, livestock can be breeding by 3-5 months of age. Failure to identify and separate or neuter males leads to inbreeding and overpopulation.

Separation is necessary – breeding I. Livestock will mate again as soon as they’re able. This leads to worn-down females, as well as overpopulation.

By their size, it’s easily possible that these rabbits have all reached sexual maturity – which means half or more of these animals could be gestating another 6-12 rabbits each. If they’re a mother and kits, especially if they’re not handled and examined regularly and a male hid his limas for a while, it’s not just the potential 48 new hoppers. It’s also inbreeding.

Castrating hoofstock creates options. Once altered, especially young, male animals are no longer a threat to the studs, or to our genetic lines and feed/housing budgets. They can stay with sisters and mothers, or go be a stud companion. They can also leave our properties, even if they come from faulted genetic lines, because they’re no longer a threat to others’ bloodlines even if they prove too cute/clever to slaughter and become a pet.

Neuter/Castrate early I. Testes will drop in a matter of days or weeks. The longer we wait, the more the at-home tools to castrate cost and the fewer options we have. By 2 months, some species are already getting too big for some of the less-invasive, non-surgical methods, and by 4 months, anything non-surgical is usually off the table.

Callicrate Smart Bander Kit

Neuter/Castrate early II. The earlier we alter male mammals, the easier it is. One, smaller is easier to wrestle. Two, there’s less time (and pain) involved in either crimping or banding a small mole than there would be for crushing off or wrapping a rubber band around a finger and waiting for it to rot off. Same deal with testes.

Separation is necessary – breeding II. Males are really into the passing down of their genetic material, and they will bloody and kill each other to do so. Wildlife doesn’t fight to the death over sex because the losers have enough room to run away. Livestock doesn’t (usually).

Separation is necessary – breeding III. Stud pigs and rabbits will kill off even their own young, and mothers will attack other pigs or rabbits and the young of a previously peaceful companion. They want the chance to mate again, or to eliminate competition for resources for their own litters or possible threats to their litters (it’s instinct).

Friends are fine. There’s nothing wrong with combining studs or grow-outs from different species while separating them from their original herds, or keeping the cow (and her calf) with the ram. They’ll gain valuable socialization. They can also share in the protection of numbers and combined body heat.

Limit unaltered males. It helps reduce the competition. That can lead to quieter, more peaceful barnyards. Especially with chickens, at high ratios of hens to roosters, you’ll find roosters are less sexually frustrated (and more tired), and thus less like to attack vehicles, other animals, and people.

Breeding affects female health. Pregnancy and lactation take a physical toll on dams, even with proper feed. So does egg production. Even though most livestock mammals can become pregnant again while still nursing the last young, it’s not always the best choice. A break in the cycles for recovery is of huge benefit for both poultry and mammals. Especially with mammals, we can gain years of useful life by providing rest cycles.

Dairy Drive-By’s

Sample goat milk before you buy. Not just any goat milk; that doe’s. If it’s not possible to sample the milk of the doe you’re getting, sample her mother’s and sisters’. While some breeds vary hugely animal-to-animal, most will have some similarity to their nearest relatives, especially if the stud line is the same.

Separation is necessary – Bucks effect milk. Lots effects milk flavor, from breed and feed to how fast we can cool it off, to a tiny little amount of dust.  But bucks really do contribute hugely to that goaty flavor.

Separation is necessary – Milking.  If we want to milk once daily, we can separate overnight after the first milks finish. If we want to milk twice daily and bottle feed numerous times a day, we can separate as soon as the colostrum finishes.

Separation is necessary – Weaning. Livestock will not usually forcibly wean their own young until they are near birthing again or naturally dry off. Even then kids/calves/foals will sometimes try to continue to nurse – even off other dams. This creates undo stress on the dual-nursing mothers, and competition for the newborns losing the highest fat and highest production milks.

Triplets are trouble – the birth. Sheep seem to handle triplets like champs, but goats and especially cattle regularly end up needing help with them – or with the last one, at least. It’s not uncommon for that third to be stillborn, or unable to nurse a first time.

Triplets are trouble – the kids. Between bottle feeding and super-productive dams, there are plenty of survivors. However, one of the triplets is sometimes seriously stunted, and due to competition for colostrum and high-fat milk, is likely to lag behind and be more susceptible to illness for life. Conversely, sometimes one kid is significantly larger than both its siblings and will take a lion’s share, leaving both behind the curve as they split the remains.

Triplets are trouble – the dam. I know people who won’t burden a doe with a third kid, because even if she has enough milk early, it will put enormous strain on her body and she may not be able to maintain that production when they get to the pre-weaning stage and are taking quarts off her. I also know people who milk colostrum and early milk for runts, then bottle feed a different mother’s milk to get enough volume for all three. Time available, the presence of other dams, whether we want to share that much milk for triplets (or cull early) all impact our decisions, as do our future herd needs.

Chickens Are Vicious

(Newsflash: So are geese.)

Roosters are lean & active. The earlier we harvest our male birds, the less tough and “gamey” the meat will be – and the less disruption from excess roosters we’ll deal with over weeks and months.

Roosters are rough lovers. Even within the unaided egg season, hens can use a break from roos. Roosters break and pull feathers as they mate, and their favorites can end up pretty bedraggled. Unfortunately this leads to…

Hens Peck Injuries. Chickens will keep after a flock mate with a visible wound or bare patches of skin, reopening and enlarging injuries, and can end up killing them.

Chicken Saddles & Blue Dot can help. We can cover a love-torn or injured bird in a chicken saddle (or sock sweater for young/small birds) and we can treat with a spray (which leaves blue dots). Ideally, we also use them on uninjured senior animals. If all (or half) of the flock also sports saddles or blue dots, the flock won’t focus its attention on the oddball, and the oddball has a chance to recover without separation.

Separation is necessary – Injuries. Chickens especially may need separated if they have a serious injury. All livestock may need a smaller pen or box to provide recovery, limit activity, or so they aren’t taken by predators while injured.

Chicks need protection. Chicks commonly need heat lamps, special food, and water they can reach. They also slip through smaller cracks, are susceptible to damp grass and cold ground, and fit in more mouth sizes. Whether we incubate and box chicks, or provide them with a broody hen, they need some help.

Chicks can be left in a flock. If a broody hen is of high enough seniority, and a flock is relatively small (under 10-18), hens can raise their nests right there in the existing coop. Otherwise, multiple hens that will sit nests within 4-6 weeks of each other can be removed to an adjacent coop. Being adjacent, having high-ranking, dominant mothers, and being in higher numbers can ease…

Pecking Order – It’s a real thing. It’s when birds use pointy beaks to peck others and establish their dominance. It gets brutal.

Integration of flocks takes time. One, separated and new birds need to be exposed to the flock through a fence or crate for days and weeks, not hours. Two, new and re-introduced birds really need to be of compatible size with flocks, especially big flocks. Otherwise, birds will be injured and-or killed.

Roosters don’t share well. Sometimes birds raised as brothers will share a flock, just like lions sometimes work in pairs. Usually, there’s fighting. And if a stud is kept with hens, and sexually mature baby roo’s are outside that fence, they will …

A.) Fight through the fences.

B.) Crow challenges constantly.

C.) Find new and creative ways to get inside the fence to the hens/rooster.

D.) Regularly become aggressive/more aggressive with other living and inanimate beings. Good times.

Down the Rabbit Hole

Some rabbits get along. Many don’t, especially rabbits accustomed to life in their own cages, and rabbits that aren’t spayed and neutered.

Breeding pairs need introductions. You arrange hutches so that a male can ideally be between two females, so his hutch slides and overlaps two females’, or leave empty spaces he can occupy for at least a couple weeks. That way, they’re accustomed to each other when they’re plunked in together.

Bunnies need buddies. They’re social creatures, just like dogs. Adjoining hutches allows for social interaction, as well as the potential for combined body heat if temperatures dip.

Females go to males. Neutral ground is iffy, but a male entering a female hutch can lead to…

A.) Distraction, with the male sniffing and marking instead of crooning Barry Manilow.

B.) The female taking offense to a male rushing right up to her.

C.) A female taking offense to a male poking through all her private spaces (especially if she’s raised kits in there and has a permanent box).

Bunnies need watched. Even if introductions and mating went well, sometimes you want your own space back, or somebody’s toes get stepped on. Hot weather makes everybody more cranky, too, and rabbits are no exception. Bunnies do their business, then get separated again.

Feeding – Them & Us

Feed is expensive. Whether we’re feeding off forage that takes time to recover, or buying sacks, there’s a cost associated. We need to know how much animals eat, and how many we can afford, before we create situations for breeding.

Meat animals are for eating. Don’t breed animals until you’ve tasted that species’ meat, and don’t breed animals whose meat you don’t like. (Riiiigghhtt???)

Harvest meat by size/age, not season. Big animals might lend themselves to waiting until after frosts, but when we’re feeding ourselves or other livestock off what we raise, we don’t have to wait for some magic season any more. In the case of chickens and rabbits especially, just a month or two delay greatly affects meat quality and flavor.

Eat some early. Doing so can save money on feed and wear on pastures, lower water hauling in late summer, and prevent aggression or breeding within the confines of limited infrastructure and labor. Just because typical butcher weight is 100-350# for pigs doesn’t mean we have to hold a whole litter for 6-9 months, especially the males. Some species lend themselves to waiting at least a while, but we can select 28-day poussin or 3-month pullets, lamb and kid and veal are traditional feasts, and suckling pig is a treat, whether it’s truly <8 weeks or we’re harvesting tender vittles once a month until the last few are freezer-filling beasts.

Nutritional needs change. As animals progress through their life-cycles, the nutrients they need change, as do the amounts of feed they need. Feeding everybody expensive game bird starter or lactating-female levels wastes money.

Feed type matters. Nutrients in bagged feeds & supplements and in pasture/forage/fodder vary, and affect health as well as the time to production or harvest.

Not everybody grazes. Ducks aren’t really grazers at all. In the case of free-range or foraging fowl, the accessible sources for feed changes by age, just as it does for wild birds like quail (quail lifecycle habitat is an excellent research point for creating pasture for poultry).

Llama grazing with sheep.

Worms steal nutrients. Parasites take from our animals. Regular deworming can prevent it. We can also rotate pastures. It limits re-exposure. It also allows pastures to gain height, which impacts hoofstock – worms occupy lower levels with the feces; if the livestock is grazing well above that level, it can break the fecal-oral route and lower belly loads.

Forage-based eaters are different. Free-range, pasture-fed animals that forage significant portions of feed are slower by as much as half-again or twice the time it takes commercial-diet fed animals to reach target weights, and production can be lowered for eggs and dairy as well. They’re also going to be leaner, and meat and eggs will change flavor seasonally.

Predators eat, too. Also, accidents happen and animals roam. Proper housing and fencing – before we bring home livestock – is vitally important. “Proper” varies by species and sometimes breed, and by climate. It’s also affected by rotation plans, keeping style, and the threats within our property and from our surrounding areas, or the natural barriers and safeties we can introduce, to include Livestock Guardian dogs, donkeys and llamas.

Not-So-Short Primer

So that’s the Big List of Bullets that made the cut for sharing. There are others, but I tried to come in under War and Peace, and the others come up more sporadically.

The over-breeding, misconceptions about which livestock needs mates and how often, when we harvest animals, and the inbreeding are biggies. Overpopulation due to males and females in constant exposure, and due to owners’ inability or unwillingness to cull flocks and herds also crops up – constantly, even among manly men who have deployed as grunt infantry and who hunt very similar deer, quail, turkey and duck. I also see a lot of people miss the opportunity to cut feed costs for other livestock or companion animals by using gluts of eggs and milk or meat they don’t want (goats), or who don’t *really* handle livestock and then run into problems moving and vetting them.

Hopefully, there was a nugget in there somewhere for almost everyone – and if not a nugget, some snickers and laughter and the joy of realizing you’re not the only one that ran into a head-scratcher.

Livestock keeping requires some research. It seems obvious, but it’s apparently not. It really merits researching in great depth, because there are a lot of investments and there are some

Imagine a gathering of 10,000 preppers at a convention somewhere in the heart of Las Vegas and at that convention every single prepper had brought their own fully stocked bug out bag. The same bug out bags that each person had diligently packed using checklists gleaned from various prepping blogs, YouTube videos and their own personal experience. I would bet that a high percentage of them, maybe 90% or greater would have one very simple piece of gear in there somewhere along with the fire-steel, water filters, emergency blankets and survival knives. They would all have a survival fishing kit.

The survival tin, which is usually the container for the survival fishing kit is I think one of the most discussed pieces of gear in prepper circles. A quick search on YouTube finds well over 100,000 videos of preppers showing the contents of their tins, opening up the survival tins they receive from internet shopping and discussing the range of life saving implements they have been able to squirrel away in the confines of these small boxes.

I think the survival tin is so popular for a couple of reasons. They are really simple to make, just grab an assortment of items that you think can help you out if you are ever faced with some life or death survival scenarios. All you need, generally speaking are items that many of us already have lying around our homes somewhere. I put the contents of a sample survival kit below.

Most of us can see the utility in having these items in our possession. The survival tin is designed to hold this potentially life-saving gear in a relatively compact form that is easy enough to slip in your pocket everyday as you head out the door. This is a mandatory part of many prepper’s EDC gear and I agree that if you had this in your pocket and were dumped in the middle of nowhere, next to a river at 0 Dark 30, you would be much better off than someone who had nothing. At least you could use the flashlight to see your way to using your flint and tinder to make a fire. Then you could take the survival fishing kit to catch a nice big trout for your sustenance. But for the rest of us who aren’t subjected to the life of a hypothetical Bear Grylls episode and aren’t dropped anywhere, does a survival fishing kit make much sense at all or is it wasting space in our bug out bags, backpacks and pants pockets? Is it giving you a false hope for food that might never materialize?

A survival fishing kit doesn’t have to be complicated or take up too much space.

Does it make sense to have a survival fishing kit in your Bug out Bag?

I am not a big fish eater to be perfectly honest, but I grew up fishing with my friends in the neighborhood where we lived. In our area we had two fairly decent sized lakes within a short walk through the woods. In these lakes, we caught plenty of brim, crappie, bass and even a catfish or two. I completely understand the rationale behind having a way to catch fish as food and if you get lucky, a decent sized fish or even several smaller fish could provide a nice meal which if you are starving, could save your life.

There are dozens of survival fishing kits already assembled.

But fishing isn’t just as simple as throwing a hook into the water. Along with that survival fishing kit, you need the right bait, a good bit of luck and a small amount of skill and patience. Come to think of it, a lot of hunting activities share those traits. I think that many preppers assume that if they only have that handy little survival fishing kit in their bags they will be bringing a feast back to the campsite with ease. This is yet another one of the myths that I think preppers believe about bugging out to the woods.

I think that having the ability to even try your hand at fishing during a survival situation is going to come down to several factors but the top two that come to mind are your location and your availability to fish. Are you bugging out where there are any lakes, ponds or rivers with fish in them? Are you on the move? Can you stop and risk the exposure of fishing? Can you afford to alert others with a fire and the smell of fresh fish cooking? How large is your group?

You might argue that the supplies you need for a good fishing kit are so small and insignificant when it comes to weight that they are good to have anyway. I can buy that, but I think that some people are hanging their hopes on their perceived ability to put food on the blanket and simply having some hooks, weights and fishing line in your survival tin doesn’t guarantee you will catch anything or even find a place to fish in the first place.

What goes into a good survival fishing kit?

The contents of a survival fishing kit are pretty basic and true to the survival tin idea, they don’t need to take up much space. Could you fashion your own hooks with a soda can tab or natural materials and leave the fishing kit at home? Sure but for the size and weight I would rather have the real thing. Fishing line is hard to replicate in nature and it really doesn’t cost much at all to put these supplies together.

A good survival fishing kit should have at a minimum:

  • 50 ft. of sturdy mono-filament fishing line. 20lb test or higher will reduce the chance of it breaking. You can use a stick to wrap your line around similar to how a kite string works.
  • Assorted hooks for the fish in your area
  • Bobbers or you can use any material that will float like a piece of Styrofoam or wood.
  • Sinkers
  • Fishing lures or fake worms, whatever works best for your area. If you don’t know just ask the guy behind the counter at the place you are buying the fish hooks.


If you have fishing supplies at home, this should be easy to pull together or if you would rather buy a pre-built kit they have plenty of survival fishing kits online and most are less than the price of a meal out. Knowledge of basic knots that won’t come undone easily will help you here also. It would really suck to finally catch a nice fish only to have the hook come off the line as you are nearing shore and your dinner swim away into the deep.

So what is my answer to the question I posed at the beginning? I think because they are so compact and could give you the ability to catch fish if the right situation presented itself, a survival fishing kit makes a good addition to your bag. I would only expect to be able to use this in certain situations/locations though and not as a reliable source of food for survival. It’s the same with snares and traps, they can catch game for you but you have to be incredibly lucky to have an animal wander through the woods to your trap in the first place so don’t bet the farm on these two methods unless you are already living remotely well before the collapse. These make good supplies to have in my opinion, but not realistic food gathering options unless you are extremely lucky in a bug out scenario. Once the dust has settled and you are all living like nomads, then a good fishing kit would be a great idea.

What do you think?

Imagine a gathering of 10,000 preppers at a convention somewhere in the heart of Las Vegas and at that convention every single prepper had brought their own fully stocked bug

Many of us who are new to prepping become wrapped up in the things we don’t have. We scour the internet looking for prepper checklists and there are millions out there. We look for ideas on the best handguns to purchase or the best firearms to have. We look at bug out vehicles and survival bunkers and hidden retreats in the woods. It can be overwhelming.

I know a lot of preppers including me in the beginning focused on the things we felt we needed to get at the beginning. The sheer volume of ‘things’ that make up all these lists can seem insurmountable and you might even be wondering where to start.

How about starting in your own home first?

There are a lot of great household survival supplies that you as a prepper already have. I am not saying that you don’t need to look at other options for survival, but don’t overlook the obvious either. A true prepper isn’t defined necessarily by what they have, but more how they are prepared to deal with crisis and looking at the items you have on hand is one way to adjust your perception.

  1. Bleach – Bleach is great for a couple of things. First you can use it to disinfect surfaces because bleach will kill almost anything. Bleach could be used to sanitize your home should there be some infectious disease outbreak and it can also be used to disinfect water which could come in handy if for some reason the tap stops working and you have to get your water from alternate sources. For instance, if you have a lake or rain barrels for water collection you will want to disinfect that water before you drink it. Boiling is a better alternative, but bleach is great in a pinch. Bleach does have a shelf life though that I discuss in another post.
  2. Towels – Do you have old towels lying in a closet somewhere? We have a ton hidden in a box that we use for all types of odd jobs. When the car needs washing we break out the old towels. When the survival dog is wet from the rain, out come the towels. These old towels and rags have a use in a survival situation too. They can be stitched together to make blankets, they can be shoved in cracks to keep drafts out; they can be ripped up to make diapers or bandages or fire starter. You can wrap them around hot pot handles to save your hands too.
  3. Dental Floss – Dental floss makes great fishing line or emergency rope although you would need a lot of it to make rope and that is assuming you don’t have that wimpy wax tape they are selling now. Floss can be used to suture a wound, as your noose in a small game snare or as fishing line. I like to use it to keep my teeth clean and I have some stocked for that purpose and I’ll use the inner cords from my paracord for the other uses.
  4. Feminine hygiene products – What? Well you might be thinking these are necessary for one thing but think outside of the box. These products are great for stopping blood so in an emergency situation, they can save someone from bleeding to death. Tampons can be used to plug bullet wounds and maxi-pads make great pressure bandages. What about those make up remover pads? They make great tinder for starting fires. You can actually soak them in paraffin wax and they will make starting fires a breeze so they are a good addition to your bug out bag. Check out this video for instructions.
  5. Duct Tape – If you don’t have at least one roll of duct tape in your home right now, I am pretty sure you are violating a natural law of some type. Duct tape is incredibly useful from making repairs on clothing or survival gear, patching holes, protecting your feet from blisters and generally being awesome. All duct tape isn’t made equal though and I recommend something like Gorilla tape which is much stronger than traditional duct tape. For a bug out bag tip I don’t carry a whole roll. I take a plastic card like a hotel key or old credit card and wrap about 20 feet of duct tape around the card. This way I have plenty of duct tape if I need it but do not have all the weight or space a whole roll takes up. You can even use it to make a sling!
  6. Garden hose has more uses even if it has a hole.

    Garden Hose – Garden hose can be used to do what it normally does and that is transport water from one location to another. You can also use this as a siphon to get gas out of vehicles or storage tanks. You can also cut the hose and use it to protect your hands when you are dealing with wire. Just cut some of the hose off, slice it down one side and slide the wire in. You can use the garden hose to set up a makeshift shower with a bucket of water hung in a tree and gravity. Let a large bucket of water sit in the sun for a few hours until it gets warm. Set the hose in the bucket and get the water flowing much as you would in siphoning gas and you have a way to hose off with warm water.

  7. Tools and Lumber – Hand tools will most likely be needed as I don’t want to use my gas to recharge electric tools. A hammer, some nails and heavy duty plywood can be used to seal openings and make your home more secure from intruders. Nailing windows shut can slow access and repairs to all manner of items is easier with tools. You can also use box cutters and even lawn mower blades as defensive weapons.
  8. Cooking Oil – So what do you do with oil when you are all out of fish sticks and French fries? Make an oil lantern with it. That’s right, oil burns so if you have a power blackout and you are fresh out of candles, you can use oil and a glass jar or small empty can to create a source of light in your home. Make sure you are careful though because any open flame can cause you more problems than it solves. This video from the Shepherd School demonstrates how to make a survival oil lamp.
  9. Kitchen Knives – Every kitchen in America must have that block of knives sitting on the counter that we got as a housewarming gift. Just because you don’t have an expensive EDC knife on you doesn’t mean you have to forgo the advantages that knives offer. A good kitchen knife will cut just as well as most of the tactical knife blades out there and in a pinch would be better than nothing. If you want to carry a knife you can make a sheath for it out of plastic or cardboard and duct tape. Wrap a long piece of paracord around the handle to make the grip better and you have your caveman survival knife.
  10. Survival Oil Lamp

    Tea Bags – Tea Bags are not only good for a beverage (as long as you have sugar or honey IMHO) but they are also a great homeopathic addition to your medical kit. Tea leaves contain tannins which are a natural anti-inflammatory. Some people will use wet tea bags to reduce bags under their eyes and you can use this for lots of other uses like bee stings, hemorrhoids, boils (not in that order obviously).

  11. Toilet Paper – If there is one prepper item that I have seen people obsess over more than anything it is toilet paper. What will you do when the roll is all gone? I am thinking there are far bigger problems in the world if you can’t buy toilet paper anymore, but let’s say you have an abundance of the fluffy white stuff and are looking for other uses. You can twist toilet paper into a wick for a toilet paper wick heater, or your oil lamp or use it to start fires, apply medicine or write notes on it.
  12. Canned Food – Once you are done with the contents of your canned food you can use them as containers. You can build that oil lamp I mentioned above. You can also use them to cook with over a fire and when they are all done, you can string empty cans together to make a hobo alarm system. Don’t worry if the disaster left you a ton of cans but no way to open them, because you can easily open a can without a can opener.
  13. Potato Chips – Believe it or not you can use potato chips to start a fire. That is because they have so much fat and oil in them. I will add that this would be a really silly way to start a fire because you are using food to make a fire when that should be unnecessary in all but the most extreme circumstances. Maybe you are trapped in a Lay’s warehouse or something and need a fire to keep warm. I added this just for kicks but you should know how to start a fire using tinder and not food. It is possible though.
  14. Fire Extinguisher – Not only can this be used to put out fires, you can also use this as a defensive weapon. Granted, I don’t ever want to be that close to the bad guy; I’d prefer to be shooting distance away, but in a pinch you can use a fire extinguisher to blind someone. Spray them hard in the face and while they are blinded, crack them over the head with the fire extinguisher.
  15. Garbage Bags – I don’t know how many uses garbage bags have but they are really just plastic sheeting that has been folded and welded together. We look at these as our go-to option for taking out the trash but they can also double as rain gear. Just cut a hole for the head and one for each arm and you are all set. You can use them as a water barrier if you have to sleep on the ground. You can also use them to keep the rain off your head by cutting them down the sides to make the bag footprint larger. These can also be used to black out your windows if something happens and you don’t want your neighbors looking inside at your oil lamp. Garbage bags and duct tape go a long way.

What items do you have in your house that could have other uses?

Many of us who are new to prepping become wrapped up in the things we don’t have. We scour the internet looking for prepper checklists and there are millions out

Life is often about measuring ourselves against a standard. The standard changes with the situation but there is always some metaphorical yardstick we are trying to use to gauge our progress for our efforts. Consciously or maybe subconsciously we keep looking back to that yardstick, checking to see how we stand. In some cases it is easy to see how you are doing. If you want to diet and lose weight, you have the ability to look at yourself in the mirror, maybe your clothes fit more loosely, and then obviously there is that dreaded bathroom scale. If you never get on the scale, you might think you are doing better than you actually are on your diet. The problem comes when you do step on the scales and find that you are much further away from your goals than you thought.

With Prepping, I think we should also do a similar exercise at least once a year where we pause for a moment and take stock of where we are and how much further we need to go. With a clear understanding of where you are at currently in contrast with your prepping goals, it is easier to identify any problems before they are too late to fix. You don’t want to get invited to a pool party at the end of the world and realize you are still 15 pounds overweight and your bathing suit has a big moth-eaten hole in the butt.

I wrote an article some time ago titled “How Will I Know When the SHTF” where I brought up this concept of the Arc of Preparedness. For me, the journey most of us are on towards being more prepared doesn’t have a final destination, but I think there is a less prepared and a more prepared side with a healthy middle in between. Ideally, we would be as close to the more prepared side as possible, but without measuring your progress on that continuum occasional, how would you really know where you stand? The last thing we want to happen is some SHTF event and you realize with horror that some vital aspect of preparation you thought you had covered, is not going to be able to save you or worse missing completely.

What is the Arc of Preparedness?

Like anything else we measure on an arc I will start with least prepared and end with what I think is the maximum level of preparedness we need to realistically worry about achieving. Obviously, nobody is expected to have capabilities akin to a Global seed vault like they have in Norway, but for the average family I think something a good bit less than that is a reasonable level of preparedness. Knowing again that I consider prepping a journey with no destination. You can be very squared away, but I don’t believe anyone will be able to prepare for everything under the sun for the rest of their lives.

Minimum Requirements to be Prepared

I think the minimum level for being remotely “prepared” would be one week of supplies to feed, clothe, shelter and protect you and whoever is in your care. This should assume that all utilities are off, no emergency services are working and you have to rely on only what you have at your present location. Could you live for a week if the grid went down? What if you had to leave your home? If you aren’t even to this point yet, you might want to read our How to start Prepping article.

Just as a point of clarification, I am not talking about extremes here which some commenters like to throw out as an argument. If a nuclear bomb goes off in your neighborhood, I don’t expect you to be able to live for a week. I am not talking about the military or someone else dropping a bomb on your house or an F5 tornado barging through the front door. The example I will use is a global disruption in power. This in itself doesn’t kill everyone, at least not at first, but for all intents and purposes, it is the end of our world as we know it.

It is important to routinely measure your progress towards prepping goals.

Low-Medium Preparedness

Low-Medium preparedness using the same scenario above is the ability to take care of your family for one month. This means you have at least a month of food and water stored and can survive without power to heat or cool your home. Stocking away an extra month worth of food and water for your family is nothing to sneeze at and would keep you safe for 99% of all disasters.

Medium  Preparedness

Medium level of preparedness would be 3 months. All of the supplies above to keep your family alive for this duration. Of course with a longer duration of TEOTWAWKI, we have to assume mass civil unrest and possible violence in your town or neighborhood. At this point I don’t believe you would be safe on your own and hopefully have banded together with like-minded individuals, perhaps your neighbors for shared safety.

Medium-High Preparedness

Surviving in a grid down world for more than a few months will require skills most of us no longer have.

Medium High in my opinion is the ability to take care of your family for 6-9 months, assuming you haven’t been forced from your home. This level means you have acquired or identified a pretty large amount of prepping supplies. After this amount of time, the country may be very different. Martial law may have been declared and confiscations of supplies, or forced relocations or forced labor may have taken place in some areas.
Preparedness

I think anything over one year could constitute a high level of preparedness. This would allow you to feed your family while you work on setting up a sustainable food alternative. Assumes you have some backup power for the duration.

Maximum Preparedness

More than one year or the ability to care for larger groups of people. There are some who have many years of stored food, water, underground bunkers and all of the necessary things you would need to weather the apocalypse in style. I can’t say I wouldn’t do this too, if I won Powerball, but until that happens, this side of the arc is probably unobtainable for most of us. This could also include people completely self-reliant with food, gardens, power and a warehouse of supplies, although that is no small feat either and like Powerball is not possible for most preppers.

How to measure where you are on the Arc of Preparedness

Most of us, going back to that earlier analogy have a feel for how we are doing. We know if we are losing weight or in this context, how prepared we are. I think it is good to measure yourself though because you might be surprised. Do you have a ton of freeze-dried food stored in the shed? When is the last time you checked that out? Is it still good? What about your water supply? Have you measured how much you have? How is your garden doing and more importantly, how much food are you able to put up each year from the harvest? Have you considered that amount if you are eating solely on what is produced? Will that be enough?

Training is a component I didn’t even cover because that is a little harder to measure. You can take a first aid course, but that doesn’t mean you won’t crack under pressure or the individual you are treating will be worse than your skills can handle. Patients die every day even in the care of doctors with all the modern conveniences you have. What about self-defense? Do you have weapons? Are you training with them? How much ammo do you have?

Measuring where you are on the Arc of Preparedness is highly subjective I know, but the practice of taking stock each year might help you avoid disaster down the road. Knowing what you have will help you focus on what is needed and at the same time, reassure you of the bases you do have covered.

So, where are you on your own personal Arc of Preparedness?

Life is often about measuring ourselves against a standard. The standard changes with the situation but there is always some metaphorical yardstick we are trying to use to gauge our progress for

Whether you want to make money from your yard, save money on groceries, enjoy foods you can’t easily buy, or simply get more out of the experience of gardening, growing your own food is a great choice, and it’s easier than you might think. As long as you have a spade or fork, a rake and a hoe, and a sturdy trowel, you can make a go of it – additional tools help but aren’t essential. These handy tips will help you to get started.

Caring for the soil

All sustainable gardening begins with taking care of the soil because plants need nutrients in the growing medium almost as much as water and sunlight. Investing in fertilizer will let you enrich the soil easily but it can be expensive, so if you want to save money you can create your own compost from garden waste and leftover food scraps. If you know someone who keeps cattle or horses, there’s nothing like well-rotted dung for nourishing your plants. You can also bind nitrogen into the soil by growing peas or beans, or if you have a fish pond – or even an aquarium – you can use the nitrate-rich wastewater from that for irrigation.

Choosing the right crops

The right crops for your garden will depend on how acidic or alkaline the soil is, how much rainfall you get at different times of year, and what you actually want to eat. Don’t grow food in quantities that overwhelm you, and bear in mind that having a lot of variety in your yard reduces the risk of losing everything to pests. Choose crops that fit around one another over the course of the year, so you can be ready to plant one as soon as you harvest another. Keep moving your crops around within the yard because they will take up different nutrients from the soil, so this will help to avoid exhausting it.

Extending your growing space

Composting is a simple way to enrich your garden soil and reduce trash.

If you have limited room for growing crops in your yard, ask yourself if you’re making the most of all your options. If there are paved areas you don’t want to dig up, you can still grow things in pots on top of them. Running trellises along your walls or fences will enable you to grow things vertically. You can also bring plants indoors – south facing windows act like greenhouses and are great places to grow tomatoes or bell peppers.

Extending the season

Setting up a proper greenhouse with some heating in winter will allow you to grow food all year round. Simpler devices like cold frames can also make a big difference; you can get plants started earlier in the year. Not every crop takes a full season to grow, so with good planning you can fit in multiple harvests. Potatoes, for instance, can produce three crops a year, and you can harvest radishes monthly.

There are thousands of DIY Greenhouse plans on the internet.

Preserving your post-harvest crops

Experts predict that the world is heading for a food shortage in the years ahead so post harvest food preservation is now a vital area of scientific research. Population growth, increasing demand from emerging economies and the adverse effects of global warming will be the main causes of the problem. This might be hard to believe now with food from all over the world currently displayed for sale in supermarkets, however, the growth in crop production won’t continue forever, and waste must be reduced.

Scientists all over the world are addressing the problems of food supply sustainability with some urgency, and agriculture executives such as Jai Shroff, who is CEO of UPL Ltd, have worked hard to provide more support for small-scale farmers and gardeners. Shroff’s initiatives have seen the development of practical preservation solutions for those with limited harvesting options. The company has also developed affordable fertilizer products to fit with a sustainable approach and they are a more practical choice for growers who don’t have sufficient land to let areas lie fallow for extended periods. Shroff’s LinkedIn page states: “By providing the agriculture sector with quality seeds, plant nutrition, and post-harvest preservation products, he aims to strengthen food security in over 120 countries.”

An effectively planned kitchen garden can work well in even a small area and should produce an abundance of fruit, salad crops and vegetables.

Food security is already a worry for many of those countries that are striving to meet today’s demands, and the development of new preservation methods that will play an important role in the future is becoming essential. Until those new methods become available the conventional methods of preservation will continue to be used. Storing fruit and root vegetables in temperature-controlled conditions or freezing as soon as possible after cropping are still the favored options to prolong the life of foods and reduce waste.

Keeping a kitchen garden

An effectively planned kitchen garden can work well in even a small area and should produce an abundance of fruit, salad crops and vegetables. If you’re a keen cook you’ll need herbs as well as fruits and vegetables. Herbs can be grown in all sorts of little niches where other plants won’t fit, such as hanging baskets or well-secured mini-beds running along the tops of your walls. This will help you to use up every bit of space and will give you many more flavor options when it comes to making use of the things you grow. Just bear in mind that some – especially mint – grow like weeds, so you’ll need to keep a close eye on them (best in containers). Choosing flowering herbs is a great way to give an extra boost to everybody’s favorite garden helpers, bees.

Growing your own food requires some manual work. You’ll need to weed your yard at least weekly, turn over the soil after harvesting and pay careful attention to draining and irrigation. When you sit down to enjoy a hearty meal of home-grown food, however, that work definitely feels worthwhile.

Whether you want to make money from your yard, save money on groceries, enjoy foods you can’t easily buy, or simply get more out of the experience of gardening, growing

As preppers we strive to acquire skills, knowledge and yes tools that can assist us should we ever be faced with dire circumstances. The actual disaster that you might be facing and you own situation at the present time would necessarily determine what would be required of you to survive. For instance there might be a wildfire burning in the next county over with winds driving toward your house. With some time you could pack the family in the wagon and head out onto the highway to find a hotel or stay with friends a safe distance away. This is a real survival situation for you if the flames were approaching and by the act of bugging out you were responsible for saving your family. Had the flames kept going and you didn’t leave they all might have perished with you if the fire reached your front door.

But for some of us we don’t look at that example as a survival scenario. You had a car and the banks were working as well as your cell phone. You had a place to go and have plenty of clean, dry clothes in your bags packed safely in the mini-van that you just refilled because the pumps are still working fine. You are still able to buy food at a restaurant and aside from the fire, everyone is safe.

A survival situation doesn’t have to look like a reality TV show. I think far too many people imagine survival as being dropped onto a deserted island with nothing but a knife, water bottle (5 camera men) and your wits to keep you alive. Do these things happen to some people? Sure, but not usually unless you purposely head out into nature with the express intent of getting far away. I know that you can get into danger by simply hiking local nature trails over the weekend but how many of us living in the city or suburbs (outside of some real crisis) have to look for shelter, food, find our way to civilization or make a fire?

When I talk about survival tools I am not coming at this from the standpoint of surviving in the jungles of Central America but these emergency survival tools could help there too. Survival to me is staying alive regardless of the location and these five emergency survival tools will help you maintain room temperature.

Can you cut it?

I have been asked this before but I do think the single most important survival tool besides a clear calm head is a knife. Knives have been around forever because they are so incredibly useful. You might think that you wouldn’t need a knife unless you were whittling a stick into a spear or slicing the skin off some animal you trapped in a snare, but you would be wrong. Knives offer so many uses that their importance can’t be overstated.

OK, so you believe you need a knife, but what kind of survival knife? How would you carry it? How much should you spend on a good survival knife? These are all great questions, but each individual needs to answer them for yourself. I will give you my two cents though. There are really two types of knifes for me. There is my big knife for cutting big things and taking a beating and then I have a smaller knife for cutting smaller things. It is not as sturdy.

kershawleek

Kershaw Leek – Excellent EDC knife

Why have two types? It comes down to convenience really. For my EDC (Every Day Carry) knife that I have on my person at all times away from home and usually in my home I have a small folding knife. Now it isn’t so small that I can’t cut anything with it, but it isn’t too large that I can’t stick it in my pocket. I have this because the closest thing I am going to be getting to lost in the wilderness is a park. My small folding knife will still cut almost anything I would need it to and it’s compact size makes it easy for me to carry every day to work.

If I am going into the woods as I hope to do here in the next few weeks with my survival dog on sabbatical, I will leave the folding knife at home and carry my larger Gerber LMF II. This knife is a fixed blade that is far sturdier than my folder and can be used to chop down small trees if I need to. Both of them have a purpose and I chose my knife based upon where I will be, but I always have one on me. You should too.

Looking for love in all the wrong places?

Have you ever been lost? If you are taking a walk in the woods you should carry a compass and a map. I have and love my GPS, but if that goes out I still have my map and a compass. With a compass you don’t have to worry about EMP rendering your device out of commission. Actually, where I have been backpacking we sometimes lose the satellite signal so my compass is the low tech fallback option for finding my way back home to my family.

suunto

A great compass is a simple lifesaving survival tool

Now, it’s all well and good to have a compass but you need to know how to use a compass and map too? Most anyone I know can pick one up, point it and say, ‘that way’s North’ with authority but will that be enough? Check out this great video on using a compass and map if you need a refresher.

Come on baby light my fire!

If I had a dollar for all the articles I had seen (and a few I have written myself) about the importance of being able to start a fire, I would have… I don’t know; a hundred bucks? Suffice it to say that there are a lot of people out there who are trying to convey the importance of being able to start a fire. Why is fire so important? Just like these other survival tools, it can save your life.

blastmatch

BlastMatch – Single hand operation

You can learn how to start a fire with a fire plough or the magnifying glass trick or my personal favorite, starting a fire with a bottle of water but really there are easier options. The easiest option is a simple Bic lighter. I have dozens of these strewn around the house and in both my bug out bags, get home bags and the bag I take hiking with me. They are cheap, easy to use and do what they are supposed to do. But, what if they get wet?

Two alternatives to the good old Bic lighter are both called fire steels. I have a Swedish Fire Steel which is a rod that you need to strike with a stainless steel striker or the back of your knife blade to make sparks that are over 5,400 degrees Fahrenheit!! This isn’t just cheap fireworks when you are bored but combine this with the proper amount of dry tinder or WetFire cubes and you will have a flame in no time.

I also have a BlastMatch all-weather fire starter which is the same concept but you can use this one-handed. Perfect for if you are injured or you need to use one hand to block the wind or keep that bear at bay. Both of these great survival tools are waterproof so that gives them an advantage over matches (unless they are waterproof obviously) and Bic lighters. Sure a Bic will dry out if you have the time, but what if you just escaped a raging river, all your gear is soaked, the sun is going down and you are freezing cold? Also, they will last for thousands of fires and you can’t say the same for matches.

Gimme Shelter

survivalbivvy

Survival Bivvy

Quick, what is the first thing that will kill you? Lack of food? Dehydration from no water? A backhand from a Polar Bear? If you answered polar bear I might have to give that one to you but unless you are in the arctic or dumb enough to climb the fence at your local zoo, the chances of you seeing a polar bear are slim.

Most people fret about starving or dying of thirst though and that isn’t really what you have to worry about the most. Exposure will kill you faster than thirst or hunger and it is something to consider. Have you heard of the rule of threes? The rule of threes goes something like this:

  • You can live three minutes without air
  • You can live three hours without shelter
  • You can live three days without water
  • You can live three weeks without food

Now before you start saying that the most important thing is air, let’s just say that this is a given. If you are suffocating you definitely have big problems, but that isn’t likely either. Most of those survival shows I talked about at the beginning show you how to scavenge for food if you are lost in the wilderness, but like the rule of three says, you can go weeks without food. Will it be fun? No, but you do have bigger problems.

Shelter in this rule means getting too cold (hypothermia) or two hot (hyperthermia) and both are just as bad for your body. If you find yourself in a survival situation there is a tool that you can use to regulate your body temperature and this can keep you alive. In the heat you have to get out of the sun. In the cold you have to conserve heat and a survival bivvy works great for both purposes. As a sun shade you can turn the survival bivvy inside out and let the reflective material reflect the sun off you. It also doubles as a signaling device. When you are cold, climb into the bag and the reflective material will reflect your own body heat back on you keeping you warm.

fenixheadlamp

Fenix Headlamp – Perfect for hands free tasks in zero visibility

I can see clearly now!

Lastly, and one of my favorite survival tools is a flashlight. Well, more precisely it is light because light can solve a world of problems. Can you imagine being lost and not being able to see? One wrong step could land you in a hole that might break your ankle or you could step off a cliff. When I am backpacking I have a Fenix headlamp that I love. I just strap this to my head and I can walk around and do most anything I normally would because I can see clearly where I am going, what is ahead of me and I don’t have to use my hands.

During the day a headlamp is a little bit much but I also carry a small but bright flashlight as part of my EDC. You would be surprised how often I have to use this thing so it does come in handy.

What are some of your favorite survival tools?

As preppers we strive to acquire skills, knowledge and yes tools that can assist us should we ever be faced with dire circumstances. The actual disaster that you might be