When a Newborn Goat Walks on Pasterns
Supposedly a newborn goat that walks on pasterns doesn’t need its legs splinted. The theory is that the kid will grow out of it. But why take a chance? Causes of Weak Pasterns One of the two main causes of...
12 Reasons Chickens Lay Eggs on the Floor
Eggs laid on the coop floor, appropriately called “floor eggs,” easily get dirty or cracked. They are unsanitary to eat and unsuitable for hatching. Plus a cracked egg is likely to get broken, making a mess. Hens will sample the...
How to Grow Sweet Potatoes
Sweet potatoes were considered to be a winter holiday treat in my family, until we moved to Tennessee. Now they have become a basic staple. The main reason we learned how to grow sweet potatoes is that regular potatoes don’t...
What Chickens Can and Can’t Taste
Taste buds determine what chickens can and can’t taste, which in turn determines what a chicken prefers to eat. Taste buds therefore have an important impact on a chicken’s health and productivity. Until 1904, researchers believed birds didn’t have any...
How to ID a Chicken’s Cecal Droppings
The cecum is a blind pouch that branches off the juncture of the small and large intestine. Humans have only one, but chickens have two. A chicken’s cecal droppings differ from regular intestinal droppings. The word cecum comes from the...
Bottle Feeding and Weaning Dairy Goat Kids
Like most newbie goat owners, I started out with the notion that bottle feeding and weaning dairy goat kids is mandatory. After several years of keeping Nubian dairy goats it dawned on me that I wasn’t doing my goats or...
Old-Time Coffee and Old-Time Cookbooks
What to do when you wake up in the morning to below freezing temperatures and the power out? For me, first thing I want is a cup of hot coffee to jump-start my brain. But with the power out, my...
Grow Your Own Cornmeal
The best cornmeal I ever tasted came from a fellow I met in Georgia while attending a Mule Day event some years ago. He had grown and milled the corn himself, using mules, of course. That cornmeal I brought home...
Chicken Keeping Rules of Thumb
A rule of thumb is a general guideline that offers a starting place, but does not strictly apply in every specific circumstance. Adjustments may be necessary when a rule of thumb doesn’t exactly fit your situation. Chicken keeping rules of...
Mating Saddles Protect Hens from Rooster Treading
Treading, or the rapid movements of a rooster’s feet while mating, can result in feather loss and deep wounds on a hen’s back and shoulders. To prevent such injuries, and to protect deplumed areas while feathers grow back, hens may...