Life on the Farm
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
That chicken soup is magic medicine was known as far back as the 12th century, when it was extolled for its ability to relieve respiratory symptoms caused by the common cold. More recently Stephen Rennard, MD, proved that chicken soup...
Guinea fowl and chickens are both Galliformes. They are similar in size and shape, and both lay eggs. But guinea fowl are not just chickens only different. They are different, period. If you wish to add guinea fowl to your...
For most dairy goat breeds, kidding season generally starts in November and runs through April. In the warm southern states, the season runs a little later — from about December through May. So most goat owners know when to get...
At the end of the gardening season, when frost threatens, I wander around looking for stragglers that might freeze. I invariably find a few young dill plants that missed their scheduled spring sprouting. That’s when I think of making Thousand...
Stress leads to changes in a chicken’s behavior, and prolonged stress reduces immunity to disease. When you are familiar with the way your chickens normally act, you can tell if your chickens are stressed out by observing these three basic...
