Chickens

The Thrill of the Small-Animal Auction

It was 9:00 on a frigid Saturday night in mid-January. The sun had long since passed across the horizon and…

2 years ago

Bad Boys on the Homestead

It’s autumn and Romeo smells like he just peed all over himself... which he has... for the umpteenth time.  The…

2 years ago

Surrogate Mother Hens

The iconic image of a mother hen, clucking gently to a clutch of adorable chicks, following her all around.  This…

3 years ago

Raising Chickens… From Scratch

The first livestock most new homesteaders bring home to the farm are chickens—and rightly so.  Here's how to start raising chickens…

3 years ago

My Life After the Chickens

Lately, I've been watching some of the goings-on as a handful of people have been setting themselves up to live…

3 years ago

Hatching Plans for Baby Poultry: A Hatching How-To

Mail order chicks are a great way to start a new flock on your homestead. However, if you have fertile…

3 years ago

Roosters A Plenty

When I moved to this two-acre croft in Iowa, just outside Iowa City, I was pleased to become part of…

3 years ago

Designing A Chicken Coop: A Work in Progress

Five years ago, my husband and I designed and built our backyard chicken coop.  The design was based on photos of…

3 years ago

Thwarting the Fox: Protecting Your Chicken Flock

It’s late March, and a red fox has been hanging around for the last couple of weeks. That’s a long…

3 years ago

Going to the Birds! How I Turned Chicken Pellets into Cash

I have learned to accept the gentle smiles and assumptions of others when the subject of chickens is mentioned.  It…

3 years ago

Coop Considerations: Quick-Start Guide to Building a Chicken Coop

Building a chicken coop, especially from scratch, can be exhilarating and exhausting, fun and frustrating. After all, a good chicken…

3 years ago

Preparing the Homestead for Winter, Part Three: The Animals

Preparing the Homestead for Winter, Part One: The Buildings Preparing the Homestead for Winter, Part Two: The Machinery There’s a…

4 years ago