No matter what sort of animals you keep on your homestead, a big part of taking care of them is understanding their phases of life, and that includes their end of life. Most livestock, and that certainly includes our goats, tend to slow down, become less productive, and more likely to get sick or injured … Read more
Homemade mosquito traps – is it possible to make one that’s effective and actually works? Such a trap is easier to make than you might think, and the beauty of it is that there are many solutions for keeping mosquitoes at bay, some for outside and some for inside. This article focuses on much more … Read more
There’s nothing quite as disheartening as taking the time to grow enough food for the winter, only to find that it decayed after just a short a while, and cannot be salvaged. From apples and pears to potatoes and squash, this guide will teach you exactly how and when to harvest and store your different … Read more
You can’t argue that ducks aren’t adorable. They absolutely are, and they will never be cuter than when they are ducklings. Those precious, fuzzy little darlings will just melt your heart. And when it comes to ducklings, there are none more adorable than yellow ones. So adorable, in fact, that they are the very picture … Read more
Corn is the most ubiquitous grain eaten in the United States. Corn, or one of its derivative products, is in literally everything you can think of. For those of us living in farm country, there are literal oceans of the stuff growing everywhere. It might seem strange to grow your own corn in your garden … Read more
For most gardeners, winter and cold weather are synonymous with death and packing it in until spring arrives. If you don’t have a greenhouse or aren’t willing to start seeds indoors, there’s probably not much for you to get out of your garden, right? Not exactly! Though many gardeners fear the frost and subsequent freezes, … Read more
When you think about the typical diet of sheep, you probably immediately think of greenery. Grass, hay, tender leaves, things like that. And this stereotype is for good reason because that is indeed what makes up the diet of most sheep. But you might be surprised to learn they can eat all sorts of things, … Read more
Whether you are trying to stretch your grocery budget or you just want to preserve every piece of your hard-earned garden harvest, at-home food preservation is a must-have skill for the savvy homesteader. There are lots of ways to preserve food at home, including tried and true canning or freezing, but my favorite method is … Read more
For homesteaders, it’s hard to argue against raising chickens. Chickens are cheap, easy to care for, highly productive, and will keep you and your family loaded down with the best eggs you’ve ever had and plenty of meat. Plus, they are just plain fun to have around! And considering their ever-increasing popularity, you can get … Read more
With any livestock, picking the right breed is important for your happiness and also for your success, whatever it is that you might be doing. This is certainly true for ducks. If lots of meat is what you’re after, or you just enjoy having bigger birds around in your flock, you’ll be best served by … Read more
If there’s one thing that most domestic animal species enjoy compared to their wild cousins, it is a diet of safety, security, and variety. Whereas a wild animal will have to eat what it can get, no matter how unpalatable it seems or how questionable its safety is, animals that are under the care of … Read more
You know, every once in a while, animals can surprise you. Sometimes it’s with their intelligence, and sometimes it’s by doing things that you didn’t know they could do. Sometimes, it’s even the things they eat! I think everybody knows that all animals have a preferred and typical diet, but sometimes they have to make … Read more
If you live on a homestead or a farm with lots of different animals running around, you probably already know that, from time to time, different critters are going to get into each other’s food. No matter how hard you try, that’s just the way it is. And even when it comes to our sheep, … Read more
You might not know that sheep can actually eat a surprising variety of vegetables as a supplement to their typical diet of pasturage and other greenery. It’s true! And though sheep might not have access to a wide variety of veggies in the wild, that shouldn’t stop you from serving them to your flock. It … Read more
Sheep are often stereotyped as strict grass eaters. After all, that’s what you’re likely to see them eating day in and day out when they are moseying around the pasture. In truth, sheep can actually eat a wide variety of things, but compared to most other livestock species, they tend to subsist on a pretty … Read more
If you imagine what a typical mealtime looks like for sheep, it probably consists of them strolling placidly around a pasture eating grass all day. And I’m here to tell you that you’d be right, but something to think about is that it’s not strictly grass that’s growing out in that field. There are actually … Read more