Joel Salatin a.k.a. Chicken Man is both an experienced broiler farmer and businessman. Here he shares some of his economic wisdom and the nitty gritty of farm finances. Read and learn lots. The Gross Margin Pastured broilers were my ticket into fulltime farming. For that and many more reasons, I’m still in love with pastured broilers. In […]

Want to own backyard birds, but don’t have the room or time for chickens? Alexandra Douglas shows you how to acquire, hatch, and brood tiny, beautiful Coturnix quail. Intriguing Alternative to Chickens With the popularity of raising your own birds for meat and eggs, Coturnix quail are becoming the alternative to chickens and other fowl […]

Frank Hyman humorously shows us how to make two different types of DIY poultry feeders that are inexpensive and efficient. I enjoy having chickens as long as I don’t feel like I’m working for them. I especially like chickens when I can go on vacation for two weeks without worrying about them. But there are […]

Poultry conservationist Marissa Buchanan knows that Chinese geese are excellent guard animals, weed eaters, and all-around useful homestead birds. When looking for a goose breed for your farm, consider the Chinese goose. One of the most popular breeds, it has an amazing and culture-rich history, and makes an excellent addition to the homestead. This popular […]

Christine Heinrichs, veteran chicken writer, walks you through how to successfully show your poultry to judges at shows and fairs. The idea of keeping chickens may have occurred to you while you were walking the aisles at a local poultry show. “All these beautiful birds! I could do this.” People like to participate in shows […]

From circumventing coyotes to outsmarting opposums, Maat van Uitert has 7 practical suggestions to protect ducks from predators. We used to think we just had a couple of predators on our farm, until I put out a game camera one night. Boy, were we wrong! Even if you think your flock is safe, you might […]

Ever wonder why eggshells have odd bumps or discolorations? Learn how eggs develop, and troubleshoot eggshell problems with chicken owner and writer Elizabeth Diane Mack. For small poultry flock owners, eggshell abnormalities can be a bit scary. The internal shell development process occurs in less than 24 hours, and during this time, even minor upsets […]

Matthew Wilkinson shares the early lessons he learned about raising and processing chickens. That Initial Excitement As soon as my daughter had blown out her fifth year birthday candles, I saw my opportunity. I approached my wife, knowing she was in a weakened state from this joyous celebration. I did not hesitate however, blurting out […]

Second in a three part series. Dr. Jacquie Jacob shares her research on how to effectively use heritage breeds for small-scale meat production operations.  As discussed in Part 1 of this three part series, we ran a study at the University of Kentucky poultry research farm comparing three heritage breeds (Black Australorp, Barred Plymouth Rock […]

Kelly Bohling explains how to handle quail eggs and delicious ideas for eating them. Delicious and Versatile Quail Eggs Quail eggs are small, speckled gems that you’ve likely seen in your local co-op or Asian food market. They come in tiny, clear plastic egg cartons. You’ll be tempted to buy them for their cuteness alone, […]