Self Reliance On A Small Homestead
Coming Soon – Autumn Ducklings! You might think I’m a bit crazy for hatching ducklings (or chicks) in the fall. Why would anyone think of incubating eggs at this time of year? You can read more about my reasons for Hatching Chicks in Autumn, if you like. The short answer?…
My First Black Cayuga Duck Egg! I’ve been waiting, rather impatiently, for our Black Cayuga duck hen to lay her first egg. Today I was pleasantly surprised by this beauty. 🙂 I was expecting a darker-colored shell, but it is still a rather interesting shade. I think the dark color…
Butchering a 25 Pound Turkey I’m almost done butchering the 10 Broad Breasted White turkeys I ordered this spring and raised on our homestead. There’s one left to butcher when I get a nice cool day, but the rest are in the freezer or I pressure canned the meat for…
Butchering Broad-Breasted Turkeys This spring I ordered 10 Broad Breasted White turkeys from Dale (The Chicken Guy) in Wisconsin. Actually, I think I ordered 6, but Dale always orders extra and somehow a few of them end up in my basket. I picked them up on March 13th. They were…
Homestead Ducks Ducks are a great addition to the small homestead. They provide eggs and meat, and pest control too! Their meat is delicious and the eggs are great for baking and fresh eating. Ducks are less prone to disease than chickens and they lay eggs well during the winter.…
Are Ducks the Answer to Avian Flu? With continuing outbreaks of avian flu wiping out massive numbers of chickens and turkeys in the United States, many poultry enthusiasts are worried… ‘Will I lose my entire flock of laying hens?’ or ‘Is my turkey flock at risk?’ Small farmers suffer a setback when losing their…
Do You Have Too Many Chickens? Almost anyone who keeps chickens will tell you that they can be addicting. You start off with a half dozen hens for fresh eggs and before you know it, you’ve got 50+ chickens, ducks, turkeys, and guinea fowl roaming your backyard. Do you have…
Wait a Minute…These Aren’t Khaki Campbells! I ordered 5 Khaki Campbell ducklings through our local farm supply store and they arrived in early March. Well, at least four of them did…one was missing and could not be located. One died shortly after I picked them up. Things were not going…
Candling Turkey Eggs On Day 7 Candling eggs from your incubator gives you an opportunity to see the development of the embryos. In the old days they actually used candles to check for embryos in incubating eggs. I’ve used a flashlight in the past but found it difficult to use.…
Knowing how to care for a sick chick could mean the difference between life and death. Prepare in advance for potential illness.
For more information about hatching eggs at home read my articles How to Hatch Chicken Eggs in an Incubator and 15 Helpful Hints for a Successful Hatch. Reasons for a Poor Hatch Rate Although hatching baby poultry in an incubator can be a fun and educational experience, sometimes we have a…
15 Helpful Tips for Hatching Eggs Successfully Getting ready to hatch baby poultry? Check out this list of 15 tips for hatching eggs successfully in an incubator! For complete instructions, see How to Hatch Chicken Eggs in an Incubator. You may also be interested in reading How to Care for…
Can You Keep A Mixed Flock With Chickens & Turkeys? When I first started keeping chickens I knew I eventually wanted to raise heritage turkeys and ducks too (and maybe some Guinea fowl…and geese). Keeping breeding stock of heritage turkeys was high on my to-do list because buying poults…
Installing The Incukit Mini for Desktop Incubators This post shares the step-by-step process I used to convert a still-air desktop incubator with a wafer thermostat to a forced-air incubator with an automatic digital thermostat. The kit I used, the Incukit Mini, can also be used to turn a styrofoam cooler…
Are My Hens Laying Eggs? One of the most common questions from chicken newbies is ‘How can I tell if my hens are laying eggs?’ You might have noticed that there are fewer eggs in the nest boxes and, naturally, you’d like to know who is slacking off! Before you…
Raising Heritage Turkeys for Thanksgiving There’s something special about gathering with friends and family for a traditional Thanksgiving feast, complete with roast turkey and all of the trimmings. I think that our society has, perhaps, lost a little bit of the spirit of Thanksgiving. With prosperity and an abundance of…
