Ever think about raising a turkey or two?  You know, for a holiday meal? Broad breasted turkeys are similar to what you find at the grocery store.  The ‘broad breast’ meat makes them ideal for special feasts.  Raised on our own land, knowing what they eat, how they are housed, and that they have a […]

Death and dying is a natural part of keeping animals. Sometimes animals become sick and perish. Other times, they live until a ripe old age and die of natural causes. The same goes for keeping backyard chickens. This is a part of the circle of life. Chickens can hide illness well. Sometimes it is not […]

The biggest reason we decided to keep chickens on our farm is for egg production. But even if our hens never laid another egg, I would still raise chickens just to watch their funny antics and their quirky behaviors. In this post, our community of writers explore chicken behavior. Chickens hold a complex social instinct […]

We are approaching our second year of raising chickens and our first BIG problem!  Until recently, the chickens have lived together peacefully.  They have a 6×6 coop and a fenced chicken yard to enjoy.  All was good until… One morning a few weeks ago, I noticed that one of the chickens had some feathers missing […]

It’s that blissful time of year again! Garden centers are getting in flats of Pansies and early spring vegetables. The snow peas are planted and the asparagus is making it’s way through the cool spring soil like blades of green triumph. It’s garden season! Chickens, in addition to laying eggs and being adorable, can also […]

This has been an exciting spring for us. Along with all the usual miracles that spring brings, we’ve also added French Pearl Guineas and a pair of Geese to our farm.       The one with the dark beak is a Toulouse and the other is a Pilgrim. I’ll be sharing our experiences here […]

Our little chicks are almost two weeks old.  They are growing so fast, feathers starting to appear, and they are beginning to roost. Last week on my blog, I had some fun with the chicks.  I did a post titled Baby Chic Photo Shoot. Click HERE or on the picture above to see more. This […]

Providing nutritious food and clean water for your flock is one of the most important aspects of their health and development. It’s also important to know what your chickens are eating because in turn, we eat their eggs (and for some, the birds themselves). Chickens can thrive on a variety of different foods and feeding […]

Jennifer Sartell Story and Photos Zach and I have wanted to raise guineas for quite a few years now. They’re excellent foragers, they help reduce the tick population and they’re just really cool looking birds! Every spring we talk it over and try to decide if we want to place an order with a hatchery, […]

A mistake at the hatchery has delayed us getting our baby chicks, but when they get here I want to have an outline of what to expect.

I have compiled this week-by-week plan to help keep us in the know with our own baby chicks.