Michele Cook shares ideas for keeping your chickens occupied during the long, cold winter. Bored chickens, like bored children, can find some not so great ways to occupy themselves if they have nothing to challenge their little minds. In the winter, there are no bugs to chase, no worms to dig up and no grass […]

From turkey part names to pardoned turkeys, Kaylee Vaughn tells us fun facts about Ben Franklin’s favorite bird. Turkeys have long been the bird of choice to serve at Thanksgiving and Christmas celebrations. But, have you ever considered just how unique and interesting these birds really are? Wow your family and friends over the dinner table this […]

I have a favorite chicken. Ssssshhhh! Don’t tell the rest of the flock. Much like parents aren’t supposed to have a favorite kid, I worry that I’m not supposed to have a favorite chicken. However, I do. Her name is Penny. Penny came to us a little over a year into our chicken-keeping adventure. We […]

Kaylee Vaugh de-mythtifies eggs for us. Over the last several decades, it has became less common for people to keep chickens and many people have become more disconnected from their food sources. Because of this, many myths have become commonly accepted.  I’m sure that every chicken keeper has no doubt heard (and maybe even believed!) a […]

Turkeys are pretty healthy birds, but they can catch some diseases. Luckily, you can vaccinate your birds for many of them.  Turkey Diseases Turkeys are generally healthy birds. Most backyard farmers will tell you while the birds may be fragile for the first couple of weeks, they grow into robust adults with few health problems. […]

Teaching Young Guineas to Range — But Not Too Far! Audrey Stallsmith shares stories and tips for keeping your free-range loving guineas closer to home. Time for a New Flock Many years have elapsed since my elderly parents and I hatched 20 guinea eggs in a homemade incubator constructed from a Styrofoam cooler. Most of […]

Part of our Breed Profiles series, Cayuga ducks are a medium-sized duck with stunning green-black plumage. History The earliest documentation of the distinctive black Cayuga ducks shows them living in the western, central region of New York state where the Cayuga peoples lived. Often found on or near Cayuga Lake, one of the Finger Lakes, […]

Most fungi are beneficial or harmless, but a few will cause serious health issues in your chickens. Fungi comprise a kingdom of organisms that include molds, mildews, yeasts, and mushrooms. These related organisms share the following characteristics: They have a nucleus, or core. They lack chlorophyll and thus are unable to produce their own food, […]

New blogger Kacey Bradley shares useful tips for keeping your coops clean using natural products. A clean coop makes clean chickens, and clean chickens make productive chickens. It is important to keep your chicken coop clean and free of insects, pests and bacteria, but how do you do this without the use of harmful chemicals? There […]

Open Sesame: Coop Doors that Open on Command Frank Hyman knows about DIY and being inventive. Here are some of his ideas for automatic chicken coop doors. The Basic Pop-Door One important goal for our chicken-keeping adventure was to continue enjoying two-week vacations a couple times a year. However, one common feature of most coops […]