Such a frustrating problem! Once a chicken begins eating eggs, it’s a difficult behavior to break. It usually starts innocent enough. An egg accidentally gets broken and a curious chicken gives it a try and finds that it has discovered a delicious new source of food. It soon learns that as eggs are laid, a […]

It seems that every poultry forum I’ve visited complains that guineas are loud and mean animals! Even the day we purchased our keets, the man standing next to us by the brooder bins commented that guineas were annoying and we would be sorry. I’m glad we didn’t listen to all that, because so far our guinea experience has been nothing but pleasant … and tick destroying!

My favorite breeds of chickens are Jersey Giant and Buff Orphington. I like big chickens and I can-not lie. But like many of you out there, we don’t just keep two breeds of chicken. We have a variety. A confetti of feather colors, patterns and plumage that is as different to each bird as is […]

It’s been a wonderful, fruitful year at Iron Oak Farm. The garden is coming along nicely, I’m picking ripening cucumbers every day and adding them to our refrigerator pickle jar. We also just finished kidding season, one of the most joyous times of the year. Our last pregnant doe gave birth to triplets last night. […]

I’ve been worried about Big Tom, our Black Spanish male turkey. Through the years I’ve become quite attached to Big Tom. He’s a large, impressive bird. The heavy folds of skin above his eye give him a foreboding look and he can be quite intimidating. But really, he’s a puppy at heart. Tom follows us […]

We weren’t expecting to raise ducks or geese this year. But the little ones found a way into our hearts and onto our farm.         I am so glad we decided to bring our Toulouse gosling and our Pilgrim gosling home. Not just because they are adorable, but because they serve a […]

Last night was the first night for the goslings to stay outside. It broke my heart to say goodnight and leave them in the dark of the coop wing. I have a cinder block in the coop that I sit on and watch the birds that rotate through our spare wing. The second round of […]

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 […]

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 […]