Goat birthing and raising kids
By Jackie Clay
Issue #112 • July/August, 2008
Dairy goats form one of the cornerstones of our homestead. Not only do they provide milk, cheese, ice cream, cottage cheese, and meat, but they also give us...
Forget the dog, chicken is man’s best friend
By Richard Blunt
Issue #49 • January/February, 1998
The domestic chicken, or Gallus domesticus as the Romans called it, has lived with humans for centuries. It is probably the descendent of a wild asian bird, and...
Get to know your spiders
By Jerry Hourigan
Issue #109 • January/February, 2008
Every landowner and homeowner creates the perfect environment for spiders. Not intentionally, of course, but spiders seem to like all the little nooks and crannies created from how...
Build a poultry killing cone
By Allen Easterly
Issue #135 • May/June, 2012
You've worked hard and spent many hours raising your pretty flock of meat chickens from eggs or chicks to nice fat fryers, roasters, or stewing birds. They've provided...
Hog butchering — Using everything but the squeal
By Charles Sanders
Issue #142 • July/August, 2013
A 450-pound hog will provide a lot of delicious meat.
Hogs are raised throughout our neighboring Amish community for many of the same reasons old American homesteads raised them....
Raising rabbits for profit
By Carrie Peterson
Issue #106 • July/August, 2007
Whether or not you are fond of rabbit stew, raising rabbits for meat can be a great experience and can even help swell your pocketbook a little. The...
Protein — The Cornerstone of a Survival Diet
By Jackie Clay
Issue #111 • May/June, 2008
It goes without saying that preparedness is not for "radicals" or "weirdos" anymore. I picked up a preparedness leaflet at the County Agent's office last week and another...
Keeping homestead animals healthy
By Jackie Clay-Atkinson
Issue #169 • January/February, 2018
As a veterinary field technician for more than 20 years, I saw firsthand the frustration and heartbreak when animal owners called the veterinarian (or started treatment) too late...
Switch your family to goat’s milk
By Tanya Kelley
Issue #128 • March/April, 2011
If you milk goats, there's no doubt you've heard it"Eww! Goat's milk! Gross!" To be perfectly honest, goat milk does taste different than cow milk. So? Different doesn't...
Good-bye old friend
By Lucy Shober
Issue #27 • May/June, 1994
Big Poney died today. He was 34 years old and had been going down pretty rapidly over this hot, dry summer. His bones seemed to poke out at...
Finding, buying, milking, and living with the family milk cow
By Jayn Steidl Thibodeau
Issue #36 • November/December, 1995
Have you ever had this happen to you? You've opened the refrigerator door for a cold, refreshing glass of milk only to find an empty jug. You've...
Once a day milking
By Patrice Lewis
Issue #99 • May/June, 2006
It sounds bucolic, doesn't it? The simple joys of milking your own cow. Fresh milk, fresh cream, homemade cheese, butter, yogurt. What can get better than that?
But when...
The homestead cat
By Jackie Clay-Atkinson
We have had at least one cat in our home ever since I was a young child. So it’s no wonder we truly value our feline friends. Not only do they provide...
Shearing, carding, spinning, weaving and creating with Margaret Boos
By Annie Duffy
Issue #52 • July/August, 1998
"If you're going to make something that you want to last, why not start with good quality material," says Margaret Boos who raises and spins her own wool....
Kinder goats — A small breed for milk and meat
By Kathleen Sanderson
Issue #95 • September/October, 2005
I have had dairy goats for most of the last 20 years or so and have raised almost every standard breed. But when my grandmother, my youngest daughter,...
Raising Rabbits
By Linda Gabris
Issue #133 • January/February, 2012
If you take pride and pleasure in growing your own organic garden foods and raising your own chemical-free meats, then consider rabbits.
Domestic rabbits are an easy-to-raise, reliable meat...
