When I moved to a homestead of my own, I inherited a semi-blind chicken: a rooster named Cockeye Pete. My chicken could see some shadows, which made him jumpy, but other than that, he was quite blind and utterly helpless, and the other chickens didn’t want much to do with him. I took pity on […]
11 Best Chicken Tricks! Teach Your Chicken to Swim, Math, Games Read More »
The other day three of my pigs started coughing. It made me nervous because of the deep, racking coughs that came out. Since I take care to practice good husbandry, I was fairly certain it wasn’t a parasite and started looking into the various pig viruses and bacteria that cause a deep, dry pig cough.
Pig Cough: 4 Pig Viruses That Cause Coughing and What You Can Do Read More »
Is your pig breathing hard? It’s natural to worry when you notice something out of the ordinary. But don’t panic just yet, as this might be happening for a few different reasons. You may be in a similar incident as ours. My little pig Gus is an absolute darling. He was the runt of the
7 Alarming Pig Breathing Problems: Help My Wheezing Pig! Read More »
Hearing a pig coughing in the morning will never be a good sound for pig farmers. Quite recently, three of my pigs started coughing, and it was astrange pig cough (almost a barking sound). On top of the pig coughing, they also had swollen red eyes and mucus running from their noses. One of my
3 Pig Respiratory Infections That Cause Coughing Pigs Read More »
Protecting your chickens from eagles can be difficult. Although eagles are majestic and beautiful, they can be stressful when you have free-range chickens. That’s especially true when they grabbed one of my prize chickens and flap away like a harbinger of death. Several birds of prey in the Northern U.S. are known to predate on
Protect Your Chicken From An Eagle: How to Keep the Flock Safe? Read More »
When you first think of geese, you don’t think of a quiet goose. Most goose breeds are noisy and loud. I mean, is there such a thing as a silent goose? Then, I remembered the two Sebastopol geese I’d had for six years. Both of them enjoy roaming around the farm, swimming in ponds, and
6 Quiet Goose Breeds: How Do You Keep Geese Quiet? Read More »
While you’ve heard the adage that you can’t take a horse to water and make them drink, it’s sometimes necessary to make them drink. Horses need enough water to keep their gut hydrated and to ensure they have enough fluid in their large bodies to keep their systems functioning optimally. Sadly, some horses don’t want
10 Ways to Make a Dehydrated Horse Drink Read More »
Walking past the stables one afternoon, I noticed Missy, one of our older mares, lying down in her stable, looking quite unhappy. Without even waiting to check for heave lines on her sides, I know that she’s got colic. The cause? Because she’s an old horse, she doesn’t drink enough water. You’d think that a
Horse Hydration Danger: Is Your Horse Drinking Enough Daily? Read More »
Goats have a reputation for eating all kinds of things. But, when they eat dirt, many goat owners wonder why. Known as pica, eating dirt, rocks, or other inedible items is unusual in various animals, including baby goats. It affects goats of all ages and breeds and can happen in all parts of the world.
Why Is My Goat Eating Dirt? Treating Pica in Goats Read More »
I’ve noticed that among my chickens, intelligence levels vary. Miss Samantha has to be one of the sassiest and kindest chickens I have on my smallholding, but she’s also one of the least smart chickens I own. She is good with the children and doesn’t mind being pushed around in a stroller occasionally. I don’t
Are Chickens Smart? 9 Most Intelligent Chicken Breeds Read More »
