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Homestead Animals

78May 21, 2018Homestead Animals by Erica

11 Chicken Coop Features I’ll Never Live Without

My poultry’s housing has evolved over the years. First we went from a tiny, unworkable coop for two birds to a spacious, well-designed, and attractive coop that can comfortably house 8 to 12 hens. Experience drove multiple experiments to increase the efficiency and cleanliness of the coop. Backyard free-ranging was tried (it really was!) but…

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5April 26, 2018Homestead Animals by David

How To Combine Rabbits and Chickens for Homestead Animal Synergy

Regular guest poster David walks us through the magic that happens when you combine rabbits and chickens, and how he implemented this synergistic pairing on his own urban homestead. One of the easiest to understand tenets of permaculture is the goal to use “stacking functions” wherever possible. Simply put, functions are “stacked” when you can…

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59March 19, 2018Homestead Animals by Sarah

The Post-Poultry Homestead: A Tale of Urban Chickens

This guest post comes from my friend Sarah. She’s wonderful, you’ll love her. XO, Erica Once upon a time, I wanted backyard chickens. Fresh eggs, active composters, pseudo-pets. What’s not to love? I was an early 30-something DINK with a corporate job, a 1⁄4 acre plot just outside Seattle city limits and dreams of independent…

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162February 21, 2018Homestead Animals by David

Herbs To Boost Immunity in Rabbits

Sick rabbits, by and large, are dead rabbits in my experience. Dead rabbits – when they die before you harvest them for meat – are a waste of your precious time, resources, and wear you down psychologically. I detailed my struggles with meat rabbits in 2017. My research indicates that herbs, more than anything, are…

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18January 15, 2018Homestead Animals by David

Homesteading at Rock Bottom

Have you ever hit rock bottom with your homestead? Guest poster David experienced huge losses in his meat rabbit set-up. Here’s how he confronted the feeling that maybe homesteading just wasn’t worth it anymore.

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433August 3, 2017Homestead Animals by David

Meat Rabbits: Truths No Homesteading Article Tells You

Homesteading articles like to claim meat rabbits are an almost effortless way to produce hundreds of pounds of meat in a small space. But there are a lot of challenges that come with raising meat rabbits. Here’s what you need to know before you start raising meat rabbits.

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12June 26, 2017Homestead Animals by Erica

The One Livestock Animal I'm Obsessed With

If I could make the impossible happen on my one-third of an acre, this is the one livestock animal I’d really want to have.

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444May 17, 2017Homestead Animals by Erica

Honest Reasons You Shouldn't Get Ducks

True talk – ducks aren’t for everyone. These are some of the reasons why they might not be right for you.

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4April 21, 2017Homestead Animals by Erica

Duckling Cam!

We decided to bring in some fresh genetics for our micro flock of Ancona ducks. Our three new baby ducklings (a male and two females, if the people who check these things are correct) arrived this morning at the local post office. They’d had a long, 2-and-a-half-day trip in a cardboard box from Cackle Hatchery…

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36March 30, 2016Homestead Animals by Erica

Goodbye Duck Pond

I’m downsizing. I think I’ve gone as far as I want to go with my homesteading right now, and I’m walking back certain decisions; remolding my tiny slice of earth (once again) to best suit our needs. This is an interesting feeling for me – a reversal after 12 years now, of working towards ever-greater…

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31May 6, 2015Homestead Animals by Erica

Duckling Drama

Ducklings have basically taken over my life. Our story starts about two weeks ago, when we find one of our female Ancona ducks killed and, separately, a freshly hatched baby duckling hanging out under the other broody female. The next day, new mama duck Minkie takes the single duckling on a grand tour of the yard, quacking all…

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41April 29, 2015Homestead Animals by Erica

The Life and Death of Ducks

Death Monday was pretty rough. My daughter came in from her normal morning check of the chickens and ducks and said, “I think Frances was attacked.” Out I rushed, and my daughter led me to the trail of feathers, the splatters of blood, the slaughtered but uneaten carcass of our female duck, Frances. Her neck…

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Hi! I'm Erica, the founder of NWEdible and the author of The Hands-On Home. I garden, keep chickens and ducks, homeschool my two kids and generally run around making messes on my one-third of an acre in suburban Seattle. Thanks for reading!

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