I used to live next door to a man with many cats. Way too many cats. Most of them were feral and sickly. Seeing a few of them almost brought me to tears because of the terrible shape they were in. Every couple of a months a new litter would appear; with every crop of cats came more fighting, more illness and more mess. Thankfully, my family was able to trap many of these feral cats and have them fixed through the local Spay-Neuter-Release program. These volunteer-led efforts spay or Continue Reading
How to Keep Your Dog Out of the Trash
I wish you could meet Jasper. He is one of the greatest dogs we've ever owned. A Collie-Shepherd mix rescue, he became top dog literally the day he arrived at our farm. Jasper gets bored every once in a while. Yes, I know we have 7 children. And 5 cats. And 12 chickens. But Jasper still gets bored every so often, and if there isn't a good chew bone or old shoe handy, he starts looking for mischief. One day he discovered the cats' litter box. Hmmm, that was tasty! Another time, he got into a Continue Reading
5 Reasons to Have a Rooster in Your Flock
Should you have a rooster in your backyard flock? Some families worry about aggression, or being woken up every day at the crack of dawn. But my family LOVES having a rooster. Assuming there's no ordinance or law against it in your area, here are five reasons you might consider adding a cockerel to the mix: Roosters are beautiful. As with many other species on Earth, the males are more showy. Roosters don't just stand a head above the hens; their feathers are often more colorful or unusual. Continue Reading
Chickens 101: Choosing the Right Breed
After you've made the decision to own backyard chickens, picking a breed or breeds is probably going to be your next step. Jeremiah and I spent hours upon hours poring over books and catalogs so we would better understand the breed profiles and find a good fit for our family and our geographical region. There are hundreds of breeds to choose from, and within the breeds themselves, there are ranges of colors and patterns. And all this just to get a fresh egg? Yes, God knows we all like Continue Reading
Can You Eat Duck Eggs?
Do people eat duck eggs for breakfast? Can you bake with them? Why yes! But how do they measure up to hen eggs? This post will answer all those questions. We have a few Khaki Campbell ducks here at Zephyr Hill and they lay a decent amount of eggs, although their output can't rival the chickens. Soon after discovering our first duck eggs, we immediately wondered "Can you eat these things?" It's funny how the mind works against you, though. Even though duck eggs are nearly identical to Continue Reading