Weekend Update: Welcoming the New Kits

Happy Monday! We had a very exciting weekend. Our Sable Rabbit, Cinnabun, surprised us with a litter of kits! She started preparing her nest on Wednesday.

 

This is what we found on Wednesday

 

She was very restless all day

 

Cinnabun was so restless, she was frantically pulling her hair out to line the nest box and was hopping in and out of the box (note the blurry photo). As soon as the sun went down on Wednesday night the kits were born. We didn't want to disturb her much so, we just took a guess on how many kits there were. My kiddos all guessed four or five. After giving her time to adjust to her new little ones, I went in to the hutch on Saturday to check on the kits and get an actual count. To my surprise she had nine kits!

 

 A view of the babies

Could they be any cuter?!?!

 

Cinnabun has been a really great mom, all of the kits seem well fed and she's been very comfortable with me touching the kits and the nest.

 

As relaxed as can be

 

While I tended to the new babies the boys got a lot of work done on the new coop. We're actually just about finished.

 

Working hard

 

This coop was originally built by my husbands grandfather but, time had worn it down. We decided from the get go to salvage as much of the original building materials as possible and in doing so, it's really turned into a beautiful and unique coop.

 

A salvaged post from the original design

 

Hammering away

 

My plan is to have the coop done by the end of this week and move all of the chickens from the brooder to the coop outside.

 

Let me know in the comments below what projects you worked on this weekend. And I'd love to hear from anyone that's raised rabbits before. Happy Homesteading!

 









Quinoa Crusted Quiche

This gluten free quiche is a favorite at my house and more importantly it's unbelievably simple to make. The best part is that you can add whatever types of veggies and cheeses that you're family prefers.

Ingredients

2-3 Cups of preferred veggies

7 eggs

1/2 Cup milk

2/3 Cup preferred cheese

1 1/4 Cup uncooked quinoa

1-1/2 Tablespoons butter (for greasing pie pan)

Village Harvest quinoa is fairly inexpensive

 

How to Prepare

 

Crust:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9-inch pie pan with butter and pour the uncooked quinoa into the pan. Press the quinoa evenly into the bottom and up the sides of the pie pan. Don't fret if it seems thin. The quinoa will expand a bit when baking and makes a surprisingly dense crust.

 Press gently and spread evenly

 

Don't worry if it looks thin

 

The Filling:

In a large bowl whisk the eggs and milk together. Make sure to whisk briskly until there is a noticeable amount of bubbles. This ensures a nice, fluffy filling. Next, fold in your choice of veggies and/or cheeses.

 



Lots and lots of bubbles

 

 

Simply pour the filling into the pie pan and place in the oven for 30-35 minutes, until a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean.

 

Yummy!!!

 

And lastly, enjoy! Let me know in the comments below your favorite quiche add-ins. Happy Homesteading!





 





 



Weekend Update: Clearing The Property And A Fun Announcement

Happy Monday! It was a rainy weekend here but, we managed to get quite a bit done. We spent the majority of Friday evening clearing bamboo out of the yard to make room for a new duck house. Let me just say bamboo is a pain!!!! It's difficult to cut down and a lot heavier than you'd think. I was exhausted after dragging just two loads off and we have a lot more to clear.

 

The guys clearing bamboo

 

This is only a fraction of the bamboo on our property

 

I also took the ducklings for their first swim. I normally would take them out to the creek but, the weather hasn't been cooperating so, into a shallow bucket they went.

 

 

Herman going for his first swim!

 

I had to break up quite a few fights between my Black Copper Marans and Langshan roosters this weekend. Pecking order is natural and has to be established but, once blood has been drawn I always intervene. I eventually had to pen up the Langshan (sad face). I have both roosters out today and so far they've left each other alone.

 

My Langshan with noticeable injuries

 

 Fireman Sam has moved up in the ranks

 

Now for the big announcement, I'm participating in the 5th annual Easter Hatch-A-Long over at Backyard Chickens. And more exciting than that, I'll be blogging through the whole process! Whether you've hatched eggs before or never would in your life, you need to follow along. I'll be posting weekly photos of the eggs being candled as well as step by step incubating instructions and troubleshooting. The process of hatching eggs is truly amazing to watch.

 

The eggs are set

 

If you want to follow the hatch-a-long (and you should) make sure to sign up for direct email feed at the bottom of the page. And in the comments below let me know if you've ever hatched eggs. Happy Homesteading!

 





Introducing New Birds To Your Flock

Adding new birds to your existing flock can be stressful for the newbies and original members alike. With my "look-but,-don't-touch" technique you can greatly reduce the amount of stress to your feathered friends. I've added chickens, ducks, and turkeys using this method without the slightest problem.

The little guys

The "look-but-don't-touch" technique is simply allowing the original flock members and the newbies to see and hear each other without any physical contact. You can block off an area of your coop or run or like me you can set up an outdoor cockerel\pullet keeper. Since my birds free range I have the keeper set up right in the middle of the property. The big guys are able to scope out the new members all day.

 The pullets\cockerels in their outdoor pen

 

How long you implement the "look-but-don't-touch" technique depends on age and size. When I added two adult turkeys to the flock I kept them separated for about a week and a half. I introduce chickens when they are 12 weeks old. By this time they are large enough to protect themselves should a scuffle ensue.

 

 

There are two things that I can't stress enough when allowing all of your birds to mingle for the first time; supervision and knowing your flock. You must supervise the first few introductions! This way you can act as a referee to any rough housing. Now, as for knowing your flock, by this I mean only you know if you have a pushy hen or an extremely dominate rooster that will need to be watched closely. As for me, I have a Langshan roo with a bad attitude and one very territorial tom turkey. These two need more time to adjust to any new members. For the first few mingle sessions I actually hold my angry rooster. This allows him to get closer to the new guys without being able to spur them.

 

My cranky Langshan

 

 



 My tom is VERY protective of his hen

 

 

There will be some pecking, this is a natural way for your birds to establish order within the flock. Only intervene if there is incessant pecking or injuries. For more information on pecking order read my blog post here: Pecking Order.

 

 

When deciding when to house your flock together full time just, use your best judgment. If everyone seems to be getting along after one or two meet and greets then by all means put them together. On the other hand if some of your birds are having a hard time adjusting then wait until they are comfortable. There is no need to rush the process.

 

I really believe the "look-but-don't-touch" technique is the only way to go when adding new birds to your flock. I also know that it's not the only method so, in the comments below tell me how you prefer to add new feathered friends. Happy Homesteading!

Online Resources For Homsteading

The best part of modern day homesteading is the technological resources we have on hand. The internet is chock full of homesteading and natural living websites that provide a lot of useful information and can even connect you with other homesteaders. Listed below are some of my favorite homesteading websites (with links).

My Favorite Homesteading Websites

 

• Backyard Chickens - Don't let the name fool you, this website is about fowl of all kinds. Chickens, ducks, turkeys, peacocks, guinea, if it has feathers than you'll find information about it here. Once you create a free profile you'll be able to connect with other fowl enthusiasts as well as read some great articles and even buy hatching eggs. My favorite part is the forums. If you have a question just post it in a forum and you'll get answers from folks that have been there and done that.

 

• Mother Earth News - With articles that cover organic gardening, natural health, and DIY projects, this website is the go to spot even if you don't homestead. They also have a magazine that you can subscribe to and I highly recommend it.

 

• Grit - This is the sister website of Mother Earth News and it's geared a little  more towards farmers and homesteaders. It carries articles on farm equipment, animals, and even has a "land for sale" page.

• Hobby Farms - The name speaks for itself, it's a website filled with information on small scale farming. They carry articles on livestock, gardening, canning, and marketing tips for your farm. They also have quite a few publications you can subscribe to.

• The Livestock Conservancy - I know I mention this website A LOT but, I'm just so passionate about preserving heritage breed farm animals. This organization gives you breed info on heritage breed poultry and livestock including the history of the breed. You can also find breeders through they're directory. They have an online store that carries a variety of books and a cafepress store where you can purchase posters, gifts, and apparel. Proceeds from your purchases help support they're conservation efforts.

• Craigslist - This one might seem weird but, hear me out. You can find animals, coops, farming equipment, materials, and a whole lot more on this site,  many of which you can find for free or at a ridiculously low price. And lets not forget that you can sell\trade anything that you're not using anymore.

These are just my personal go-to websites and I know that there are so many more out there. So, let me know in the comments below your favorite homesteading websites. Happy Homesteading!

Weekend Update: Spring Has Sprung

What a beautiful weekend it was here in Tennessee! The sun was shining and signs of spring were everywhere. I think it's safe to say we spent the ENTIRE weekend outside.

                                                            A sure sign of spring

 

I cut the bottom out of an old Styrofoam cooler to make an outdoor playpen for the ducklings. They really seemed to enjoy basking in the sun and nibbling the grass. As a side note, this  makeshift pen is NOT predator proof at all! The kids and I stayed close by the ducklings the entire time.

 

The ducks enjoying the fresh air

 

Along with the ducks our brood of  9 week old  chickens got to spend some time foraging. They're currently in an outdoor brooder but, we let them out to free range for the first time on Saturday. Again, this is one of those times where you have to stay close by. A flock of cockerels and pullets outside with no one around is pretty much an open buffet for hawks. 

 





They stayed pretty close to the pen at first....

 

 but, soon they were off exploring.

 

This little cockerel is gorgeous!

 

Of course no homesteading weekend is complete without learning a lesson or two and we certainly learned one. We had initially planned to brood our two Welsh Harlequin ducks with some chicks and that worked out fine for a while. Last week in my Weekend Update: New Additions post I mentioned that we added two more ducklings to the brood, this is where the trouble started. Four ducklings can make quite a mess and that they did. We had been using a standard waterer but, the ducks were still managing to get at least one leg in it. So, we lifted the waterer up on bricks, low enough where everyone could reach and high enough to keep ducky legs out. THEY STILL MADE A MESS!!! In the end we had no choice but, to move them into a separate brooder. Our brooder room is jam packed now but, at least everyone is happy.

 



A 50 gallon plastic tub turned duck brooder

 

I love hearing from  my readers so, in the comments below let me know what went on at your house this weekend. Happy Homesteading! 





Breed Of The Month: Sussex

The Sussex is an amazing breed of chicken with quite a history. These guys can be traced all the way back to 43 A.D. Though their exact origin is up for debate, old literature states that they were traded by Romans and quickly became famous for their tender meat. As a result of cross breeding, the Sussex nearly became extinct. Thankfully a group of farmers began breeding pure Sussex and promoting them as a hardy, dual purpose chicken. Once again, they popularized quickly and then made their debut in America in 1912. Their extensive history has given the Sussex a Heritage Breed label and rightly so. According to The Livestock Conservancy, this breed is still in recovery. If you're considering adding a Heritage Breed to your flock the Sussex may be just what you're looking for. And here's why...

SUSSEX

 

BREED PURPOSE- The Sussex is a dual breed chicken and they're famous for their tender, juicy meat. They're a large breed with the roos weighing in at 9 lbs. and the hens at 7 lbs. We've never butchered any Sussex so, I can't comment on their deliciousness but, I can attest to their large size. Our hen and roo are two of the largest birds we have. While doing my research for this post I learned that Sussex are susceptible to becoming overweight. Our flock lives on mainly a free range diet and weight hasn't been a problem. If your birds have limited free range time and eat more commercial feed then I would keep an eye on their weight.

 

 



                                                      Big Daddy, our Light Sussex

TEMPERAMENT- To say that Sussex are friendly and docile isn't doing them justice. These guys are less like chickens and more like puppies. Our two Sussex are the only chickens we own that actually enjoy being held.



                                              Charlotte is my favorite, just don't tell the others

Now make no mistake, even though they're a friendly breed the roosters are protective of they're flock. On one occasion I witnessed Big Daddy fight a hawk off of one of our hens.

Don't mess with his girls!

 

 

EGG LAYING-  Sussex are fair layers. They'll lay about 250, tan or pink tinted, large eggs a year.

 

COLORING- The American Poultry Association recognizes three color varieties: Sussex,Speckled, Red, and Light. Breeders are always on a mission to create new color varieties and for this reason you can also find Coronation, Buff, White, and Silver Sussex. I personally favor the Light Sussex because that's what we own and I think ours are just gorgeous!

 





                                              She only looks cranky, she's really a sweetheart

 

Big Daddy greets us at the porch every morning

 

 

The Sussex is an all around amazing breed and whether you have a small backyard flock or a large farm full of birds, this breed would make a great addition. As I stated earlier they are a Heritage Breed, in raising Sussex you would be helping keep a part of history alive. If you want to learn more about Heritage Breeds (and you should) please visit The Livestock Conservancy . Happy Homesteading!