We’d had Nigerians for three years when I purchased Muse, my first LaMancha, a yearling in milk. At six months fresh, she dried up, which was disappointing, but I was eagerly looking forward to her kidding the next spring. We … Read More
Even though I have written about feeding alfalfa pellets to goats, I still get a lot of questions about exactly how pellets are different than cubes or hay and how they should be used as part of a goat’s diet, … Read More
Goats are probably the second most common barnyard pet with chickens coming in first. Although I jokingly refer to goats as vegetarian dogs because of their friendly nature, their needs are very different. For years I’ve been responding to emails … Read More
Caseous Lymphadenitis, usually called CL, is the most common cause of skin abscesses. CL is highly contagious because it can infect goats through unbroken skin. CL is unique in that it most commonly affects lymph nodes in the neck. The … Read More
Although you can use goat meat in place of beef or pork in your usual recipes, I don’t really like to do that. When I eat chili, for example, I expect it to taste like pork. If it tastes like … Read More
Recently, I received the following question from a reader … You refer to labels often when evaluating a feed or mineral product. I am trying to learn to read labels also…. For example, while I know the letters “ppm” stands … Read More
Even though I’ve had chickens since 2002, I really don’t feel like I know much about sick chickens. We had them for more than a dozen years before it took more than one hand to be able to count the … Read More
“Flushing” is the practice of feeding does more than usual for a month prior to breeding with the idea that it will increase their fertility. This is a very old practice, and the idea behind it is a good one. … Read More
When a goat has a runny nose or cough, people often assume it has a respiratory infection or lungworms. But those symptoms could be caused by something as simple as dust from hay or living on a gravel road. Ammonia … Read More
You will need the following items whether you will be milking by hand or with a machine. All of these things can be purchased through goat supply companies, but in some cases you can make your own or come up … Read More
Thrifty Homesteader was created in 2012 after the publication of my second book, Ecothrifty. The name was coined by one of my followers because I said that I didn’t want anyone to think that they had to be rich to homestead or live a greener life....
