Homesteader Depot

Tag: homestead animals

  • How to Make a Silkworm Habitat (Video)

    How to Make a Silkworm Habitat (Video)

    One of the more obscure “animals” you can raise on your homestead, especially if you’d like to think about making a profit in the long-term, is silkworms. These little critters are where pure silk comes from, and, like bees, it’s common for them to be raised in indoor or artificial habitats so that their silk can be harvested.

    Silkworms love mulberry trees, and this video shows you how to make an artificial mulberry habitat to raise silkworms in. It was actually made by a 2nd grade teacher, so she could show her students how silkworms lived in their “natural” habitat, but I think it would translate very nicely to a starter silkworm operation for anyone who wanted to give it a try. This would be a really fun project if you’ve got kids, especially homeschooled children, so they could observe the lifecycle of the silkworms up close and personal.

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  • Pros and Cons of Birds on a Homestead

    Pros and Cons of Birds on a Homestead

    Birds live everywhere, even in the middle of thickly populated urban areas birds build nests, hunt and scavenge for food, and raise their young.

    So of course, there’s plenty of avian wildlife on any homestead, but are they a blessing, or a curse? Well, there’s a little bit of both. Here are some of the pros and cons:

    Cons

    Birds can definitely have a lot of cons for the busy homesteaders. As you grow your food, they’re also going to be looking for it on every inch of your homestead, and odds are, they’ll have their eye on your food.

    Birds in the garden can be quite a pain, after all, scarecrows are more than just popular child’s book characters! Farmers have long tried to think up clever ways of keeping scavenging birds out of crops, and if you are gardening, you’re likely to be faced with the task of protecting veggies from hungry birds at some point.

    They can also pose a risk to free range chicks, especially large broods where two or three stragglers might get left behind if their mother moves on to the next patch. They might try to steal their food and peck them in the process.

    And all chickens, adults and babies alike, are at risk of getting swooped up by predatory birds, as can any other small animals like rabbits without enough protection in their enclosure.

    There is also the messy issue of droppings. With a large bird population on your homestead, you might find them congregating on your structures, fences, or equipment, and accumulating quite a bit of droppings, that can be a drag to clean regularly, and can stain and even cause paint to peel or metal to rust if not cleaned regularly.

    Pros

    Fortunately, despite the handful of downsides lots of birds can have on a homestead, there are just as many, if not more, benefits.

    Birds are an important part of the ecosystem over all, so even if there are issues they might cause for you, they’ll contribute to your homestead culture as well.

    Birds are actually very helpful in keeping some bugs out of your garden, and eating many other insects as well. They also contribute to pollination, and even eat the seeds of many common weeds.

    Watching their behavior, such as mating or migratory patterns can also tell you a lot about the natural seasonal changes and eco-system in your area, and it’s a great educational experience for kids as well to learn about the natural habitat of your homestead.

     

    Birds might be a pain sometimes, but they’re definitely your friends. There’s lots of options out there for ways to keep them out of your garden or off your things, and you can make them feel welcome in other areas by providing bird baths and bird feeders for them. Appreciate your avian friends, they’re certainly your ally on the homestead.

     

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  • Indoor Pets for Your Outdoor Garden

    Indoor Pets for Your Outdoor Garden

     

     

    Unfortunately, some people just can’t see the benefit of backyard chickens, and they can’t let others be.  You may live in an area that doesn’t allow for livestock such as chickens and have neighbors that have a lack of appreciation for self-reliance and fresh food.  But does that mean that you have to buy manure?  Or that you can’t raise animals for meat?  Not necessarily.  You could raise animals indoors or in discreet cages, animals such as guinea pigs or rabbits.

     

    • If you are wanting meat, rabbits are the obvious choice because of their superior ability to reproduce with high rates of surviving offspring.
    • Both guinea pigs and rabbits can have their diets largely supplemented with vegetable scraps from the kitchen and garden making them cheap to feed.
    • Both animals produce manure that is great for your garden or compost pile, and that smells a lot better than chicken manure so your neighbors are less likely to notice or complain if they do.
    • Both animals can be raised in relatively small pins without causing undo stress to the animals compared with chickens.
    • Neither guinea pigs or rabbits are as social as chickens are and can be raised solitarily if given attention without the animals suffering.
    • Both animals can deal with cold weather if they are kept in unheated rooms such as a garage or on a covered porch. But care should be taken to provide them with relief from the heat.
    • Neither animal makes much noise that could be heard by neighbors.
    • Both guinea pigs and rabbits are cute animals that are fun for kids to have as indoor pets that can be allowed out of the cage and safely handled.

     

    Just because you live in an area that restricts your ability to raise livestock doesn’t mean that you can’t find a way around it that could provide you with manure and even meat.

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  • All About Alpacas

    All About Alpacas

    Finances can be a determining factor in the success or failure of your homestead.  Finding a way to make a living on your homestead, or better yet, through your homestead, can have you go from scraping by to rolling in money.  That may sound like an exaggeration, but it’s been done before.  One way is to raise alpacas.

     

    What is an Alpaca?

    Alpacas are basically a half size llama.  But unlike llamas alpacas are not bred to be pack animals, they are bred for their fiber (it is similar to sheep’s wool but softer and contains no lanolin), or for their meat.

    Benefits

    Unlike their larger relatives the llama, alpacas do not have a bad temperament, alpacas are gentle and curious, but do not like to handled excessively.

    They have a rather unique behavior of not leaving manure where they eat the way most grazers like cows or horses do.   This is one reason that they do not require as much area as other grazers, since they do not need to rotate their pasture as often.  This will also cut down on vet bills since they will come in contact with less parasites like intestinal-worms that can be present in feces.

    They can save money on your initial investment by not requiring the same fencing that other grazers like cows do, alpacas can be contained with minimal fencing and will learn their boundaries, and once learned they will not desire to stray from them.

    Unlike sheep, alpacas are highly territorial and will defend themselves and each other from predators like dogs and coyotes.

    Alpacas do not need to be killed to harvest their produce, their fiber is a renewable income earning resource.

     

    Aplacas will not fit into everyone’s life or onto everyone’s homestead.  But for those who do have a place for them, these animals have brought in a handsome profit.

     

     

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  • 3 Dog Breeds to Consider for Homesteading

    3 Dog Breeds to Consider for Homesteading

    Dogs have the reputation of being man’s best friend for good reason.  The possible benefits of having a dog on your homestead, whether it be urban or country, are virtually endless.  But domestication of dogs has led to a wide array of physical and behavioral traits.  Over breeding for desired traits has also led to genetic issues, for this reason a “mutt” is always preferable since it will have less health issues.  For this reason, when selecting a dog that is right for you, you should consider what breed you are looking for, and search for a mutt that has that breed’s characteristics displayed.  This will allow you to have a dog that has the traits you desire, and a healthy genetic code, saving you vet bills, and promoting “rescue” over “financially motivated breeding”.  These are 3 breeds that have excellent traits for a homestead dog:

    Pitbull

    Probably the breed with the most undeserved bad reputation is the Pitbull.  But the reality is that Pitbull owners deserve the bad reputation.  A well cared for and loved Pitbull has no greater tendency to attack its owner than a Golden Retriever.  That being said, when a Pitbull feels threatened, or feels that it’s owner and family are threatened, it is much more capable of offering physical protection than other breeds.  With a ridiculous bit strength, high pain tolerance, and intimidating appearance a Pitbull is one of the best breeds for physical protection, which should be a consideration for a homestead in any setting.

    Heeler

    Heelers, or Australian Cattle Dogs, are a great option for a working dog on a homestead.  Heeler’s a robust breed, with high levels of intelligence and trainability.  Guarding and herding come naturally to a Heeler, but with high intelligence and high energy Heelers can be trained to do whatever task you have for them.  For those who want only one dog, a Heeler is a great option, they do not always get along with other dogs, but bond well with their owners.

    Terriers

    Terriers have become a popular breed for people with small spaces, but the reality is that Terriers will do better in an open environment with room to roam.  With a Terrier on your homestead, you are unlikely to have a rat problem or strangers approach without a load warning.  Being a smaller breed, Terriers require less food and will have less joint issues as they age.

     

    This is not at all the only dogs that could offer benefits on a homestead, but only a short list of some common favorites.  Remember, not only are you helping out a creature that can’t help itself when you get a dog that would otherwise end up at the pound only to be euthanized, but by avoiding a dog that has been breed for sale, you are avoiding a dog that will likely have genetic issues that will lead to high vet bills and shorter life span.

     

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  • The Cost-Effectiveness of Homestead Pigs

    The Cost-Effectiveness of Homestead Pigs

    A lot of people don’t like pigs because they’re stinky, dirty and loud. But most people won’t object to bacon, ribs or pork chops. And this is a pretty good reason to have pigs, and why most people raise them!

    Not only are pigs delicious, however, they are also very cost-effective sources of meat, especially if you are looking to be more or totally self-sufficient. Larger meat animals like cows need a lot of space, and smaller meat animals don’t yield anywhere near as much meat.

    But pigs are just perfect! Here are some reasons why they are economical choices for the homestead:

    Space

    As opposed to cows or even goats, pigs need much less space to live. Of course, the bigger the space, the less offensive the smell, but you can keep your pigs in a pen with a minimum of 20 square feet per fully-grown hog. Given how large pigs can get, this is a great use of small space on a homestead for a big meat yield.

    Quick Growth

    It takes about 12 to 18 months until you can butcher a cow. However, if you buy a weaned piglet and give it 24/7 access to food, you can butcher it and fill your freezer up in as little as four months! Buying a piglet every six months will more than exceed your yearly bacon quota.

    Waste Not, Want Not

    One really fantastic advantage of pigs is that you can feed them your slop! Homesteads often produce lots of scraps from the garden or food processing, so you will have to spend very little on pig food if you regularly feed them scraps from your kitchen and garden. Plus it adds variety to their diet!

    Multiple Babies

    Cows only have one or maybe two calfs at a time, but pigs have whole litters! To breed them you will of course need a male and a female, but you can quickly turn your two pigs into nine or ten, which means more pork than you will know what to do with.

    Overall Cost

    Piglets are very affordable, especially compared to weaned calfs that can cost hundreds of dollars. Your average weaned piglet can cost about $50-$100 (depending on your area). And given how much meat you can get in such a short period of time, this is a steal! Add that to the small amount of space they need, how much you can supplement their diet with scraps and how easily you can multiply your herd, this makes pigs a very economical choice for the homestead.