Recent content by HomesteadHeart

Thank you for your very comprehensive reply. I will take into consideration everything you shared. I truly appreciate your experience. Not a Debby Downer - I came here to gather facts/opinions to try and bolster my knowledge and provide what I can for this girl and the rest of my 45-ish ("ish"...

Thank you for your replies. I have a friend who shared an order of white leghorns with me from Hoover's. She brooded them for both of us and then once they were feathered enough to be outside, I brought mine home. So I've had her and her hatch mates here for about 2 months or so. The issue...

I have a 5 month older white leghorn pullet that came up lame. She can stumble along, but keeps her injured foot curled under. When she is standing still, she holds the injured foot up and does not put any weight on it. I have her confined now, but could not find the source of her injury yet. My...

I am getting my first batch of 1,000 mealworms from a local reputable fellow chicken lover this week to start up my first ever mealworm farm. I would love to see pictures of your setup. I see so many different ones online plus the instructions given from the gal I'm getting the worms from, it...

Hello all - I have a small flock of four Muscovy hens and one drake. I've had the hens since April (they're about 2.5 years old) and the drake since June (he's about 3). We've had active mating all summer but they had access to some wooded area in their free range area that I think they were...

I did think of tossing food out further, and I moved the water tank a little further, so we'll see. No problem with tall grass. It's mostly a lot of white clover (low growing) that we sowed and a bunch of tasting wild stuff they like from what I've read ie. smart weed, plantain, dock etc.

Wow, so strange. I had no idea they would ever have this "home body" behavior, but I guess it's not unique to mine. All I've ever heard / read is how you have to take measures to prevent them from going TOO far. Our chickens would run you down from any distance, any time they saw you, assuming...

They're all about 1.5 yr olds. I guess I just figured they would be far less "chicken" than our chickens. I've never read anything about them being fearful. Everything I've seen makes them sound like superducks haha. @chickens really Do you have Muscovies? Any further specific tips?

At the risk of offending Muscovy Ducks everywhere, I'm hoping for some insight. We just got 4 ducks a week ago, a drake a couple days later, and I've never seen such lazy behavior from any bird... LOL! We had a new cattle panel hoop coop ready for them, kept them penned in it to bond them to...

ISO adult Muscovies in the Nashville, TN area. We would like a drake and a few females. TIA!

Good to hear that confirmation, especially the more plant friendly aspect! We decided to go with only Muscovies, at least for a while and see how it goes. We had some layer chickens, and they did do more scratching than I would want at times, like around berries etc. Thanks again!

Gotcha. We're looking forward to the bug control as well! I know they're great for flying bugs, but some people say they're great for ticks too. Have you found that to be the case?

Ok sounds good! BTW do you raise your Muscovies for meat? If so, is it true the solid whites are best for plucking?

Thanks! That seems like a great way to go. Also, do you think we should shut them in at night for the first week or so to get them acclimated to it? We have an English Shepherd, good guard and gentle with all birds. So, in addition to shutting them in, do you think it's a good idea to close the...

Oh, thanks for the qualifying questions. I should've added that. We will let them free range basically all they want (1+ acre), and just have this for cover / nesting. So, maybe solid panels over most including the nesting area, and the one panel clear towards the front?