We live in Western New York, and our winters can be brutal. I hope we have a mild winter this year, but last year, I transitioned my first little piggie outside at the end of February, and we ended up having snow THROUGH APRIL! It was a long winter. I learned about that tricky time …
Are you wondering if your mini pig is blowing its coat? The most common time for a mini pig to blow its coat is spring and summer. Currently, my two mini pigs are blowing their coat, and it’s the end of July. When raising animals like mini pigs, it’s helpful to see images and videos …
It feels like in an instant; I went from living across the street from Walmart out into the country with over 30 chickens and wildlife all around. Two years ago, I was scared to hold a chick. A chick! Because of their beaks. For the past week, I have been beside myself with letting go …
It’s been 3.5 years since I brought home a pet mini pig. I raised pigs in 4-H and never had them in the house. So when I brought home my first 10-week-old pet mini pig, I was in for quite a fun and frustrating ride. If you are frustrated with your mini pig right now, …
For two years, my husband nudged that we should get chickens. I had a 10-month-old I was still nursing, and the thought of raising chickens, something I had never done, seemed too much at the time while I was still chasing a 2-year-old. Another year passed, and my husband brought up chickens again. As my …
Are you wondering when your hens will start to lay? The excitement is building, but you are not sure what will happen? I can relate. It’s important to know when your chickens will start to lay eggs regularly. In our experience with over 30+ chickens at one point, I’ve found the following tips to look …
Are you wondering if you should add ducks to your backyard homestead? Maybe you are thinking about starting with ducks over Chickens? Here are a few quick reasons I recommend adding ducks to your flock: Read or Pin for Later: 6 Things You Must Know Before Getting Ducks If you are thinking about getting started …
Are you looking for a real-life look at what it is like to walk your mini pig? Can you walk a mini pig on a leash with a dog? Learn the words I use to train my mini pigs to walk on a leash successfully. One of the most popular pig posts I have on …
If chicks get you smiling, wait until you see ducklings! They are adorable, and watching them splash in the water the first time will have your heart swooning for more. Ducks are a great addition if you already have chickens; ours have always gotten along just fine. Our ducks share a chicken coop with four …
Hey Friends! We’ve lived in our farmhouse for two years now and the kitchen cabinet color is starting to bring me down! I knew that there were other priorities in the house, but now it’s time. We aren’t going to do a full gut right now in the kitchen, mainly because my husband is building …
Hey Friends! So we had a very productive weekend. Great progress was made in our barn and we have five new additions to the farm. The sun was shining which means our dog and pig got to run and play together. Check out our brand new Vlog below! ( If you missed our first post …
When we first started raising our own chickens, my husband and I was excited about fresh eggs, even more, hard-boiled eggs. We love eating these for a snack, throwing in a salad, and deviled eggs. We gathered up our eggs from outside and placed them in a pan to boil. Fifteen minutes later, we put the …
Are your kids just starting to ask you for a pet? Maybe they are just getting to the age where they want to be responsible for something cute and furry, but you are shaking your head thinking- “Do I want to be responsible for something else?” When we first got chickens, I was amazed at …
The thing with life for us is we tend to let our excitement lay out the path before us. We get caught up in a moment and go with the saying, “We will figure it out as we go.” Sometimes in life, that’s a great thing. Other times, it can be troublesome. Or can …
Did you get the chicken itch? You know, when you start out with just six chicks, they grow, and all of a sudden, you have the urge to add variety to your flock? I know we’ve been there. We got that chicken itch when we moved to our farmhouse just over a year ago. We …
This isn’t called the Frugal Farm Girl for anything. We are cheap/frugal with EVERYTHING we do, guys, including our chickens. Sometimes I think it is a curse; I am reminded how powerful and a blessing it is in this season of life. Our Frugal blood had us pay off all our student loans, credit card, …
Are you wondering how to build a pig pen out of pallets? The cheapest way I found is to use free pallets. This is the only way we build an affordable pig pen on our homestead. We love our mini pigs, but all pigs can use this simple pig enclosure. The day we drove home …
We have an old barn. One that I fell in love with despite its crookedness. There is just something about old barn wood. It was built in the 1850s. We started the spring of 2016 with over 30 chickens and are down to 23. We pasture raise our chickens from the sun up to …
I didn’t grow up necessarily as a farm kid. Yet I was a farm girl because in middle school every day when that bell rang for us to leave I was waiting for a big old van with the logo Pickett Fences farm to take me to my sanctuary. I have loved farm animals and …
I wrote this post just weeks after we picked up our first-ever 10-week-old pot-bellied pig. This is my experience going through it. I’ve come a long way. The day after Thanksgiving 2016, we drove out just my husband and me about 45 minutes away to pick up our first mini pig. The emotions were excited …
The first real thunderstorm at our new farmhouse had quite an affect on our little ladies. The next morning when I went to the nesting boxes my eggs looked like a wrinkled old mess. There was for sure something funky going on just before that egg came out. So could I still eat this egg? …
Raising chickens for eggs and meat is one of the easier options for raising your own food. Today many areas allow hens in their backyard within a city limit. Meat birds today like Cornish Rocks are full-grown in a matter of weeks. It doesn’t matter if you have 25 acres or a 1/2 acre; many …
