A Breeding Notebook That Looks Beyond the First Hatch
A promising young bird is a starting point. Keep repeat observations, compare beyond your own coop, and build records that help you make clearer breeding decisions.
How to Choose a Chicken Coop: Pretty Is Easy. Practical Is Hard.
Pretty coops are everywhere—but will one work for your flock and for you? Jennifer Bryant shares practical coop-planning questions inspired by Nikki Husted of Purely Chickens.
Duck Care Myths: What Backyard Keepers Get Wrong About Water, Niacin, and Feeding
Do ducks need a pond, extra niacin, or special feed? Jennifer separates common duck-care myths from practical guidance on waterers, ducklings, feeding, and dry bedding.
How Thin Shells Affect Incubation: Calcium, Phosphorus & Vitamin D for Hens
Thin shells and poor hatches often start with the hen's diet. How calcium, phosphorus, and vitamin D affect shell quality, hatchability, and incubation, with the research and a troubleshooting checklist.
Brooder Design for Growing Chicks: Space, Airflow, and Heat That Adjust With Them
A brooder has to change as chicks grow. Learn how to plan space, airflow, safe flooring, dry bedding, adjustable heat, and easy access to food and water so growing chicks can stay safe and thrive.
Why Predators Keep Showing Up Around Poultry
Spilled poultry feed can attract rodents, and rodents can attract larger hunters. Learn how feed, wildlife, housing and flock access combine to create predator pressure around a chicken coop.
Chicken Coop Ventilation: How to Control Moisture, Ammonia, and Wet Litter
Good chicken-coop ventilation removes moisture, ammonia, and dust without placing birds in a direct draft. Learn how airflow, litter, water, and stocking density work together.
What Are You Actually Paying For? A Smarter Guide to Chicken Labels
Fresh, organic, natural, air-chilled, and free-range answer different questions. Here is how to read a chicken label and decide which claims are actually worth paying for.
The Molt: Why Are My Chickens Naked?
Feathers everywhere, fewer eggs, and chickens that suddenly hate being handled? Learn what triggers a molt, why pin feathers hurt, what balanced nutrition really means, and when feather loss may signal something more.
American Bresse vs. Orpington vs. Cornish Cross: Which Meat Chicken Is Best?
Genetics, growth rate, activity, harvest age, and post-processing rest all affect chicken meat. Here is the science behind the differences between Orpington, American Bresse, and Cornish Cross chickens.
The 2026 Poultry Nutrition Update: What Chicken and Quail Keepers Need to Know
The first major poultry nutrition update since 1994 is here. Jennifer and Carey explain what the new research means for chicken and quail feed, crude protein, amino acids, breeders, growing birds, and backyard flocks.
How to Choose a Poultry Breeder: 10 Questions Every Buyer Should Ask
Learn how to choose a reputable poultry breeder with 10 essential questions about breeding goals, nutrition, egg shipping, biosecurity, policies, and support.
Does Scratch Corn Really Cool Chickens? Separating Summer Feeding Facts from Fiction
Every summer, chicken feeding myths resurface. Learn why complete nutrition matters more in hot weather and whether scratch corn really helps keep chickens cool.
You Didn't Start Homesteading to Feel This Exhausted
Homesteading should bring purpose and fulfillment—not constant stress. If customer messages, social media, and endless responsibilities are leaving you exhausted, you're not alone. Discover why burnout has become so common among small farmers and how protecting your time can help you rediscover the joy that started your homesteading journey.
Winning the War on Flies Starts Long Before You See Flies
Learn practical fly control strategies for poultry and quail keepers. Discover how moisture management, sanitation, manure handling, biological controls, and simple farm practices can dramatically reduce fly populations.
Can Raising Chickens Benefit Children with Autism? What the Research Says
Harrison's Hatchery began with a simple incubator and a family's desire to create a meaningful future for their autistic son. In this episode, Lori Pinetta shares how poultry became a mission of purpose, community, and education while discussing Hy-Line Brown pullets, rooster rehoming, and building a successful poultry business.
Quail Selection: How Small Decisions Shape Your Flock's Future
Learn how successful quail breeders use selection, record keeping, family performance, and long-term planning to improve flock quality, productivity, and consistency generation after generation.
