Hobby Farm Animals: A Comprehensive Guide to Raising Beef Cattle, Chickens, Ducks, Goats, Pigs, Rabbits, and Sheep (CompanionHouse Books) Breed Selection, Behavior, Health Care, Breeding, and More

No hobby farm is complete without critters!

• 7 common farm animals and how to keep them: cows, chickens, ducks, goats, pigs, rabbits, and sheep
• Detailed how-to on the care, handling, feeding, health, and safety of each animal, including breeding and the raising of young animals
• Breed profiles of the most popular varieties, from the Rhode Island Red chicken to the Kiko goat
• Troubleshooting potential problems and warding off diseases, parasites, and predators
• Tips for selling your bounty, with recommendations for eggs, milk, fiber, beef, lamb, pork, and more

Eggs, meat, milk, wool, fur, feathers, and some priceless bucolic bliss: What's a hobby farm without a small flock or herd (or several)? Inside this book, five experienced hobby farmers and writers share the wisdom and knowledge gained from years of animal keeping for pleasure and profit.

This information-packed 384-page volume contains everything a hobby farmer needs to know about farm animals, whether you want a small herd peppering the field or a microflock flapping around the hen house or pond! A comprehensive manual to selecting, caring for, and breeding livestock, this book brings forth the expertise of five hobby farmers, each of whom has real-life on-the-farm experience with the animals she discusses.

If you're contemplating adding a small herd of sheep or goats to your existing hobby farm, or you've always wondered about the benefits of raising angora rabbits or Muscovy ducks, then Hobby Farm Animals will provide the kind of guidance you need to begin a herd or flock and expand your pens and fencing.

With exhaustive detail, the authors offer complete coverage of chickens, ducks, goats, sheep, beef cattle, pigs, and rabbits, including the housing, health care, special needs, advantages, and challenges of each. You'll find extensive sections devoted to the seven major farm animals, including an overview of the animal's history and advice on selecting the right animals for your particular farm, lifestyle, and aspirations; the type of shelter, facilities, and amenities you'll need for your animals; how to feed balanced nutrition at all life stages; a look at typical behavior traits and how to best handle and work with your animals; a responsible raiser's healthcare plan, including vaccinations, health clearances, common illnesses, and first aid; discussions on breeding cycles and methods, caring for pregnant females, and caring for baby animals; strategies for marketing and selling your animals' meat, milk, eggs, fleece, or feathers; anecdotes, insight, and helpful hints from seasoned animal raisers.

Get the comprehensive guidance you need to welcome each type of livestock onto your farm and into your life, with Hobby Farm Animals!

Sue Weaver has written hundreds of articles and ten books about livestock and poultry. She is a contributing editor of Hobby Farms magazine and writes the "Poultry Profiles" column for Chickens magazine. Sue lives on a small farm in Arkansas, which she shares with her husband, a flock of Classic Cheviot sheep and a mixed herd of goats, horses large and small, a donkey who thinks she's a horse, two llamas, a riding steer, a water buffalo, a pet razorback pig, guinea fowl, and Buckeye chickens.

Ann Larkin Hansen is the author of The Backyard Homestead Seasonal Planner, The Organic Farming Manual, The Electric Fencing Handbook, Finding Good Farmland, and Making Hay; coauthor of A Landowner's Guide to Managing Your Woods with consulting forester Dennis Waterman and master logger Mike Severson; and coauthor with her husband, Steve, of Maintaining Small-Farm Equipment. She has been a journalist for more than 30 years, specializing in organic agriculture and sustainable forestry. A homesteader and a small-scale organic farmer, she lives with her family on a farm in northern Wisconsin.

Cherie Langlois is a professional writer and photographer as well as a trained zoologist. She enjoys the country life, tending to the care and needs of her ducks (Muscovy ducks, mostly), chickens, goats, sheep, horses, dog, cats, bunny, and cockatiel on her hobby farm, nestled in the foothills beneath the magnificent slopes of Washington state's Mt. Rainier.

Arie McFarlen, PhD, as the co-owner of Maveric Heritage Ranch Co. in South Dakota, works toward the saving and promoting of endangered livestock breeds. She is the author of several articles about these breeds featured in Hobby Farms magazine, Rare Breeds Journal, and Small Farm Journal.

Chris McLaughlin is a master gardener with specialty certificates in wildlife, children's, and vegetable gardening. She is the author of six gardening books and one livestock book. Her work can be found in Fine Gardening Magazine, Hobby Farm Home Magazine, Urban Farm Magazine, The Heirloom Gardener Magazine, and Mother Earth Living. Online, she's a staff blogger for Finegardening.com and has written for a variety of sites including Vegetable Gardener.com, About.com, Fix.com, and From Scratch Magazine. Chris and her family live on a flower and fiber farm in the Northern California foothills where they grow flowers, food, and Angora goats.