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Had to share this one!

I guess I got lucky with my broody *knocks on wood*, she's on day 8 in the coop's favorite nest and it's her first time. I have a crate on hand if I need to move her, but I haven't had problems so far. Everyone's started laying in the next one over, so I guess she's been telling them what's...

Is anyone in the Billings area going to have chicks for sale in the next week or two? I've got a first-time broody that's been on the nest for four days now. The eggs she's on are "toss eggs" from our last round of wormer, and I don't want to let her hatch those in case of birth defects. So...

Hey PrairieRidge, I'm between Bridger and Belfry and I run a small flock of Golden Laced Wyandottes. Enjoying a snow day today, hope you are too!

I've always read that you want to keep the floor draft-free but allow for constant air exchange around the roof, even in cold weather. Apparently humidity plays a big role in chill and frostbite, and moisture from the birds' breath and poop can build up if the coop is too well-sealed. Good job...

The straw-bale coop stays pretty warm usually, but in this snap the thermometer read -2 this morning (it was about -10 outside). So we ran an extension cord from the house and put a heat lamp up, hopefully they'll be more comfortable tonight. Re-boiled some leftover soup, added kitchen scraps...

Hay will attract more mice because it has grass seeds in it, which they like to eat.

Thanks guys, they're good birdos. DouginMT, they should give about 200 large browns per year once they get going. The boys are starting to get frisky, but the ladies aren't squatting yet. Pretty soon, but I'm still buying eggs. And you're right, 388Chick, they're fine in the cold. Between...

The chicks I mail-ordered this spring are finally starting to fill out at five months, though none are laying yet. They weren't kidding when they said Wyandottes are slow-growing birds, but they are very healthy, excellent rangers with good instincts. Don't worry, this one's...

The American Livestock Breeds Conservancy has a helpful chart that compares heritage breeds by characteristics like rate of lay, temperament, and egg size: http://www.livestockconservancy.org/index.php/heritage/internal/chicken-chart Lots more good info in their general poultry pages...

Read into Marek's disease. It affects the nervous system and progressive paralysis of the extremities is one of the signs. It usually affects younger birds. I would quarantine the chicken in question, however the virus spreads through inhalation of dander, so if it is Marek's then the whole...

I agree with all above, the Rockies create thousands of micro-climates here. Even within my county there are several different climate zones, precipitation levels, and gardening conditions. A great resource is the Climate Map published by the MSU Ag Extension office...

Rain for the third day in a row, and this morning's has been slow and sustained ever since I woke up. There are standing puddles in the yard, which I haven't seen in the couple of years I've lived here in the rain-shadow of the Beartooths. So glad I got the soil amendments and early seeds out in...

Well, the ravens are sacred to the Apsaalooka Nation (called Crow but translates better to Raven), but I don't know if they're actually protected. We encourage the ravens to nest here because they drive off hawks and sparrows (which make an ungodly mess when they build a colony in the barn)...

I was talking to the old folks in the family about my chickens, and they have so many tips and stories, I think they're almost more excited than I am. They told me that when I start training them to go in the coop at night, I should take a bucket of scratch grains with me and shake it. Once...

I don't want to get into your business, but before you break your agreement with your neighbors by keeping the roo you should consider how it will impact other families trying to get hens in the future. If the "no rooster" neighbor feels they were wronged, they might be much less likely to...

I just hate it when distributors name themselves after the means of production, and then act like you're the one being strange when you're disappointed they don't actually MILL things.

Was doing some feed research and came across Mintana Mills in Billings: http://mintanamills.net/ ...it's not a typo, apparently the owner moved from Minnesota. Google wasn't having any of it, kept "correcting" to Montana... Anyway, has anyone ever used this company?

That's so funny! I had a similar experience getting my raised beds going, but my boyfriend built them for me so I couldn't really "scold" his material choice of discarded railroad ties so much as gently explain why untreated lumber would be better, ha. I think that was the day his family...

I know the hay we cut last season has started to get pretty pale in the shed...if you want Montana locally-grown and fresh in March you might have to find a hydroponic fodder setup.