useful farm animals

[s6bee]

I wanted pigs till I heard how much they stink. I would consider sheep/lamb. You can sell them too, and/or get milking sheep and some folks really go for that milk over goat. Research it. 5 acres is good but not a huge amount to go big.

Good luck!

 

[Farmer Kitty]

My SIL and her husband have 5 acres and have chickens, ducks, geese, sheep, steers, and have had pigs and turkeys too. So there is a lot you can do on 5 acres. A lot depends on the shelter you have or are willing to build for the animals.

 

[reallemons1]

Add rabbits. They are good for meat and fertlizer.

 

[MissPrissy]

Quote:
My dairy goats do not stink.

Do you mean a male goat? They do have a stinky smell.

 

[AussieSharon]

Rabbits, easy to care for. Very economical. We are starting to raise meat rabbits for our family.

Geese. Great weeders, good watch dogs, also meat and eggs.

Goats are great too. We have a pygmy and love hear dearly.

 

[Broke Down Ranch]

Quote:
My dairy goats do not stink.

Do you mean a male goat? They do have a stinky smell.

My girls don't smell at all - I mean my hands don't even get any funk when I scratch them.....and the male is too young to pee on himself. But even when he starts that, the benefits of them outweigh the smell. After all, chickens, ducks, and geese don't smell like roses either

 

[texasreb]

With your size property, I would go with sheep or goats. You can then decide whether you want hair or wool sheep and dairy or meat goats.

 

[spook]

Raise around milking cows, don't get me wrong I love bovines, yet when I was at the Windsor Fair grounds, watching the goats with their expanding udders, reminded me of how much a pain in the butt it is to own a goat.
Milking 2 times a day or leaving the kid with momma to feed, there are so many positives, yet for me, it quenched my desires about owning a goat.
I have chased pigs, sheep, cows, ducks, chickens and have slaughtered all but the cow and goat, personally, I don't wanna do it again, especially with the butcher cost if you have a large animal.
Good luck, but I feel a bovine would be choice, nothing like knowing where your steak just came from! Grass fed cattle have less fat and lowest cholesterol. (they cannot share a pasture with sheep or goats- I have seen it, but a cow needs longer grass then a sheep, goat or horse.)

 

[Skyesrocket]

and my chickens think that they are walking gumball machines

That was funny, jen!

 

[Chick_a_dee]

A horse that can pull a cart/carriage! .. when we buy my riding horse, we're going to make sure he is strong enough, and the hardy enough to pull a cart. We're going to cut down on car use

in the winter using a sleigh, and in the summer using a cart. We're definitely going semi-menonite, the menonites in our area use a cart and horse to do their shopping and such.