2 Easy Animals Every Homesteader Should Own For Self-Sufficiency

My husband and I started our homesteading journey in the backyard of our almost two-acre suburban home. We wanted to begin with more than just a garden, but we had no idea what the best animals every homesteader should own were!

That was until we realized one day that our neighbors had chickens in their backyard! We certainly already enjoyed providing our own meat for our family when we went fishing and hunting. But, when we thought about the prospect of owning our own chickens, this opened up a whole new world for us.

We stopped by our neighbor’s house one day when they were outside and asked them about their chickens. Our knowledge about chickens was virtually nothing, so we were asking everything from where to purchase them to how to build a chicken coop.

We wanted to be self-sufficient and to do that, we needed to get started in raising and breeding our own livestock – husbandry.

If you are the same way then keep reading to learn all about the easy animals every homesteader should own from the very beginning!

1. CHICKENS

Every homesteader needs to start out with a flock of chickens in my opinion.

Why? They are one of the easiest animals every homesteader should own, if not the easiest! Once you feed your hens, give them some water, and clean up a bit for them, they give you back some gorgeous, nutrient-rich eggs.

Here’s how you can get started with your backyard chicken flock!

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STEPS TO BEGINNING YOUR FLOCK

First, start with building or buying your own chicken coop! Depending on how many chickens you are planning on getting, will depend on the size, the number of roosts, and the number of nesting boxes.

You can find some fabulous plans online for building your own coop. We did it with an old shed and some wood to add in the nesting boxes and roosts. It doesn’t have to be anything fancy; the chickens don’t care what it looks like!

Next, it’s time to order your chicken products. You’ll need a feeder and waterer for when they are young. You’ll also need another set for when they are fully grown. Most importantly, you’ll need a heat lamp and a place to put the baby chicks when they arrive home.

Now, the best part is the time where you get to order your baby chicks! We purchased them from Strombergs but there are many reliable hatcheries that you can find online. Your chicks will arrive by mail a few days after they are born.

Next, place the baby chicks in the brooder with the food and water with the heat lamp set up at the right distance. I loved reading this book for more advice on how to do this correctly.

Now, keep caring for them and watch them grow!

HOW TO MAINTAIN YOUR CHICKEN FLOCK

Chickens are one of the easiest animals every homesteader should own because they require only about 15 minutes of attention each day.

You’ll need to care for your chickens at sunrise and sunset every day, but other than that, there is not much else that needs to be done except a deep chicken coop clean once a season.

When your chickens have outgrown their brooder, you’ll want to transition them outside to their full-time coop. Make sure the coop is protected from predators. Depending on your area’s wildlife activity, you may want to keep them always fenced in or you may have the chance to free-range them throughout the day.

Our biggest predator before we moved to our 80-acre homestead was the neighborhood dog!

Here’s an example of what our 15-minute chores look like each day. At sunrise, we go and open the coop door. We check that the food and water are filled and refill if necessary. Then we go about our day!

At sunset, the chickens will all naturally head back inside their coop and roost. No need to chase them in, just wait till sunset and they do all the work for you. We close the chicken coop door and check the food and water levels again, refilling if necessary.

Then, the last step is to collect your reward – the eggs!

BONUS

Chickens not only provide you eggs but you are provided with meat as well. But, this all depends on the breed of chicken you purchase.

My husband and I purchased 25 New Hampshire Reds when we started with our flock because they were a dual-purpose heritage breed. Dual-purpose, meaning that they were good for meat as well as high in egg-laying production.

And it paid off! When a couple of our birds were found dead from neighborhood dogs, we were able to cut them up and have homemade chicken nuggets for dinner. We always have the option to make our flock smaller too if necessary and butcher some of them.

There are, on the other hand, birds that are not dual-purpose but solely egg layers or meat birds. I would suggest starting with dual-purpose or egg-laying hens

Be sure to do more research before purchasing your birds. Consider, do you want to purchase a rooster? Do you want to skip the chick stage and purchase birds that are more fully grown, known as pullets? Also, what are your town rules regarding chickens in your backyard?

What do you think? Will this be one of the animals every homesteader should own, like yourself?

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2. MEAT RABBITS

Rabbits are so cute, how could anyone think of eating them?

I hear this often when I tell people that we have a rabbitry. Especially those that have a pet rabbit of their own! We don’t breed rabbits because it is fun, but because they are a sustainable meat source that allows us to become more self-sufficient.

Keep reading to find out why we chose to raise meat rabbits on our homestead!

Related Post: Our Homesteading Journey – Reflections On 2020

WHY MEAT RABBITS ARE ANIMALS EVERY HOMESTEADER SHOULD OWN

First, they are small, and they take up very little space. We easily fit a couple of rabbit hutches in our backyard, and then in the winter, easily line them up on the side of our garage. Unlike other livestock for meat, like cows, pigs, sheep, etc. where several acres are required, rabbits wouldn’t even require a full acre.

Second, like chickens, they require very little attention at only about 15 minutes of chores a day. I care for our rabbits are the same time that I care for our chickens – at sunrise and sunset. All the chores require are filling up their food, water, and hay racks.

Third, they are nutrient-dense. Take a look at these numbers! The number of calories per pound in pork is 2,050. In beef it is 1,440 and chicken it is 810. But in rabbit, it is only 795. The moisture and protein content is also the highest out of pork, beef, and chicken. Additionally, it has the lowest fat per pound at only 10%! I call that a superfood.

Fourth, they breed like rabbits. Have you ever heard the saying? Rabbits breed fast, only a 31-day pregnancy, and they produce large litter sizes, averaging 6-10 kits at a time. You can produce enough meat to become self-sufficient very quickly. One meat rabbit is easily enough meat for a meal of two people.

Fifth, they have a positive environmental impact. Whereas raising beef greatly impacts the land and water sources, rabbits have one of the lowest environmental impacts. They have a very quick maturity date before processing and the amount of food they eat is very minimal compared to other animals.

Sixth, you can use more than just the meat. You can tan the hide and make slippers or earmuffs. And, we can’t forget about the manure. This is the most nutrient-dense fertilizer for your garden. And you can pour it right on top of your plants whenever you want, unlike other hot manures that need time to compost first.

Seventh, they taste delicious! Most people haven’t even tried rabbits before, which is crazy to me thinking of all the amazing benefits of consuming it. Of course, try rabbit first before starting your rabbitry. It wouldn’t make sense for it to be one of the animals every homesteader should own if you didn’t like how it tasted!

HOW TO GET STARTED

Start with building (or buying) your rabbit hutches. There is no right way to do this but there are some fabulous plans that you can find online like these.

I suggest a wire bottom so that the poop and pee from your rabbits easily fall through. This means minimal cleanup and an easy way to catch the manure for compost purposes.

Then, purchase the waterer, feeder, and hay racks along with the rabbit feed and timothy hay they will need. You may also want small travel cages for them so that you can easily bring them home after you purchase them.

Next, find your meat rabbits! Perhaps there is a local rabbitry nearby that you can purchase meat rabbits from, but likely not, as they can be hard to find. It was very difficult for us to find our first set of meat rabbits and ended up traveling quite a far distance.

We found our rabbits on Craigslist and that is the only reliable way I have found to locate them online and then purchase them.

Make sure you purchase meat breed rabbits, which get quite large. We have New Zealand and California rabbits and I highly recommend them. Make sure you also do more research of your own before starting your rabbitry so you can learn how to breed them properly and care for them well.

Well, there you have it! The two best and easiest animals every homesteader should own! Which one, chickens or rabbits, will you be starting with first?

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Kelsey at GoodPointGrandma

Hey there, I'm Kelsey! I'm so glad you are here. I'm a 20-something helping you live your most fulfilling life. I hope you'll join me in this old-fashioned & simple lifestyle!

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