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Homestead Chicken Resources – Everything You Need for Your Backyard Flock

Homestead chickens are a great small scale protein option for meat or eggs, and don't require a huge investment in time or materials to get started. I've teamed up with a number of my blogging friends to pull together this awesome list of homestead chicken resources to help you with everything from hatching your own eggs to predator patrol and chicken diapers (yes, they exist). There's information on coops and runs, feeds and foraging, roosters and broody hens.

Chickenpalooza! An Awesome List of Homestead Chicken Resources - Recommended books, equipment and links to over 60 homestead chicken posts on the web covering everything from chicks to chicken diapers.

We also include plenty of posts about the “why” as well as the “how” of raising chickens, as well as the tough stuff like dealing with sick chickens and harvesting chickens for meat. If you have a topic that's not covered, please ask, as I'm sure someone in the group has a post that can help. Enjoy!

Chicken Books

There are around a bazillion chicken books out there, but I wanted to highlight a few that I have in my personal collection.

Chickens from Scratch by Janet Garman of Timber Creek Farm

Chickens from Scratch: Raising Your Own Chickens from Hatch to Egg Laying and Beyond

This is a quick and easy introduction to the basics of chicken raising. Covers everything bringing your chicks safely home to general flock management, with troubleshooting tips for the basic stuff that runs flocks “a-fowl”. A great starter chicken book.

Chickens in 5 Minutes a Day from Murray McMurray Hatchery

Murray McMurray Hatchery's Chickens in Five Minutes a Day: Raising, Tending and Getting Eggs from a Small Backyard Flock Made Easy

As would be expected from a book by Murray McMurray, there's lots of “chicken eye candy” in this one. Filled with photos and helpful illustrations, this book is a great pep talk for anyone considering chicken ownership. My favorite parts – 10 pages of breed profiles with photos near the end of the book, and the double page spread of coop illustrations.

Storey's Guide to Raising Chickens by Gail Damerow

Storey's Guide to Raising Chickens, 3rd Edition

One of the classics of chicken care, this recently updated tome covers a wide and detailed spectrum of chicken information. some less commonly covered topics include managing a breeder flock, which is important for those who truly wish to be self-reliant; and exhibiting your chickens, which can be a fun and rewarding hobby for the whole family.

Pastured Poultry Profits by Joel Salatin

Pastured Poultry Profit$

This book hails from Joel Salatin of Polyface Farms, the icon of small scale family farming that's good for the soil, the critters and the consumers. This book is built for function, not looks. the text looks like it was tapped out on a typewriter and the photos are black and white. That said, you can't argue with Mr. Salatin's success and his willingness to experiment to hammer out a system of rotational grazing that houses different species on the same pasture to the benefit of them all. The old Polyface Farm newsletters included in the appendix are like peeking into a time capsule.

The Small Scale Poultry Flock by Harvey Ussery

The Small-Scale Poultry Flock: An All-Natural Approach to Raising Chickens and Other Fowl for Home and Market Growers

I first encountered Harvey's writing in Mother Earth News and Countryside magazines. When I saw that he finally put together a book, I knew we had to get a copy. Of particular note:

  • Detailed diagrams of chicken anatomy, inside and out
  • Step by step photos of nest box building
  • Step by step photos of dust box building
  • Step by step photos of an A-frame shelter
  • Step by step photos of butchering
  • Detailed explanations of how he uses his chickens to improve his garden
  • Growing your own chicken feeds

Get Your Chicken Supplies Here

And finally, the Monster List of All Things Homestead Chicken from my site and many of my blogging friends.

Chickenpalooza! An Awesome List of Homestead Chicken Resources - Recommended books, equipment and links to over 60 homestead chicken posts on the web covering everything from chicks to chicken diapers.

Baby Chicks, Broody Hens and Starting a Flock

Printable Incubation Chart from Reformation Acres

Incubating Eggs from One Ash Farm and Dairy Homestead

How to Get Started with Baby Chicks from The Flip Flop Barnyard

Buying Chicks At The Feed Store from Our Life Out Here

Started Chicks and Ducks from Claborn Family Farms at Homestead Honey

3 Reasons to Let your Broody Hen Hatch her Chicks from Homestead Honey

Chickenpalooza! An Awesome List of Homestead Chicken Resources - Recommended books, equipment and links to over 60 homestead chicken posts on the web covering everything from chicks to chicken diapers.

Chicken Coops and Runs

6 Mistakes I Made in the Chicken Coop (And How You Can Avoid Them) from Attainable Sustainable

Pallet Project: Build a Cheap Chicken Run from Attainable Sustainable

Chicken House: Coop Cleaning with Kids from The Homestead Lady

Chickenpalooza! An Awesome List of Homestead Chicken Resources - Recommended books, equipment and links to over 60 homestead chicken posts on the web covering everything from chicks to chicken diapers.

Chicken Nests and Eggs

Free DIY Nest Box Plans for Your Chicken Coop from Linn Acres Farm

Chickens and Eggs: Why Your Hens Refuse To Lay from The Frugal Chicken

What are those spots in my farm fresh eggs? from The Prairie Homestead

Egg Carton Labels and Animal Welfare from One Acre Farm

Chicken Predators

Poultry Predator Identification: A Guide to Tracks and Sign from One Acre Farm

Predator Proofing Your Chicken Coop and Run from One Acre Farm

Hen House: No Foxes Allowed! from Urban Overalls

Think Your Chickens Are Safe? Think Again! from Lil Suburban Homestead

How to Fox Proof Your Chicken Coop by My Pet Blog

Chicken Feed and Foraging

Feeding Chickens on the Cheap from Attainable Sustainable

Starting Your Own Meal Worm Farm – Your Chickens Will Thank You! from Lil' Suburban Homestead

How Much Food Does a Chicken Need to Eat? from Timber Creek Farm

DIY Grazing Boxes from Attainable Sustainable

Chickenpalooza! An Awesome List of Homestead Chicken Resources - Recommended books, equipment and links to over 60 homestead chicken posts on the web covering everything from chicks to chicken diapers.

Chicken Health and Wellness

Bird Flu Busters – 5 Strategies for a Healthier Flock

Non-invasive Bumblefoot Treatment: Success Stories from One Acre Farm

Wood ash and DE, the dust bathing dream team from Murano Chicken Farm

How to Rid your Chicken Coop of Flies from Imaginacres

Help! My Chickens are Molting from Timber Creek Farm

Clipping Chicken Nails from Murano Chicken Farm

Chicken Diapers from Murano Chicken Farm

Chicken Saddles from Murano chicken Farm

Recommended books, equipment and links to over 60 homestead chicken posts on the web covering everything from chicks to chicken diapers.

Meat Chickens

Meat Chickens – Best Breeds, Care, and Troubleshooting Tips from Common Sense Home

Raising Meat Chickens: Caring for Chicks from The Toups Address

Processing Chickens for Meat

Pastured Chicken at The Elliott Homestead

Chickenpalooza! An Awesome List of Homestead Chicken Resources - Recommended books, equipment and links to over 60 homestead chicken posts on the web covering everything from chicks to chicken diapers.

General Chicken Care, Tips and Ideas

Top 7 Tips for First time Chicken Owners from Common Sense Home

How to Raise Chickens Cheaply – Small Budget? No problem. from Common Sense Home

How I Trained My Chickens from The Coastal Homestead

How to Train Chickens to Come When Called from One Acre Farm

Backyard Chickens 101 – Questions to Ask Yourself Before Jumping In! from Ever Growing Farm

5 Things You Shouldn’t Admit After Buying Chickens from Urban Overalls

5 Ways to Put Your Chickens to Work For You from Attainable Sustainable

Introducing New Chickens to the Flock from Montana Homesteader

The Pros and Cons of Raising Chickens in the City from Imagineacres

9 Reasons to Raise Chickens from The Flip Flop Barnyard

10 Things About Raising Chickens You Won’t Read in Books from Imaginacres

Chicken Husbandry by Zac's Garden

Of Mice and Hen from Urban Overalls

And finally, a word of warning about the dangers of backyard chickens. 😉

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10 Comments

  1. Terri Hi Me Jeff,like your chickens,they had another women Washington,back woods Like grow new crops good for ground,Deer all over,grow hunt eat,Want,Like.Jeff Schwersinske

  2. Great site. Thanks! Does anyone know of a rooster breed that doesn’t crow much? (If there is such a thing?) We loved our rooster but had to get rid of him because we were afraid the neighbors would get upset. We’ve had white leg horns and buffs.
    Thanks,
    Joe

  3. I just had someone the other day say, “I need a good blog post on getting started with chickens and all the things you can do with them.” I think this will certainly be thorough enough for her!

  4. This has to be one of the most inclusive chicken posts ever put together! Wonderful job on this. And thank you for including my book with the other very well known and loved books.

    1. You’re welcome, and thank you for contributing posts and a copy of your book to review. I think the other books mentioned are great, but certain things can seem overwhelming for someone who just wants a small backyard flock, at least until you’ve been working with the birds a little more.