Household animals

Household animals may not be what everyone expects from a book about how to garden. But for your land to become similar to nature’s ecosystem, animals must be allowed to do their part.

To give some inspiration along the way, I have made a brief compilation of the most common household animals when it comes to self-sufficiency.

Household animals are vital since they are useful in many different ways; such as processing the land they walk on, providing fertilizer to our cultivations, and providing food of various sorts. At the same time, animals give us love and warmth when we spend time with them in their daily care.

Animals require both responsibility, respect, and effort, but they provide plenty in return. So before you acquire your animals, you need to know what the different kinds need and how well they suit what you can offer.

If you are a beginner, it is good to start with small, relatively easy to care for animals. That’s why many people start with chickens. Another relatively easy animal is ducks, but they must have their duck pond. The next step is often a few sheep – larger and requires a little more of everything. Then maybe it’s time for a household pig and then finally the big step – cows. They are probably the most demanding of all our domestic animals, especially if the family wants milk.

Here in Sweden, we have the Swedish Board of Agriculture that requires that the animals are looked after twice a day. Remember to check your country’s laws.

Chickens as the first animal

Chickens are, as previously stated, often the first animal many people get. They are durable, productive, relatively easy to handle, and require proportionally little…