Using detailed, step-by-step photography to show every stage of the process, author Adam Danforth demonstrates exactly how to humanely slaughter and butcher chickens and other poultry, rabbits, sheep, pigs and goats. From creating the right pre-slaughter conditions to killing, skinning, keeping cold, breaking the meat down, and creating cuts of meat you'll recognize from the market, Danforth walks you through every step, leaving nothing to chance. He also covers food safety, freezing and packaging, and tools and equipment. This comprehensive reference is the only guide you need to successfully, safely, and humanely slaughter and butcher your own animals.

There’s a lot of advice out there on how to successfully raise farm animals, and as with any advice, some is better than others. To help ensure readers are receiving the best advice on raising farm animals, GRIT has compiled 100 pages of articles, written by livestock experts, into one simple, helpful guide. The second edition to Guide to Raising Farm Animals has more than 47 keys to finding the best animals for your homestead. It covers the best care for your livestock in heat and cold, how to protect your animals from predators, tips on rotational grazing, and much more.

Goats have provided humankind with essential products for centuries; indeed, they bear the noble distinction of being the first domesticated farm animal. From providing milk and meat for sustenance and fiber and hides for clothing and shelter to carrying packs and clearing brush, there isn’t much that goats cannot do. Managing goats successfully requires an understanding of how nature designed them to thrive, including nutritional and psychological needs, as well as how to identify a problem and intercede before it’s too late.

For more than a decade, Gianaclis Caldwell and her family have operated Pholia Farm Creamery, an off-grid, raw milk goat cheese dairy. In Holistic Goat Care, Caldwell offers readers a comprehensive guide to maintaining a healthy herd of goats, whether they are dairy goats, meat goats, fiber goats, or pet goats. Holistic Goat Care will empower even novice goat owners to confidently diagnose and treat most of the ailments that goats might experience. For the experienced goat farmer, the book offers a depth of insight and approaches to treatment not found in any other book. Caldwell places special emphasis throughout on holistic, natural, and alternative approaches to caring for goats, including information on:

• Handling and managing goats using their natural instincts as an asset
• Developing good farm management practices, such as appropriate housing and fencing systems and manure and mortality management
• Making feeding decisions based on understanding goats’ ruminant digestive system and their evolutionary needs
• Growing forage and garden crops as feed and utilizing wild browse
• Troubleshooting health problems based on assessing symptoms
• Implementing advanced health procedures such as pain control, fecal testing, and transplanting rumen microbes from healthy to sick goats
• Diagnosing, treating, and preventing more than 75 common goat ailments

Whether your herd is two or two hundred, this first-of-its-kind, comprehensive book will help you keep your goats healthy, safe, and productive, and give you a deep and enjoyable insight into the wondrous creature that is the goat.

Whether you’re looking for a farm-to-table solution that provides fresh meat and dairy products today, or a long-term plan that will feed you and your family after the collapse of civilization (or both!), this all-in-one preparedness guide is for you. It teaches sustainable animal husbandry skills that allow you to build and operate your own small-scale ranch anywhere from a backyard to a bug-out bunker.

This best-selling handbook is packed with detailed information on housing, feeding, and fencing dairy goats. It’s been the trusted resource on the topic for farmers and homesteaders since it was originally published in 1975, and the new edition — completely updated and redesigned — makes Storey’s Guide to Raising Dairy Goats more comprehensive and accessible than ever. In-depth sections explain every aspect of milking, including necessary equipment, proper hand-milking techniques, and handling and storing the milk. New color illustrations show each stage of kidding, and substantial chapters on dairy goat health and breeding include the most up-to-date research and practices.