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Countryside Magazine Contributor
Articles by Countryside Magazine Contributor
In Old Small Farm Tractors, Lubrication is Key
By Dave Boyt – Call me sentimental, but I have a soft spot for old small farm tractors and here’s why. Just a couple of weeks ago, my wife, Becky, surveyed …
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Homesteading For A Living
By Kenny Coogan “Our original goal was to produce as much of our own food as possible,” Landis Spickerman, 53, of High Bridge, Wisconsin, says. She and her husband Steven, 56, began living …
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Designing Your Ideal Homesteading Land
By Ken Wilson – Homesteading land is neither a farm nor a rural residence; therefore, it presents design challenges that are different from the others. A rural residence is basically nothing more …
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Cattle Handling 101: Play it Safe
By Heather Smith Thomas – Most accidents with cattle handling occur when people don’t understand cattle behavior and are in the wrong place at the wrong time, or may be …
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Raising Sheep for Meat – Flavor-Based Success
By Alan Harman – Raising sheep for meat that are from the “land of fire and ice,” Barb Gunness’ flock of Icelandic sheep are right at home close to the …
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Building Planter Boxes for Strawberries
By Sue Robishaw – It wasn’t that the old chicken wire covers we’d constructed five years ago didn’t work, they did. I had an idea for building planter boxes that …
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A Complete Guide to How to Compost at Home
By Frederick C. Michel, Jr., Joe E. Heimlich, & Harry A. J. Hoitink – If you are interested in learning how to compost at home, here is some helpful advice. Mow …
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Know The Importance Of Basic Wilderness Survival Gear
By Jim Cobb, Wisconsin This is the time of year when families begin planning summer vacations. Quite often, those trips involve spending some quality time out in the forests and …
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Barking is the Language of Dogs
By Brenda M. Negri – Barking is a language for all dogs, and livestock guardian dog (LGD) breeds are no exception. In fact, barking is an integral part of what LGDs do. It’s …
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Pack Conflicts: Causes and Solutions
By Brenda M. Negri, Cinco Deseos Ranch LGD’s – Running a very large (20+) pack of livestock guardian dDogs (LGD) for several years now, I’ve observed and learned what can cause conflict …
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LGD Pack Size Affects Success
By Brenda M. Negri, Cinco Deseos Ranch – When it comes to efficient predator control and livestock protection using livestock guardian dogs (LGDs), real success usually comes from running the right …
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Preventing Unwarranted Aggression in Livestock Guardian Dogs
By Mary Jane Oelke For many years I kept registered French Alpine milk goats and along with this endeavor, I acquired a Great Pyrenees livestock guard dog. One of my …
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Protect Your Poultry With Livestock Guardian Dogs
By Brenda M. Negri, Cinco Deseos Ranch LGDS – Free-ranging poultry is all the rage these days as cage-free eggs from “happier, healthier hens” bring premium market value and health benefits for the …
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Working Like A Dog
By Kenny Coogan For hundreds of years, dogs have worked with humans in mutually beneficial relationships. Historically and presently, dogs help us hunt, protect our homes, kill vermin and help us …
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Removing Porcupine Quills From Cattle
By Heather Smith Thomas — Removing porcupine quills from pets, cattle, and other livestock is an unpleasant task for everyone involved. The porcupine is a peaceful, timid rodent whose unique method …
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