4 Small Farm Animals You Can Raise in Your Backyard

Why visit the farm when you can bring the farm to you? Turn your backyard into your own farm! Here are four small farm animals that you can raise in your yard.

Does the idea of owning a traditional pet bore you? Do you wish you could try your hand at something a little more interesting?

For you adventurous animal lovers who always wanted to try their hand at farming, there’s a way to ease into it to see if it’s for you! Instead of jumping right into filling a barn with cows and sheep, start slow with some easy farm animals!

Here are a few small farm animals you can raise in your backyard!

Chickens

Backyard chickens are an increasingly popular animal to own, and it’s no wonder why. Hens are easy to care for and are relatively quiet. Though they can be loud, adding a rooster to the mix can possibly yield you some chicks!

Chickens require a chicken coop, chicken feed, water, and some space to roam, but healthy hens will often reward you with fresh eggs! Choose the best chicken coops for your chickens to keep your chickens happy. If you’re feeling up for it, you can even harvest chicken meat or sell any young chickens your hens have produced!

Goats

If you’re feeling a little more adventurous, a small goat could be the perfect gateway to something a little larger and more challenging. Before you look into owning a cow, try raising a goat or two.

Some goat breeds produce milk daily and others grow wool that can be sold or turned into clothing! Besides this, visiting this site would be great if you have no idea of how goat teeth can help you discover it’s age.

Goats need some extra outdoor space to roam, so make sure you have an area fenced off before purchasing a goat. If larger goats are intimidating, Pygmy goats and Dwarf goats only grow to about half the size of normal goat breeds.

Rabbits

If you’re worried about neighbors filing noise complaints, it doesn’t get much quieter than rabbits. Rabbits are fairly inactive creatures that are content in small pens. You can receive all the benefits of having a cuddly pet without having to deal with occasionally chasing down a loose animal!

If you’re interested in breeding an animal, rabbits can produce an average of six kittens per litter. 

An additional benefit of owning rabbits is their manure. Often overlooked, it’s a great fertilizer that can help your flower and vegetable gardens. 

Since rabbits are often household pets, you can find everything you need to care for them in a pet store, as opposed to a farm supply store.

Bees

Bees are surprisingly low maintenance farm animals that almost take care of themselves. After the initial hive setup, bees will forage for their own food and only require a few monthly check-ins. You’ll have to occasionally clean the hives and equipment and make sure the bees have backup food just in case.

Beekeeping has many benefits including honey production and keeping the surrounding area pollinated. Your neighborhood gardeners will thank you!

Raising Small Farm Animals

Before you purchase any small farm animals, do thorough research to make sure you can handle raising it. The animal will need adequate space, food, water, and care.

For more information on pet care, check out our Savvy Pets section!