Your guide to keeping chickens, turkeys, and ducks—from choosing a coop that will protect from predators to marketing eggs and so much in between!

This is a comprehensive and beautiful guide for anyone raising chickens, ducks, or turkeys. Written in charming prose from the perspective of an organic farmer, Jennifer Megyesi discusses all the basic details of raising the birds—general biology, health, food, choosing breeds, and so on—and she cuts through the smoke to identify what terms like "organic," "free‑range," and so on really mean for poultry farmers and consumers. Topics include:


   Housing chickens, turkeys, and ducks
   Feeding your poultry
   Keeping poultry for eggs
   Keeping poultry for meat
   Common illnesses and diseases
   And more!


No poultry book would be complete without information on how to show chickens and other fowl for prizes, and this is no different, but The Joy of Keeping Chickens, Ducks, and Turkeys also stresses the importance of self‑sustainability and organic living, and the satisfaction of keeping heirloom breeds. Readers will appreciate the comprehensive nature of this readable, informative guide, and Megyesi's enthusiasm about keeping domestic fowl. Coupled with Geoff Hansen's gorgeous full‑color photographs, this text makes for an instant classic in the category.

Photographer(s): Geoff Hansen