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Hi there!
My wife and I just got 10 ducks about 6 weeks ago, its our first time with this sort of thing and our situation is really similar to yours. We have two large dogs, a garden, and 0.25 acres.

People warned us how messy the ducks are, but they're actually not bad at all. When they were inside growing up we kept them in a pool and used an old puppy pen to surround it so they couldn't get out. When it came time to clean out their pool each day we used an old dust pan to scoop out all the gross pine shavings into a trash bag. We also used a large backing tray and wire rack so we could lift their water and food off their shavings, to try and keep everything a little drier. It took us maybe 10 minutes each day and was super easy. We kept them in the garage and the smell wasn't bad.

We moved ours outside at 3 weeks old. They'd grown up a bit and we ran an extension cord out to their house and pen, that way we could still keep their brooder out there. They free range during the day and walk themselves into their house at dark, each night just after sunset we close them up. We've also removed the brooder now since they're bigger.

I would highly suggest you buy a book, I'll go ahead and link one below for you. It's the most popular one and I found it SUPER helpful. I'd been researching online and such, but the book was by far the most helpful. I'll also go ahead and link you the other equipment we got, some of it has made a HUGE difference in keeping our yard tidy and water free. Its been great.

The Book. I highly suggest this. The guy who wrote it is considered the leading authority on ducks. He is the duck superhero. Get the paper copy though, I had thought about audible and I'm glad I didn't go that route.

Our feeder. We started using this feeder when we moved them outside. At 3 weeks old our breed was big enough to use it and its cut down on a lot of waste and hassle. We bring it in each night and have only needed this one unit to feed all 10 of our ducks. We refill it maybe once a week or so.

The Baking Tray Pretty self explanatory, but just in case... We got ours used for free.

Our Waterer Man oh man, has this thing been a game changer. Its expensive, but its great. We have almost zero mess and the water stays full and relatively clean at all times. We turn it on in the morning and off at night, and that's it. Every 3-4 days I also move its position so the duck's feet don't overly trample the grass around it. I highly highly suggest this. That being said, be prepared to mess with it a little when first setting it up to ensure its working properly and not leaking. Once its good though, its great.

Lastly, our brooder We went with this because they're much safer and cheaper to operate than the lamps. Its also much easier, all you have to do is move it up a notch each week. It was also great to put outside so we could get the ducks out there at 3 weeks. I'm really happy with it, and we used just 1 for all 10 ducks. More than that and I think we'd need a 2nd though...


To answer some of your questions directly. To get everything setup we spent about $1000 initially. This includes the cost of all equipment, the ducks, and the mansion we built them. My wife jokes she thinks about kicking me out to the duck house, its big. It took the majority of our costs, even though I built it myself. Keep this in mind. Also, in addition to the house costs we purchased an electric fence and solar charger. Total that cost us about $200, but we're really happy with the purchase. I've moved the ducks to a different part of grass just once now and its nice to be able to do this. I'll continue to rotate them so my grass can recover and stay nice. Regarding monthly costs, we spend about $75 per month on feed, fresh bedding, and diatomaceous earth. Pro tip: mix a little diatomaceous earth in with their bedding to reduce the change of molds, bacteria, bugs, and smell. Get the food grade stuff only though. We've not seen an increase in water usage or power, at least with the setup we're using. They also do not need a heated coop during winter, or at least in my area. The winters get down to about 15-20 degrees here and I'm confident they'll be fine. We'll over-stuff their house with extra bedding though, they're quite hardy birds. More importantly than heated / insulated coops though, is an extremely well ventilated on. They're wet birds and are prone to respiratory issues if left with poor ventilation.

Cons: I haven't experienced any yet. They're awesome.
Pros: Webbed feet are soft on plants and grass. They can be larger birds and therefore more predator resistant. Their eggs are healthier than chicken eggs, their meat is very tasty too. They're super funny and entertaining. The neighbors seem to enjoy them more than chickens. Their quacks are fun. On and on we can go...

Good luck and feel free to PM me if you have any other questions or thoughts. I'm happy to help where I can. I'd also suggest you get more than 3-4, how about 5?

It really depends on what kind of mushrooms you'd like to grow; I wouldn't suggest the white mushrooms you see at stores to grow first; they have some pretty specific requirements to grow that makes it difficult for the home cultivator. Shiitake are really simple to grow; get some oak logs with holes drilled in them, shove some spore plugs in it, and bam, in about a year's worth of time you'll have shiitake mushrooms and they will keep coming back for many years. (With more and more every year)

Also some mushroom tips:

• Keep everything spotless and disinfected while working. Whether you go with store bought or spores cross-contamination is a serious problem with mushrooms. As in, if you don't sterilize you will not have mushrooms. You'll have random mold and... stuff.
  
  
• Bleach and bleach wipes are your friends
  
  
• Sterilize EVERYTHING (Especially soil and growing mediums)
  
  
• keep your hands washed and ultra clean
  
  
• Keep hair tied back, latex gloves, and even a face mask to prevent your nasty mouth germs from getting on your shrooms
  
  Generally it's a good idea to watch videos and search for the kind of mushroom you want to grow; Paul Stamet's Growing Gourmet and Medicinal Mushrooms is an awesome resource as well. You can also find a (not sure about the legality) free PDF version if you just search for it + pdf. It contains general growing information as well as specific cultivation tips of almost every mushroom you could want to grow.
  
  
  But anyway, here's some things to consider:
  
  Mushroom spores:
  
  
• Wider variety of different kinds of fungi to choose from
  
  
• Tends to be pretty expensive, but it's usually a one time investment if you're good at the mushroom growing
  
  
• Some companies are super nice and will send you cultivation instructions/hints which you might not find
  
  Mushrooms from Stores:
  
  
• Small selection, usually limited to portobello, shiitake, oyster, and chantarelles (white mushrooms are reeeaaallly difficult to grow from what I've read; I've never tried to grow them)
  
  
• I find you have a higher chance of cross-contamination with store-bought mushrooms.
  
  
• Much much cheaper than spores.
  
  
• It can be pretty difficult to get spore-prints and keep them sanitary.
  
  
• Best variety for growing from store-bought mushrooms is oysters. You can find lots of youtube tutorials on choosing which ones to get to start your mushrooms to the best growing medium, etc. etc.
  
  Hope this helps!
  

Full disclosure, my wife is the rabbit boss. She started some years back with fancy breeds (like English lops, Mini Lops, English Angora...) but gradually moved away from that. She now raises a commercial breed exclusively; I'm just the hired help. I don't have much experience with raising chickens so I can't compare them for you, but rabbits are pretty easy (and they taste delicious). Jokes aside, they taste remarkably like chicken, but are a bit more versatile I think.

I asked her about online resources and she suggested a couple of these extension sites for some basic starter info:
Penn State Extension

and

MSU Rabbit Production

The Rabbit Talk forum is a decent place to learn and ask questions, she said.

The rabbit raising bible, however, is Storey's Guide to Raising Rabbits. It's an excellent book, though maybe only if you've already made the decision to start.

Being able to use the pelts for blankets and clothes is an added bonus.

Don't waste your time with a grinding wheel! Ah! There are sooo many better ways that are substantially easier and are much less harsh to the stove and to you. I would highly suggest just getting a large tub (rubbermade stuff) and putting any piece you can remove (top, legs, doors, etc) in it with a few gallons of white vinegar. Plain old vinegar does an amazing job on at removing rust. Literally eats it right off and doesn't hurt the metal. Even just using a mild acid like lemon juice or soda with some tin foil will be easier then a grinding wheel. Look up some rust removal videos on Chrome parts on youtube, same logic.

Check out this steel tank I cleaned up.

http://imgur.com/a/eb8Wv

Photos almost don't do it justice. The first photo I had already started cleaning it. I just let it soak for a couple hours and used the stainless steel dish scrub and the rust started coming right off. put the tank back in overnight and it came out as you see in the second photo. again, scrubbed it more and hit it with some baking soda to stop the acid reaction. cleaned it with a towel and dried it in the oven. 0 tools used. no grinding and the metal came out gleaming.

for anything that's to big to soak, can also use this:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00GRSOJSS/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

very safe and isn't harsh to work around. a grinding wheel will take you hours and is going to eat away a lot of good metal. it's also going to potentially ad brush marks. even if you paint over it, still might see them.

good luck!

edit: just wanted to mention, in the second photo, the bottom half of the tank was sitting in the vinegar over night. that's how clean it came out without evening touching it with a scrubber.

I try to keep it really simple so I don't screw it up:

-Boil a pot with all of your jars, weights (if using -- I do), and silicone rings to sanitize and set on dry paper towels, only handling with tongs, once sanitized

-Quarter and core your cabbage, then slice to desired thickness.

-Wash and drain ribbons (I use a salad spinner for this)

-Place in large bowl or whatever and toss thoroughly with 1 tablespoon of salt per head of cabbage and let sit for about 15 minutes.

-Place cabbage in jars, pressing down as you go so it is as compact as possible.

-Pour liquid from the bowl over the cabbage. It needs to be completely submerged. If your cabbage did not give off enough liquid, supplement with additional brine (I've seen different ratios, but I dissolve 1 tablespoon salt per cup of water and use what I need, after the solution has cooled)

-Seal your jars (here are the lids I used). If you're using mason jars, DO NOT USE THE REGULAR LIDS. The CO2 that fermentation creates will bust them in dramatic fashion.

-Set in a cool, dry space and leave them the hell alone. I give mine about 6 weeks in my 65* basement. If it's warmer it may be ready sooner, or you like it a bit more tart, give it some extra time.

That's pretty much it.

​

With the issue you have, my guess would be contact with oxygen, or some sort of contamination. I really can't recommend the lids enough. They take pretty much all of the guesswork out of it.

Good luck!

The absolute easiest oil to produce at home with absolute minimal effort is going to be sunflower oil. Sunflowers practically take care of themselves once you stake them, and can be grown in almost any climate zone and in abundance. Once they're done, chop the heads off before the birds get to them. Getting an oil press will net you all the cooking oil you could want for a year shy of needing large amounts for deep fat frying. About 1.5 Kg of seeds gets you about 1L of oil. Make sure you plant a high-oil variety, usually the stuff advertised as bird seed grade "Black Oil Sunflower seeds" is what you want.

The best part is, sunflower oil is pretty tasty in dressings, has a high smoke point, and is super relatively healthy for you as far as oils go.

Extra bonus: You will attract birds (good or bad thing) and you will attract pollinators like bees.

Look for a "smart" or "automatic" charger. Unlike the old single stage chargers, you can't overcharge your batteries. They can handle 6v or 12v, as well as different battery types like sla, glass mat, whatever.

Here's an example off amazon.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0797KK3N2

I picked one up from autozone (I think) on sale for about $20. Still running strong 5 years on.

Bonus unsolicited advice because hey, this is the internet. The best 12v deep cycle batteries I've found have been the Interstates from Costco. Wish I'd never heard of Optima.

Pitchforks have narrow tines for turning hay, what you are looking for is a garden fork (also called a spading fork). They are much shorter and have much thicker tines. Many brands offer them. I like the regular wooden handled ones because i can replace the handles. My wife likes her fiskars fiberglass one because it has a sorta built in step to dig with and the weight helps her dig, but i think it's too heavy.

https://www.amazon.com/Truper-30293-Spading-D-Handle-30-Inch/dp/B004T34A9G

Pretty much every garden center or hardware store will have them. They are also good for hand loosening soil before planting if you don't till.

Or get a bug light. A couple of these would work and not have any effect on chickens (other than them lining up underneath the lights for the free buffet).

Edited to add : If you don't mind planting things, lavender, marigolds, rosemary, basil and fragrant (scented) geraniums all deter mosquitoes as well, and are pretty. Plant them along the borders of where you spend your time and dot a few around in beds or hanging in pots on trees or something. It'll take a couple days (the smell needs to travel around a little), but it's fairly effective (YMMV, but growing things is fun anyways, so it can't hurt).

I love The Weekend Homesteader by Anna Hess, and all her other books as well.

She also has a blog about homesteading with her husband in the mountains of Virginia. She has tons of enthusiasm and writes about homesteading in a way that inspires, and she explains how to do things in a way that is thorough without being patronizing.

Good luck with your homestead!

>https://www.amazon.com/Victor-M382-Magnet-Gallon-2pack/dp/B00LOVKOUK/ref=sr\_1\_3?keywords=fly+magnet+1+gallon&qid=1570714289&s=lawn-garden&sr=1-3

Yes have those hanging up too, they do trap a lot but im dealing with some big numbers here. I need a nuclear option. There used to be a flying insect spray at dollar tree haven't seen it in years but wow it worked great, everything in the air died within ten feet instantly. Course you couldn't use it indoors or you'd cough for a few weeks after but hey it worked. Wish I could find that nowadays. But it worked so well they probably took it off the market.

Yup, listen to this guy OP.

To add some things;

Jerusalem artichoke, drought resistant pest resistant and most people won't know what they are. We do sweet grapes in the backyard and wine grapes and hops in the front. Neighborhood kids leave them alone but I don't know if you want to invest in plants that take years on leased land.

Do lots of herbs and trade for other stuff at the farmers market. I'd also do lots of onions, squash and other cellar items for winter storage or get a large supply of jars and some canning minions. If codes allow it use tires as raised beds and pallets for compost bin partitions. Bee boxes help everyone, could be moved later and I have yet to see ours disappear and we live in the ghetto.

I recommend reading this book for anyone growing anything anywhere...
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1890132527/ref=mp_s_a_1_2?qid=1394675515&sr=8-2&pi=SY200_QL40

Congrats on the move!

I recommend this book to help get you started. It gives you a lot of ideas that you can fine tune to get you going...

What is the build cost on this? With the cost of the motor, pulleys ($70 per video), fingers ($60 per video), wiring/electrical, and miscellaneous materials, you're probably approaching the price of [this](Yardbird Chicken Plucker https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01BI5D0MK/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_mePYzb3PHBBBY) which is listed for $425 on Amazon. And that thing is stainless steel (much easier to clean and sterilize, and we are talking about meat processing) and it's fully waterproofed (which is necessary, I know someone who got electrocuted using something like this that was not). It's a cool DIY and I give you props for that, but I'm wondering if it's actually cost effective in comparison.

Here are two books I consider essential references, both of which I would recommend to anyone:

Seed to Seed

Root cellaring

You need to preserve your seeds, and you need to preserve your harvests. Both are superb references for their respective topics.

What are the temps like there? You might be able to do winter gardening.

Just some link I found by googling for winter gardening. There are much better books on it like The Winter Harvest Handbook: Year Round Vegetable Production Using Deep-Organic Techniques and Unheated Greenhouses. You can get greenhouses in the US for like $500.

I used a couple "Fly magnet" fly traps around my property, and they filled up pretty quickly with dead flies, so they obviously work pretty well. There are ways to DIY with 2 liter soda bottles and whatnot, so the general theory is sound, but I was lazy so I opted for the store bought remedy.

They do smell a bit like a dumpster (which attracts the flies like crazy) so I wouldn't hang this on your patio or right outside your kitchen window.

https://www.amazon.com/Victor-M382-Magnet-Gallon-2pack/dp/B00LOVKOUK/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=fly+magnet+1+gallon&qid=1570714289&s=lawn-garden&sr=1-3

http://www.amazon.com/Back-Basics-Complete-Traditional-Edition/dp/1602392331

This book is amazing.