Farmer is the main producer of food. Until recently, farmers were perhaps the main producers of clothing as well. They grew cotton, sheep to cut their wool, animals to use their skin for shoes and clothes. Recently, this agricultural sector has narrowed significantly, as humanity has learned to produce clothes and shoes from synthetic materials, but the food is still produced by farmers.
Agriculture may well be the second oldest profession. The main and key factor in progress is laziness. It makes the brain work and comes up with all sorts of relief for itself.
All this is called machinery and technology, mechanization and automation, although the first mechanisms that replaced human labor were horses, oxen, donkeys, and camels.
The second engine of progress, of course, is the benefit. Each of us wants to get a higher benefit from our work, and this is possible if we work not only with our hands but primarily with our heads.
That’s why we offer you 10 books, that will help you step in this industry and make it easier for you to choose the right direction.
Raising Dairy Cattle for Beginners: A Simple Guide to Dairy Cattle for Milk & Eventually Meat
This particular book has many good reviews from the readers. The books give you an overview of the main subjects about dairy farming.
First, the author starts with the natural foundation- the land on which the farm will be built and run on. Next, the author goes into the actual types of farming that must be done daily.
The book mainly describes how to take care of cattle. There are also tips for selling the cattle and butchering section as well. The book is a full guide for the beginning farmers, everything you need to know, including merchandise, meat industry, seasonal advantages, etc.
The book is written in a basic language type; everyone can understand it. That’s what makes it easier for beginner farmers to work on.
Some of the readers are not satisfied due to the content of the book. They say that it is written in a too childish language and complain about spellings in-between.
The book is written for beginners and the style it is written in is chosen accordingly. If you already have experience in farming and are looking for some serious pieces of advice, bear in mind, that this book is not for you. If you want something a little easier to digest, read our article on dairy and beef cattle care.
The Self-Sufficient Life and How to Live It
This is a book that teaches you to obtain skills needed for land harnessing, raising crops, keeping livestock, making beer, wine, basketry, carpentry, weaving, and much more. The book gives you the basics of everything in the field of farming: from Beehives to livestock, grains butter production and butchery.
The illustrations are very detailed, which benefits the understating of the subject. You can easily understand the content just by analyzing the pictures. The information given in this book is very helpful for the beginners – it is just a foundation, that gets you to know the daily struggles of farmers, benefits of farming and helpful tips for the beginners.
The author also speaks about the philosophy of farming itself, what are the advantages of this culture and how can it benefit usual people, who are not familiar with the concept. The book provides helpful tips for people, who want to go self-sufficient or are just interested in basic gardening or mild farming.
Since the main target audience of the book is mostly beginner farmers, the content is not filled with deep information about farming details. The illustrations also may seem childish, due to the fact that they serve a purpose to help us better understand the content.
If you are looking for detailed information and content full of specific farming details, then this book is not for you!
Barnyard in Your Backyard
This is a great book for people who just moved somewhere with a little land and want to build a farm with some animals in it. The book tells everything you need to know about farm animals, from cows, sheep, and pigs to chicken, rabbits, and ducks.
It gives clear information about the demands of each animal, how much do they eat, how much space do they take, how much does a person need financially to keep them in a good shape. The author gives a detailed overview of the farm animals.
The book is written in a simple language, but not as simple as the previous ones. Even though the author explains everything from the beginning (without assuming that the reader already knows the basic stuff), the language is not simplistic.
One of the disadvantages of this book is, that it does not cover pig sections. Even though pigs are one of the most common species of the livestock, the author decided not to touch this subject, due to the fact, that it is too big and needs a detailed explanation about everything.
Aside from that fact, the book gives deep knowledge of farming livestock and will give you the idea of what you can handle or which kind of farm animals you want to obtain.
If you are looking for something a little easier to sink your teeth into. Here is our article on how to best raise poultry.
Storey’s Guide to Raising Pigs, 3rd Edition: Care, Facilities, Management, Breeds
This book gives you a summary of almost every aspect of raising hogs. It is written in a simple language and is meant for the beginners, who just stepped in the pig industry.
The consistent use of relevant terminology is very helpful for the beginners, since they don’t know their meanings yet and will remember them by the time they finish the book.
The book is written from the small-scale family farm side of the situation, therefore the book is nor relevant for the readers, who want to build up a big warehouse. The book concentrates on what is best for pigs, how to maintain their health and other problems related to them.
The author mostly starts his opinion, writes about his views and methods. This book is more of a story told by a farmer and not a professional guide to the pig farming industry.
Nevertheless, it is great for the beginners to get to know the concept of raising pigs and what needs to be done to maintain a small pig farm
Farmer’s Hand Book on Pig Production (For the small holders at village level)
The book gives you information about different kind of pig breeds, how to take care of them and what kind of problems can their health have. The book concentrates more on graphic content and gives common information about pigs as domestic animals.
The content is not deep and it is full of bullet points, but contains necessary information a beginner has to know before he decides to build a big farm.
The book is written in simple language; everyone can understand the content (this is also guaranteed by given illustrations on every subject.) The book can be called childish and simplistic, but it certainly is informative.
The online version of the following book is free and everybody can download it on the following link.
ABC of Poultry Raising: A Complete Guide for the Beginner or Expert
This book is a guide for beginners about poultry, how to take care of chicken and what are the main problems in this field.
The part about the necessary information, like where to get supplies, ready-to-play pullets, and similar information start straight from chapter 2. The books cover ABC information about pullets and are perfect for the beginners.
The book is one of the most thorough ones when it comes to plans for chicken coops and feeders. Furthermore, the author includes financial information about this matter as well.
There are plans for nesting boxes, homemade mash feeder, range shelter, feed bin, and a range feeder as well. The book also coves butchering, preserving eggs and surplus chicken meat and even has a health section with illustrations.
The health section covers the few most common chicken ailments for the time. The book has several pictures of proper equipment, homemade brooders, and batter pens.
The book does no cover all the breeds of chickens. It is mostly written for beginners, so it does not cover detail aspects of poultry farming.
The book describes the business side of poultry and if a reader wants to have a small farm with the beloved animals, this book is not recommended. It had violent sections about butchering and describes only the profitable side of poultry farming.
Storey’s Guide to Raising Chickens, 4th Edition: Breed Selection, Facilities, Feeding, Health Care, Managing Layers & Meat Birds
This particular book is easy to read and easier to understand. The language the author uses is simplistic and engaging. Furthermore, it has beautiful and colorful illustrations.
The book is good for the beginners; it will help you to understand the poultry farming industry well. The book is also perfect if you are considering getting into raising chicken or just want to know more about the species.
The book is fine to read, there are no difficult terminologies and the author talks about the gained experience as if it was a story. It is a bundle of knowledge on raising your own poultry – everything you need to know is included.
The book is a poultry milestone for developing self-experience in raising any kind of poultry. “Whether you are raising a few backyard chickens or a flock of 100, this is the book you need to keep your birds healthy and safe.
With the most up-to-date information on shelter, food, eggs, chicks, health care, and meat, this time-tested authority can help beginners and seasoned pros alike find success with a flock.”
Bear in mind, that the book only provides useful information for the beginners. With simple illustrations and simplistic language, it is a perfect guide for someone who is just stepping in the industry. If you are already familiar with the market and want to deepen your knowledge, this book is not for you.
Living with Sheep: Everything You Need to Know to Raise Your Own Flock
The book covers all the fundamentals of raising sheep including fencing, handling, health care, births, and slaughter. The content is easy to read a synopsis of what needs to be done and when.
The book clearly shows that you don’t have to slaughter your own animals to be a farmer or rancher or put up your own fences. The author clearly states his point of view regarding raising sheep – free-range, grass-fed, and minimally medicated. The book has eleven chapters plus appendices and most of the topics are covering information, that a prospective sheep owner would want to find.
The language book is written is also unique, it contains strongly New England (Vermont) perspectives. This can be both an advantage and a disadvantage of the book, depending on the reader himself. The book also contains various high-quality pictures of sheep. Different breeds of sheep are discussed as well.
A twelfth chapter is solely devoted to sheep breeds suitable for terrains, climates, shelter requirements, parasites, and pasturing styles found elsewhere in North America.
The high-quality pictures of different breeds are also provided in the chapter. The description of the book itself states: “As one of the most popular and beloved farm animals, sheep provide owners with myriad goods from soft wool to fine meat, and, of course, companionship.
Living with Sheep contains a wealth of knowledge about raising and caring for a flock of sheep and is written for the would-be farmer, experienced shepherd, and those who simply love the animals and the outdoors.
This complete guide covers everything from choosing and acquiring your own flock to feeding and providing shelter, preventing illness and treating it if it occurs, handling the breeding and lambing process, gathering wool, so and much more.”
As a conclusion, this book is not only good for a novice, who is preparing to raise his own flock but is a highly readable, entertaining overview of the essentials of raising sheep and harvesting their wool and meat, written with a lot of heart.
It also needs to be noted, that since the book is meant for beginners in this industry, there are no deep discussions about serious problems in the field of sheep farming. If you need deep knowledge about this field, then this book is not for you!
Sheep: Small Scale Sheep Keeping (Hobby Farm)
This book is a perfect guide for people, who are a complete novice on raising sheep. The author (Sue Weaver) writes in a wonderfully down-to-earth and very easy to understand style.
She covers pretty much every aspect of sheep industry that you need to know, before stepping into the market, including choosing the right sheep breed for your needs, sheep disposition & behavior, sheep housing, nutritional needs, shearing & selling fleece, hoof trimming, delivering lambs, common sheep diseases and even several ways to vaccinate your sheep.
The book also has many pictures of sheep, how different breeds look like, how to distinguish them, etc. The most important part is, that there are lots of photos showing how the procedures, such as vaccinations, for example, are done correctly.
This helps the visualization of the process and makes it easy to repeat live. Also, this book sports an excellent resource directory. The directory includes an online directory, and my favorite the book and periodical guide to all sheep.
The book is aimed mostly on the American market, but it still gives good advice about sheep in general and a lot can be learned from it, regardless of the place you live in.
This book is great for beginners and people who are just interested in the sheep industry in general. But if you already have experience working with other livestock or have farming as your hobby, this book is not for you.
The book gives general knowledge and is a good navigator, but if you are searching for something deep, you should look for more advanced books.
The Backyard Goat: An Introductory Guide to Keeping and Enjoying Pet Goats, from Feeding and Housing to Making Your Own Cheese
This one of the best books for beginners when it comes to goats. It includes everything, starting from different breeds, to the food they eat. It has different types of information, including goat training, such as doing tricks of work on a farmland.
The book describes goats, not as a mere livestock object, but one of the domestic animals, who is fun to be around with. There are several chapters on milking them as well.
For complete newbies, this is a great introduction to the goat industry and has enough details, that could carry you through owning goats for several years. Even if you want a pet of you’re looking to get into breeding goats, this book is for you.
Once again, the book is meant for beginners and doesn’t have any advanced information about the goat industry.