Dr. Joseph Schallberger of Whispering Hills Farm has a goal to stabilize the population of the “Native” Dual purpose Polled Shorthorns and then use their skills as stock persons and Veterinarians to upgrade both the genotypic and phenotypic characteristics that once made Shorthorns the most popular cattle breed in the world.  Through a lot of historical research he has been able to develop a firm grasp on what those characteristics were.  With the interest in more "natural" food production he believes Heritage Shorthorns are uniquely qualified to contribute to this positive trend. HeritageBreeds.org & whisperinghillsfarm.com

It’s an important week in the animal world as we celebrate National Heritage Breeds Week and discuss why it’s so important for more people to get involved with protecting these heritage breeds from extinction.

National Heritage Breeds Week is time to raise awareness, get the media involved, launch press releases, write magazine articles, have farmers hold educational events, get the school kids involved. All with the mission of coming together for breed conservation. Visit HeritageBreeds.org

Megan Ritterpusch from Spotted Meadows Farm shares the story of moving from suburbia Pennsylvania to a small, fixer upper farm in rural, northwestern Wisconsin in 2002. The family enjoys the adventure of having a small farm, raising and showing ducks, goats, and horses. Today’s conversation focuses on the joy they receive by raising Welsh Harlequin Ducks. www.HeritageBreeds.org

LaDonna Foley lives in Wyoming on her family farm and she has been raising Welsh Harlequin ducks since 2005. She also volunteers with several livestock and poultry organizations in addition to 4-H, the county fair, and local farmer's markets. And I love this part, Her teenage children never complain of boredom since LaDonna can always find projects in need of free family labor.

Today’s show is a recap of our adventures at the Mother Earth News Fair last weekend in Asheville, NC. We were blessed with a sunny, warm weekend and over 20,000 folks from around the US coming to enjoy learning how to live a greener lifestyle.

First I’d like to thank everyone who stopped by the Livestock Conservancy’s booth and our 27’ Mobile Podcasting & Conservation Studio and to all the heritage farmers, breeders and product producers that were exhibiting. www.HeritageBreeds.org

Join us the Livestock Conservancy crew at the Mother Earth News Fair in Asheville, NC this weekend. April 11th and 12th.

Now if you are not familiar. MOTHER EARTH NEWS magazine has been helping folks live self-reliant, sustainable, meaningful lives for more than 40 years. With an audience of more than 3 million readers worldwide, it is the largest and longest-running environmental lifestyle magazine on the planet.

MOTHER EARTH NEWS FAIRS are fun-filled, family-oriented sustainable lifestyle events that feature dozens of practical, hands-on demonstrations and workshops from the leading authorities on: Renewable Energy, Small-Scale Agriculture, Gardening, Green Building, Green Transportation and Natural Health.

Stop by The Livestock Conservancy’s stage or 27’ Mobile Podcasting & Conservation Studio to learn more about Heritage Breeds. www.HeritageBreeds.org

S.T.E.M. Bunnies is a program was dreamt up by a nine year old named Caleb Smith to help save endangered heritage breeds and to prevent abandoned rabbits after Easter impulse-buying.  This vision turned into a huge educational opportunity for families and schools now the STEM curriculum is also available when you check out a rabbit. https://www.facebook.com/stembunnies

Emily Chetkowski founder of the Villi Poni Sanctuary is on a mission to protect this amazing breed from extinction. Not long ago, thousands of  Newfoundland Ponies were slaughtered for meat, nearly to extinction. Today only about 350 remain in existence. 30 of those reside in the USA, 7 a  the Villi Poni sanctuary.

Agnew Hopkins and his 3 siblings are the 6th generation to live and work on the Hopkins Farm. The farm was established in 1834 and thrives today as a horticultural jewel and conservation farm for domestic and wild animals alike. After working for more than 30 years within the hospitality industry, Agnew decided to return to the farm and create a thriving sustainable poultry operation that worked to conserve diminishing populations of heritage poultry. Discover more at HeritageBreeds.org

Farmstead Meatsmith is a personal abattoir, butchery and charcuterie services for small farms and homesteads in the Puget Sound region. The owner Brandon Sheard and his wife Lauren offer hands-on classes in traditional and heritage breed livestock harvesting from slaughter and butchery to charcuterie and cooking. Their focus is to ensure that no part of the animal is wasted. Their small, family-run business also sells films, e-chapters, booklets, and other instructional tools on the art of homestead harvesting. www.HeritageBreeds.org

Elizabeth Schnebel watched her parents and grandparents farm and for the last 30 years has been farming heritage breed livestock herself. On her farm she has Oberhasli goats under the herd name SWISS*DREAMS, and the Shire, Mediterranean Miniature Donkey, a few chickens such as the Aracauna, the Dominique, Rhode Island Reds and the Transylvanian Naked Neck. Discover more at www.HeritageBreeds.org

Today’s conversation is with Polly Festa, Livestock manager at the Accokeek Foundation. This foundation was formed more than 50 years ago and is the steward of 200 acres on the shore of the Potomac River in MD. Now there are many facets to the foundation, but today episode is focusing on their Heritage Livestock.

Deborah packed up her family and feft Chicago to live the dream of being a self-sufficient farmer. Today Deborah Niemann is a homesteader, writer, speaker, workshop leader, and self-sufficiency expert. Back 2002, she relocated her family from the suburbs of Chicago to a 32-acre parcel on a creek “in the middle of nowhere.” Together, they built their own home and began growing the majority of their food. Sheep, pigs, cattle, goats, chickens, and turkeys supply meat, eggs, and dairy products, while an organic garden and orchard provides fruit and vegetables. Deborah is also the author of Homegrown & Handmade, Ecothrifty and Raising Goats Naturally; The Complete Guide to Milk, Meat and more.

Bought and paid for a bull, but came home with a cow. Hear the story first hand from
Pineywoods Cattle farmer Ken Jobe from Longwood Creek Farm located in Roberta, GA. Ken is new to farming and part of the movement in this country to return to the land. He is also a proud member of the Pineywoods Cattle Registry & Breeders Association.

Discover more about the Clun Forest Sheep with Alan Zuschlag from Touchstone Farm, the nation’s first Certified Humane sheep operation. I love the quote he gave CNN during an interview, “Small farms are better for the consumers, better for the animals, better for everyone.”Today we are going to learn more about the Clun Forest Sheep Alan raises.

We are so excited to announce that our own Jeannette Beranger, the Livestock Conservancy’s Research and Technical Programs Manager  has been named one of the top 45 amazing women in farming by Country Woman magazine. This is such an incredible honor and we’re glad Jeannette is being recognized for the work she does in saving nearly 200 breeds of livestock and poultry from extinction.

Country Woman Magazine wanted to celebrate their 45th anniversary by featuring 45 incredible and inspiring women who embrace and celebrate the country way of life.

Today I’m talking with Lisa Steele from Fresh Eggs Daily. And let me tell you this lady knows her poultry. Not only does she provide advice to over 410,000 Facebook followers, but her blog was named Top 10 Gardening Blogs for 2014 by the Better Homes & Gardens magazine. Lisa’s blog focuses on providing you with tips and resources for raising backyard chickens and ducks as naturally as possible. Plus, she writes about gardening, DIY crafts, and of course cooking and baking with fresh eggs.

Today’s conversation we are focusing on Lisa’s joys of raising Critically Endangered Magpie Ducks.

This episode is covering an emotional topic. Is there such a thing as a humane butchering day?

I never thought so until I read Misty’s blog post last week. It brought tears to my eyes, hurt my heart, but gave me a new and very different perspective on butchering day. I don’t know about you, but I have a tough time even thinking about the concept. I know, I know it’s all part of the food chain and putting food on our tables.

Leading the discussion is Misty Langdon from Our Green Acre Farm. She is the owner of Our Green Acre in Newton County, Arkansas. She has earned the Animal Welfare Approved certification, as well as "Newton County Farm Woman of the Year." These two awards were earned as a result of Langdon's dedication to sustainable agriculture. Discover more at: http://ourgreenacre.com

Today’s guest is John Metzer from Metzer Farms in Gonzales, CA. They are a family owned and operated farm producing the finest ducklings and goslings since 1978.

In fact their birds have been shipped to every state in the nation and other countries such as Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Thailand, Greece, Korea, and the list goes on. Visit HeritageBreeds.org