In the past the house was made in big size with 50 small rooms called Betang-betang, known as Dayak Long House. Today this houses are very rare, and can only found at Northern area, near the source of the river and at the area of Ot Danum Dayak Villages. Today the houses are more smaller which is home for on senior family plus their junior families which some times consist to 5 families. The main source of life of the Dayak is traditional farming on dry land. They clear and burn the forest and plant their main farming. Clearing a forest in traditional way indeed a hard job. To overcome this heavy job the Dayak develops co-operation among neighbors or relative member who got assistance, naturally assist their neighbor who have assisted them before. During the month of May, June and July they cut the trees of the forest, and burn it on September. October the plant rice. The way and technique is still very simple. The men will form a row at the front walking ahead while making holes by their single wooden pole, and women with seeds at behind putting the seed in every hole. Starting from plantation until harvest they stay at the farm to watch the rice and prevent the wild animals such as monkeys, pigs, and deer to damage the plant. During the growing the responsibility will be at every family, although during preparation of land until planting is the work of co-operation. To protect the farming from wild animal they also put trap made of bamboo with very sharp pole. The pole is connected with a long rope, and if the rope is stepped the sharp pole will glite like a bow to the direction of rope. It is often that the sharp bamboo is given a poisson, so it is actually very dangerous to human being also. They have 3 types of rice, a type that yield after 6 months, 4 month and rice called "Ketan" for ceremony.
Beside rice they also grow cassava, yam, taro, chili, durian, melon and areca. When the land is not fertile any more it is planted with rubber tree before it is lef to open a new forest. It is interesting to find that to open a new spot of land the people will see a good indication from bird and other nature's omens. If this procedure is not followed they believed that famine would unavoidable. As the source of protein they catch fish and some times catching wild pig or deer, as their hunting tool is not develop.