One of the most common questions we get is about the animals on our farm: where they come from, how they’re raised, and what makes them special. The short answer? We know them well, we care for them deeply, and we raise them the way we believe animals should be raised.
Cattle
We’ve known our cattle since they were fuzzy, wide-eyed, knock-kneed calves…in fact, we started out by fostering orphan calves from my Dad’s farm! Then, when he decided to stop cattle-farming, we bought three of his nice cows to start a herd of our own. That herd has grown from three to about a dozen cows; they’re an Angus/Gelbveigh cross and are great mothers. We let them calve out on pasture and interfere as little as possible, using holistically managed grazing practices to give them a natural life that supports their health and the health of the land.
Raised with chemical-free forage and plenty of sunshine and exercise, our steers produce beef with extraordinary flavor. Studies have shown that grass fed beef when compared to grain fed has less total and saturated fat and more vitamins C and E, beta-carotene and health-promoting fats like omega-3 and conjugated linoleic acid. Truly extraordinary by any standard!
Pork
We figure that by giving our pigs a healthy, outdoor, free-range life and a local, balanced, GMO-free diet, we’ll not only improve their health and quality of life, but also achieve an end product of the highest quality.
And from all we can see, it’s working! Unlike sheep and cows, pigs are omnivores. To meet their protein requirements, we give them plenty of fruit and vegetable scraps, along with a mix of grain we mill ourselves on the farm. We grow the grain without the use of chemicals; usually legumes, barley, oats, wheat or rye and mix them in appropriate proportions. In addition to this high-nutrient diet, they feast on the grass, legumes, vegetables and roots that they scavenge in the pastures. Pigs are natures’ roto-tillers so if they’ve left the pasture in an overly worked up state we will over seed it with anything from beets, turnips, peas, collards, radish, kale and grains which they come back later and devour with gusto!
The result? Healthy, lean pigs with a beneficial ecological impact, which produce unusually tasty, nutrient-packed meat…meat that’s worthy of any gourmet restaurant, or your proudest feast!
Sheep
Sheep were a new adventure for us when we were starting out – I’d had just enough experience to know I loved to work with them. Local mentors gave me hands-on training from their decades of expertise, and today tending to our flock is one of my favorite parts of the day.
We raise Katahdin/Dorper cross hair sheep: unlike wool breeds, hair sheep shed their winter coats when the weather warms, and do not need to be sheared. They are great mothers, lambing easily and giving lots of milk. We often have twins and triplets and usually one mother can raise all of her offspring. Spring lambing is one of the most exciting times at the farm. It’s like Christmas morning every day for about three weeks!
Our sheep and lambs spend their days out on pasture, often grazing right alongside the cows. While unusual on most farms, we’ve found it’s a perfect arrangement – not only does the sheep/cow relationship help to minimize certain parasites, but they also have slightly different foraging habits, grazing in different parts of the pasture and eating plants the cows overlook or reject.
The result? Healthy pastures, healthy cows, healthy sheep – and lamb meat with wonderful flavor, high in omega 3’s and vitamins B, C and E, with less total fat and saturated fat.
If you visit the farm, you’re sure to meet our two mascot lambs, Whitey and Brown Spot…they were orphans we raised by hand, and my kids grew very attached to them. They’re our PR ambassadors now, and no farm tour would be complete without a nuzzle from them.