Another Week at Elmlea Farm

I debated on writing this post for a while, but a question I had posed to me by a caller kinda pushed me to bring it forward.  The owners of Elmlea Farm, Lee and Elmer are away this week...so this is not being written by either...I have been at the farm for a year and this is my personal observation.  First and for the record, Elmlea Farm is a HOBBY FARM.  They do this because, well it's sort of in their blood!  While we all enjoy the animals, the "farm" work itself, well it is hard and it is time consuming and it does come with it's challenges.  For example, it rained so much this week that the sheep and goat barn that was all nice and clean needed...NEEDED to have some extra straw put down as Patrick's wool was starting to shrink because he was so wet!  HA!  Sheep humour!!

Inky Scarecrow

Alpaca Girls

As you know we are a fibre farm and we do not eat our Sheep, Goats, or Alpacas, yes you can eat Alpaca. We do sell goat and lamb from local farmers but not from us.  We do raise chickens and turkeys to eat.  We have ducks too and even though they are threatened with going to the oven, it has been ages since we have had duck on the table!

Chickens

We do sell eggs and as the laying birds age they just live out their lives here, no stewing pot...but that is just us.  An old hen, while healthy may not be the prettiest looking bird anymore....but this "old hen" with out her feathers isn't always the prettiest bird first thing in the morning either!
This brings me to the reason for the blog....the caller wanted to see about getting eggs from us and wanted to see the animals and know how they were treated.  I completely understand that....after seeing some of the big commercial farms being reported on lately.  It is so deplorable, unnerving and sad to see this, but as a city girl myself...we the consumer are partially to blame.
I know that the turkeys and the meat chickens here will be eaten and that is their destiny...but as they grow up  they are outside in the daytime and in at night.  I probably talk to them way too much!  And they have space and are well cared for.  If there is anything that they need we tend to it.  For example, we have a rooster who has a bad "toe" currently and he has been having his foot soaked and creme applied and he even has a wrapped bandage on it.  I call him "Handsome".  Poor Handsome is currently isolated and he is not happy about that and yes he is in a cage....but that is to keep him safe.  Over the winter a hen was being picked on too much so "ugly hen" was taking out from the others and placed in her own area...as were two other hens...who are actually very gentle and pretty...and they had their own heat lamp and area as well and I said they wintered in the "deluxe hotel!"  Eventually "ugly hen" went back with everyone else when she was better, as for the pretty hens well they "raise" the new laying hens, seems to be their calling and they are good at it!  There is no over crowding, though in the winter I am sure they get bored...but they are chickens!  A dozen eggs costs you $ 3.00.  Yup a whole $3.00, they are usually brown, and varying shades of brown and varying sizes and there a lots of double yolkers.  Eggs are collected twice a day and we have an ebb and flow in production.  But you can certainly go to the store and buy your perfect eggs for less money.  I have no problem with that...I too have done it.....BUT...here is the catch.....those perfect white eggs, or brown are not coming from chickens that are outside...chasing butterflies.  You can't have it both ways!  You can't pay $ 1.99 and want the chickens in the "deluxe hotel"... they will be in a tight quarters to put it mildly.
Turkeys....turkeys are not the smartest birds and sometimes at night it can take me over 20 minutes to get them in...just because they can't move 6 inches to the right and go through the opening....then panic sets in and they have to run around frantic.  By the way we are talking about a 2 foot wide opening that I walk through...open gates!  Anyway...again you can't have it both ways with regards cost.  The cost of our turkeys per pound is higher than a grocery store...for 2 reasons we have less than 30 and we grow them up right...not over feeding, etc.

Spinning

Now if we move on to the fibre side and a skein of yarn.....cost wise.  Yes you can go and buy yarn cheaper than here from a department store, but our fibre is a labour of love.  Are these animals treated right, well Patrick the Old English Babydoll sheep seems to like placing his head on my lap for a sleep and a cuddle and yesterday I cleaned his ears and trimmed his hooves as he lay there.  The little goat Louie stood for me as I trimmed his hooves...no collar, no leash...just letting me hold his leg up and trim.  They have trust in us.  We feed them, house them, protect them and care for them.  That is the one part of animal management and then we shear, sort, pick, wash, comb, spin, dye the fibre to create the yarn for your use.  This is not a compliant...again it is a labour of love and it does the soul good to see what can be made, but this is why the yarns here are NOT $ 10.00 or less for a skein.  I have found that people also like to purchase some yarn and see where it came from...look at the animals.
So that is my view and the way I see it.  I hope my little explanation sheds some light on what we do.  And that it may encourage you to shop from your local farmers.

Bye for Now

As always the store is open from 10 am to 5 pm Thursday thru Sunday.  This weekend the Havelock Jamboree is happening so feel free to drop in if you are in the area.  705-778-2070

A Brief Peek at a Farm Tour...part 1

Good Wednesday Morning!  I'm late with this week's blog!  BUT....for a very good reason....we hosted a farm tour on Monday and what a GREAT time! 

While the weather was iffy at first, it turned out to be a wonderful day.  We had our sun shelters up, there was tea and coffee when things were a bit dreary to warm you up and of course a good selection of cold drinks.

We were able to shear a Llama and Snowflake was very happy to oblige and have her huge "blanket" removed....much cooler now!  She even had a pedicure!


Llama Fibre

Patrick and Lucy along with all the other sheep and goats entertained the crowd and Patrick was very insistent on getting his head petted.  Timo was our Alpaca ambassador and he came out to give kiss and smell everyone's hair!  He's a cutie.


Lucy and her son Jerry

Elmer gave an explanation of the various kinds of Sheep, Goats, Alpacas and Llamas and even showed the chickens and turkeys and ducks of various shapes and sizes and farm fresh eggs were greatly in demand!

"Scrappy"

Then it was on to the REAL purpose of this farm, the fibre....how fibre is processed....Lee took everyone through a full demonstration, the raw fibre...shearing, picking, combing, carting and spinning!   She makes everything look so easy! 

The store offers a great variety of fibre, alpaca, wool, mohair, blends of each and beautiful vibrant colours!  The solar dyed yarns were a real hit!

Store fibres

I will be posting pictures on Monday going through the steps.  Our group arrived at 10:30am and left at 3pm.  While we provided the drinks they brought their own lunch.

If you think you might be interested in having a group tour of the farm and the store just let us know.  Reach us at 705-778-2070 or email elmleaalpacas@gmail.com.  The cost is $20.00 per person.  We can slightly tailor the even to your needs...but keep in mind that we are NOT a petting farm and while Patrick and some others love the attention, most of the animals are farm animals.  Another point of interest is being a FIBRE farm means we are NOT eating these goats and sheep...or Alpacas!  The purpose of our farm is to use the fibre from these animals is various ways whether through creating yarns for knitting and crocheting or for using the fibre in felting.

BUT our farm store does sell lamb, goat, and beef (supplied by local farms)along with chicken, turkey and eggs.  If you are looking for your Thanksgiving Turkey you need to order it soon! 

Store is open Thursday thru Sunday 10 am to 5 pm!  Come say "Hi"!

What is Pygora and Cashgora Yarn?

Today is a continuation in the discovery of yarns. Here at Elmlea Farms we have a variety of fibre animals and in the goat department we have, Cashmere, Nigerian, Angora and a few crosses...Pygora(that's a Pygmy and an Angora cross)and the Cashgora is a(Cashmere/Angora cross) and currently Nigora(Nigerian/Angora cross)

The Pygora is a relatively new breed developed by Katherine Jorgensen of Oregon. Aiming for an animal that would yield a fine spinning fiber, she crossed a registered Pygmy goat with a registered silky-fleeced Angora goat. This mating produced F-1 generation hybrids, which when bred together resulted in the true Pygora. The Pygora Breeders Association (PBA) organized in 1987, and according to the association, the breed’s popularity has steadily increased since that time.  The name Cashgora was coined in the late 1970's in Victoria, Australia and later came to be recognized by the International World Textile Organization in 1988.  The Nigora is a medium sized, dual-purpose milk fibre goat.  It originated in the USA in the early 1990's.  Early Nigoras contained a mixture of Nigerian Dwarf and a coloured Angora goats.  Jill(Nigerian) bred to Omar(Angora) has given us two babies a male and female pure black.  We are excited to see what their fibre will be!  Neither Pygora, Cashgora or Nigora are used to produce yarn on a commerical scale.  We however do produce these fibres, excluding Nigora at this time.

The wool of the Cashgora combines the advantages of both Mohair and Angora, while maintaining softness, brightness and shine.

 "The fiber of Pygora goats reflects the best qualities of both the Angora and the Pygmy. From the Angora goat comes long, silky-smooth, lustrous ringlets. The Pygmy goat contributes its’ very fine down, in some cases fine enough to be classified as cashmere. This combination of qualities results in fiber with an excellent range of characteristics that maintain fineness as the animal ages.

Pygora fiber may be spun and then knitted, woven or crocheted. Because of the fineness of the fiber, it spins into a lovely yarn that is soft enough to be worn next to the skin. Items such as baby garments or luxurious shawls are well suited to Pygora yarn. Pygora also felts beautifully and locks of Pygora may be used to create wigs, beards or novelty toys. Pygora pelts make wonderfully posh rugs or chair accessories. Thus, Pygora fiber is fast becoming crafts persons’ and fiber artists’ preferred choice for any number of diverse projects". ...taken from pcagoats.org..Goat Fibre Desc. 

Come to the store and see our selection of fine yarns...Lucy may even help!

The Store is now open Thursday thru Sunday 10-5 pm.  Please feel free to drop in or call first.  We have new items and of course there are farm fresh eggs!