Our Guard Llama
After our first llama, Yoda, passed away (RIP), our dear friends, Jan and John Sullivan of Sandy Ridge Silkies, offered us one of their geldings for a fair price.
That is how we acquired Scrat. He is smaller than Yoda and has thicker/longer wool. He is still fairly shy but that is normal for a guard llama. Scrat does an excellent job and even keeps a close watch on all of our dogs and our neighbors' dogs. He is very well behaved and we are very grateful to have him.
Scrat loves when we have new kids and the goat kids love to climb all over him. He is very patient with them and does not hurt the little kids. If he gets sick of them climbing on him, he will simply shift his weight slightly so that they give his back a break. What a great guard llama!
He has also been to the Food For America event that the FFA students host every year in order to teach elementary school kids about llamas. Scrat may be shy, but he is still fine with a few pats and hugs now and then. He has also been shown at the local fair a few times--just for fun!
That is how we acquired Scrat. He is smaller than Yoda and has thicker/longer wool. He is still fairly shy but that is normal for a guard llama. Scrat does an excellent job and even keeps a close watch on all of our dogs and our neighbors' dogs. He is very well behaved and we are very grateful to have him.
Scrat loves when we have new kids and the goat kids love to climb all over him. He is very patient with them and does not hurt the little kids. If he gets sick of them climbing on him, he will simply shift his weight slightly so that they give his back a break. What a great guard llama!
He has also been to the Food For America event that the FFA students host every year in order to teach elementary school kids about llamas. Scrat may be shy, but he is still fine with a few pats and hugs now and then. He has also been shown at the local fair a few times--just for fun!
What a nice guy! Scrat is great with the goat kids--he lets them climb all over him and when he gets fed up, he simply stands up!
Scrat and Holly at the Dane County Fair
The Ponies
Jack
Jack--yup, he will put up with just about anything!
Jack
9 years old
Miniature Horse Gelding
Light Brown & White w/Blue Eyes!
Jack is a great representation of his breed! He is the ultimate people pony. Jack loves getting attention and is pretty much bomb proof. He stays at our place during the summer and at our friend's barn over the winter.
We have taken Jack to many events, including Food For America (teaching elementary kids about animals) and several parades. He even knows how to pull a cart! Unfortunately, we have not been able to find a cart that will fit his size, yet. He is in love with Jill, our other little pony.
9 years old
Miniature Horse Gelding
Light Brown & White w/Blue Eyes!
Jack is a great representation of his breed! He is the ultimate people pony. Jack loves getting attention and is pretty much bomb proof. He stays at our place during the summer and at our friend's barn over the winter.
We have taken Jack to many events, including Food For America (teaching elementary kids about animals) and several parades. He even knows how to pull a cart! Unfortunately, we have not been able to find a cart that will fit his size, yet. He is in love with Jill, our other little pony.
Jack at the Food For America event (teaching kids about animals).
Jack with his sleezy sleepwear and scuba diving outfit that he wore in a parade.
Jill
Jillian
AKA Jilly Bean
3 years old
Black & White
Pinto Pony Mare
She is still being taught how to properly interact with people. Very sweet mare that was not receiving the attention she should have at her previous home and was not handled much by her previous owners. She is good friends now with our fainting buck, Paco.
AKA Jilly Bean
3 years old
Black & White
Pinto Pony Mare
She is still being taught how to properly interact with people. Very sweet mare that was not receiving the attention she should have at her previous home and was not handled much by her previous owners. She is good friends now with our fainting buck, Paco.
Jill--she is soo little and sweet!
Doug's Steers
Butter...at least that is what mom calls him.
After a few weeks of milking cows on the Rettenmund Farm, Doug decided to purchase a few of their Holstein bull calves. He still works at the farm and raises steers as a side hobby while attending high school. Dougie currently has five steers that range in age from about 2 to 11 months old. Yes, these steers will eventually be sold for beef, but we still enjoy picking out names for them.
Douglas showed his steer at the fair for the first time this year and plans to continue to show his steers every year. He bottle feeds them when they are young calves and gets them started on grain. Then he sells them to a local farmer so that he can feed them and get them up to a certain weight (usually about 1200 pounds) before they are sent to a meat market.
Douglas showed his steer at the fair for the first time this year and plans to continue to show his steers every year. He bottle feeds them when they are young calves and gets them started on grain. Then he sells them to a local farmer so that he can feed them and get them up to a certain weight (usually about 1200 pounds) before they are sent to a meat market.
Doug at the fair with Whitey, one of his steers.
Our Chickens
We currently have 8 Rhode Island Red chickens. Mom purchased them from a farmer in our area as baby chicks (seen in the picture to the left), but they have grown a lot since then. They are now about 6 months old and have all of their pretty red feathers.
The chickens reside in the goat pen and are a great natural pest repellant--they eat the little bugs and worms in the ground. They stay in the pasture and don't wander too far from the goat pen. There are 6 hens and 2 roosters. They just started to produce eggs!
The chickens reside in the goat pen and are a great natural pest repellant--they eat the little bugs and worms in the ground. They stay in the pasture and don't wander too far from the goat pen. There are 6 hens and 2 roosters. They just started to produce eggs!
