Moon Shadow Farm - Our Story
In December 2016, on a long family car trip, my oldest daughter asked if we could start a farm. She had been sending me links from Craig's list with ponies, pigs, sheep and chickens for months. On this particular car trip, she asked a smart question... "What can I do to make this possible?" I took her question seriously and replied that I would need more help from her and her sisters in our regular life before we added anything else that needed caring for.
In the next few months, I watched my 10-year-old step up and start asking, "What can I do to help?" with regularity. Wow. I guess she was motivated. Next, she helped care for a friend's flock of chickens while they were away for a month. She had to walk or bike the mile each way between our houses, in all kinds of weather, twice a day to do the chores. I was convinced. That April, we started our "farm" with a dozen chicks. They laid their first eggs on my daughter's birthday, 5 months later.
We visited a local sheep dairy on shearing day later that spring. All three of my daughters loved the sheep. It soon was clear that all the girls wanted in on being a part of our new "farm." I gave them the speech about helping out more at home before we could add more responsibilities to our plate. They too responded with motivation and "How can I help?"
We went to 4-H sheep camp that summer. We couldn't have been more warmly welcomed to the sheep world. Parents, kids and their sheep, come from all over Vermont for 3 days of learning and sharing and enjoying sheep together. That first year, my oldest daughter "borrowed" a sheep. She learned how to handle, groom, and show her sheep. She learned about sheep nutrition and health. She learned about making cheese from sheep milk and making felt from wool. We learned about the many breeds of sheep and what they are known for. We learned about lambing and pasture management. My daughter made friends quickly with the other animal lovers at sheep camp. She was also mentored by high school kids who had been going to sheep camp since they were her age. We met a wonderful community of people who were eager to help us all learn. We left inspired and excited to continue forward on this shepherding adventure.
In April 2018, we purchased what has become our foundation flock. We picked Finnsheep as our breed to focus on. They are known for being friendly, having beautiful curly wool that is a spinner's dream, and for having a LOT of lambs. We liked that they were a multi-purpose breed (wool, milk & meat) which makes them versatile for a small-scale homestead.
We were very fortunate to find a Vermont Finn breeder, Siri Swanson, who was not only very knowledgeable about sheep and the Finn breed, but also had grown up in 4H and found her own passion for sheep when she was my daughter's age. She has been quite a mentor and role model for my daughters.
We have also been very fortunate to have met Josey Furrer, a local shepherd who carries on the legacy from many generations of shepherds in his family before him. He has been an incredible mentor and friend. His hard work during haying season keeps our sheep fed through the winter. His shearing skills relieve our sheep of their heavy coats twice a year and give us wool we can sell to local fiber artists. His stories and experience are invaluable...and he seems to always have a newborn lamb to show off just when my girls and I need a fresh dose of motivation to keep up with all the work our little "farm" has created.
I have to also mention the friends who help us care for our animals when we are away. Farming is something that roots you to the land. That is why many of us are drawn to it. However, we also like to visit family and friends who live far away and see some of the world outside of Vermont. This helps us come back to our little homestead refreshed and appreciating what we have here a bit more. Without the friends who gladly help, we wouldn't be able to have the animals that we do.
We are now into our sixth year of this adventure. There is nothing more full of life and hope than lambs in spring, and there is nothing more inspiring that watching a mama sheep care for her little ones - especially triplets and quads!
This summer we will have lambs to sell, as well as more wool available...and I'm sure we'll have a lot more stories and photos to share as our adventure continues!