Fulkerson Farms

Are you considering starting your own hobby farm? I’m often asked how to begin. There are several things to consider before buying animals.

First of all, what will you raise? Do a bit of research about the particular breed or animal type you wish to place on your farm. We are blessed with a family that I call our “goat mentors.” Although they’re dairy goat farmers and our Pygmies are raised as pets, we’ve learned a tremendous amount from them, especially during kidding season.

Does your local veterinarian have experience with the type of animal you’ve selected? While we have several vets in this area, one stood out as having more experience with goats than the others, making it easy to choose where to go with our animals. Some vets aren’t much more than dog & cat doctors — others deal with large livestock, such as cattle and horses. Fewer people own goats, so again, we had a bit of research to conduct.

Do you have adequate shelter and proper fencing for your animal type of choice? Some animals require little; others, a lot. Varmints and predators are always something to consider when preparing to protect your new “family members.” Young poultry are an easy target and need more secure shelter than a larger animal.

Do I need a guardian animal? If so, what should I choose? Again, this takes a bit of research. The final choice is just that–your choice. We considered purchasing a llama before choosing a Great Pyrenees. I remember telling my husband, “There may be a reason more people own dogs than llamas.” For us, all it took was a few conversations with Great Pyrenees owners to determine that that was the best choice for us. We’ve never been sorry.

We’ll discuss more about how to get started in future posts. It is my goal in 2008 to post on this site each Wednesday. If you have specific questions, I’d love to hear from you. Please leave a comment.