Yesterday, we went to the local county fair in Mount Morris, Michigan, and enjoyed a really lovely day. Having a small farm means that you really don’t have the ability to travel too far from home for too long, so taking a little day trip for a few hours offers a nice break. County and state fairs have taken on a new meaning for us, because the agricultural and livestock displays and events that were once simply entertaining now provide us with an opportunity to learn more about our own farming options. The local 4H Club, Farmer’s Bureau, Michigan State University Cooperative Extension, and several other agriculture related organizations and businesses had tents with equipment, educational materials, and live animals.
There was a petting zoo that had goats, llamas, sheep, miniature horses, and pony rides. The farm that brought them all was also selling many of the animals, and I kind of fell in love with this little month-old Nigerian/Pygmy cross doeling. She is so sweet, and so is her mother, who was also there.
However, they were asking $125 for her, which seems awful high, considering that she is not purebred, isn’t yet weaned, and didn’t even have her CDT vaccinations started yet. I’m still enjoying my memory of holding her, though — what a little darling!
In the pen with her were several other cute characters, including this affectionate little LaMancha wether — he loves being petted and I suspect that if given the opportunity, he would be a lap-goat just like our Heidi. Beautiful coloring, too.
There were also two camelids — a llama named Lucy, who was very social. She was all too happy to receive any pets and attention that anyone would give her. What a character!
The alpaca’s name, I did not catch, but she was having a nap most of the time we were there — the heat and humidity were pretty oppressive yesterday, so I didn’t blame her one bit!
There was also a young goat with its horns — which always worries me, because of the injuries that they can inflict on themselves, on other herd members, or on their human owners. Given that I saw another adult goat in the same pen with broken horns, it is a very real concern. I hope this little baby manages to avoid any injuries, received or inflicted.
There was a really neat display of tractors in the Farmer’s Bureau tent, including this old beauty. I love the umbrella sunshade!
There was also duck racing — by the Great American Duck Races out of New Mexico, where duck racing is quite a popular sport. After watching one of the races, it’s easy to see why. Those quackers are fast and funny!
After watching a few of those races, and seeing the endearing little personalities and antics of the ducks, especially as they just enjoyed themselves in the water post-race, George is now also convinced that we need to have our own little flock of them. Even though what he hears when they talk is “WorkWorkWork.”
After the races, a very leggy pirate wench showed up:
I think there’s a ship somewhere missing its mast.
There were other characters in the 4H tents that got our attention, too:
There is a simply gorgeous Brahma cockerel (rooster) that we are going to be picking up from the fair tomorrow night at close. Brahmas are known as “gentle giants” and he is just lovely — I can’t wait to take proper photos of him so that you can “meet.” George really liked the bird, and pointed him out to me — for $7, we can’t complain about the price! We want a full-grown roo to help with guarding our flock. Our oldest roo, the Welsummer, is doing a great job, but he isn’t full size yet, and he has a slight leg deformity that causes him to hobble slightly — so he can’t get around as quickly as he needs to in order to round everyone up in case of predators, particularly some hawks that have been eyeballing themselves a tasty chicken dinner. So we are hoping that the new Brahma will integrate well, and everyone will get along. We’ll introduce him to the flock tomorrow evening after dark — that’s the best way to flim-flam the flock into accepting him without too much fanfare.
We had a fantastic time, and even hit a couple of yard sales on the way home — something I haven’t been able to do in a very long time. I’ll be posting some photos of my finds from those on my other blog, Kitschicat’s Den, in the next couple of days.
Since Michigan no longer has a state fair, due to our state’s budget quagmire, I think that these local county fairs have taken on new importance as a place for family farms to be able to network. Personally, I’d like to see more agripreneurs exhibiting in the future — selling products made on their farms, like cheeses, soaps, and other foods. Heck, the new law that was signed in recently allows for folks to sell homemade products — up to $15,000 per year — at farmer’s markets, fairs, flea markets, etc., so long as they are labeled in accord with the law’s guidelines. So there are opportunities there for family farms to sell value-added products — I know I’ll be looking into that for us next year!
I encourage you to find out if you have a regional fair in your area, and to check it out! You’re likely to have a lovely day if you do.
Related Images:
Leave a Reply