Hello. This is Kim Viegler the owner of youthful fiber farm and mill. And I am sitting here at home in Harrisburg, Oregon on a rainy oddly rainy August day. And I'm here to talk with you about starting a fiber farm. I'm not going to say I am an expert at this, but I have one and I started it and my animals do pretty well. So I'm going to give you some insight, because this is something I get asked about a lot as of late.
Just advice or what my space looks like, how are my spaces set up for the animals, things like that. So I thought, okay. Okay. Let's do an episode. Let's do it before. I forget. I want to make sure everybody knows that our hands fund for Harris waltz. Live. Hand spun yarn sale. Is up is on the website. Just go to the website in the hands-on yarn section and there's loads of, of hand spun yarn from different hand spinners because so many people.
I reached out to me and said, I would like to donate hands fun to this, which is the most amazing thing. The connection I feel to all of you who have donated has been amazing. Much less than joy you have brought me. When I get to open your hand, spun in the mail and feel, and look at it. And some of you I've never met before.
And some of you I've only met online and to see your art and your beautiful yarn show up and for you to trust me with that, because it is hard for us to de stash these beautiful schemes. Anyway. It's amazing. So. If you would like to support the money is going to be donated to act blue and a head to the website and head to the hand, spun yarn section and tell all your friends, tell all your friends. If you don't want to support that's okay. I hope you will stay and listen.
If you are looking for a bigger community, a bigger fiber community, you can also head to my Patrion, youthful community has a Patrion, and it's lots of fiber loving people, and we love to share and talk and you get lots of behind the scenes on the farm at the mill and even early bird notices of fiber. So. Head there. Okay, let's talk about starting a fiber farm. Or a hobby farm or a farm or a fiber flock, whatever you want to call it. So I Googled. What is a hobby farm? Exactly.
Here's what Google told me. It is a small farm maintained without expectation of it being a primary source of income. All of the, yeah, that is. What a hobby farm is. And I thought it was a great definition because it is important to know that you will likely not have this as a primary source of income. And if it brings you enough to break, even that is wonderful. But a lot of times that doesn't happen either. So. It's something to know going into it.
You truly have to want to have these animals. Love. These animals have a passion for it. And for your time. And for your time. So knowing that here's some of the things that can cause you money, that you may not be thinking about. But bills. Food beyond just pasture. A lot of times they'll need extra feed. Fencing. There's always more money spent on fencing than you can imagine. If you're going to do stuff yourself, vaccines, all that stuff, the gear you'll need to do it. Sharing.
If you're going to have fiber animals, you're definitely gonna want to have a shorn or you're going to need to learn to share yourself, which would include buying equipment and stuff. And then time. Your time is valuable and you're going to need to do it every day. Rain or shine. Snow or ice, insane temperatures, all those things. The animals still need you. In fact, a lot of times they need you even more in those moments. So your time and your every day.
Okay. So I thought I would start with just a little bit about our story, because I don't consider myself to be a professional. As I've said, we have a slew of animals. They have all done well with us. And they could. I mean, you know, there are things I'm learning constantly, so I wouldn't call myself a shepherd even, but we're here and we have a lot of animals and I can add some insight and hopefully get you rolling.
So our first sheet came to us, Tweedle was his name, and I got him off of Craigslist. He was at a farm where they mainly, they were, they were. Using their animals for meat to support themselves. Basically they were eating all their animals and such, and they got these little Shetlands and they had goats and the goats killed one of the Shetlands at the feeder. And the person said, we got to get this other sheep out of here. This is not working. So here I come, I rolled up in a van.
I had a dog crate in the back because that's what I knew at that point was dogs. I knew, did not know anything about sheep. I had only just learned. That Walshy Bora thing versus just sheep, sheep versus, you know, all the things I was learning. I rolled up with a dog. Leash. And luckily the sheep was like, get me the heck out of here. And he was like, put it on my neck. Let's go. And I walked him. On Elise, just around his neck, up to the car and put them in a dog crate and we were off.
And I remember hearing him for the first time eating an apple, which there's something about animals eating. I just love the sound it's so calming and so many ways, not all animals, but most. And then he did a little ball and that was it. I fell hard for sheep as just as animals, just as animals. I brought him home. We did not have a pasture that was fenced. We threw up a temporary fence outside of this little barn stall. We sort of, kind of didn't really have and hoped for the best.
He was fine. He was fine. And the next day I ran out and I found another Shetland sheep as close as I could. That was for sale. And I'm sure this shepherd was thrilled that I was there doing this. So I went and got a second sheet because you really shouldn't have just one sheep. So now we had two sheep in a temporary fence and that's how it started. And it was fine. They were okay. Shetlands are small. They aren't super prone to breaking out if they have grass.
Okay. Nowadays they love to just test fences everywhere. But then I think all these sheets were just happy to be there. So that's how it started. We made it work. And when we moved onto a different farm, Which I didn't even know how we were going to move all these animals. We had to borrow a trailer and it just, it's just kind of how we roll. We made it work. We used the sheds that were on the farm. We converted them for our animals and away we went.
So. Just to say it doesn't have to be perfect. You don't have to know everything. You don't have to do everything perfectly. Right. Just to have the basics for them, have the basics and have a vague idea of what you're doing and you can make it happen. This is kind of how we go. If I overthink things too much, I would not get anywhere. So. I just roll. I just roll with it. I will say I do did have a big, strong animal background and I am very comfortable with animal husbandry, not sheep.
I was just learning about them, but. You know what it worked, it worked. So some resources as you are getting started on this idea. If you are truly thinking about bringing animals to a property, I would say find a bit and make sure there is one around that you will be able to call upon as needed. Traveling farm bits are amazing and they are there. You probably don't know them if you don't have livestock, but they're around. So find one, because at some point you will probably need one to come.
And especially because these days it's not as easy to get antibiotics and such for livestock online. So knowing of it is important, having a vet is important. Mentor find a mentor. And honestly, one of the best ways I think you can do that is finding shepherds that are willing to share their knowledge with you. And most definitely, if you are looking for sheep and you're doing your research, Buy from a shepherd who's willing to help you.
You know, if you find a shepherd that just doesn't care about where their animals are going or what your setup is or giving you any guidance, I wouldn't necessarily buy from them. I would look for somebody who is there to help you. I mean not to come out, not to unnecessarily, but if you need help and guidance. That there'll be there for you. So look for them. Fiber festivals are a wonderful way to meet shepherds. They're there. They're showing their animals. Go hook up with them.
Classes, there are some online classes, festivals have classes as well, a lot of times, but there are some online classes. I will put links in the show notes to the resources that I found. I know there was a book also on starting a fiber flock because I'd wrote a review on it many years ago. So I will put all those. In the show notes, but the more research you can do, the more people you can talk to. The easier it's going to be for you. Okay. So things to think about. On your space.
If you are looking for property or you have the property, here's what the basics that you need. Right? Food shelter. Water. And fencing because fencing is safety for animals. So. Pasture. Food. Right. For most livestock you bring, they're gonna be happy. Eating grass. And so knowing that you have enough pasture, knowing how many animals you can put on that pasture, if you have water rights, Amen. That is amazing.
If you have water rights, you can irrigate and that will carry you a lot longer with pasture. If you don't have water rights, that's okay. You'll make it work. And a lot of times, most of us need to supplement with. Hey anyway. So no that is going to be something that's going to cost you money. At some point here we hate during the winter because the grass stops growing. As much, and we need supplements. Shelter.
So shelter is not necessarily something that you have to have, but it is something that we have chosen to have to have. And by shelter, I just mean. Lean to three sides and a roof, a place that animals can go to get away from the elements to get shade during the hot parts of the summer. And to feel safe basically, but it doesn't have to be anything fancy. This, the animals do not care on our property. We have a husband just walked in and he's like, oh no, she's recording.
Anyway on our property, we use what was here. There were lots of different sheds and we just made them work for our animals and our animals are happy. They just want a place that they can go when they feel they need an out or when they need a safe place to go. And you can watch YouTube videos that I have. That show you our place. If that's a resource that is a resource for you, you can see how we have stuff set up. It's very basic.
Okay. There's your shelter, water, water, all animals need water. They need access to fresh water all the time, winter, summer cold, all of those things. So where's your water going to come from? How are you going to get it to the animals? How are you going to keep it fresh? And fencing. Fencing is like it just never ends with the fencing. There's always a better fence that could be put up. And depending on the type of animal that you are getting. The fences may be more important than others.
Goats. Are just known for breaking out of fencing all the time. So make sure you have stronger fencing system for goats. Our sheep, we don't have as much problem with, or our entire property is fenced. Our entire property, mainly because of our dogs. So are everything that is by a road or exits our property. Those are our like must be super tight fences. In between things. If they get out here and there, then we know at least they can't get out to the road.
So just, you know, it depends on your property and that sort of thing. What kind of animals you have? If they're going to be more prone to testing fences or not. So those are your food shelter, water fencing. Your big things. Other things to think about. How often do you like to travel? And this is something I don't think we thought about.
I mean, we farm, so we don't get to travel a lot during high season anyway, but if you are heavy travelers, who's going to take care of these animals while you're gone. Are you going to be able to find a farm sitter? Are you going to need a farm sitter, you know, or maybe that determines what kind of animals you're getting when we first started and we had the sheep, as long as there's grass on the ground and the fences are secure. The sheep didn't really need us. Anonymously.
They probably still don't. But I make them be this. No, I'm just kidding. But you can kind of determine what animals you're getting by how much you travel, you know, but at the very least you'd want to have somebody on call for your sheep's in the road. Not that that ever happened to us, but you know, making sure that there's somebody to fall back on in case something does go off or just to check in on them. So, how often do you like to travel?
Are you going to be able to find somebody to help you? That's important. If you want to travel all the time, then maybe this isn't for you. It just depends. How can you make it work? Looking for animals that are going to fit your climate. This is really important. I just happened into Shetland sheep. Now, there are a lot of Shetlands here, but I just happened into them without really knowing anything about that. The type of climate you live in. I can be important for the sheep, right?
So here in the Pacific Northwest, because we have so much rain and mud and all of that Romney, sheep, Shetland, sheep, Jacob's sheep, a lot of these sheep just do really well in this environment. Their feet do better. Their wool does better. Merino's and fine wolves. Don't do so well here. So you're going to have to put a lot more work into having those sheep here. Then you would having some of the heritage breeds or different breeds.
So look into, and this is where shepherds in your area are really going to come in handy. What are the big breeds? What are the main breeds around you? And there's probably a reason for that, right? There's probably a reason for that. I kind of know here where we are. I tend to go east if I'm looking for finals, because what we have here. Is, it just doesn't grow as well. The sheep don't do as well depending, or you have to put a lot more work into it. So that's just all research you can do.
But when you tend to see a certain breed, a lot, a lot, a lot where you live. There's probably a reason for that because probably those animals do well. Like, there are a lot of animals that are, if you go down south where it's more humid, a lot of the sheep are going to be. More parasite resistant breeds because in that hot humid environment, parasites arrive. And so you want a sheep that is going to be more resistant. Otherwise you're just going to constantly be battling that. So. Ask around.
Also a vet, vets are going to know really well there too. And when you are looking, talk to the shepherds, you know, a lot of people that are breeding are breeding for things like good feet. And parasite resistance and good build and Goodwill. So figure out what is important to you and ask those questions, ask those questions. I know some people would like to do rescue. And that is always going to be, it's a wonderful, wonderful thing. We certainly have rescued a lot of our animals.
It also comes with be careful. Because, especially if you are new to these animals there, there's going to be more issues. There's going to be more health issues. There's going to be perhaps they weren't bred well. So they're going to have more with sheep, maybe feet issues, things like that. They may come if you have animals already and you rescue those rescue animals may have health issues that could affect your current animals. So it's always something to be aware of.
The longer I've been doing this, the more conscious I have become about which animals I allowed to come onto the farm. We just recently brought in three BFL crosses. And my first questions when this person reached out to me were like, what are your, what are their, how have their feet done? Moving on. Moving on, moving on. Okay, who was their breeder?
Well, I knew the breeder and I know what the breeder is breeding for and I know the breeders breeding well, and then as the conversation continued, I realized how immensely meticulous this, this shepherd was with her animals. And I thought, okay. We're going to be okay. This person is way more meticulous than I am. So we're safe. So it's just things to think about and you may end up spending more money on rescues, right?
Because they may just inherently have more issues or they may not, or they may not. But our most expensive animal on our farm is June our pony. We rescued her. She's got extra health issues. And she needs to see a farrier more often and she needs special feed. And so you just have to be aware, just have to be aware and ready to spend the extra money or the extra time. Okay. As I mentioned you can go.
I do have I'm not as active, but I do try to post at least once a month where I am over on YouTube. And there are so many old videos on there and I do a lot of farm tours on them. So you can see literally as I walk from the sheep, To the horse, to the pigs and kind of see the situations that we have set up for everybody. It doesn't have to be fancy. It doesn't have to be perfect. It just has to be what the animals need to be safe and healthy and, and, and that's what you need.
And then they need you to follow through and take care of them. So, Those are kind of some of my beginning fiber flock. Ideas to help you along. And I will, like I said, put resources in the shownotes that kind of talk about. That some of the schools I've seen online, the book I mentioned. You know, finding other farms online is always a great way following people on Instagram and seeing like, how do they have things set up?
Finding people local to you that are, are sharing information about their animals. So there's so many resources out there that I hope this helps kind of give you a little, start to it. Don't be too nervous. Don't be too nervous. Honestly, I our dogs and our cats are a lot more high maintenance than just about any of ours. Livestock. So it's just something, you know, do your research feel comfortable and then go if that's what you want to do.
And just remember also that rain or shine they need you. So it's an everyday thing. And that's, you know, that's why we end up rescuing is not people don't always realize that. So they are. Wonderful. And they can give you such amazing, beautiful product and joy because they're hysterical, but remember all those things. So I hope this helps with some of you, if you are deciding. I know people have reached out about starting a mill and starting a fiber flock and all the things.
And so here's my, these are my two episodes for you that hopefully will give you the inspiration, not scare you too much. And, but also make you think that also make you think and run through all the scenarios. So. Thank you all so much for listening. I hope this helps and I will have a new YouTube out next week. So watch for that with mil videos and such. Until next time. Be kind to everybody around you stay healthy and make so many beautiful things.
And if you would like to donate hand spun to the fundraiser we are doing, just reach out via email and there is a Google form in the show notes. You can always contact me that way, too. I love to hear from you. Okay. Everybody take care and make on.