Ancona Duck Chat with Amy McKamey

Welcome to another edition of Duck Chats, sponsored by Manna Pro (https://www.mannapro.com/). This week Jeannette Beranger and Brittany Sweeney chat with Amy McKamey about Ancona ducks and her journey to get them recognized by the American Poultry Association. Learn more about Ancona Ducks from Amy's Facebook Group @AnconaDucks.

 

 

Amy grew up on a small farm in Butler, Indiana. Farming runs deep in her family, dating back as early as 1340. Amy was a 10 year 4-H member, went to Purdue University and graduated in Veterinary Technology, worked in the Veterinary Field for over 20 years and now farms full time. She and her husband own and operate Heritage Meadows Farm (http://heritagemeadowsfarm.net/) in Clayton, Indiana, where they raise heritage hogs, sheep, and poultry.

 

Amy showed her first ducks in 1986, and they are still her favorite animal on the farm. Anconas have always held a special place in her heart, and she hopes to someday get them recognized by the APA.

Wooly Wednesday Round Table with the 15+ Club

This month we are chatting with members of the Shave ‘Em to Save ‘Em (SE2SE) 15+ Club to discuss working with rare breed fibers. Joining Cindra Kerscher for this chat will be SE2SE Fiber Artists Diane Barrows, Susan Vanderford, Kathy O’Reilly, and Lori Holder-Webb. Join in to learn tips and ask questions on sourcing, processing and creating with interesting wools.

Lori Holder-Webb created fiber art in the form of handmade paper collages until the arrival of rambunctious kittens in the household, and their "assistance" brought that chapter to a close. While casting about for a kitten-resistant alternative, she stumbled across some online wet-felting videos on YouTube. These were the standard-issue nuno-felted scarves, but she instantly saw how it would be possible to shift her aesthetic into this new medium. By 2019, she really wanted to expand her horizons beyond Merino and was fortunate to encounter Ashford Heights Farm at her local sheep and wool festival. Ashford Heights supplied her with a bag of Leicester Longwool roving and an information packet for Shave 'Em to Save 'Em. The rest of it - the spinning, and whole raw fleeces, and weaving - had an air of inevitability.

Kathy O’Reilly started knitting very young, taught by her mother. In 2015, after mumbling for years about the quality and cost of yarn, she started spinning after her husband gave her a spinning wheel for Christmas. He created a monster. She had no idea there were so many types of wool and fiber, so she started trying as many as she could. She had already spun CVM, Shetland, Jacob, and Black Welsh Mountain when she stumbled upon the Shave 'Em to Save 'Em Initiative. She thinks it has been so much fun to interact with a group of like-minded people.

After watching the Guild spinners at countless county fairs, Diane Barrows ached to learn and set out doing so once her five children flew the nest. She joined the Shave 'Em to Save 'Em Initiative soon after its launch, and soon discovered herself adding to her repertoire, spinning the new fibers she was encountering. Diane has enjoyed knitting, crocheting, sewing, and quilting for decades. She is a beginner weaver and is working on her HGA Master Spinner’s certificate.

Susan Vanderford has been a fiber artist since she was a kid, but most recently got into spinning during the pandemic. She got involved with the Shave 'Em to Save 'Em Initiative during the WAFA sales in early 2020. She kept seeing the SE2SE acronym and got curious, which led her to the program. Susan's big love though is knitting and her favorite part is trying different techniques to see what you get!

Want to become a Fiber Artist for the Save 'Em to Shave 'Em Initiative? Sign up at RareWool.org.

Duck Chat with Jon Alden of Hoover’s Hatchery

Welcome to Duck Chats! Special Guest Jon Alden, Breeding Flock Manager at Hoover's Hatchery, is chatting with Jeannette Beranger and Brittany Sweeney about duck husbandry. (https://hoovershatchery.com/)

 

 

Marketing Monday with the Rocky Mountain Horse Association

Welcome to another Marketing Monday! This month Rhyne Cureton and Brittany Sweeney are celebrating Horse Month and will be chatting with special guest Gina Purdue about Rocky Mountain Horses.

Gina is the current Secretary of the Rocky Mountain Horse Association (RMHA) and an active committee member. She has had horses since she was a child and has been involved with the RMHA since the late 90's. Learn more about RMHA at https://www.rmhorse.com/

Horse Chats Puerto Rican Paso Fino with Cesar Alejandro Romero

Welcome to another Horse Chat! This week Charlene Couch and Brittany Sweeney are chatting with Cesar Alejandro Romero about the Puerto Rican Paso Fino horse. 

Alejandro received a BA,MA, Certificate in Equine Colour Genetics, and has been a Puerto Rican Paso Fino breeder since 1988 in the USA, Canada and Puerto Rico. He has also been in Horse Management since 1992 and created the Paso Fino Guayama Trainers Academy in Puerto Rico. 

The former Executive Director of the Paso Fino Office, Alejandro is a 
Consultant in breeding, pedigrees and appraising, an International Judge, and a graduate from the Guaynabo City Paso Fino judges Academy. He's also a member of the Asociacion Insular as an International Representative, Feria Dulce Sueno, Inc. as an International Rep and Registrar, the Pure Puerto Rican Paso Fino Federation of America; and a founding member of the Hacienda Paso Fino, Hacienda Puerta del Sol, Yeguada Fundación, Alianza de Paso Fino, and Paso Fino Cultural Heritage. 

Alejandro is also a writer, speaker, and podcaster. You can find him online at www.iamalejandro.com

Download today's slide presentation by Alejandro Romero on the Puerto Rican Paso Fino at https://bit.ly/PRPasoFinoPresentation

Suffolk Punch Horse Chat with Jason Rutledge

Welcome to another Horse Chat! This week we’re talking about Suffolk Punch draft horses with Jason Rutledge of Healing Harvest Forest Foundation (http://www.healingharvestforestfounda...) and Ridgewind Suffolk Farm (http://www.ridgewindsuffolks.com/). Jason uses Suffolks for restorative forestry in Virginia.

Traditional Morgan horses with Helga Loncosky of Melas Farms

Welcome to Horse Chats! This week Charlene Couch and Brittany Sweeney are chatting about Traditional Morgan horses with Helga Loncosky of Melas Farms (http://www.melasfarms.com/)

View the slides from this presentation at https://bit.ly/MorganHorsePresentation

Helga has lived the whole experience of breeding, training, showing and practical use of America's horse. Dedication to preserving the Morgan breed has brought her into a sustained project of rescue and rehabilitation of animals which is part of her family's ministry. In addition to horses, she works with miniature cattle, goats, poultry, dogs, cats, and exotic creatures, including peacocks at Melas Farms.

The animals have been a valuable tool in helping people with PTSD, both with civilian and military individuals. Her background in health administration and her work with a pharmaceutical company have enabled her to assess problems with horses and other animals to quickly get them on the road to recovery. She is a supporter of small farms and sustainable living with non-GMO and organic farming methods. 

Helga has presented the Morgan horse story at numerous venues, including Equine Affaire and seminars, written for Countryside Magazine, and American Livestock Magazine, and given education seminars to local fire companies, clubs in first response to accidents and fires involving horses/animals. She lives in Pennsylvania where she continues to breed traditional Morgans and preserving traditional Morgan genetics.

Marketing Monday - Dexter Cattle

Welcome to another Marketing Monday! Today we're chatting about how to market your rare breed cattle cattle with Jeff Chambers (president) and Kimberly Jepsen (vice-president) of the American Dexter Cattle Association (https://dextercattle.org/).

Cattle Chats - Guernsey Cattle with Naturally Golden Family Farms Co-op

Welcome to another Cattle Chat! This week, we're excited to welcome special guest Cara Itle from Naturally Golden Family Farms Cooperative in Pennsylvania (https://www.naturallygoldenfamilyfarm...).

Cara grew up as the fourth generation on her family's dairy farm, Trotacre Farm in Enon Valley, PA , where she has been involved with the operation since she returned from college in 2017. Cara holds a BS in animal science from Penn State University, and is the most heavily involved with the cows on the farm, where she works to keep the registered herd of Guernseys healthy and productive.

Cara also serves as the Naturally Golden Family Farms Cooperative Board Secretary, managing the day-to-day marketing, sales, and finance of the co-op. In 2020 , the co-op received a microgrant from The Livestock Conservancy to develop, produce, and market cheese products from their heritage breed cattle.

Cattle Chats with Debbie Davis and Debbie Adams

Welcome to another Cattle Chat! This week we're excited to welcome special guests Debbie Adams and Debbie Davis of the Cattlemen's Texas Longhorn Registry (https://www.ctlr.org/). Both are experienced cattle ranchers working to conserve the critically rare Texas Longhorns from extinction.

🐄 Debbie Adam's first job out of nursing school was as a camp nurse for hearing impaired and deaf children in Kerrville, TX. The further away she got from the city, the more certain she became that her future was in the Texas Hill Country. After decades of work and multiple career changes, she made her dreams of owning a piece of this land a reality in 2016. She acquired her ranch, the Cielito Lindo, where she raises various types of animals. Including Texas Longhorn (CTLR) cattle.

"Initially, I did not understand the significance of these marvelous animals, but it did not take me long to appreciate what they mean. They are history, trail drives, cowboys (and cowgirls), State and Nation builders, and they live in my pastures. I am honored and privileged to be doing my part to preserve living Texas history."

🐄 Debbie Davis operates a ranch out of Forest Hill Country. She and her husband, Don, began dabbling in ranching in 1992 after Don gifted Debbie two longhorn heifers for her 30th birthday. What began as a hobby on family-owned land near Austin, evolved into a seed stock and grass-fed beef operation. She is passionate about preserving historically correct, genetically pure Texas Longhorn cattle. Learn more about Debbie on her website: https://www.dwdlonghorns.com/