Soulstice Gardens

Lamby was born at a local sheep creamery in April of 2015. He was rejected by his mother soon after birth. Since his mother wouldn't let him nurse, they didn't think he got the proper dose of colostrum from his mother's milk and assumed he would likely die. Male animals aren't that valuable to dairies small or large, and Lamby was scheduled to be culled. Had his mother allowed him to nurse, he would have been castrated and sold for slaughter between 3 and 6 months of age. 

We brought Lamby home when he was just a week old thanks to the caring staff at the creamery. He lived in our kitchen for three months while we bottle fed him before graduating to the barn with the big sheep. Today Lamby is a happy, healthy ram and our special boy. Lamby loves to be doted on by visitors. Scratches, and a pocket full of corn, are sure ways to win his affection. He'll work his way into your heart!

Mattie Munches along with his brother Sunny Munches were the first sheep on the farm. They came from a wonderful shepherd who couldn't bear to see them slaughtered, as most male sheep are between the ages of 3 and 6 months. Mattie is a gentle, loving soul and once he befriends you, the love is unconditional. 

His brother, Sunny, was killed by a falling tree in a storm in early 2017. The loss shook us to our core, and everyone (but especially Mattie) has had to adjust and move forward. The change has been tough, but Mattie is a trooper and so often offers us comfort when we're hurting. He now leads the herd and watches out for Lamby making sure to alert us if anything is wrong. He and Lamby are awaiting some new friends who we hope will make it to the farm this year.

Miss Picklesbee is a miniature lop rabbit. She came from a loving family where she was 4h show bunny. As children outgrow the 4h program, often the animals receive less and less attention. Rabbits are traditionally kept in wire cages where little behavior is expressed. Now Pickles digs tunnels, munches on fresh grass, and runs as fast as she can chasing her sister every day.

They play hard and they work hard producing fertile droppings that get shoveled onto our garden beds. She has got a bursting personality full of character and humor. She serves as a testament to rabbits kept on grass. No wire cages here, healthy rabbits, and plenty of bio-rich manure!

Another retired 4h bunny, Trufflelufagus is the calm and gentle balance to Miss Picklesbees' wild antics. She holds down the fort and rules the rabbitry. Every night when it's time to go into the bunny house, Truffles hops nicely inside and waits for dinner while Pickles darts and dashes in jest. She's a no nonsense kind of girl. Her favorite foods include fresh dandelion, dock, plantain, blackberry leaf, and a bit of apple here and there. 

Octavian is Soulstice Gardens resident rooster. He is a micro-bantam Old English rooster and stands at a whopping 7 inches tall. His high pitched miniature crow echoes across the farm each morning and night, and while he can't quite make it happen with the hens...he is still their protector and best friend. 

The hens right now are a mixed flock of bantam Ameraucanas, Hazel and Sally, a Rhode Island Red named Amber, and two new Buff Orpington chicks that Sally hatched out this year. She was so determined to sit on eggs that we bought some fertilized eggs from a neighbor. She is a really happy mom, even if her chicks will surpass her in size three times over.

One of the magical things about this property is that it came with a flock of semi-feral peacocks! The neighbor began the free range flock 12 years ago with two birds and today there's about 20 that roam the neighborhood. Each year one or two of the females will nest and hatch eggs here on the farm. 

Ceasar is our resident male. He wandered into the flock a couple of years ago and quickly became the head honcho. During the summer months, his tail is a sight to behold and he won't hesitate to shake if for you! In July and August each year, the feathers naturally fall out and we get to pick up little treasures all over the homestead!

Currently, we have a family of 3 Indian Runner ducks. Daffy is our Drake that we brought home from a local auction that mainly sells birds for meat. He was with his mate, Daisy. A wild flock of ducks had moved into the pond where they lived. Daffy and Daisy got pushed out and they needed a new home. 

Daffy is the ever vigilant watch-duck, alerting the whole bird crew if something feels off. Daisy has a bottomless stomach and spends most of her time turning over rocks and digging into the mud looking for goodies like slugs and worms. 

This year the pair hatched one duckling we like to call Birdie Sanders. He will become a new Drake, and it's time for the homestead to add to its duck flock. We love ducks! They eat the slugs, provide hours of joy, and are unbelievably sweet. We also harvest duck eggs from time to time, when Daisy doesn't mind. 

Yogi is our border collie that has traveled with us through all of our moves and hung in there through the trials of life. Andy found him at a year old scared half to death hiding under the truck of his neighbor. No one knows Yogi's story before that day, but since then he has enjoyed 14 years of companionship and love. He is a gentle soul that has never hurt any of the animals and has always welcomed new members of the family. He lost his long time companion, Bear, the year that we moved here but since then has gained Scout and they've become the best of friends. We are so fortunate and thankful that we can finally give him the life he deserves. 

Scout is aptly named, as he is a wandering soul. A month or so after moving to the farm, he began making regular visits to the house and soon after started sleeping on the stoop. Some investigating revealed that he had wandered onto the neighbor's property with a broken chain and a collar reading nothing but the name 'Scout.' The neighbor had been feeding him but didn't know where he came from. 

After meeting many of the neighbors, it became apparent that Scout's route was vastly larger than any of us had thought. He had multiple houses, multiple beds, and multiple names but never stuck to one place too long before continuing his search...maybe for his original owner. 

Because he frequented a busy and speedy road, we decided it would be safer for him to stay here and so here he stays at his forever home. Everyday Scout teaches me about patience, stamina, gratitude, and love.