Aurora Farm to host annual goat school

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This article was published 30/03/2022 (1453 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

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Some of Aurora Farm’s 24 goats are pygmies; others are regular-sized. May and Kerchak estimate that four or five of the goats are pregnant.

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That’s all an art…

Aurora Farm scheduled the goat school class for late in May, in part, because the animals typically give birth at this time. Having newborn goats on-site offers students a chance to care for the animals during this crucial life stage. Activities may include weaning babies or milking a goat that has never been milked.

“That’s all an art,” May said. “It’s something that many of our grandparents knew.”

Apart from milking, participants will learn how to inoculate the goats, administer oral medication, take their temperatures, trim hooves, and give first-aid. Students will also learn how to make a goat feel at home, from housing to fencing.

“I love when people come in who are almost ready to do it, and then we can work with their own spaces,” May said. “I like at the end of the three days for everybody to know, more or less, what their action plan is.”

Families who have taken this course may have the option to purchase Aurora Farm goats at the end of the season. May said she has seen a spike in the number of Manitoban families who are raising barnyard animals for sustenance.

“We’ve created much more of a community around dairy goats that we didn’t have before. That’s important to me, too,” May said.

“The bigger picture of food security is how we’re creating a community of knowledge that can empower us to be food secure.”

The class costs $375 plus GST per person. Additional family members can join for $100 plus GST. Children and youth under 16 are free to attend.

Aurora Farm is taking sign-ups for its week-long summer farm camps for youth ages eight to 15, as well as its ongoing 45-minute Experience Aurora day tours.

More information about all of Aurora Farm’s courses and handmade products is available at www.aurorafarm.ca