Meyers Family Farm Tour

Ding! A message notification sounded off from my phone. It showed, Confirmed Farm Tour at 10am. After I visited Frydek Heritage Farm, I became more and more interested in farming. I've searched for more local farms, and Meyers Family Farm was my next stop. I made a reservation for a farm tour on their Facebook page. There are many time slots available at no cost. I chose to book a 10am tour, since I wanted a natural light in the morning for my photos.

Samantha came out to greet us and led us to her backyard. Yes, the farm is in her spacious backyard. Baa..Baa.. that was the first thing I heard. The goats were chorusing to welcome us. Before we walked to the goats, we stopped to say hi to all the chickens. Some of them were napping, but opened just one eye to check on us as we were passing by.

Then we moved on to the goat pens. The first one was where the baby goats were. They seemed to be very excited to see Samantha. As we walked in, they quickly rushed to us and competed to get our attention. Once I bent down to these babies, they crawled on me immediately like kids. No wonder baby goats are called kids. They are very curious; they like to nibble on things like my sunglasses or the end of my blouse. However, they are gentle and intelligent.

I've never seen goats this close before. Samantha pointed out that they have horizontal, rectangular-shaped pupils. Since goats are herbivores, having this special shaped pupils helps them to see any danger coming from their periphery. It benefits them in a way that they can protect themselves from a predator coming from various directions.

We said goodbye to the babies and moved on to the female area. We walked past the milking station to the entry gate. It was challenging trying to open the gate, since the ladies were trying to push their way out. Samantha said they haven't been milked yet that morning. That's why when they saw Samantha they knew their routine and wanted to get out. It was my honor meeting one of the first goats of Meyer family, Miss Holly. Samantha whispered to me that Holly is her favorite (below photo is Holly!).

Holly - one of the first goats of Meyer Family

Some of the ladies are almost due. They rest comfortably in a shade here and there. Meanwhile a male goat in the adjacent pen made noise and jumped on the fence trying to grab our attention as well. Once I turned to him, he climbed onto his igloo posing for a perfect shot.

Another male goat caught my eye with his beautiful blond fur. Samantha warned me that I might reconsider getting too close to him because of his strong odor. She said the color I saw wasn't his true color; he had soiled himself to attract the female goats. When he's nicely cleaned, his fur is almost white.

We left the goats to go on to the barn. I noticed a chicken without feather around his neck. At first I thought he's been in a fight at some point. However, Samantha said this was the way he is. It's a chicken breed called Turken or Transylvanian Naked Neck.

I walked inside the barn where all the baby turkeys are. I had a chance to hold one of them. These babies are available for purchase if you are interested. Outside the barn is where the compost area is located. Leftover food is discarded here for the chicken to enjoy. It has become their playground; they eat, sleep and turn the soil into great compost. If you are looking for compost for your garden, you can pick it up from here.

Here I also met the Big Turkey wandering around enjoying plenty of food. It started to shower at the end of the tour. I asked Samantha to take a group photo together. She grabbed a chicken for me to hold and a goat for herself.

We walked back to the house where they have their products on display. You can support the farm either by tipping or purchasing their products. There are farm fresh eggs, goat milk soaps and lotions available for you to purchase. I had a wonderful time there. Samantha is such a friendly tour guide. And their Lavender soaps are superb!