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| Homestead Magazine Summer 2008: Big interest in tiny livestock |
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by Steve Werblow
Small-statured animals aren't just cute - they may suit your homestead
That little piggy went to market, but
these little piggies stayed home—right
next to the couch. Welcome to the
world of miniature livestock, where
good things come in small packages.
It’s a world of housebroken potbellied
pigs, waist-high horses straight out of a
story book, and compact cattle and sheep that
don’t need miles of pasture to roam. In short,
they’re animals that suit the homestead life.
"If you have 5 acres, you could have a
breeding group so you could breed them,
keep some and sell some," says Michelle
Shannon, who runs 100 miniature sheep on
her 15 acres near Toledo, Wash. "You don’t
have to have just a sheep or two."
Richard Gradwohl downsized his cattle
as he and his wife downsized their ranch
in Covington, Wash., right in the path of
Seattle’s sprawl. "When we got down to 5
acres, I looked at the big animals and said,
'this doesn’t make any sense,'" he recalls.
Mini appetites. Gradwohl’s cattle now run 36 to 48 inches tall, the result of meticulous breeding against small-statured animals from across the country and around the world. He’s quick to point out that cattle weren’t bred large until after World War II. "When Herefords were developed in England, they were developed to fit on a 5-acre farm—beefy but efficient," he notes. "You can graze two per acre, depending on the quality of pasture."
Small appetites and natural hardiness
make many miniature livestock breeds
less expensive to keep than big cousins.
"My horses each take 1/4 to 1/2 a flake
of hay per day," notes Jan Smith, who
breeds mini horses near Rosedale, Ind.
"They were brought over from a colder
climate, so they do well in cold weather."
Small livestock requires tighter fencing
than big animals do, and most need a covered
area to escape bad weather. And depending
on their pedigree, some minis can be expensive
to buy. Gradwohl’s top breeding cattle
have brought over $20,000. Gail Heaney of
Los Molinos, Calif., points out that while a
full-sized donkey can be had for $200, the
miniature donkeys she breeds start at around
$750 and can quickly run into the thousands.
"In 1993 I told my dad that I spent $2,000
on miniature donkeys and he said, 'they must
have gold-plated hooves,'" Heaney laughs. "I
told him, 'they have gold-plated hearts.'"
City girl. Heaney bought tiny livestock—
first goats, then donkeys—when she moved
to rural northern California because full-sized
animals intimidated her. It’s been love ever
since, especially with her mini donkeys.
"You have to convince goats to like you,
but donkeys love you right from the get-go,"
she says. "They have a personality like a dog.
They’re as easy to care for as a dog, too."
Long-lived. Mini livestock can require an
even bigger commitment than dogs. Potbellied
pigs are seeing the ripe old age of 20;
miniature horses can live to 30, and miniature
donkeys can go 40 years. Also, most livestock
species are herd animals, so they thrive in the
company of other members of their species.
Marcie and Chris Christensen rescue potbellied
pigs and raise them in their home in
Pleasant Hill, Calif. As with many breeds,
there are plenty of animals to rescue rather
than buy from breeders. And though piglets
are cute, Marcie says there are advantages to
adopting an adult. "Go see what the pig looks
like," she advises. "See how big it gets. See
how it lives indoors and outdoors. Then get
two. By having two, they learn how to be pigs,
and that you are a human, not their herd mate."
John and Deb Kiger put their pint-sized
Southdown Babydoll sheep to work
grazing down the floor of their 3.5-acre
vineyard near Santa Rosa, Calif.
The wooly, round-faced sheep aren’t
just efficient weed eaters, cruising
comfortably beneath the trellis wires;
they’re a huge hit with visitors to the Kigers’
Web site. "There’s a lot of romance associated
with the wine industry," says John, "but the
connection people get, even remotely, to the
sheep has been astonishing."
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