These are the animals we keep at Greyfields.

Goats 
We raise registered Nubian dairy goats. We have been milking them to learn the hobby of making our own cheese (unfortunately under WSDA guidelines it will be a few years before we are able to sell cheese) as well as using the milk as a source of feed for our pigs.
Pedigree bucklings are available now. Whethers (castrated males) are available for sale as brush goats or pets as supplies dictate.

Sheep 
Our flock of sheep are thriving on the lush pastures here on Puget Island with our ram, Shaun, who is a registered Texel.

Texels are noted for having an abundance of lean muscle and less fat than most lamb / mutton of other breeds. Our customers this year at the Farm Market loved our lamb and we are working very hard to increase supplies for next year. Puget Island is famous for being able to grow rich green grass very quickly. Enjoy meat from grass fed animals, that grow more slowly and with better texture than animals rushed to market weight on grain.

Geese 
We love our geese at Greyfields. We let them roam the farm grazing for most of the Summer before a very short period of fattening before Thanksgiving. We think our ancestors had it right by eating the Christmas goose, as the meat is darker and richer in texture than turkey. Geese are also a low impact, disease resistant, ecologically sound animals to raise on a small farm. Geese will be available prior to Thanksgiving 2008.

Ducks 
We are keeping Silver Appleyard ducks. Our island is a wet place full of ditches and wet spots which is ideal habitat for waterfowl. Silver Appleyards are on the ALBC list of threatened species.

Chickens 
We currently keep Barred Plymouth Rocks, Black Sex Links, Marans, Speckled Sussex, Rhode Island Reds, Black Jersey Giants and Dark Cornish for breeding and egg laying. As we now have our own incubator, we have hatched our own replacement layers and meat chickens for future years. We hope to develop our own strains of birds with high disease resistance and longevity, which is often lacking in day old chicks from larger commercial hatcheries.

Our hens are allowed to pasture in a field shelter which we rotate to fresh grass. Our meat birds are also pastured on lush summer grasses and are not rushed to market weight (often 42 days commercially) in cramped, confined conditions. Enjoy guilt-free meat and eggs from birds who have never been in a wire cage and have enjoyed the pleasures of the sun on their faces and the grass under their toes.

Custom incubation is available for laying breeds.

Pigs

We raise Hampshire cross pigs which we get as weiners from James Guttierez in Rochester, WA. Pigs are essential for a farm, and ecologically sound animals as they recycle all vegetables, eggs and milk that would otherwise go to waste. Fattened in the summer sun, pork by the cut is available each fall at the farm market.

Beef

Our breeding cows are sourced locally on Puget Island and we are in our third year of beef production. We grass feed and finish our beef which we are able to do due to our mild coastal climate. We use no growth hormones or medicated feeds in production of our beef. In 2007 we began cutting our own hay to use as winter feed for the cows which is another step towards self suficiency. Beef is available seasonally by the cut at the farm market.

Greyhounds 
We have been involved in the adoption of ex-racing greyhounds for four years now.  Greyhounds are ideal companion animals which have a very low energy level.  Many people think that they are high-strung or need lots of exercise.  The opposite is true.  Generally, our greyhounds can be found asleep on the couch during most the day.  We encourage anyone who has interest in adopting ex-racing dogs to contact us or get in touch with Greyhound Pets Inc., here in Washington for more information .

Border Collies
As part of running a farm with a lot of livestock, we routinely ended up chasing a lot of our sheep and cows ourselves, until we got Piper, our first herding dog. She is halfway through her training at the moment, having taken some time out to have some pups in March, 2009. With Piper out of action, we were back to chasing animals and decided to keep two of her pups to train as back up dogs should she ever be out of action again, so Bridie and Alfie are now part of Greyfields as well.

The Barn Cats
Little did we know when we bought our new home, we'd be feeding, and spaying or neutering 12 new cats. Barn cats take care of rodents and other pests meaning we don't have any need for poisons that can come in contact with the food we grow.