LOU ANN GOOD Lancaster Farming Stuff LITITZ (Lancaster Co.) Mothers, research confirms, have a profound impact on their daughters. Subconsciously, daughters tend to imitate their mothers. Kim, 19, and Stephanie, 14, are no exception. The two sisters are animal lovers just like their mom Sharon Landis. “I rescued everything I found when I was a little girl baby birds, stray dogs, and turtles,” Sharon said. “Now I’m involved in animal rescue and pet therapy.” Sharon also leads the 4-H Just Kiddin’ Around Pygmy Goat Club, where daughter Kim serves as a teen leader to the 22 members. The Landis family of Oregon View Farm have a menagerie of animals and businesses on their 56-acre farm, which has been in the family for four generations. Dad Jay and two sons, Ryan, 21, and Jason, 16, take care of 35,000 laying hens, 30 steers, and crop farming. Sharon and her daughters feed and milk 50 dairy goats for their certified goat dairy. In ad dition, the female members par ticipate in Australian Cattle Dog Rescue. Sharon explained that means their home is like a foster home for Australian cattle dogs who are abandoned by their owners. “We keep the dogs until they can be placed in permanent hnmM. Generally, we have them between two weeks and 10 months,’’ she said. Surprises sometimes accom pany abandoned dogs. Recently the animal shelter asked them to take a stray dog, which they as sured them was not pregnant. Five days later, the stray had six puppies. Of course, the puppies are easy to love and the family is finding homes for each one. The puppies are a big asset to the family’s pet therapy pro Richard takes a turn at tapping goat milk from the bulk tank. The farm has been in his family for four generations. Daughters Share Mother’s Love For Animals gram. When requested, they take puppies and goats to a nearby retirement home. Petting animals is considered therapeu tic for patients and those in adult daycare. After becoming interested in teaching dogs to herd, Sharon read a lot on the subject, at tended a few herding clinics, and now trains other dogs. “I’m just a novice, but I’ve trained several,” Sharon said. Five years ago, the Landis family developed a goat dairy almost by accident. Sharon had developed an allergy to cow’s milk. Because they already had oygmy goats, she decided to add a milking goat to their collec ion. Goat milk is easier to digest md doctors often recommend it or those with allergies or with )ther health problems. The chil- Iren loved drinking goat milk md eating ice cream made from he goat milk. By word-of nouth, others started asking if hey could buy milk. Government regulations for ;oat dairies are similar to cow lairies. To attain a raw milk li cense, water and grounds must be tested, and lab testing is re quired twice a month. The milk ing parlor must be built to state specifications. The Landis family said they had little difficulty complying with the regulations and setting up the operation to sell certified raw milk. They use a milking machine to milk twice daily. Milk is put into a bulk tank for customers to tap into their own containers. In order to maintain a year round supply of milk, goats are bred out of season. Most of the customers hear about the dairy through word-of-mouth or from flyers placed at local health food stores. The girls take turns feeding and milking the herd, which re quires about IV2 hours twice daily. When they first began milking, Sharon posted a sign in Children and animals are nurtured on Oregon View Farm. Sisters Stephanie, left, and Kim, right, hold the puppies from a Rescue dog with Mom Sharon and the Australian herding dog that she is training. the milking parlor to remind the children of the necessity of cleanliness. The sign reads: If teat isn’t clean enough to put your mouth on, it isn’t clean enough to put the inflations (milkers) on. “They were a bit grossed out by the sign, but it had the de sired effect,” Sharon said. “They quickly learned how im portant it was to keep every thing clean.” When led into the parlor, the goats jump up on the milking stand and munch on feed while being brushed, washed, sani tized, dipped, and milked. Of all the animals, Stephanie likes the goats best. Everyone is named and the family said they have no problem identifying them. Each have their own fa vorite. All the children are homes chooled until ninth grade when they enroll in Lancaster Men- Kim feeds the Alpine goats. The 50 head are each named, recognized, and pampered by Kim, Stephanie, and Sharon. nonite High School. Kim, a senior at Lancaster Mennonite High and vice president of its FFA, will gradu ate June 3. She plans to work a year on the family farm and then take a two- or four-year course to become a vet techni cian. Both girls are accomplished cooks. Kim explained that they had to do all the cooking and chores when their mother had to undergo operations for carpal tunnel on both wrists. It took two years, but Sharon reports her hands are as good as new now. Ask Sharon which is harder to raise animals or children? “Children,” she answers quickly with a grin. “If you become stressed, you can put an animal in a cage but what do you do with children?” On Mother’s Day, Sharon will have a chance to relax. Her chil- dren and husband do the farm chores, take her out to eat, and give her plants to fill her flower beds. Here is one of the family’s fa vorite recipes using goat milk. Goat Milk Ice Cream 4-quarts Scald 4 cups milk in double boiler. Combine: 4 beaten eggs IV2 cups sugar 2 tablespoons flour V 2 teaspoon salt Add 6 tablespoons scalded milk to mixture and stir. If choc olate flavor is desired, add 3 squares melted baking choco late. Pour mixture into double boiler with scalded milk. Stir constantly until slightly thick ened. Cool. Add: 4 cups goat’s milk 6 teaspoons vanilla Stir until combined. Freeze in ice cream freezer according to directions for hand or machine.
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