Shortsville Reindeer Farm
After reading an article about “reindeer for hire” in 2015, Mike Schaertl decided there was one addition needed to his farm- a herd of his own. By 2017, Moose and Little Buddy were welcomed to the property in Shortsville, N.Y.
Just like with any other farm animal, there was a lot of work that needed to be done before the reindeer could move in; Acres of brush to clear, pens and a barn to be built.
But Mike was determined.
Over the course of the past 9 years, the farm has grown and changed. Securely fenced in pastures have taken the place of wild plants and shrubs. A beautiful bard As its growth has come fairly rapidly, so have the people. There are hundreds of visitors who come to see the reindeer, filling up slots to come by and get a chance to meet them face to face.
The visitor barn provides shelter for tour groups visiting the farm. Just like the reindeer barn, this one is also built from scratch. The wood is bare and simple but festive, and provides a comfortable space for crowds of up to 90 to take shelter and listen to Mike teach about the animals. Bales of hay and straw for people to sit on surround an indoor pen suited for two reindeer.
Despite only housing six reindeer, Mike’s farm is like any other animal farm. There is always upkeep, and there is always something to do. Since Mike is busy hosting groups most of the week, he needs extra help to make sure the reindeer are looked after as they should fully.
“Initially, we didn't have any help. And then word of mouth was that we had some reindeer here, and there were people that were interested in working with animals that wanted to come out and help, and they just wanted to volunteer.” Mike says, explaining that the people reaching out had no interest in getting paid. “Initially it was just Sean and Sandy, but then as more and more people found out about the reindeer farm, we got more and more volunteers. Many of them come out every Sunday and help clean up the pens that I'm not able to get to during the week.”
Shawn has been working there 4 years.
“[laughs] What don’t I do… I’m in charge of making sure that the reindeer are taken care of, cleaning up after them, making sure that the other help is doing what they’re supposed to be doing, teaching them the things about the reindeer, what to do what not to do with the reindeer…”
Reindeer, despite being pretty even tempered animals, still have their own quirks.
“They are unpredictable, one minute they’re lovey-dovey the next minute they’re racing around causing trouble, the next minute they don’t want you anywhere near them so you never know what you’re getting into every time you approach them. Makes it a lot of fun.”
Sandy has also been working with them for 4 years, and says she has enjoyed every moment.
“I’m a handler, we help clean up pens, we walk them, we do events- many events.” “Just to see all the little kids’ smiles on their faces is all worth it.”
Sandy also agrees that they’re not the easiest to work with.
“Training them to like you [laughs] that’s a project. I’m out there quite a bit so mostly walking them and training them is the best part. Getting close.”
Sandy lights up as she talks about what makes her hard tasks on the farm worth it.
“I enjoy just being around them because just to see their smile on the face when they come up to a reindeer, or feed them… Its- its just priceless.”
Recently, Mike had noticed that Bronco, the biggest bull (male reindeer) on the farm was acting noticeably lethargic.
“Reindeer are very tough animals. They hide any kind of illness that they have just so that a predator doesn't see that the reindeer is weak. Because the predator will go after the weakest reindeer. So we have to watch the reindeer fairly carefully.”
Mike explains that Bronco wasn’t drinking, lost interest in the girls of the herd (Bulls are very territorial, and are always looking for a suitable mate) and was taking more naps than normal for a reindeer. After realizing that something was wrong, Mike took Bronco to his vet. After testing fecal and blood samples, there wasn’t anything unusual detected when the results came back, leaving both Mike and his vet puzzled. Still not knowing what was wrong with Bronco, Mike decided to take him to the Cornell Animal Hospital. It would cost a pretty penny, but Bronco clearly still needed healthcare. After getting him to Cornell, the staff took the same samples as his vet. They tried to ultrasound his kidneys, but reindeer fur and skin are extremely thick, making it very difficult to get an image. After still not finding anything else, they put him on an IV with meds hoping at least something would work.
And something did! “I guess the IV and the meds that they gave him through the IV cured whatever was ailing him. But, they're really not sure what it was. They think maybe it's something in the pasture that he eats, that he's eating.”
Mike suspects it may be Oak leaves in their pasture, and is now cautious of letting them fall into any of the reindeer pens.
Despite the hardships of owning and working with more specialty animals like this, Mike loves the reindeer and the experiences that come with them.
“all the smiles that you see on the kids when they come here. They really have a good time and it’s a really enjoyable experience to see them enjoying the reindeer- seeing that there are real reindeer.”
“I’m retired and we just love doing this thing.”
