Roo’in and rearin’ to pull: a day with the animals of the Old Line State

Jake6When one imagines Washington, D.C., and the surrounding metropolitan area, I bet you don’t think of sheep and goats. Or alpacas. I definitely would not think of kangaroos, that’s for sure.  This last weekend, however, fellow AVMA veterinary student extern Derecka Alexander and I went on an “epic adventure” to meet the animals and their guardians who call Maryland (the Old Line State) home — and the cast of characters we encountered was nothing short of amazing!

We started our day at Wagon Wheel Ranch in Mount Airy, MD. It was a great place to start! Pulling up in our Nissan Versa rental, we quickly discovered goats and sheep (two of my favorite animals). Hearing rumors that a kangaroo might inhabit the property, we set out to find Mr “Outback.” And find him we did! Who can say he or she started his or her day by scratching the muzzle of a red kangaroo? What’s more, Mr Outback lovingly interacted with one of the piglets in his pen, a sight I will never forget. In addition to Outback and the aforementioned sheep and goats, we also visited with chickens of various breeds, ducks, peafowl (even a leucistic one!), and rabbits. And we met two monkeys too!

Our next stop was Whispering Acres Alpacas, just down the road. Back home at the Hospital for Large Animals at Cummings Veterinary Medical Center in Grafton, MA, I am known as the “cria whisperer” due to my strong affection for baby alpacas. Getting out of our Versa, we were greeted by a completely white, odd-eyed cat. The farmer’s daughter graciously then gave us a tour of the farm which sports not only many very beautiful huacaya and suri alpacas, but a miniature donkey, several sheep and goats, peafowl, French rabbits, and turkeys. I met several alpacas that, provided I had already graduated from veterinary school and had my own ranch, would have arranged to take back with me to Massachusetts in a heartbeat. One of the suri machos was an absolute gem, and one of the angora goats became fast friends with me!Jake5

On to the Charles County Fair! Derecka and I had a great time there. In fact, Derecka remarked that I was “like a little kid in a candy store,” running around meeting all the chickens, rabbits, guinea fowl, turkeys, goats, sheep, pigs, cattle, and horses I could. Frankly, I pondered how I could take a black-pelted wether and ewe home to Boston because I was most certainly smitten with those two. And a rabbit too! I fell in love with a champion miniature rex doe. I mean, I’ve always wanted a house rabbit!

The main attraction at the Charles County Fair was the horse pull. When we walked up to the arena, we were greeted by several teams of Belgians, ready and rearin’ to pull thousands of pounds. These behemoths were so much fun to watch. For these horses, this sport is their life. You can tell how excited they are to pull, as many of them often take off before they are even hitched to the sled! That night, we witnessed history as well, as new record were set by both the light-weight and heavy-weight teams. Like any obsessed sports fan, I was able to meet the athletes after the pulls were over and the champions were crowned. I have always planned to have one or two oxen teams someday, but I am rather sure I will need a team of Belgians, Shires, Clydesdales, or Percherons too.

By the way, nothing beats county fair lemonade either. I likely drank my weight in the stuff that day and

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I am not ashamed to admit so!Jake1Jake2Jake3