Willamette Valley Lamb
Last Updated On: November 1st, 2023 at 01:20PM MST
Contact information
Farm Address:95102 Ayres lane
Junction City, Oregon, 97448
Primary Contact: Cody Wood
Primary Phone:
Type: Cell
Number: 541-510-5978
Email: Cody@sprout.ag
Website: https://www.sprout.ag
Internship information
General Farm Description: Willamette Valley Lamb is a mid to large scale sheep and cattle farm based in the Willamette Valley, near Eugene, Oregon. Our focus is raising sustainable and ethical lamb on perennial pastures ensuring the health and well being of both the animals and the land. In the valley the spring and summer time are our most productive months. Lambing starts here in April and is a very intense time of the year. Lambs are then put on planted and irrigated perennial pastures and intensively managed. The winters are more extensive utilizing the surrounding pasture land to sustain ewes. Management in the winter consists of moving sheep and building electric fence. We currently have 1000+ ewes but we are growing all the time. We also have a large ranch on the Oregon coast near the beautiful town of Langlois. Here 500 ewes are extensively grazed over several pastures around the ranch. This ranch is remote and forested, but gorgeous with views of the Pacific ocean from some of the highest pastures.CRAFT Member Farm? No
Internship Starts: flexible year round
Internship Ends: flexible
Number of Internship Available: 2
Application Deadline: No deadline
Minimum Length of Stay: 3 months
Internship Details:
Internships consists of the day to day of sheep and cattle ranching. In the summer this entails setting up and moving irrigation, moving sheep, and checking sheep making sure that everyone is happy and full. In the winter interns will be setting up and taking down electric fence, moving sheep in a stock trailer, and also checking sheep, changing batteries and making sure everyone is in their right place. We are very busy in the valley, and there are always a lot of things to get done.
On the Oregon coast the interns day to day mostly consists of checking sheep on a four- wheeler and making rounds, making sure everyone has enough to eat. Interns will move sheep periodically all over the ranch and manage all of pastures. Interns will also perform basic infrastructure upkeep with instruction. This consists of things like fixing permanent fence, and barn maintenance. Life on the coast is a bit quieter, but there still is always things to get done.
Educational Opportunities: The opportunities to learn on our farm are numerous. If you are, at all interested in owning sheep or livestock as a either a hobby or a business this internship is for you. Interns will basically do everything there is to do day to day running the farm. After this internship caring for 300 sheep will feel like a casual hobby. Interns will work daily with their own Border Collie dog to gather and herd sheep. They will learn how to command, praise, care for, and love this dog. Working with a herding dog is a very subtle and difficult relationship that requires time and thought to make effective. Interns will have the resource of coworkers with years of experience working with dogs to help them. Rarely will there be another opportunity to work so extensively with a trained herding dog without having to start from scratch with a puppy. Interns will learn a lot about forage and effective grazing management. Coworkers also have years of experience working with livestock and pasture. Interns will learn when to move animals based on the look of the pasture. They will also learn what plants work the best in which places for different animals and why. Interns will come out of this internship with a basic understanding of perennial pasture management and rotational grazing strategies. Interns will also learn a lot about animal health. They will have daily hands on experience with treating different health problems in the animals. Interns will have the opportunity to learn how to drive a four wheeler, which is a must on many ranches. They will learn how to construct and take down electric fence. They will also have some experience making permanent woven wire fence.
Skills Desired: Interns will be most successful in this internship if they have had some experience working with their hands. This is a physically demanding job, where you work outside everyday, in all kinds of weather. Interns will be asked to be flexible working different hours. Interns should have a good work ethic and good attention to detail, willingness to to work through hard situations with a good, positive attitude is very helpful here. Good problem solving skills and quick decision making are also good qualities to have. Farm work is not glamorous or easy, you will be working in the heat, the mud and the rain. Interns must have a valid driver's license, and be willing to drive.
Meals: Meals here are shared for the most part. Meat from the farm is a staple and eaten pretty much every day. All of the other food is provided for the interns, and interns have a lot of choice as to what they can buy, with the exception of meat, which is provided solely by the farm. Interns are required to cook some meals in a rotation.
Stipend: Dependent on experience
Housing: Here in the valley interns share a comfortable two bathroom, three bedroom house with all the amenities. Interns will have their own private room, access to a washer and dryer, and the use of a full kitchen. Wifi is provided. Out on the Oregon coast interns will live in a private, secluded, primitive cabin. The cabin is in the middle of the woods on this beautiful ranch. Interns will have access to a kitchen and bathroom.
Preferred method of Contact: Email or Phone