Profile information
Host rating
100 %
Last replied
26 Mar 2024
Reply rate
85.7 %
Usually responds within 14 days
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Details
Description
A small family hobby farm in rural Canada run by an older gay couple and Mother/in-law. Looking for a farmhand to help with chores and animal care. Only 2 hours away from Ottawa (Canada's capital.) Most guests stay 2-4 weeks, we encourage a guest to help for awhile and then are happy to see them go off on adventures exploring parts of Canada, using our farm as a basecamp to return to if they like.
Types of help and learning opportunities
Elderly Companionship
Gardening
DIY and building projects
Animal Care
Farmstay help
Creating/ Cooking family meals
Help around the house
General Maintenance
Cultural exchange and learning opportunities
Animal husbandry the old fashioned way. We are a small hobby farm and all our animals have names and get attention and care as household pets would. So you must like, and want to work with barn animals. If you are interested in nature, and small scale farming, and livestock care working independently at odd jobs, Usual lambing season is Feb/Mar @ 15 lambs being born that most guests treasure memories of.
Farm life in the vast rural areas of Ontario Canada; where we work hard but still enjoy the hot-tub under the stars before bed and the fresh pure air of our 187 acre farm. Our farmhouse is from 1802. We live a very relaxed life where we prefer to be easy-going. Keeping extremely clean house is not as important on a farm, or when you can be out in the garden watching some wild swans that landed on the lake.
Help
We have a family run hobby farm with sheep, pigs, chicken, goats & turkeys. We are approaching 60 now and find the more physical side of farm life more difficult. We have had farmhands for room/board before and it worked well. They worked @5hrs doing daily farm chores or special projects they preferred (a stone walled garden; new chicken coop etc.) and we fed and housed them. Lots of times they would 'compact' their work hours so they had 4-5 days off at a time to go travel. Our farm is centrally located in between Montreal-Toronto-Ottawa triangle of Canada.
Must enjoy farm animals, getting dirty and hard physical work. Typical chores include mucking out stalls; helping with births, bailing hay, cutting firewood, bush clearing, barn repairs, landscaping, basic meal prep., vegetable crop gardening/weeding/harvesting/planting, handyman, farmhand; or really whatever practical skills you have we probably need done! Or if you have skills at carpentry, auto mechanics, plumbing, building, fixing -we can always find something needs doing.
Languages spoken
English: Fluent
Accommodation
We have a large guest room you will have to yourself with your own private bathroom in a very large very old farmhouse. But still modern kitchen, cable tv, high speed internet. It is a queen size bed so we would also consider hosting a couple. We are foodies who experiment a lot, make & grow everything and love to learn about other culture's food preparation. We do a lot of our own preserves/canning/pickling/wine making and of course home grown fruit & vegetable growing.
If you are working while staying here we will provide food for 3 meals a day; we are comfortable with folks just helping themselves when hungry rather than set sit-down formal meals. Since we raise our own meat; a strict vegetarian would most likely not be suitable here.
We have an in-law suite separate area where my 77 yr old Mother-In-Law moved into with her own bedroom/bathroom/sitting room/den downstairs.
What else ...
We have 2 dogs and 2 cats in the farmhouse so you must like pets and not be allergic. Also its important to us that any travelers be open minded and pro LGBT+ We are not a religious household. We are open minded and easy going; love to meet new people and learn from them as much as we like to teach. We have travelled extensively ourselves in our 20's before settling down to a slow paced, quiet farm life. We stick close to home now since the animals need care everyday, and chores don't stop. Possibly if things work well we might be able to go away for a week while you take responsibility for the farm (with a paid stipend) ( Getting away is a freedom we don't get to enjoy now.)
But we are especially happy to have someone that wants to get out themselves and learn & explore this part of Canada, or take nature walks in our forest. On our property we have deer, black bears, owls, beaver, coyotes, etc.
We do travel to the city of Kingston regularly so pickup/drop offs are easy from the train station or airport. There is also a $50 flat-rate MegaBUS from Toronto Airport that drops off right near our farm for anyone coming from Toronto.
A little more information
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
Can host digital nomads
Our internet connection is good considering we are in rural Canada. Not sure what this nomad actually is; but happy to have someone pursue their own interests while staying here and working with us on our farm.
Space for parking camper vans
As we have a very large farm with a lots of space. We also have a private 25 acre lake and our own forests.
How many Workawayers can stay?
More than two
Hours expected
Maximum 4-5 hours a day, 5 days a week
Feedback (10)
Feedback
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I recently had the opportunity to volunteer with Tom and Peter in their farm, and I must say that it was one of the most delightful experiences I have ever had. These two hosts are warm, caring and hospitable, making my stay with them absolutely… read more
Though she did not have very much pre knowledge with the farm animals, she took to them quite easily; was happy and interested to learn and really… read more
They are so much thoughtful and kind that I almost immediately felt at home, always asking if I was okay or needed something.
The way they care for their animals is really moving, actually their farm looks like them : full of love, that’s the best way I… read more
She was the longest period we had a WorkAway with us at one time but we never felt it was too long, nor… read more
It was very easy for me to feel home there.
Peter introduced me to the cozy hot tub and showed me the morning and the evening routine… read more
I had planned to stay for two weeks at first, but they extended my stay because it was so wonderful.
When I asked them to extend my stay, they willingly accepted my request and I was very happy.
They were very kind and always said, "You can do whatever you want.
Peter was always looking out for… read more
They are both very, very nice guys :) They always were very helpful and treat us like members of their family. Both of them are always open to learn new things and thankful for the work you do.
The animals are very cute und they love to get attention. They treat every… read more
Tom is an amazing cook - there was always plenty of delicious food to choose from & an abundance of farm fresh eggs. We especially enjoyed the… read more
