Come and help on our smallholding in Saint Pardoux in the heart of the Gatine, France

Availability

  2024 

 Min stay requested: No minimum

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Details

  • Description

    Description

    Hello. We are David and Suzette and we live in the outskirts of a small village called Saint Pardoux in the heart of the Gatine.

    We have a smallholding with some small animals, including, chickens, ducks, quail & rabbits.
    We buy-in pig, beef, lamb and sometimes goat from local free-range farms and butcher/process ourselves.

    We have family cats..
    We also have a bee hive.

    We also run a small boarding kennels/cattery for dogs and cats for both English and French clients who go on holiday.

    We moved here in 2008 to get out of the 'rat race' and are now having fun living 'the Good Life'... Although some days Tom and Barbara have a lot to answer for :-)

    We spend most of our time outdoors or in with the dogs and cats.
    Looking after the animals and maintaining our land is a very busy job. For us our animals are our top priority as well as our source of food which we try to hatch/grow, dispatch/harvest, butcher/process and prepare ourselves.
    David does most of our butchery and we enjoy making our own sausages, bacon, ham, burgers, gammon, pate, soups and chutneys.... Time permitting!

    We have a poly-tunnel and a large vegetable garden and we try to grow all our own vegetables. Sometimes this is successful ... but not always!!

    Early in the season we have salads from the garden and we do have some potatoes left. We eat Brassica nearly all year from the garden too. chillies work well but we're not very good at root veg.. maybe it's the soil?
    Tomatoes like the polytunnel and we managed to process enough for the whole year.
    I've made sloe gin and rumtoff this year from the fruit around the area and it tastes yummy.. but is very alcoholic!
    david made a wonderful sweet chilli sauce and a hot chilli pickle that all our friends like and my pickled quails eggs made it down to Spain with a repeat order for 2019!

    We have plans for learning to use the smoker and dry curing meat and salami etc

    We have a professional-type kitchen where we have just started to hold cooking lessons - a local chef comes along and teaches different dishes and then we all sit down and eat it - with the obligatory glass of wine....... :-)
    we hope to hold some Chinese cooking lessons in 2019, but the chef is not confirmed yet.

    I like to make bread, although this is not always successful... but the chickens always eat the 'failures' :0)

    I am also involved in some of the local animal charities and help out where I can with rescue and re-homing, fundraising events and sponsoring.

    For our 'down-time' we like to chill in the garden with friends, around the bbq and fire pit drinking wine and chatting... We also have a pool which is a lovely necessity in the heat of the summer as the only way to cool down... So midnight, candlelit dips are fab...

    It's a lovely area for bike riding and walking with designated routes around the area.... the countryside is beautiful here ... Albeit a bit hilly!

  • Types of help and learning opportunities

    Types of help and learning opportunities

    Gardening
    DIY and building projects
    General Maintenance
    Creating/ Cooking family meals
    Farmstay help
    Help around the house
    Animal Care
  • UN sustainability goals this host is trying to achieve

    UN sustainability goals this host is trying to achieve

    UN goals
    No poverty
    Zero hunger
    Good health and well-being
    Quality education
    Gender equality
    Clean water and sanitation
    Affordable and clean energy
    Decent work and economic growth
    Industries, innovation and infrastructure
    Reduce inequality
    Sustainable cities and communities
    Responsible consumption and production
    Climate action
    Life below water
    Life on land
    Peace, justice and strong institutions
    Partnerships for the goals
  • Projects involving children

    Projects involving children

    This project could involve children. For more information see our guidelines and tips here.

  • Help

    Help

    Like any smallholding, different times of year give us different jobs and challenges and as you can imagine, there is always plenty of jobs to keep us busy and our 'to-do' lists never seem to get any shorter!

    So here is an idea of the some of the jobs you could be helping with...
    Animals – feed/water, cleaning out, maintaining housing and general husbandry. As well as certain times of the year, hatching, breeding and the rearing of the youngsters.

    Harvesting the honey twice a year is a fun job ...

    Garden and poly tunnel – rotovating, digging, planting, maintaining, potting on, watering and weeding (.......lots and lots of weeding)!

    Buildings - painting, maintaining, we hope to lime-point a few of the stone walls at some point.. - Another thing on our list :).... constructing new animal houses and shelters. ...

    The rest of the land requires hedge cutting and clearing, grass cutting, striking, felling trees, removing brambles/stinging nettles, putting up and maintaining fences and chopping/stacking wood for the winter.

    Kennels/cattery- cleaning, dog walking, cleaning, feeding, cleaning, cat cuddling, did I mention cleaning? The kennels is also due to be painted very soon!
    The house – the usual stuff, day to day chores cooking, cleaning and from time to time painting and decorating.

    you will be treated as part of the family. As such we hope you will help with meal times and general 'home/family' stuff and not count this towards your 'working hours'.

    All meals/snacks/drinks will be provided.

  • Languages spoken

    English: Fluent
    French: Intermediate

  • Accommodation

    Accommodation

    Accommodation is either: (subject to availability)

    Twin room upstairs in the family home - sleeps up 2
    You will share all amenities (kitchen, bathroom, toilet, lounge) with us and my 85 year old Father-in-law.

    Converted Grange -sleeps up to 3 .. (2 steps to get into the building, ladder to double bed)

    The only down side I'd that you will need to return to the house for the bathroom which is about 40m ..... (we are in the process of making a dry-toilet next to the grange... maybe a solar shower in the summer too?)

  • What else ...

    What else ...

    As with most outdoor jobs It can be VERY hard work and often wet, muddy and very cold in the winter.

    We don't expect you to have all the knowledge or skills to help us, but you need to be enthusiastic, hardworking and willing to learn.

    We don't mind smokers, but you will have to smoke outside, and away from the house.

    You must like and respect all animals.

    We will be willing to collect or drop off up to 1 hour of our village, between the hours of 9am and 9pm only

  • A little more information

    A little more information

    • Internet access

    • Limited internet access

      Limited internet access

    • We have pets

    • We are smokers

    • Can host families

  • How many Workawayers can stay?

    How many Workawayers can stay?

    More than two

  • ...

    Hours expected

    25 hrs per week

Host ref number: 656233186288

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