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: 0 i -- = es / "Your Local Agricultural Voice" - Published by the Port Perry Star C July 11, 1995 Farming exotic animals by Stephen Leahy Farm & Country Life NYONE travelling along Thickson Rd. in Brooklin might think they're passing some kind of zoo when they see Bob and Barbara Hunter's Fair Acres farm. Instead of cows, pigs or chicken, their fields and build- ings are home to exotic ani- mals such as ostriches, llamas, and miniature donkeys. But the exotic animal that has really caught the Hunter's fancy is a gawky, flightless desert bird from Australia called an emu. Standing some six feet tall and weighing in at 150 pounds, emus are part of a wave of alternative agricul- ture that is sweeping North American farms. Among the first to get into emus in Ontario, the Hunters now have about 800 of the birds roaming a number of specialty .paddocks in Brooklin. They have an equal number on a small farm in Florida. While it is illegal to export emus from their native Australia, the emu industry got 1ts start ten to 15 years ago when zoos in North America sold their excess animals. 4 "It's tough to stay alive in traditional farming even if you work hard," says Bob. "So in the early 80's we decided we had to do other things to ensure out future." The Hunters went to the U.S. to investigate various alterna- tives, from sod farming to real estate. But it was the big birds, ostriches and emus, that seemed to provide the brightest future. Bob Hunter shows one of Fair Acres Farm's vistors, Jamal Jordan a 10-day old Emu chick, which could be mistaken for a baby Raptor from the movie Jurassic Park. Please Turn to Page 3 a . Forecaster gives i Farming has by 4- H Clubs all Inside tips to help | beenalong | | set to celebrate . recognize |i | family tradition | | 80th Anniversary This Issue Ff | weather patterns [| forthe Evans | | with big party See Page 2 See Page 5 See Page 6