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INTERNSHIP OPPORTUNITIES
CURRENT PROJECTS
Animal Husbandry, R & D for Solar & Water, Agricultural Business Plan, Facility Maintenance and Improvements
 Sarah & Falcor |  Riley and Sovana |  Natalie |
|---|---|---|
 Sarah |  Riley |  Sarah |
 Riley & Farmer Kristi |  Sarah shearing Firenze |  Sarah |
 Riley and LGDs |
RILEY • SUMMER / 2019
My time working at Melibran Farms was definitely one of the most personally rewarding work experiences I’ve had up to date. Unlike most internships, where the goals set in place for you usually seem unreachable and unimportant, Melibran Farms provided clear, concise, and reachable goals that you could accomplish. Since the company is relatively new, there were many different ways that I could help out, whether it be through soil testing, development of a rainwater storage system, or providing animal husbandry care. Melibran Farms is a smaller, more personal goat farm, so being able to see the effects of my hard work instantly pay off was extremely rewarding. Treatments given to the animals created noticeable positive behavior changes within just a few days.
Since I am a pre-veterinarian student my goals were mainly all focused maintaining peak animal health and further improving the efficiency of the farm. I am primarily interested in small animal veterinarian care; I have to say taking care of the four humongous livestock guardian dogs (LGDs) was my favorite part. When I first got to the farm, I was introduced to them and immediately was warned of Arie, the not so friendly LGD. It took about three weeks of constantly interacting with her and numerous treats and belly rubs to get to the point where she fully accepted me. Turns out she ended up being the most affectionate dog of the three, and actually ended up being my favorite since it took so much effort to win her over.
Kristi and Hans do a great job of allowing you to work independently on whichever goal interests you the most. They also provide great advice for whenever you get stuck on the smaller intricate details of what you’re plan actually is. They both just want to make sure you learn something and also enjoy the time you spend at the farm which combined to make a great internship experience. The knowledge I gained during my time at Melibran Farms was priceless and a huge boost to my resume. I would definitely recommend this internship to anyone who is currently considering going to either veterinary school, or just has a love of animals.
SARAH • SUMMER / 2018
The five weeks I spent at Melibran were entirely unlike any other time in my life. Some mornings, getting up to care for goats, I would walk outside bleary-eyed and think I must still be dreaming for the quiet beauty and the peace that met me at the door. Throughout the days, for garden beds, goat pastures, types of parasites, and mohair quality to occupy my mind and time was a joy, because of the effect I knew my work would have on the many lives that make up the farm. Melibran is beautiful for what it is, but also for what it will be, as Hans and Kristi continue to reclaim the farm from disuse to make it fruitful again. It was a privilege to be a part of their work of restoration.Â
No two days I worked alongside them and their land were the same. As a pre-veterinary student, I focused in my own projects on fecal testing for parasites, wool cleaning and grading, goat play structures for the pastures, miscellaneous supplements and nutrition products, and animal identification. I began each of these projects by extensively researching, and recording the most helpful information (e.g. parasite species, types of microscopes for viewing them, procedure for parasite egg counting); then the projects moved to hands-on implementation and tangible results (e.g. ordering and setting up the microscope, performing the fecal egg counting tests). On some days these projects occupied all my time, while on others, my time was filled with farm and garden projects outside. This variety taught me to be flexible and to prioritize tasks as I went, and to clearly articulate my research to make value judgments on which products would be most helpful to the farm. Though I came into the internship with experience raising dairy goats, I gained experiential knowledge of living and working in a rural economy, on a farm that operated as a business.
Melibran is a work in progress, as probably any working farm is. While my internship focused on animal health and welfare, there is enormous opportunity for intern experience in developing many different aspects of the farm's inner-workings, depending on the intern's field of study—water systems, construction projects, plant research, etc. Hans and Kristi always made it clear to me that they wanted my experience here to be valuable to me and to my intended career, and they worked with me to make sure that happened. The responsibility and independence I developed at Melibran are solid resume-builders themselves, but the specific knowledge and experience I gained from the projects I worked on were also hugely relevant to my hopeful career.Â
The work here is not abstract; its results are healthy goats, neat rows of seedlings, and clean fiber. It has been both humbling and gratifying to offer my time, my mind, and my sweat to cultivating health in the many lives that make up this farm. To see them thrive in such a place of peace is to know that I have spent the last five weeks contributing to a work and a place that is truly good.
Sarah
NATALIE • WINTER / 2018
Melibran Farms is offering something quite unique: an internship opportunity with an immediate impact on the business. At Melibran Farms, our interns work alongside the LLC partners to conduct market research, research product development, interact with the animals, attend local fairs/agricultural shows, and much more. The job may be catered to your interests and areas of expertise as much as possible.
Not only is the internship excellent experience and a strong resume-point, but it is also extremely enjoyable (or so we’ve been told). Our first intern, Natalie, had this to say about her time interning with Melibran Farms:
My experience working with Melibran Farms has been incredibly different from all other jobs and internships I’ve had in the past. The hands-on nature of the work was so exciting for me; I loved researching something in the morning and seeing it implemented in the farm that afternoon. The work felt much more meaningful and important than that of my previous internships.
The work was rewarding in and of itself, but something that made it even sweeter for me was the fact that every time I looked up from my computer or book, I saw green pastures, bright yellow daffodils, treed mountains… a breathtaking amount of beauty. The scenery here is so different than the Southern California views I was used to. Here there is a quiet so still that washed peace over me any time I stopped for a few moments to breathe it in. It’s definitely the best place I’ve ever worked - looking out at horses and goats is more appealing than a sea of computer screens or a busy street in my opinion, and I relished in this every day at the farm.
My favorite thing about working on the farm were the hands-on days. These were the days the sun was shining and calling my name extra loudly and there was no ignoring it. On these days I left the computer and books inside and worked with the animals, on the land, or just went for a drive to explore another town. I was amazed by all Oregon had to offer and loved getting out in it as much as possible.
This internship was very flexible and I knew Hans and Kristi truly cared that I enjoyed my time on the farm, which led to low stress job and high motivation to do excellent work.
My experience with Melibran Farms was invaluable. I learned so much and truly loved the time I had. I cannot recommend a Melibran Farms internship highly enough.
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If you are interested in interning with Melibran Farms and would like more information, please email melibranfarms@gmail.com.