A couple of our favorite pieces of equipment on the farm are our green wagon and our yellow wagon. We started off with a green wagon a few years ago and then liked it so much we bought another one, but could only find a yellow one. The yellow one is slightly lighter in weight but still works just as well.
So what do we do with these wagons, well for most of the year we use them as portable hay feeders. They are great during morning chores, I can load up all of the girls hay and feed bowls, wheel the wagon over to the pasture and when I have finished feeding leave the wagon filled with hay in the pasture. If it should rain we can quickly move the wagon inside one of the shelters, if we have young cria just starting to eat hay we can drop down one of the sides on the wagon to give them easier access to the hay.
We have also used our wagon for hauling feed bags (it can take quite a bit of weight), hauling a whole small bale of hay, moving bags of fleece from the shearing area to the studio and even giving small children rides (a great workout, and yes on once occasion the small children were not so small but rather adults who were feeling young at heart!).
The wagons are reasonably priced ($70 – $80) and really are a great asset to the farm. You can get them at most large hardware stores (Lowes, Home Depot, Ace Hardware etc.) and if you look at this time of the year you may find a good sale deal as the stores try and reduce their garden center inventory for the fall and winter.
While on the subject of wagons if ever you get a chance to see the movie “All We Need Is A Little Red Wagon” then take it. The movie only lasts for 5 minutes and will make you want to go out and find your wagon – then you will understand how two alpaca owners were once sighted at dusk taking rides in a wagon. It wasn’t a red one, but it was just as much fun!
A Taste of Life at Windrush Alpacas 