Pets with a Purpose

Pets with panache and purpose. That is what goats can be. And they have fulfilled that promise at Gray Raven Farm in Lanesborough where 10 grazing goats provide so much milk that their owners, Sharon and Dan Bergeron, actually went into business to use it up.

Sharon Bergeron reports that when they first got goats, the animals produced so much milk they ran out of people to give it to. So, they decided to convert some of it soap. That did not solve the problem, however, and eventually they ran out of places to give it away, too. And that was when they decided to sell their products.

Thus, was born Gray Raven Farm and its ancillary store, now located at 65 North Main Street. It has turned into a demanding business for the Bergerons, both of whom are retired from earlier careers.

The store provides an outlet for the honey and goat products as well as CBD oil served up in a variety of manners from capsules to chocolate. Sharon Bergeron said there is a growing desire among consumers for all-natural skin-care products such as soaps and lotions and that CBD oil is a hot commodity for pain relief.

She asserts that she uses both the soaps and lotions in her own skin-care routine and often receives comments on how youthful her complexion is. “I am in my seventies and people say I look 50,” she reported. “I just use the soap and lotion, morning and night, and it smooths my skin.”

She explained that most synthetic lotions sit on top of the skin, while goat soap is high in protein, triglycerides, Vitamin A, B6, B12 and E, making it an excellent natural moisturizer that helps hydrate and nourish skin. It can also be useful in treating eczema and other skin eruptions.

Each soap scent is created from the milk, essential oils and such ingredients as oatmeal.

The Bergerons handcraft their products from scratch. She makes batches of soap about every other week, about 180 bars in all. The soap is poured into individual block molds rather than into one large block that is then cut into smaller cubes. It then ages for several weeks, one to two weeks for “hot process” soap and four to six weeks for “cold process.”

She uses the same recipe given to her by her grandmother.

The honey bees busy buzzing over the fields of the farm add their bounty to the products the Bergerons produce. Honey benefits health and is a natural sweetener. The Bergerons sell honey and bee pollen gathered from their hives and also use it in creating goat milk and honey lotion.

“Synthetic lotions tend to sit on top of the skin,” said Sharon. “Goat milk has animal proteins and penetrates all the layers.”

The quality of the milk and honey going into the products is important and the Bergerons lavish care of their goats. “They are my pets and they are spoiled rotten,” said Bergeron.

Goats are interesting animals—playful, mischievous, social and endowed with distinct personalities—and make entertaining companions. They also require a lot of care.

“People think they will eat anything but that is not true,” Bergeron said. “People tend to use sheep to keep grass down but goats eat the shrubs. They will eat poison ivy but if you have rhododendrons or azaleas, honeysuckle, nightshade or other plants that are poisonous to them you will have to get rid of them or your goats could become extremely ill or die.”

In addition to being aware of the plant growth in your goats’ enclosure—you need a good fence to contain goats—they need a draft-free barn, good hay, supplements, regular worming and other veterinary services. “Vet bills can run high,” she cautioned.

In return, the goat owner gets a fun-loving animal that is social and happy. “They are like dogs,” Bergeron said. “I have a couple that like to go for walks with me. But they can be temperamental. I never turn my back on them because they could charge you.”

Goats like to live with other goats and if people want to have one, they really need to have two or more. Bergeron said she recently lost 20-year-old Winnie. In Winnie’s final days the other goats, sensing she was dying, became very quiet. “Her daughter, Pearl, is beside herself,” Bergeron reported.

But the loss has not stopped work at the farm. Even with COVID-19 shutting down summer events where the Bergerons have marketed their products, customers can still access them online at the link below or at the store, open seven days a week at 413-496-3300.