‘THESE ANIMALS ARE COUNTING ON YOU’

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‘These animals are counting on you’

Katie Lunning nuzzles Nala the camel. Photos by

Savannah Howe/newsroom@austindailyherald.com

Rural Austin hobby farmers dedicate their lives to furry, feathered friends

By Savannah Howe

In the words of Banfield Elementary School 2nd grade teacher Katie Lunning, there’s no snow days on a farm, and her parents’ hobby farm just outside of Austin is no exception.

Mornings start early out on the Subra homestead; as the day beckons dawn, the farm’s many animals stir, braying and squawking for breakfast. One by one, the Subras haul buckets of feed to each coop and stall until breakfast is served by 6 a.m. to dozens of animals in rain or shine, flood or blizzard.

A backyard animal kingdom

Being the caretaker of a hobby farm is no easy feat, but it is not without reward—rewards like probably being the only Austin-area native who can call a camel part of the family. The Subras’ exotic animals roam the same land that Lunning’s father called home in his childhood; the original farmhouse, though no longer occupied, still stands on the property. As a boy, Bill Subra’s chores were not unlike those of any other farm kid’s— cleaning up after cows and chickens—but when he set out to start his exotic hobby farm, he did so with a creature that had a bit more of a bite.

“He had a cougar, if you go way back,” Gail Subra said of her husband’s first venture into the animal kingdom. The big cat addition to the farm was over 30 years ago and long since passed away; now the stars on the Subra farm are the camels, including 20-year-old Nala, who have been around for most of Lunning’s life.

“I remember bringing Nala home,” Lunning recalled, adding that the camel is her “absolute favorite.” Of all the animals on the Subra farm, the camels are the biggest not only in stature but in personality, and are often playful and excited. “I was in I think second grade, she was probably a month old. We had to bottle-feed her for six months, four times a day.”

Camels, as it happens, are not very good mothers to their newborn offspring. As a result, the Subras have had to nurture camel calves in their first days of life just as they would a human baby, waking up to bottle-feed the animal every two to three hours.

The oldest Lunning boy, Beau, poses for a picture with Nala — his “favorite on the farm” he shared many times.

Because the caretakers bond so strongly with the calves in the infancy stages, the humans and camels often share a lifelong friendship; Nala, for example, has been with the Subras for two decades and will remain on their farm for the rest of her 40-something-year-long life, along with her daughter, Miley.

The Subra farm is also currently home to many species of donkey, sheep, and goat — as well as several of the winged variety, including a peacock — and in the past has seen ringtail lemurs, macaws, Amazon parrots, sugar gliders and llamas.

“I think it’s a lot of fun,” Lunning said. “We’ve had so many different kinds of animals and different experiences that a lot of people probably haven’t been able to experience.”

A day in the life

The days are busy here at this southern Minnesota menagerie: the flocks of birds must be fed before dusk when they begin to roost, big animals need to eat twice a day, lambs and calves must be tucked in safe and warm during the harsh winter temperatures. Drinking water supplies must be kept from getting frozen — and, if they “Just look at my girls are, must be promptly replaced. and how lucky they “There’s no snow days on a farm,” were. They might not Lunning laughed. “No matter what the have had all these weather is: rain, snow, video games and stuff, blizzard. We’re outside working, taking but look at my care of them.” Bill Subra is retired grand-kids here. Beau and fields the morning round of chores; is five and Henry is Lunning, along with two, and they love her sons — Beau (5), Henry (2), and evento help.” tually baby Maclane, who gets to snooze in Gail Subra a warm running car as the older Lunnings make chore rounds — to help in the afternoons. It’s a family affair, Gail Subra explained, and so beneficial to children.

“Just look at my girls and how lucky they were,” she said. “They might not have had all these video games and stuff, but look at my grandkids here. Beau is five and Henry is two, and

they love to help.”

For young kids, there’s nothing like two lungs full of fresh air, and helping on grandpa’s farm does just that for the Lunning boys. Just seeing her grandkids get outside and play — usually naming the goats and chasing the chickens — brings Subra joy. Her and her husband’s goals for the farm in the future, she said, are just to keep bringing their grandkids happy memories as they grow, memories like the ones that have stuck with their mother and aunt for many years.

“When they have an interest in something, I’m sure Papa will always make sure they get that experience,” Subra said, watching two-year-old Henry crash through a puddle and scatter a couple of perturbed ducks.

Vacations are difficult for the Subra and Lunning families. The hobby farm is a lot of work, Lunning said, a huge commitment with great reward.

“No matter what you do, where you go during the day, this is here,” Subra added. “These animals are counting on you.”

The Subra exotic animal troupe can be seen in action around Christmastime in live nativity scenes around Albert Lea, Austin and Adams, and shown at fairs during the summer. P

A warm sunset hangs over the Subra hobby farm.