Tiffany Miller
05-03-2007, 04:34 PM
This is something I recently posted on my yahoo! group page (a group I started for my clients). All of these photos were taken at White Oak Alpacas in Woodland, WA. I thought it might be helpful for Guild members, too:
We all know the importance of working with the animals inside a proper sized catchpen and using the proper equipment (gear). But, have you ever wondered what to do with the gear when you aren't using it and yet want it to be easily accessible?
This question has struck me time and time again. How can I be more organized? Where can I put my catch rope or wand when I'm not using it? How can I keep it within arms reach and yet out of the way of the animals?
Pockets work and are necessary for holding a halter or Halter Helper, but what about a wand? Or, what if you are haltering more than one animal? What do you do with the extra gear? The ground/floor works, but the gear gets dirty rather quickly and it isn't always easy (or advisable) to bend down and reach for something when you're in a catchpen.
What I've devised is a simple, very inexpensive and non-permanent solution that not only organizes the gear, but keeps it handy and clean! And, it can be moved to any catchpen or removed when not being used.
I purchased a decorative plate hanger (for displaying decorate plates) from the Dollar Store and attached it to the catchpen with a bungee cord. The gear (halters, wands, body wrap, lead ropes,etc) can then be hung on the hanger and are easily accessible, yet organized and clean! What's even better is that the wands can also be layed on top and are easy to reach. See pictures below:
The first picture shows the halters (left), halter helper and body wrap(middle) lead rope and catch rope (right), wands on top. Notice that the plate hanger is mounted to the OUTSIDE of the catchpen, not the inside.
The second picture is the view from the inside the catchpen. Some of the animals will pick at the gear if they get bored and I've had an animal or two pull a lead rope into the catchpen, but most of them leave it alone.
The last picture is a side view.
Hope this is helpful!
Tiffany
We all know the importance of working with the animals inside a proper sized catchpen and using the proper equipment (gear). But, have you ever wondered what to do with the gear when you aren't using it and yet want it to be easily accessible?
This question has struck me time and time again. How can I be more organized? Where can I put my catch rope or wand when I'm not using it? How can I keep it within arms reach and yet out of the way of the animals?
Pockets work and are necessary for holding a halter or Halter Helper, but what about a wand? Or, what if you are haltering more than one animal? What do you do with the extra gear? The ground/floor works, but the gear gets dirty rather quickly and it isn't always easy (or advisable) to bend down and reach for something when you're in a catchpen.
What I've devised is a simple, very inexpensive and non-permanent solution that not only organizes the gear, but keeps it handy and clean! And, it can be moved to any catchpen or removed when not being used.
I purchased a decorative plate hanger (for displaying decorate plates) from the Dollar Store and attached it to the catchpen with a bungee cord. The gear (halters, wands, body wrap, lead ropes,etc) can then be hung on the hanger and are easily accessible, yet organized and clean! What's even better is that the wands can also be layed on top and are easy to reach. See pictures below:
The first picture shows the halters (left), halter helper and body wrap(middle) lead rope and catch rope (right), wands on top. Notice that the plate hanger is mounted to the OUTSIDE of the catchpen, not the inside.
The second picture is the view from the inside the catchpen. Some of the animals will pick at the gear if they get bored and I've had an animal or two pull a lead rope into the catchpen, but most of them leave it alone.
The last picture is a side view.
Hope this is helpful!
Tiffany