HERALD, Calif. — A bird’s-eye view of the farming community of Herald in Sacramento County is pretty much what you’d expect. Lots of orchards and farmland, but at ground level you get a view of birds... flightless ones.
The flock of ostriches in Ivan Toderica's pasture are not pets or a part of some petting zoo. In fact, they're far from it.
“They can get you. The trick is, when you do it, you don’t pull the hand out, because your skin is going to stay in there,” said Ivan.
Ivan and his wife Nataliya run California Ostrich Valley, a poultry farm and ranch with about 90 adult birds. Ostriches are primarily native to South Africa, but Ivan fell in love with the idea of farming them while living in his home country of Moldova.
“In the early 2000s it was a craze in Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria. When I was in high school I started researching that kind of stuff,” said Ivan.
Fast forward to 2018 and Ivan's dream came true.
“Well, in our case we breed them and we get chicks out of them,” he said.
That’s right, this is an egg farm. An adorably cute ostrich egg farm. During any given week, three to five babies hatch in specially designed incubators, and Nataliya is often there helping them break out of their shell.
“That's first, what they see that's you,” said Nataliya.
When asked if the chicks think she's their mother, she agrees. "Yes, for them."
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Ivan and Nataliya sell chicks in many forms. Some are still growing in eggs, some are days old and others are much larger, depending on what the buyer wants. That said, buyer beware. Ostriches are curious birds that love to investigate everything with their beaks, including pecking buttons off your shirt or snagging sunglasses off your head.
“They become full-sized in 9 or 10 months,” said Natalia.
The cute baby chick phase doesn’t last long; ostriches grow about a foot taller each month.
One of the Todericas' top sellers is unfertilized eggs, which are great for a big breakfast. According to Ivan, one ostrich egg is equal to 32 or 34 chicken eggs. If you are careful, you can save the shells for decorating. Natalia's father hand carves beautiful designs on empty eggshells.
A big part of the business is educating people about raising ostriches. By request, Ivan gives tours of the farm and hands-on lessons on how to care for ostriches or raise them for meat. He says the warm central and Sacramento Valley climate is perfect for raising ostriches.
So, whether you want to start a farm or pick up an egg for breakfast, you are welcome to drop by California Ostrich Valley for a visit.
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