Most Famous Reindeer: Moberly Reindeer Farm Stays Busy During the Holidays

Skar and his wife, Kari, are the owners of Show-Me Reindeer, a reindeer farm and event company, so mysterious questions like these are not uncommon this time of year.

“We usually just tell the kids to bring the reindeer across the country so all the kids can see Santa nearby, and most of the time that’s what he does,” Skar said.

Reindeer cost up to $20,000 to purchase and are difficult to raise, requiring cooling in warm weather and around-the-clock care.

Still, the number of reindeer farmers is growing steadily, said Jeff Phillips, director of the Central Region Reindeer Owners and Breeders Association. Phillips said the organization has about 130 farmer members in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom.

“This is a more economically viable business investment than it was 20 to 30 years ago,” Phillips said.

The Scull family and their herd of 15 caribou are usually seen at their farm in Moberly, central Missouri. But during November and December, the couple and their daughters, Addie, 14, and Audry, 10, both of whom are homeschooled, travel around the state, showing off at booked events their reindeer.

And so it was that on a recent December afternoon, two reindeer — Klaus and Comet — were napping in their enclosure and the subject of numerous selfies at Empire Windsor High School. The pair wandered around a red corral surrounded by plastic chain rails and signs asking visitors not to touch.

People will try to reach out and grab them. “You have to pay attention to everything that’s going on,” Skar said. They are my family, my pets, too, so I don’t tie my animals to a sled or leave them on a leash for hours on end.

JoAnn Marty, the school’s student council adviser, said she contacted Showcase the Reindeer after her daughter and grandchildren saw reindeer at a local event. The high school student council hired reindeer for Happy Holiday Week.

The children were very excited. They’re high school students, but look at them. “I’m just as giddy as the kids because I know how excited they are,” said Marty, who said student council members helped Scar and Addie set up their pens.

Today, Show-Me Reindeer is booked for Christmas tree lightings, parades, private parties, festivals, libraries and more. The family plans to provide reindeer pairs for 70 events this holiday season.

The business started in 2014, two years after Scar and Kari took their eldest daughter, Addie, to a local farm and home store where there were reindeer and sleds available for photos.

Skar said he noticed the horned animals attracted large crowds. He learned the reindeer came from a farm in Arkansas but traveled to shows throughout the Midwest. Skar began to wonder why no one in Missouri was doing the same thing.

We are looking for a hobby animal. “I just started looking at the reindeer situation in general,” Skar said. No one was really doing it at the time.

The family purchased their first pair of reindeer in 2014 and began showing them at events that same year.

‘Initially I called a lot of places that first year to see if they were interested, like golf clubs and venues, and then the word spread,’ Skar said. We have a Facebook page and a website, or we know so-and-so.

At the time, the Scull family was living on a farm in Pacific, where Scull still worked as a firefighter. Since then, they have moved to a larger farm in Moberly and invested in a second trailer and more reindeer. They also built more buildings and fences for the farm. He said they are in a growth phase and are putting money back into the business.

It’s a bit like farming, Skar said. All revenue is collected during harvest season, but the program is year-round. “

He said the average cost of a reindeer is between $18,000 and $20,000, much higher than when Scull first started, when the average cost was closer to $4,000 to $5,000. Today, most potential buyers are on waiting lists for at least a year, and moving deer across state lines is strictly regulated, he said.

Deer are fragile animals that require constant attention. Skaar and his family monitor the deer to prevent their antlers from getting caught in the fence and maintain a strict inspection schedule since the reindeer are highly susceptible to parasites and tick-borne diseases. They are ruminants, eating plants and digesting them with a four-chambered stomach.

Because caribou prefer colder climates, many managers keep them cool during the summer, Skar said. This usually includes a fan, a kiddie pool filled with water, and bristles to help the deer shed their thick winter fur.

Both male and female reindeer shed their antlers in the winter, so they start growing new ones in the spring. Due to heat stress and the sensitivity of summer antler growth, “Show-Me Reindeer” will not travel at the Christmas event in July.

They are a fragile species. They were not born in Missouri. They were not born in areas under 48, Skar said. You’ll take some steps to reduce stress so they can survive here, but it’s a lot like a zoo. They require 24-hour care.

Skar said he hopes to one day become a self-sustaining farm with enough reindeer to sell to other farms. Future plans also include visits to Moberley Farm and a rental program, where the reindeer will be rented out to a suitable on-site partner throughout the holiday period.

Skar said he hopes his daughters will eventually expand the business into a statewide attraction. Eddie and Audrey both worked on the farm when their mom wasn’t homeschooling. When the reindeer are out and about, the girls also help Skaar and Carrie in their activities.

Fourteen-year-old Addie says she wants to be a veterinarian because of her love for animals. She said she also hopes to one day take over the business from her parents.

Eddie said we have been through a lot to get to this point. I hope to continue. This is a great job. “