Ropyr’s Clifton Farms: Introducing the Family

The Founders

Cole and Cayce are the only members of Ropyr’s Clifton Farms that have opposable thumbs! Cayce and Cole met in high school and have been dreaming big ever since. Cayce has a background in finance and Cole has a background in tree work, but both of them find that their passion lies on the farm. Cole is (we think) the best tomato grower on this side of the Mason-Dixon line, and he spends every chance he gets working in the garden and tending to the animals. Cayce’s attention is focused on her ever-growing herb garden as well as anything having to do with fiber art. Knitting, weaving, you name it and Cayce wants to do it. Cole and Cayce find pure joy in rising with the rooster’s crow and spending their days on the farm. Life is slow, intentional, and rich with love on Ropyr’s Clifton Farms, and they want to share it with you.

The Farm Dogs

There are six dogs running amuck at Ropyr’s Clifton Farms. That’s the way we like it!

Firstly, we have Ropyr. He’s the namesake of our farm and he’s about 85 pounds of pure hound dog. He loves to lay in the sun, run around with any stick he can find, and bark as loudly as he can (to say hello) at passers by. Nothing and no one scares Ropyr, save for our less than 10 pound chihuahua, Sparkle. 

If Ropyr is 85 pounds of pure hound dog, Sparkle is 10 pounds of pure attitude. She’s the sweetest, snuggliest, best chicken-herding dog you’ve ever seen. But if you think you’ll stop by the farm without giving her at least one belly rub? Well, you’ve got another thing coming. Sparkle’s loyal spirit and her never-ending supply of side eyes keeps everyone on the farm in line, including us.

Sparkle was the first to come to the farm as a rescue. She lived with us for about two years, before we brought Ropyr home. Both dogs had appointments to be spayed and neutered within the month. Not soon enough apparently, because in February of 2025, Sparkle and Ropyr had a litter of five puppies. Two were given away to loving families, and we couldn’t stand the thought of giving up the other three after we’d already gotten so used to having them around. So now, Austin Texas, Isabelle, and Squirrely have entered the picture. 

Austin Texas and Isabelle have been given the wholly accurate moniker “The Toxic Twins” for their propensity to get into trouble together. If you’re sleeping past 6 in the morning, these are the two that will let you know it’s time to get up with aggressive licks to the cheek until they’re satisfied that you won’t be going back to sleep anytime soon. Austin loves to watch the chickens and to lay in the coolest spot she can find. Isabelle exclusively lays in a person’s lap at all times, and is a professional plastic eater. An anything eater, really. 

Squirrely is just the opposite. She does have a bad habit of nibbling on knitting needles or a tube of aquaphor every now and then, but we all have our vices! Squirrely can almost always be found laying in a bed, on a couch, or in the sun on a particularly nice day. She loves bellyrubs, snuggles with her dad, and burrowing under the blankets. Her calm, docile energy mixed with the chaotic energy of Austin and Isabelle makes a perfect trio of sisters. 

Last but far from least is our most recent addition, Rootbeer. Rootbeer started showing up outside of our fence around May. He was too scared to let anyone get near him, but it was clear how badly he needed love. After weeks of feeding him breakfast, and trying to get him more and more comfortable, he finally accepted a scratch behind the ears. That was the end of his residency on the streets of Clifton. Within the week, Rootbeer had waltzed himself into our fence and decided that he’d stay a while. He’s still a puppy but he’s getting bigger every day. He likes to play with all of the other puppies, he likes to lay in a ball on the edge of the couch, and more than anything, he loves to eat breakfast.

The Shop Cats

There are two cats that are in charge of supervising the indoor activities, specifically anything involving yarn. If you’re making a blanket at Ropyr’s Clifton Farms, you’re also inevitably snuggling with a cat. Daisy is about 15, completely white, and also completely deaf. This doesn’t stop her feisty spirit though. If Daisy is around, you WILL be scratching her behind her ears, no questions asked. 

Cleopatra (Cleo for short) is another rescue who had a hard time for a long time even after she came to live with us. She just showed up at our house one day and decided she lived there from that point forward, as cats are wont to do. When she showed up, she was sick, underweight, and greasy from feeling too bad to clean herself. After a year filled with lots of vet visits and a life threatening Parvo diagnosis, Cleo started to perk up. Now she’s just as healthy (and as round in the belly) as any house cat should be. She’s the friendliest cat you’ll ever meet. She’s never met a stranger. 

Our cats are the peaceful, graceful, introverted yin to the dogs’ loud, wild, and extroverted yang. They’re worth their weight in gold for their benefit as a sleep machine. Have you ever fallen asleep to a cat purring next to you? Try it!

The Feathered Friends

Ropyr’s Clifton Farms has two resident roosters. The first rooster is Travis (Tritt, to be specific). He started out as the leader of the flock until a stray rooster walked right up and took over. Now, Travis spends his time with Cayce on the front porch, or inside if he’s able to sneak in. He  prefers to perch on a chair, eat some strawberries, and leave the hard work to his friend and sometimes faux, Zebulon.

Zebulon was not purchased by us. He wasn’t even given to us. He just flew himself over our fence one day and decided he liked it here. So, here he stays. Zeb is a beautiful rooster, and a talented one too. He runs a tight ship. His loud crows wake the entire farm up every morning just as the sun breaks. His crows put everyone to bed as the sun sinks too. Our roosters provide the discipline and the rhythm for our otherwise free-spirited way of living, and we thank them profusely with lots and lots of mealworm treats. 

There are ten confirmed hens on Ropyr’s Clifton Farms right now. I say confirmed, because we also have lots and lots of chicks, but we aren’t 100 percent sure if they’ll be part of our ladies club or if they’ll be roosters. All of our hens have names, and they all lay a different colored egg. We have blue, green, brown and white in all different shades. We eat eggs almost everyday and we can say with absolute certainty that there is nothing on this Earth more awe inspiring than a meal based around completely farm to table foods. Not to mention that the taste of a fresh egg from a well loved chicken has ruined all other eggs for us. The hens (or the ladies, as we fondly call them when we greet them each morning) are the bread-and-butter of farm life. We could watch the chickens roam, cluck, and chatter all day long and never grow tired.

There are four Guinea keats on Ropyr’s Clifton Farms right now. They’re still small enough to fit into the palm of your hand, but they’re growing every day. Their synchronized chirping is already adding a beautiful harmony to the natural symphony that’s always playing on the farm. We’re so excited to have these majestic (if not a little goofy) birds added to our flock, and we can’t wait to watch them grow into the full-sized predator and bug deterrents that they will become. 

Ropyr’s Clifton Farms is based upon a love for the natural world and all of the wonders it holds. We are so excited to share our passions with you, and to grow a community of people who at their core, believe the world can be a peaceful place and who desire to play a part in creating the change they want to see. We’re happy to have you on this journey with us.

Thanks for reading. We’ll see ya’ll next time!