Reindeer work in summer
Reindeer and reindeer work have always been part of my life. Summers ever since I was a small child have been planned around the work that needs to be done. In summer reindeer herders are busy. Fences must be fixed and hay has to be made in preparation for the next winter. Most importantly in summer the newborn reindeer calves get their marks. Each reindeer is owned by someone and must be marked accordingly so that the owners can recognise their reindeer.
Reindeer marking in Lapland
Reindeer mark is done to the ears of the reindeer. By combining different types of cuts each reindeer herder gets their own mark. Reindeer also have tags and often collars and even though these make recognising reindeer easier the mark is the most important and determines who that reindeer belongs to. The area where reindeer herding is practiced is big so it has been divided in Lapland into smaller areas called “paliskunta”. Each of these smaller areas have their own customs and ways of working so what I’m describing below is only how we do it here in Northern Salla.
Gathering the reindeers in fences
Reindeer are only half tame animals so for most of the year they roam free in the wilderness. The biggest challenge when marking the calves is finding and gathering the reindeer. The area we have to search through is big and oftentimes the weather conditions aren’t ideal. We need hot weather as it makes the reindeer gather up and easier to herd. The reason why hot weather does this is a thing we call “räkkä”. This means all of the mosquitoes and other bugs are bothering the reindeer. They find it more bearable in big herds so they gather up. If it’s cold and rainy getting the reindeer in fences is hard.
The goal is to gather the reindeer in fences. We have these fences around our area in locations reindeer are known to be near. These fences also have openings in multiple directions which makes guiding the reindeer in easier. Reindeer herding has changed a lot over the past decades and nowadays we have tech helping us with the work. Some reindeer have GPS trackers that are used to locate herds of reindeer. With ATVs the reindeer are tracked and then herded into the fences. When the people with ATVs go looking and herding, the rest of us wait at the fence ready to help at the openings. That is also what I’m doing right now as I’m writing this blog post. When the herds and ATVs get closer people who are on foot pull a ribbon to the opening to help to guide the reindeer in. Then as a chain of people walking and people driving ATVs, we herd the reindeer in.
Claves marking in summer
All of the searching and herding happens in the day time but this isn’t the end of a reindeer herder’s day during marking calves. Most of the work must be done at night so that the hot weather we benefited from earlier doesn’t exhaust the reindeer. We wait late into the evening for it to be cool enough. In Lapland this isn’t a problem as we have the midnight sun.
When the evening cools down we start working through the reindeer in small portions in a small fence. Each reindeer calf gets a number tag. After every calf of that group of reindeer has been caught and given a number tag they are released into a bigger fence with the rest of the reindeer. After the whole herd has gone through this the ownership of the calves is determined. Reindeer herders who know the marks go into the fence and watch calves follow their mothers and write down their number and the owner. After all of this is done the reindeer go through the small fence in small portions again and the calves get their marks based on their number tags.
Reindeer work is a Team work
A lot of reindeer work is about cooperation. Most of it couldn’t be done if we didn’t work together. This has made reindeer herders a community. During calf marking most of us even live together to be closer to where the work happens. All of this work sounds exhausting as there’s lots to be done and days can be long but it’s all more than just the work. The community around us is one of the best parts of it all. People from all ages come together with a common goal. Children are a part of it all too as well as old people.
My summers have always been about reindeer work but it has never bothered me. Reindeer work, especially calf marking has given me so many amazing memories. I have also made plenty of friends through reindeer work and I couldn’t imagine my summers without it.
•⇒ Story & Images By Iida-Aletta Pirttilä ⇐•
