A little boy enjoying feeding the reindeer at Kopara Farm. Photos: Nooraini Mydin
It all happens in the blink of an eye. Anssi holds a long pole with a noose at the end and the reindeer are huddled in a group. As soon as the noose is raised, as if hearing a starter pistol, they are off around the perimeter of the enclosure. Anssi runs along and within moments, he is tugging at a reindeer’s antlers, man against beast, trying not to be dragged along but also concerned not to damage the new-growth antlers.
I am at Kopara reindeer farm in Luosto in Finnish Lapland just after the calving season, when the reindeer herding starts. Reindeer farmer Anssi Kiiskinen is attaching a GPS tracking device on his prize bulls to make sure he can find them as they roam in the wilds of Lapland.
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