ʻĀina Iki Ranch

06/06/2026

Sometimes the best moments on the ranch are the quiet ones.

A scratch in the right spot brings Ruby close. Frisky notices and wanders over. Soon they’re grooming each other, eyes soft, completely at ease.

Horses do this to strengthen bonds and build trust. It’s called mutual grooming, and it’s one of the ways they care for one another within the herd.

I like to think they’re reminding me that belonging doesn’t always need words.

Just three souls sharing a little peace beneath the Hawaiian sky. 🤎🐴🌈

06/02/2026

Rain outside. Cuddles inside. ❤️

ET is usually Poppy’s designated cuddle companion, but today he decided to share some love with our sweet boy Luki instead. Safe to say Luki wasn’t complaining. 🐾

We don’t have many rules here at ʻĀina Iki Ranch, but one of the big ones is simple: everyone is welcome, and everyone gets along. Whether they have feathers, fur, hooves, or paws, respect for one another is just part of life around here.

Today, ET and Luki gave us the perfect reminder of that. Little moments like these make our hearts so full. 🥹💕

05/31/2026

https://www.ainaiki.life/blog/training-wheels-are-off

What Happens When Val Leaves the Ranch?

05/27/2026

“Goat enrichment” at ʻĀina Iki Ranch apparently means building them their own giant spa brush wall. 😆🐐

I have a hard time saying no to free pallets whenever I find myself in Hilo with extra truck bed space… and a while back I also ended up with a small mountain of deck brush heads from . Last week and I finally had a little downtime to combine the two into something fun for our Biggies herd.

Before this, when the goats got bored or itchy, we’d hear them absolutely body slamming and scraping their heads against the tin walls of their goatie barns. 😅 So we figured… maybe they deserved a slightly classier scratching station.

Turns out they LOVE it.
Head rubs. Horn scratches. Neck massages. Full goatie bliss.

Goats rub their heads for a bunch of reasons — to scratch itchy spots from shedding hair or dust, to help loosen old undercoat, to spread scent from glands near their horns and faces, and honestly… because it just feels good. It’s also a natural comfort and stress-relief behavior. Happy goats are busy goats. 🐐✨

One person’s discarded pallet is another person’s goat spa.

05/22/2026

Miss Billie sure does love helping mom around ʻĀina Iki Ranch 🌴🐕🥚

Today she climbed a coconut tree to get a better vantage point while helping me search for duck eggs 😆 She takes her animal sanctuary supervisor duties very seriously around here.

Just another day of big island adventures with our happy little ranch pup 🤎

More ranch stories waiting for you at the link in bio 🌺

05/11/2026

Last weekend, and had the honor of attending and participating in the Leilani Estates community gathering marking the 8-year anniversary of the 2018 eruption that forever changed lower Puna. ❤️🌋
pikmeups were there performing with the Puna Dirt Road Band, but one of the moments that completely stopped me in my tracks was this powerful youth performance by . 🥁

It was my first time experiencing Taiko drumming in person and I was absolutely mesmerized by the rhythm, movement, strength, and emotion behind every beat.

You don’t just hear Taiko… you feel it in your whole body. Like a heartbeat. Like thunder rolling through the earth. A reminder of resilience, remembrance, and community.

Eight years later, the spirit of Puna remains strong. 🌺

Mahalo to Puna Taiko and everyone who helped bring the community together for such a meaningful day.

05/11/2026

This Mother’s Day weekend, one of our ranch gals reminded us that motherhood comes in many forms… including faithfully brooding over a tiny heart-shaped coconut. 🥥🤎😅

Our newest blog post is full of hidden nests, sneaky fence hoppers, broody ducks, and a sweet little duck now lovingly known as Coco.

At ʻĀina Iki Ranch, a sudden drop in duck eggs led to the discovery of hidden broody nests, eighteen secret eggs, and one especially dedicated duck sitting faithfully on a nest of baby coconuts.

05/08/2026

☀️⚡️ 18 years.
That’s how long Val powered her life at ʻĀina Iki Ranch from just four 100 watt solar panels — living gently, intentionally, and completely off-grid. No paid electricity. No county water. Just mālama ʻāina, resourcefulness, and a whole lot of perseverance. 🌿

While we were still on the mainland, Val was able to procure two 12v 320ah lithium batteries for her future system upgrade. After we finally made the move to Hawaiʻi and got settled in at the ranch, we were then able to track down four 430 watt bifacial solar panels to help bring her system into a new chapter. ☀️🔋

Huge mahalo to Ultimate Off Grid Solar in Hilo — especially Jason — for patiently answering our endless questions and even sketching out a full solar “map” to help guide this install. 🤙⚡️

With Joshua up on the roof, and Val and I on the ground lifting panels skyward one by one, the system slowly came together. Rails mounted. Panels clipped in. Electrical lines run. Grounding wire added after one last Hilo supply run.

Yesterday morning, Joshua finished the install… and for the first time in a very long time, Val’s batteries reached 100% charge without needing the generator. ☀️🌈

Little land. Big heart.
And now… a whole lot more solar power. ⚡️🌿

04/29/2026

Learning the land, one step at a time 🌿

Out with “the Biggies” as Val shows us what it really means to tend goats—not just keep them. How to read the grass, when to move them, and when to stop so the pasture can come back stronger.

We’re so grateful for neighbors who welcome this kind of shared stewardship 🤎 it’s teaching us that caring for the ʻāina is something we do together.

Today was part herding lesson, part fence check (the temporary kind… lava + borrowed land keeps things creative 😅), and a whole lot of listening—to the goats, the land, and the rhythm of it all.

Abundance takes time. We’re building it, season by season.

If you feel called to support this work and the animals growing alongside us, you can kōkua through the link in our bio 🤍

Mahalo nui for being part of our ʻohana.

04/26/2026

Today we’re taking Apricot, her six kittens—and two of her suitors, Starman and Biggie—to PetFix in Keaʻau 🐾

Apricot came to us first—alone, watchful, and still very much wild. Val noticed her belly and knew there had to be kittens somewhere.

Over time, trust grew… and one day Apricot led her toward them—stopping just short at the lava break, like “this is as far as you go.”

Not long after, she moved them closer—into the cane grass along our fence line.

Then one evening, six tiny faces showed up at the feed barn—curious, cautious, and hungry.

That’s when we knew we had a chance.

With careful trapping, we got the whole family safe—now temporarily set up in Marley’s old aviary, which has quickly turned into a full-on kitten jungle gym… climbing, balancing, and piling on top of each other 🐾

Now they’re on their way to be spayed and neutered through a free community program helping to manage the Big Island’s feral cat population.

Out here, one small family can quickly turn into dozens.
This is how change happens—one family at a time.

If you’d like to support ʻĀina Iki Ranch, donations go directly into care for rescues like this 🤍