Horse and cow ranch experience in Laguna Llancanelo, Argentina
Argentina
Hello My name is Rafael I am 52 years old, I own a property of more than 15000 HA, I am dedicated to livestock in Laguna Llancanelo area, Malargüe, Mendoza, Argentina ... I also own an equine reserve with more than 400 horses that I take care of in the wild and more than 1000 cows.
We make horse taming and cow breeding.
Also rural tourism and bird watching.
Hola Mi nombre es Rafael tengo 52 años, soy dueño de una propiedad de mas de 15000 HA, me dedico a la ganadería en zona Laguna Llancanelo, Malargüe, Mendoza, Argentina...en mi propiedad cuido mas de 400 caballos en estado salvaje y mas de 1000 vacas.
Realizamos amanse de caballos y crianza de vacas.
También turismo rural y avistaje de aves.
After breakfast we start with the tasks of each day, which are usually moving cows with horses, repairing fences, visiting cattle pastures, taming wild horses, etc.
We also cook, clean and garden the place.
Luego del desayuno comenzamos con las tareas de cada día, las que suelen ser mover vacas con caballos, reparar alambrados, visitar aguadas del ganado , amansamos caballos salvajes, etc
También cocinamos, limpiamos y jardineria del Lugar.
We provide breakfast, lunch, snack and dinner
The meat is organic from our production.
We accept vegetarians.
Proveemos desayunos, almuerzo, merienda y cena
Las carnes son orgánicas de nuestra producción.
Aceptamos Vegetarianos
I tame horses, took care of more than 1000 cows, more than 400 horses and more than 200 donkeys. I also like to do yoga and meditate.
I receive and attend tourists who do photographic safaris with wild horses and bird watching, more than 170 species surround our house.
Cow herding is also an available experience.
Amanso caballos, cuido mas de 1000 vacas, mas de 400 caballos y mas de 200 burros. También me gusta hacer yoga y meditar.
Recibo y atiendo turistas quienes hacen safaris fotográficos con los caballos salvajes y avistaje de aves, mas de 170 especies rodean nuestra casa.
Arreos de vacas también es una experiencia disponible.
After breakfast we start with the tasks of each day, which are usually moving cows with horses, repairing fences, visiting cattle pastures, taming wild horses, etc.
We also cook, clean and garden the place.
Luego del desayuno comenzamos con las tareas de cada día, las que suelen ser mover vacas con caballos, reparar alambrados, visitar aguadas del ganado , amansamos caballos salvajes, etc.
También cocinamos, limpiamos y jardineria del Lugar.
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Learning opportunities
Cattle farming
Sheep or goat farming
Meat processing
Bakery
Renewable energy production
Methods or systems
Regenerative agriculture
Host type
Self-sufficiency property
10,000
Hectares
|
24,710.5
Acres
Rafael
Member since 2024
Languages spoken:
English, Spanish
Sun
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
Sat
Response rate: 79%
Response time: typically within 7 days
Argentina
Malargüe, Mendoza.
Reviews
Michael
France
•
December 2025
I stayed for about a month and it was an amazing experience. Rafael and the gauchos are very kind, and the accomodation for volunteers is spacious and comfortable. You'll have plenty of time to explore the surrounding areas which are truely breathtaking. I really recommend it !
Niklas
Germany
•
December 2025
Wir waren drei Wochen im November 2025 auf dem Campo. Es ist ein wunderschöner Ort und die Tiere dort sind uns unglaublich ans Herz gewachsen. Das Haus liegt direkt an einer natürlichen Quelle mit Flamingos und Blick auf die Bergkette. Die große Lagune ist nicht erreichbar, aber von einem Vulkan (15 min Autofahrt + ca. 30 min Wanderung) aus zu sehen. Man hat sein eigenes Zimmer und ein geteiltes Bad mit Dusche. In der Gemeinschaftsküche ist man für das Kochen verantwortlich. Eingekauft wird nur von Rafael alle 3-4 Tage, wenn er in die Stadt fährt. Das Essen ist reichlich und abwechslungsreich. Ein Gaucho ist dauerhaft mit auf der Farm. Leider ist die Organisation und oft auch die Kommunikation nicht gut, insbesondere wenn man nur wenig Spanisch spricht. Im November stand aufgrund von verschiedenen Umständen nicht viel Arbeit mit Rindern an, was vorher versprochen wurde. Wir haben nur1xRinder per Pferd getrieben und kümmerten uns sonst um die Kontrolle/ Bau von Tränken und Fütterung von Rindern. Man hatte viel Freizeit, aber man musste auf Abruf bleiben. Auf der Farm gab es Rinder, wo aus unserer Sicht Handlungsbedarf zur Versorgung bestand. Es wurde verstanden, aber nur nach viel Zeit etwas getan, manchmal auch nichts.
Fazit: Campo und die einzigartige Natur sind top! Erfahrung mit Pferden, gute Spanischkenntnisse und Selbstständigkeit sind wichtig. Rafael hat ein Temperament, mit dem nicht jeder umgehen kann. Wir denken jedoch nicht, dass unsere „attitude“ das Problem war.
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Brice
France
•
August 2025
I only stayed a few days on the campo. The place itself is beautiful and remote, it's peaceful, it's a high desert, the house is near a lake, with lots of birds. The food was good and plentiful. Accommodations were nice too, but cold that time of the year. My main issue was with animal welfare and management. I will not go into details, but the cows were very thin and weak, and the different practices used did not respect animals (and I've been on a lot of farms). Not the best example of ranching in my opinion. Also, I felt like they didn't really care if I was there or not, one worker was nice and helpful though. So I decided not to stay.
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Reply from Rafael
It was Not a pleasure to bring you to the ranch and you only stay for 24 hs... I was the one who take you out of the ranch because you try to manipulate me to stay just for a few days...
Changing the situation to show a different reality is the way you channel your unger to me. My business is to take care of more than 1200 cows and 400 horses.
If you were really interested of the animals you could ask about the motives of the thin animals.
On the ranch, we've had almost a year of limited rainfall which has led to a decrease in the cows' natural food. The most affected are the cows with calves, who are limited in their search for food due to their small calves. Therefore, our daily tasks this days are to find these weak animals, remove their calves, and provide them vitamins, minerals, and food so they can return to the field or be sold, as appropriate. Therefore, we have calves in the corrals that we feed until they are strong enough to return to the field or be sold. The same applies to the cows we rescue due to weakness, which we provide until they are strong enough to return to the field or be sold. All our corrals have water and food every day.
Brice you miss a good oportunity to learn about taking care of cattle In dry seasons.
Be honest the rest is easy.
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Josephine
France
•
August 2025
J’ai passé un mois fantastique au campo. Rafael, Nati et les gauchos sont très gentils et accueillants. Le travail est varié et s’adapte au rythme des animaux et du temps. Il ne faut pas avoir le coeur trop sensible car la nature peut être sauvage et dure, surtout en hiver où les températures chutent beaucoup la nuit. Prévoyez des vêtements chauds (vraiment chauds) si vous venez à ce moment là et de quoi vous protéger du soleil de manière générale, même en hiver !
J’ai beaucoup aimé arpenter ces vastes espaces semi-désertiques frappés par le soleil, découvrir le travail avec les vaches et apprendre toutes les petites choses utiles de la vie quotidienne qu’elles soient mécaniques, culinaires ou autre.
L’expérience est unique dans un lieu certes rustique mais riche d’enseignement. Les animaux sont aimés et les chiens comme les chats ne tarissent pas d’affection. Rafael a une approche des chevaux pleine de patience, de douceur et de compréhension et j’ai le sentiment d’avoir appris l’essentiel.
Je recommanderais plusieurs choses. D’abord, d’avoir une bonne condition physique, car nous ne sommes pas toujours habitués au travail en extérieur. Ensuite, de ne pas venir avec trop d’attentes car il n’y a rien de plus agréable que de se laisser porter par le rythme calme des journées qui change constamment pour s’adapter à l’environnement et aux besoins quotidiens des animaux.
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Giovanni
United States
•
March 2025
Rafael is a great host, and this ranch is a unique experience on WWOOF. The property is beautiful and the food is great. Most importantly, you get exposed to a large-scale cattle and horse ranch where you can learn about wild horses and herding cows.
Susanna
Italy
•
February 2025
Exceptional time at Cari-lauquen!!
It has been a month full of nature, quiet and time, an occasion to rest and live a simple life; not many offer to live something like that!
Great experience of Argentinians culture, looking at oneself deep inside.
Looking forward to be back there soon again!
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