Stopped In My Tracks

By the perfume of these lilac bushes. The thing is, ...I don't like lilac perfume, ...but the real thing is wonderful.

A Couple of Cuties

Three days old and growing fast. He has a look that we all have fallen for. Is that South America or Africa?

My young neighbor, Aidan, had to wait a week to see Layla's twins, but got to be in the field when Trinity kidded. I'm not sure if he really was as interested in the birth as the rest of us, but he is interested in the final product. As a result, he has learned to be very gentle and quiet around the new kids, and appreciate them without having to chase them. Its nice to see how nurturing the young visitors can be around the animals.
And Aidan does a nice job gathering eggs too.

Getting Out

While maid service was in the room, Layla took the kids for a stroll outside.

I found them on the barn ramp just posing for the camera.

They are such a regal looking family. I just love Layla's look, and her personality is equally lovely.

Layla decided that a little part time work cleaning the barn ramp was OK as long as she could bring the kids.

Zahra and Zuri do a good job of staying nearby and practicing their acrobatics.

Mia got a little too close, and Layla gave her a warning.

Ziggy (I'm trying that on for size) likes getting close too. At two days old, he's hopping around and exploring.

The chickens are getting used to all these curious kids around.

Trinity is settling into motherhood, but is still a little uncomfortable on one side for nursing. She's a bit of a worrier too, but is always there for some milk and a nuzzle.

Trinity and Son

We were up milking late last night, but it seems it was enough to get some milk into the little guy and relieve some pressure and pain from Trinity's udder. Also, I thought to remove Trinity's grain to slow her milk production. She still had plenty of new hay, but until her udder softens up a bit, we'll watch how much grain she gets. She seems happy with the hay right now.This morning, the buckling was nursing, with Trinity talking, but she sounded a bit pained yet. Nonetheless, she is standing still for him, and all is in her control now. Phew! Now we can all relax.

Twenty, Nineteen...

So what are these people watching? Looks like fun doesn't it? Just the bored neighbors watching a goat birth. Trinity didn't drag things on like her mother for weeks. That udder popped last night and she woke me up (yes - the baby monitor was back on) around seven this morning with some crying. The poor thing has a hard time compared to the other girls who seem to barely make a noise and shoot the kids out. After a good hour of concern from ALL of us, Trinity pushed out a lovely baby buckling. He has been cleaned inside out (I mean she even cleaned inside his mouth!), but had not latched on yet before I came in to cook dinner. Trinity keeps turning to clean him when he gets beside her. Her udder is really tight and full, so she is tender. I feel for her, and it makes it harder for the little guy to get a good go at his milk. We've done a little milking, but its out to the barn this evening to relieve the pressure some more.
It was amazing to see this young goat turn into an obsessive mom within a minute of kidding. She even impressed the young ones in the crowd. So just before noon, we were up to 20 goats on the farm, but as planned Brees officially became Wally at about 1:30PM and went to his new home with his new owner. We are very excited to see him in August at the Westmoreland Fair. He was very well behaved when Kayla came to pick him up, but was not to pleased about being introduced to the halter and lead. We made the meeting a better experience by just carrying him to the car. He even got to ride home in the cab after we all worried that he might squeeze out of the crate they brought.

So here we are, back to nineteen goats. Wow! This was a fun week!

Goat Two Ring Circus

This will be Brees' last day here. He's been kicking up his heels about his new adventure.Tomorrow he moves in with his new goat roomie and friends nearby. In preparation, he has been tagged so he can legally leave the premises. Goats and sheep need a scrapies tag to identify what farm they came from. That whole bio security thing. Scrapies is mostly a sheep problem that goats can catch from sheep. Its difficult to do, but happens. The problem is, it is a disease like mad cow disease, so the herd would likely be culled.

http://www.extension.org/pages/Scrapie_in_Goats
http://www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/animal_diseases/scrapie/
I was lucky to get Brees and the "big" twins in a very playful mood. Enjoy the clips. I'll bore you with all three. The choreography is amazing

VIDEO OF KIDS PLAYING ON THE SPOOLS.

QUICK VIDEO OF THE KIDS DASHING ACROSS THE FIELD

VIDEO OF BREES, ELLA AND TISA PLAYING AROUND ZOLA

Happy Earth Day

From Dave... Mia...Snickers and the hens,

Zuri,...

Zahra,...

good neighbor Allison and the kids,...

the Yearlings,...

and our foster hens,... ...on our piece of Earth.

If The Video Doesn't Make You Smile...

...well you haven't been watching #2's rough couple of days.Meet Zuri (#2) and Zahra (#1).

This year the letter Z is the registration letter for goats, and since these two are Full blood Boer goats, I found African names for them. Zahra means blossom and Zuri means beautiful. Zahra has the spot on her knee and has more brown on her face. She's also a shade darker. Zuri's face has a wide white blaze and extends over all her mouth and chin.

This morning the kids were together and active and Zahra was doing a little hopping, but Zuri was just wobbling around still. The video is from this evening. The improvement is wonderful. She's really catching up and I am sure she gained weight today. She's filling out. Mom still has her favorite, but Zuri has learned to chase that teat and latch on.

VIDEO OF ZURI AT DAY 2 1/2

Good Night!

Everyone is hanging in there.

After two days of kid sitting and pushing on the teat, I'm not sure who is more tired. I think its me.Night night!
PS: Tomorrow their names.

Re-establishing Maternity

These pictures are from yesterday afternoon when I decided we all needed to get out of the cool barn, and see the sun. The kids are about 12-13 hours old.#2 on the left and the "Favorite Child" on the right, #1.

I think Layla is starting to pay a bit more attention to #2, but #1 is still the favorite child! #2 weighs 6 1/2 pounds to her sister's beefy 8 1/2. Layla is giving #2 more of a chance to nurse, and that is good, as she needs time to latch on. She is getting some milk, but I'd like her to get stronger sooner. I want to pull back so I am out of the picture for bonding until Layla gets back to her good maternal self. We are all mad at her and scolding her, but she was doing what nature requires. Survival of the fittest. This morning she was following after, and talking to both kids, but you can still pick up #2 without much complaint. Beware if you take #1!We're not out of the woods yet. So another day of coddling when needed.