Archie and Cleopatra

He is such a dear little goat.

Cleo gives Archie a smooch.

This is as far as they've gotten for the past two mornings. A couple more days and I think they will be ready for the great outdoors. We are dipping into the teens tonight and tomorrow, so Archie was introduced to the light in the warming barrel. Mm mm! He likes it. Snug as a bug!

Twenty Two - Archie

No sooner did Neo announce Cleopatra's pregnancy and we have a new buckling. He is a teeny guy but perfect. By the time I opened the stall to this miniature surprise, he was clean, nursing on both sides and walking very tall. The surprise is because Cleo only started to really show an udder, and not much of one, last week. I actually had a due date for her for last Friday, but we kept saying - no way.Nature fooled us again!

Good job Cleo - and Neo!
P.S. And to explain the title, Archie is his name and we are up to 22 goats now. Our most so far.

Week End Update

Neo would like to mention that he is the handsome father to all these lovely Boer goat kids, AND that there are more to come. Cleopatra is pregnant for sure, and today she looked like some serious body changes were happening. Naturally she had no interest in having her picture taken, and all my attempts were not worthy of publishing. Andouille is still enjoying mother's milk but I realize that he is getting closer to three months old. That means - weaning- Oh NO!

VIDEO BELOW: Here he is this morning, nursing heartily. He's half as big as his mother soon.



Aidan is not far behind either, but I hope we can wait to do a few of the kids all at once. The crying can be miserable. This week-end, Zola's ten day old boys have been fence training. Then, this afternoon, they got to join the rest of the nursery herd for a couple groups of visitors. They blended right in and are almost as big as the month old twin does. Tomorrow we'll try and get them all out together. That will get us down to three herds and by next week-end, the goal is to unite them with the other does. That should have us ready for some organized rotational grazing as the spring growth and warmer weather starts.

Busy Day

I see you... I know you're in there... I can hear the coffee.

These animals can be so demanding.Brothers Pants (front) and Grant.

Aziza

Pants wants no tin cans. Just electronics please.

Cleopatra, our Queen!

Grant.

Trinity and Ziggy.

The moms and young kids free ranged most of the day.

Zaci Zebadiah Zsigmond - "Ziggy".
Zaci means "God of Fatherhood" in African. Seemed appropriate for a buck.

Layla and her girls, Zahra and Zuri.

Flox in the woods.

Kid Update

Cookie and Aziza

Back home on the farm, the kids are getting bigger.

They are also getting more independent as they are browsing more and nursing less needfully.

Not to say that after they've been on mom's udder they don't leave looking dazed from mothers milk.

Their stupefacation is sort of funny sometimes.

Grant and Cookie with milk mouth.

You'd think they were smokin' something!

Kato has become very good at following mom around to get his share of milk after his slow start, but he is a good eater too.

Saba is the littlest and the feistiest. She tries to keep up with the bigger kids and does a pretty good job. Not a shy one here. And everyone likes to pick her up because she has the great markings and still is light enough to hold.

Speckles is still ultra protective of Little"Z", and the dog stays clear of the barn when she's around.

Cleo and Mei are Vinegars lovely little pair, and they are growing very nicely. I think both are going to be great additions to the herd.

VIDEO PART ONE: THE GOATS LEAVING THE BARN

VIDEO PART TWO: KIDS IN THE ALLEY TO THE FIELD

Finally Some Names

Kato and Saba

A week later and the four May Day twins have names, although its going to take us a while to keep them straight. We started with African names because they are a South African breed, and ended up with these.
Vinegar's doe twins are Mei (May), the white one, and Cleopatra, the brown one with the white belly stripe.
Mei is the fifth month and she is the fifth female born here.
CLEOPATRA: Latin form of Greek Kleopatra, meaning "glory of the father." Cleopatra VII reigned as Queen of Egypt from 51-30 B.C. She was born in 69 B.C. in Alexandria, Egypt and is believed to have been black African.

Cleo is cleaning Mei here.

Uno's doe is Saba, the seventh female. Saba means seven. She has lots more brown and has four brown feet. Kato is the buckling in front, who is more traditionally colored. Kato means second born of twins.