We Have New Kids!

Born on Friday, June 14, 2013 at 6:30 and 6:40. The first born is a Doeling and she is naturally polled (no horns) like her Mother. The second born is a Buckling and we aren't sure yet about whether he will have horns or not. I really hope he doesn't because I hate disbudding, but we will have to wait and see.

Here are some pictures that I took of Hazel kidding, so if you are squeamish about this sort of thing turn back now or just close your eyes.

 Hazel needed a little help with the clean up process and Angel needed to make sure everything was alright and that anything that might draw in predators was cleaned up. She also needed some bonding time with her new charges.

The Doeling has erect ears like her Saanen Daddy.

The Buckling has floppy ears like Mom.

Trick Riding Goat For Sale

I put Gimli on Craigslist last night. According to the "Best Days" calendar of the Farmer's Almanac, today and tomorrow are the best days to wean. So I was hoping that someone would just show up and take him but I am going to separate him from his mother today regardless. Which means that I am going to have to start milking twice per day.

He is cute and fun but he is also getting a little annoying. Especially when it is someone else's car.

He was no problem to keep in the goat lot as long as the fence was hot but for some reason it is no longer hot and he knows it. He slips underneath it anywhere he wants to. I worked on the fence yesterday for hours and nearly had a heat stroke but I can't find the problem. I cut weeds, moved limbs and replaced insulators but there is a mile of fence meandering around pastures before it gets to the goat pen. It's really hard to find the problem. I am going to walk it again today.

But in the mean time, if anyone is interested in buying a 3 month old boer wether who does some trick riding, let me know. Mr. Shorty says, "He has to go!"

Cooter

I have put it off because it was too hard to talk about. A week has now passed and my feelings aren't quite so raw. I first noticed that Cooter was acting a little off on Monday of last week. I couldn't put my finger on it but I knew something was wrong. By Tuesday he was obviously in trouble.

He kept standing in the hot sun panting. I finally had to stake him out in the shade, so that he couldn't get to a sunny area. Then I noticed that when I went out to check on him that his right hind foot was always wrapped up in the rope. This just wasn't like him.

The second time I went to untangle his foot, I was bent over and starting to pick it up when someone hit me hard on the top of the head with a baseball bat. I studied the pretty stars in the darkness of my brain for just a moment, then picked myself up off of the ground.

I was shocked that Cooter would just butt me like that but after we observed him for awhile later we realized that he didn't butt me at all. He was spinning violently to the right at times and that was the reason that the rope kept wrapping around that right hind foot.

Since I wasn't sure what I was dealing with, I started pumping different things into him; Electrolytes, B-Complex, lots of Thiamine and Antibiotics. Then later; Probiotics, Vegetable Oil, Baking Soda, Nutri-Drench and finally two Enemas.

I stayed up with him that night until around 2:00. On Wednesday morning he was still in misery, so I made the decision to put him down. I was not going to put him through another hot day. At this point, I was certain, after talking to several goat people that he had a twisted gut. Something else had started the problem but after his falling and flopping around several times, the result was that he had twisted something.

He drank water all day and was urinating well but his bowels had stopped working. Even with the oil and enemas, he never even passed the enema water that I put into him.

Angel stayed by his side throughout the day and all night. She followed us as we took him to his final resting place and after the grave was covered, she sniffed the dirt and laid down beside it. As we were leaving I was afraid that she might stay there but after we arrived back at the house, I looked back and seen her come up over the hill.

I miss him. Even though I had made up my mind to sell him, it is still hard for me to deal with. I miss the way he cocked his head when he looked at you and the way he always had to rub on me. I even miss the way he smelled. I can still get a whiff of him from time to time when I am close to his favorite places.

Sold 5 Goats Today

What a day! I was told that I probably wouldn't be able to sell any goats until this fall. Then I got several calls yesterday and someone showed up to look at Paris and her twins last night. He told me he was going to take them and sure enough he showed up today with a trailer. I think that they got a real good home.

Then a lady came who was interested in the other spotted buckling that is the twin brother to the one that I am keeping as a buck. She had told me over the phone that she wanted him and was coming after him today. Then when he started crying for his brother after she loaded him, I talked her into buying Calico's last buckling as a companion for him.

That takes care of all of the goats that I have for sale except for Cooter. But I believe someone will come along who has a hankering for a big, lovable, stink pot like him.

My new little lonely buckling has officially been named Rancid, even though he doesn't have any odor yet, I am confident his time will come.

This also means that I have two does who will have to be milked twice daily without any breaks for me. Calico's big buckling was not only keeping her drained but was nursing Collette as well. I have been having to put him in the dog kennel with the other two bucklings at night so that I could get some milk in the mornings.

Angel, my Great Pyrenees, is not a happy camper. When the man drove off with Paris in a crate on a small trailer, she was in hot pursuit. I had just come back into the house without even thinking about her. Then I got a call from Paris' new owner that Angel was still following them and that he was going to have to turn around and come back.

I went to the top of the hill to meet them and when Angel thought that he was bringing her goats home, she took the short cut across the field and went down over the hill. He turned back around and took off again and I came back down too.

Angel was waiting on me and wagging her tail, all happy that she had saved the day but kept looking up the hill, after awhile she went back up the hill to see what was keeping them. She went back up to check around three times. Even now, after several hours have passed she is still acting defeated.

Kia

Kia is our new Great Pyrenees Livestock Guardian Dog. She is a full sister to Angel my first Great Pyr but from another litter. Abby, my second Great Pyr is her mother. Kia needed a new home and I took her on a whim. She is a great LGD, she never tries to get out of the goat lot and she is great with the goats, chickens, Angus and the Grandkids. What more could you want in a livestock guardian dog?

The problem is that I don't need three big dogs to feed. Dog food is way too expensive and I really don't need an LGD for each goat that I own. If I were smart and thinking logically, I would keep Kia and sell Angel because Angel won't stay where she is suppose to be. But the old emotions kick in and I realize that I can't think logically because I love Angel.

Abby is a perfect LGD, she is vicious with anything that gets close to her goats but she is very people friendly. Angel is not people friendly but does love the Grandkids. Kia falls somewhere in between, she isn't as friendly as her mother but is not as untrusting of humans as Angel is.

I really need to sell Kia before I get too much more attached to her. At this point I am going to have to know that she is getting a really good forever home. She is 2 and a half years old, is not a real large Great Pyr, she is happy and smiles all of the time. She is spayed and up to date on all Vaccines and Wormings.

**Kia has found a great new home with lots of animals, human kids and room to roam, she is loving all of the attention.

Saturday Morning

My oldest Granddaughter spent the night with me last night. Unlike her sister who likes to sleep late, this one is an early riser. When she was younger she used to wake me up by lightly tapping me and sweetly saying, "It's wake-up time." Now she just bounds out of bed, gets dressed and tells me she is going outside. Of course, I try to reason with her about the earliness of the hour and the coldness of the early morning air. To which she responds that she will wear a sweatshirt.

I drag myself out of bed when she comes running back inside to tell me that there is something weird out there. I ask her what it looks like and she says that it looks like a dead Elvis but it isn't Elvis. She is talking about my Polish rooster and not the singer. She has seen Elvis and he is still alive, so now she is among the many who can attest to the fact that Elvis lives.

I put my coat on upside down and go out there to see what this is. I should have known what it was when she said that it looks like a dead Elvis, because Elvis is black and white. It was indeed a dead skunk that either Angel had killed some time ago or had found somewhere. Either way it didn't smell like skunk anymore.

My Granddaughter is truly a farm girl. After my DIL (Daughter-in-law) had told me that Elvis had tried to chase and flog her, I was standing talking to my three Granddaughters. Elvis came slipping up behind the oldest one. Like any good Grandmother would do, I waited to see what would happen.

Elvis did indeed flog my oldest Granddaughter, she turned around to see what the problem was and I told her to kick him like a football. She then spent the next 30 minutes chasing him and trying to use him for a football. Elvis has learned a valuable lesson, don't mess with the little people.

Later, Elvis tried to get her Mother again to which her mother responded by asking her daughter to protect her. So my Granddaughter got between Elvis and her mother and Elvis was subdued.

Skunked

I went home late last night to send someone an email and to visit with Angus. Angus has been moved out of the goat stall because Calico and Paris were being too mean to him. They were butting him and pushing him around too much. So he has the free run of the barn again.

While I was there, Angel came into the barn to say, "Hi!" or to say "Help!", I am not sure which. I grabbed her by the collar before the smell got to me. I was escorting her out of the barn when I realized what I had a hold of. Being the brilliant person that I am, I put my hand to my nose and not only sniffed it but also touched my nose with it.

A few days ago, Abby had been sprayed by a skunk and since Abby never leaves the goat lot we knew that the skunk had probably tried to get into the goat/chicken shed. This is a very bad situation for the dogs, they are doing their jobs very well but are really suffering for it.

I used the goat milk soap that I ordered from Hidden Brook Farm and it actually removed the skunk smell from my hand, however I didn't realize that I had touched my nose until the smell kept following me around. After I washed my nose all was well again. By the way, Hidden Brook Farm included a large bar of "Pumpkin Spice Goat Milk Soap" as a bonus with my order that smells just wonderful.

Night Glitter

To update my previous post, all of my hens came home wagging their tails behind them. I don't know where they have been the last few days but they seem to be fine. I would imagine that they were just under a shelter of some sort. Then the snow piled up around them and they couldn't escape until the sun came out today and warmed things up.

I had a most amazing walk that I was going to blog about and forgot. It got really cold last night and after I got all of my feeding and milking done and had gone into my toasty house for the night. I remembered that I had forgotten to feed Angel and Abby. Well, there was no hurry, I warmed up and did a few things inside. Later I wrapped back up, fixed their food and went back out into the frigid night.

I had my headlight on which gives you a new prospective on things in the night, all of the animals eyes glow because you have this bright light so close to your own eyes. But what was so amazing about last night was that there was a freezing fog.

Oh my, it was the most beautiful thing. The air temperature was so cold that the fog was freezing into tiny, sparkling ice particles floating in the air. Wow! It was like walking through suspended glitter and it was everywhere. I could have stayed out all night if it hadn't been so cold, but if it hadn't been so cold it wouldn't have been such a glittery world. And to think that I would never had experienced it if I had just had a flashlight in my hand.

Wind Chills

Not looking forward to the weather for the next few days. It is currently snowing and sleeting here. We are under a wind chill advisory for -10 to -30 from tonight through Friday. I know that is not as cold as it is some places and I don't mind the cold but I don't care much for wind chills.

It is hard to keep water to everyone, we have a big heated tank for the main pasture but with so many horses they can drink it dry in a day's time. Which means that it has to be filled everyday, even in subzero temperatures. The problem, of course, is the hose. Yesterday it was warm in the morning but the temps dropped all day and I didn't think to top off the big tank before the hose became frozen, so I had to wind the hose up and bring the whole thing into the house. We have a hard time remembering to unhook and drain the hoses.

We have to provide water in nine different places, two tanks are heated but require hoses to fill them, two tanks are not heated and required hoses, the others are small and we can carry the water.

I carry warm water in my little red wagon to Cooter, Angel and Abby, I also carry warm water to three different places for the chickens. The does in the barn are not hard to keep watered because it is normally warm enough in the barn to prevent frozen water but last night I brought their bucket into the house after they were bedded down. I will have to remember to do that again for the next three nights and probably most of the day tomorrow, I will just have to take the water out for them to drink and bring it back in.

Our biggest headache is the two tanks that are not heated, I usually take a splitting maul and drop it down on the ice to break it for Badger's water and for the young horses that are separated from the main herd. It will not be an easy task to keep them watered for the next couple of days. I will also have to keep breaking and refilling for Cooter, the dogs and the chickens. I break their ice with a hatchet and scoop out the ice with a very handy kitty litter scoop that I bought for that purpose, then refill with warm or hot water.

So, while some of you are sitting inside your warm, cozy houses listening to the wind howl, think of me trudging across the hard frozen ground with a bucket or splitting maul in my hand fighting against the icy wind. We will also have to feed and milk in this cold, it is all part of the joy of farm living and I love it, my eldest son and his family got me a new face mask for Christmas, so I am prepared.

We have been getting around 8 eggs per day but the temperature took a nose dive yesterday and we got 10! I don't think that I will ever understand chickens. They might all lay tomorrow since it will be so cold and there will be nothing else to do.

Cooter's Adventure

The thing that you fear the most is that goats will learn that they can jump, climb or crawl under fences. All of my goats were very respectful of the electric fence until one day Collette discovered that she could crawl under the fence. Then because Paris didn't want to be separated from her best friend she learned to jump like a deer.

Cooter had never acquired this knowledge of escape until the bottom strand of the electric fence went missing. He found that he could just walk under the top strand without getting shocked. This was great news for him, he could visit all of the places that he had only dreamed about.

His first destination was to visit with the does in the barn stall, but alas, there was no way to get into the stall with them and no way to get into the grain either. So his next destination was to find out why all of those horses stood around those big round things all day long and fought for position.

The best way to get the information that you need if you are an athletic billy goat who does not know fear, is to just jump right into the middle of the action.

The horses were totally repulsed by this stinking, ugly, egotistical animal jumping right into the middle of their supper. All of the horses stepped away from the ring not knowing what to do. Buddy, (pictured above) who is quite fond of his food was the most repulsed of all and decided to take matters into his own hands.

My Husband told me that the horses would eventually snatch him up and give him a good shaking and might even injure him. I didn't think that they would bite into anything that smelled like that. I was wrong, Buddy, who is a big strong gelding, viciously grabbed him by the neck and shook him like a rag doll. Cooter didn't mind at all, he just went right back after Buddy thinking that he wanted to play. Cooter left a bad taste in Buddy's mouth it seems because he wouldn't do it again.

After several attempts to engage Buddy in play, Cooter got bored and left the hay ring and started singling out other horses to play with.

First he chose Dan, the alpha gelding, the herd leader and protector. Dan just totally ignored him, so he went after a younger male, Naylor. Naylor was intimidated by him and went for reinforcements.

The funniest part of all of this was that Angel was with him, growling at the horses that he was challenging. She tried being diplomatic about it and tried her best to talk to him about size and strength but he wouldn't listen, so she had to stand her ground, growl and threaten the horses about minding their manners.

Because at the end of the day, Cooter is still her responsibility after all, it is like being the body guard for a spoiled young prince.

Catching Some Rays

The sun is shining, it is warm and beautiful. A perfect time to put Bootstrap out to get some sunshine. However, he escaped his cage and was viciously attacked by the hens and other roosters. He has always been able to hold his own and was second in command, second only to my huge Barred Rock Rooster, Rocky. He was hiding and cowering under my little red wagon, I picked him up and put him back in his cage and patched the hole.

He still isn't 100%, I think that he has some problems with his feet, they were pretty frozen when we found him. I sat here at the computer with him in my lap and massaged his feet until they loosened up some. His comb is nearly all black and he is still pretty weak.

I also put Cooter in the dog kennel for the day, so that I could put Calico and Paris in the goat lot for some sun.

Calico and Paris both enjoyed the sunshine. Angel enjoyed the sunshine as well but Abby is staying in the chicken/goat shed for some unknown reason.

And finally, the horses... I think that I counted 16 horses DOWN in this one pasture, the sad part is that we have four other pastures. Don't even ask how many we have.

And for no reason at all, here is a picture of Rocky and a few of his choice hens.

A One Egg Day

There have been colder days than today, there have been nastier days than today. We have consistently received at least five eggs everyday since the cold weather has arrived. Something changed today, only one lonely egg.

The good news is that the shortest day of the year, Sunday, December 21st is about to arrive and then the days will start getting longer. I always love to get on the other side of that short day. I love cold weather and snow but I don't care for the long nights.

Angel and I both saw an unusual sight today. I was walking back to the barn from feeding Cooter. I had already fed the Chickens in a couple of different places, there was a group pecking at their feed right in front of our horse trailer as we passed.

All of the sudden from up on the hill above the barn, something came swooping down upon us heading right for that group of chickens. I stopped and at first glance thought it was a hawk, it had the same coloring. Angel was a few yards behind me and she froze in place, looking up, high over her head. I was stunned and relieved when I realized what it was, it was one of my little banty hens in a hurry to get to the feed before it was all gone.

I have never seen a chicken fly that high, she had her wings stretched out and glided in for a perfect landing, right in the middle of the feeding frenzied large hens who make her life pretty difficult. Those hens scattered in all directions, they thought the sky was falling. I am almost certain that she was playing big, bad, bird of prey. It was very affective but the moment of panic didn't last long and the big hens ran her off again.

Thumped

Why is it that it always takes you so long to get used to things when they change. My dear Husband built a large, heavy, sturdy nesting box for our hens. It actually contains three nice big nests. But it didn't take long before we realized that we had hung it in the wrong place, that wrong place being right amongst the chicken roosts. The nests became really nasty very quickly.

So, my DH finally got around to moving the thing. He moved it to another wall inside the goat/chicken shed. It is now right inside the door and hung a little bit higher than it was. That little bit higher is right above eye level.

I knew that it was now in a dangerous place if I wasn't really paying attention when I came through the door. I had several close calls where I glanced up right before I walked into it.

But my luck finally ran out and the corner of the thing smacked me right in the hairline of my forehead. I bounced back a couple of steps then staggered to the window and grabbed a handful of window sill to steady myself.

I moved my other hand away from my forehead where it had landed instinctively and I felt something wet. I was just certain that I had busted my head wide open and was bleeding profusely but it turned out just to be dog slobbers from where Angel had licked my hand when I walked into the shed.

I survived somehow with just a small dent in my skull and it still hurts when I move my eyebrows. I have refused to go back into the shed since then. There are just too many unpleasant memories for me there now.

I have always loved my goat/chicken shed but now it scares me. You would think that once you banged your head into something like that, you would never forget it and it would never happen again. But I know myself better than that. It takes more than a dented skull to make me remember anything, it takes time and lots of it. Once that nest box has hung there for 3 or 4 years, I will never run into it again.

Moon Shadows

If you didn't go for a walk in the moonlight last night, then you just aren't living. I took two walks last night. For some reason, it may be a compulsion, I have to take a short tour of the grounds before I go to bed. My tour last night was just inspiring, that harvest moon was a thing of beauty.

I marveled at my shadow that was so clearly defined. Two of the goats were out and snoozing in the driveway along with their faithful companion, Angel. She was bright white, soft and cuddly in the moonlight when she ambled over to me for a rub and a hug. I enjoyed the scenery for a few minutes then went to bed.

I had a rough night, I couldn't get to sleep. I had a headache most of the day yesterday and it got worse when I laid down. When I did finally doze off, I kept waking up in pain, then my stomach started complaining about something I ate. I promised myself that I would quit eating spicy stuff right before bed, then later I promised myself not to eat anything before going to bed, still later I promised myself not to ever eat anything spicy at anytime of the day. I ended up promising myself never to eat again period!

As I flopped about the bed with all of these thoughts, pains and promises, Angel and Abby both started pitching a fit. They normally bark throughout the night to ward off predators but this was different, this was something serious that needed someone's attention and since nothing wakes my dear Husband, it fell my lot.

I walked out into the night with my tiny flashlight that wasn't needed because of the brightness of the moon. The dogs fell silent as soon as I walked out and no longer seemed concerned, they had done their job, they had alerted me to a problem that really didn't affect them.

I looked around and didn't see or hear anything, then I walked around the corner of the barn and saw something that most people would love to see in the moonlight. It was just the most beautiful sight. Although I didn't have time to stand around and marvel long at it, because I had to run into the house and wake up my Husband before this beautiful sight got ugly.

There, standing in the yard, in the moonlight on his hind feet pawing at the sky was our white stallion. It took my breath away for more than one reason, it was an awesome sight, he is very beautiful. But he was also challenging our Grullo Stud, who was only one tiny electric wire away from him and he was making some challenging moves himself. They had already broke one wire and the valley soon filled with violent screams and squeals.

It was really no big deal, I woke the man and he grabbed a halter and lead rope, I went back out and yelled at them. They were like a couple of kids who had been caught doing something wrong. Badger trotted off and Jazz started pacing the fence but stopped and stood still as quick as my DH said his name. He haltered him and put him in the corral for the night, then went back to bed. He is out fixing fence this morning. He had two days off in a row, that is just amazing.

As for me, I have still sworn off food. I did have a glass of goat's milk this morning and that seems to have settled things down for a little while. My head is still aching, so I am thinking that I have probably contracted the bout of flu that has been making the rounds.

Problem Persists

My two yearling does are continuing to escape their electric fenced pen. I had hoped that they were bred to kid this fall but I am now pretty sure that at least one of them is currently in heat. Since I stake Cooter out during the day, this could be a problem because she might try to go to him. There is a hot wire around the lot that I stake him out in but hot wires have lost their effect on these two girls.

I certainly don't want them bred now because that would give me February babies. I would like to breed them around the first of December, so that they would kid in warm weather.

I have done everything I know to do to fix the fence so that they can't get out but nothing has worked. They are both going under it now, Paris has stopped jumping it. The bottom strand is two inches off of the ground and it is hot. Angel has started getting out again as well, they all just put their noses under the bottom wire and push through.

I think that their hair is preventing them from being shocked. Shaving a bald patch on the top of their necks or shoulders might work but I hate to make them look so ridiculous. I have even considered making the bottom strand barbed wire. I can't afford to put up woven wire. I hate not being able to control them.

Abby

We have a new smiling face in our goat lot. Her name is Abby and she is Angel's mother. A neighbor called us Sunday evening and asked if we wanted her because the people who owned her had sold all of their goats and had taken down all of their fences. She was wandering the neighborhood with nothing to protect. One of their neighbors was threatening to shoot her and the neighbor who was making the threat thought that she was just too good a dog to be shot.

So, I got the call and went directly to my DH, something strange happened, I am still in shock. He said that I could have her. It may have been because I was told that she was probably bred to Angel's father and he thought that we could sell the pups but when we went to pick her up, it was obvious that she isn't pregnant.

The goats and chickens took to her right away, but Angel was not happy. They didn't remember each other and there was no happy reunion. At first Abby was afraid of Angel and didn't want a conflict but then she started snarling and growling every time Angel got close to her. Finally they fought tooth and toenail, Angel is bigger but Abby has more experience, so she prevailed. When dinner was served, we found out who has probably been missing some meals and won't be missing anymore. Abby will not share food under any circumstances.

Abby is the dog closest to the camera in these pictures. She is very friendly, even with strangers which is a quality that Angel does not possess, she does not like strangers in any form or fashion. However, we were told that Abby will not tolerate anyone messing with her goats.

In researching Great Pyrenees as Livestock Guardian Dogs and getting expert advice, I learned that it is best to have two. Since I was lucky to get one, I never asked for a second one. But I can already see why two is best, since Abby has arrived, Angel is already less keyed up, her stress levels are way down. She felt that the goats were totally her responsibility and she wouldn't let them out of her sight. She has started leaving the goat lot now to do some patrolling and checking on Cooter, the billy goat, who lives up the hill. She is also coming to the barn/house for some cuddling. I think that she will be more of a guard dog for the whole farm now.

One Down

It has been a busy week for us, we have had several things going on, I haven't had much time to blog. Biscuit, our yearling leopard filly did go to live at her new home in Texas on Tuesday.

Sometime on Wednesday, one of my Barred Rock Chicks disappeared. I saw her early in the day but later in the afternoon she was gone. I think that several of my banty chicks are roosters and whoever is taking these chickens must just prefer hens. Here is a picture of some of my banty chicks challenging each other, they are probably roosters, I can't tell yet. But we knew that both of my Barred Rock chicks were hens.

Yesterday morning while I was outside, I noticed something was off. I couldn't put my finger on it at first but then it dawned on me that I could hear nothing but silence. All of my chickens were hiding and not making a sound. Usually they are a pretty noisy bunch, so I started looking around.

There were two small hawks flying around overhead. Normally I know when there are hawks about because the crows are constantly calling them names and trying to run them out of their air space. The crows were away from the post for some reason, leaving my chickens unprotected. I got my camera and took a picture of one of them. They finally gave up the hunt and flew away.

Later in the day, I noticed that the chickens were still quiet, so I looked around again and didn't see anything, but it gave me a strange feeling every time I went outside.

I had taken my glasses off to fix my hair, I went into the bedroom for something and passed by the window. I saw what I thought was one of my Rhode Island Reds on the far side of the goat lot. With my glasses off I couldn't tell what it was for sure but I have never seen my chickens in that area. I got my glasses and looked again, it was a fox, he was just relaxing, scratching and rolling in the new mowed grass.

I grabbed up my rifle and slipped out the door. It was a long shot for a rifle but I embarrassed myself again anyhow. He jumped away from the spot where the bullet hit the ground beyond him. The sound of the rifle didn't scare him because I have desensitized him to gunfire because I have shot at him so many times and missed. He walked away a few feet then stopped in the driveway and looked back at the place he had been, he was closer to me now and a much better shot. I missed again and he went into the high weeds.

I knew that he would circle around the barn/house and all I had to do was wait on him, so I went into the house and got a different rifle. Maybe it was the rifle and not me, right? I watched the goats who were watching him, so I knew right where he was. I stood inside the back door of the barn and waited for another perfect shot. But something went wrong, while I was waiting with a clear view of where he would have to come down the hill, he was already there. I was a bit confused but I had a good shot, so I took it. I missed again and again he jumped away from the spot I hit and came towards me. I had another perfect shot and of course I missed again.

Four missed shots in one day. How could I live with myself? The shame of it all. I went to Camp Meeting last night and when I returned home, he was sitting on top of a row of big round bales of hay that are sitting beside our driveway. He looked at me and laughed. I drove down the hill to get my gun and try again but he was gone when I got back.

I wouldn't have minded him so bad if he would have taken roosters instead of my hens. But this morning when I went to get Cooter out of his pen to stake him out. Angel started barking at something at the top of the hill. I looked up there and saw two foxes chasing each other and playing. I yelled for my DH and gave him a chance to deal with the problem. Though it is hard for me to admit, he got one of them with his first shot. I will never live this down.

I did find out why I was confused about the fox's location the day before, there were two of them. I am sure that we will have to deal with the other one at some point. They seem to love this place. Since we got Angel we hardly ever see or hear Coyotes but we always have skunks and foxes. They know now that she can't get out of the goat lot, so they are safe from her. They also know that I can't hit the broad side of a barn, so they are also safe from me.

There are two wild turkey hens with chicks staying here also. I don't know why the foxes prefer my chickens to the turkey chicks, maybe they are harder to catch or the turkey hens are meaner than my roosters.

Too Much Milk

Since I sold Copper, I am milking two goats each day, that results in a lot of milk. It also results in a lot of dirty dishes and no refrigerator space. My sink is piled high right now but I did give my Son one and a half gallons of milk last night, so that freed up some space in the fridge.

I need to find someone to buy part interest in one of my goats, so that I don't drown here. I am already feeding milk to my chickens, dogs and cat. My Schnauzer looks like she could pop at any given moment and my cat is too fat as well. Angel usually gets milk once per day but she must still be growing because she isn't bloated like the other two.

Here are a couple of pictures of our fat cat, Garfield. He loves being packed around by our Granddaughters. You would think that he would run when he sees them coming but he just loves the attention.

No Loses

I didn't lose any chickens yesterday, this is an improvement. We are making progress. I did sell Copper yesterday evening, he went to a good home. He will be used as a buck. Angel didn't like it, she is still looking for him this morning. That is the sad part of selling my kids, it upsets Angel but his mother didn't seem to mind at all. I think she was ready to let him go.

We had storms all through the night and I have water in my living room this morning. I don't understand why sometimes the rain comes in and sometimes it doesn't. I wish some philanthropist would give me about $100,000, I could really put it to good use. I need a house.

Or better yet, it would be nice if a couple of people would retire from the Post Office and my Husband would get a regular postal route and become a full time employee instead of a substitute or RCA, no one wants to retire anymore. Another possibility is that we could sell all of our 30+ horses at reasonable prices. That would really help out, think of the money that we would save on feed alone.

We did sell a yearling filly, Biscuit is moving to Texas on Monday to become a broodmare. She will be raising spotted mule foals. We will really miss her, she has the sweetest disposition. You can sweet talk her into anything and once she learns something she retains it.

My orphan chicks are all doing well so far. The two barred rock chicks have taken up with another barred rock hen and they are roosting in the goat/chicken shed at night on the highest perch, next to the biggest rooster.

My three little banty chicks have tried to join the other banty chicks but the hen won't allow it. So they are on their own, they roost in the same nest that their mother always took them to at night, they have no protection at all. At least one of them is a rooster and he is trying to protect his little family but it is a big responsibility for such a young chick.

I was tempted to put them in a cage but the barred rock chicks were so unhappy in the cage that I hate to do it to the banties after they have been free all of their lives.

Well, that is the news for now, nothing very exciting, which is a good thing. If you are a philanthropist and have some money that you would like to put to good use contact me but please not from Nigeria.

Another Lovely Day

Before the clock reaches midnight tonight, I thought that I would blog about the day, it was lovely. It wasn't hot like it has been for the last several days, it was just right. I made Cooter a new colorful goat rope halter. He had outgrown his old one and since I am staking him out everyday, I wanted him to be comfortable. The bright colors won't last long with the way he will treat it.

When I went to get Cinder to milk her this morning, Angel ran out the gate while I was taking Cinder out. This was strange behavior for her, so I watched to see what she was doing. She went right straight to the truck and tried to get into the back, she sniffed all around and then went into the barn/house where our large dog crate is and sniffed it. I finally realized that she was looking for Zinc, the goat kid that we took to his new home yesterday. She takes her responsibility for every goat very seriously. She is a great livestock guardian dog.

My Husband thought that the grass was getting too deep in the goat lot, so he put Shorty our miniature horse in there to eat down the grass some. But as soon as his belly was full, he started chasing the goats and horsing around. The goats didn't want to play and Angel didn't want to play.

He was running them from one end of the lot to the other, so I rescued them by opening the gate, they all ran out past me in desperation. Shorty used to stay with them all of the time and they got along fine except when he would get the rips, like he did today.

I put halters and lead ropes on Cinder and Calico, then tied them up in a lush shady spot. Angel and the other goats will not leave them, so every one enjoyed the day and the change in diet.

My poor Husband was feeding some horses and moved a separation gate, then got stung by another red wasp. They seem to have nests everywhere we turn this year.