Saturday, April 22, 2006

Baby Goats!

Our first goat has kidded and delivered 2 healthy bucks! She happened to do this in the middle of Jeremy's 16th birthday party:) The city kids went from fascination to being grossed out and then back to delight as they got to hold brand new baby goats. Our 8 year old has decided that they are all goofy...why would a beautiful, easy birth bother anyone?

Her first buck was huge! Obviously he was hogging all the nutrition! Here he is shortly after Momma did her initial cleaning job.

Somewhere back in our buck's line there must be some strong genes for cou blanc (white shoulders) coloring...we named our first buck born with this coloring Oreo. The boys haven't named this little one yet. They are quite creative with their names...we have a year old doe named Elizabeth Milkshake!

It was only a matter of minutes before this little boy was on his feet and nursing! Within a few hours he was running and leaping...although a bit awkwardly :)


Nora, the perfect cow, was fascinated with this thing called birth! We have a pen in the barn reserved for does when they are kidding, for rehab after an injury or for other special needs.

This pen just happens to back up to Nora's space in the barn. When she saw us all run to the barn after Elijah announced that Dixie was about to kid, her curiosity was aroused. She ambled in just in time to see the first baby born. She so badly wanted to get in the pen with Dixie and her baby!

I must say that Dixie was none to pleased. She is a protective doe with strong maternal instincts. Nora was not in her plans!



Dixie's second kid was another buck (darn!) with the most beautiful coloring..it makes me think of moonlight on the hay fields. He is so beautiful I wish he was a doe :) He is quite small compared to his brother.


Elijah is holding him and helping him get dried off while Dixie is cleaning up the pen (yuck!). He
appeared to be a little on the weak side - so we decided that he needed a little help to nurse and get the energy flowing! It doesn't take much to perk them up.


Here Josiah is helping to steady the little one on his feet while he guides him to the right spot. It is amazing what a strong instinct they have to nurse right after being born....God was so creative and His reflection is seen down to the smallest detail in His creation. The kids know that there is delicious food someplace on Mama ...sometimes they need a little guidance to get to the right place if you are in a hurry...eventually they always find it on their own. This little one latched on and perked up within minutes of filling his little tummy!


By this time, Dixie had been patient enough - she wanted Nora to BACK OFF! Here she is trying to nip at Nora through the fence. It was rather comical...Dixie would lick and nuzzle her babies while crooning softly and sweetly to them and then turn and savagely attack the fence while making noises that definitely weren't friendly!

Poor Nora was bewildered... she just wanted to visit with the babies!

We have one more doe to kid this year - we reduced our herd greatly last year. I am so looking forward to the milk! I make Feta cheese and Chevre cheese from their milk. Chevre is very similar to cream cheese - I flavor it with garlic and herbs from the garden. My boys can consume 1/2 pound of Chevre in 10 minutes! We also drink the milk - delicious! And I am looking forward to adding my goat milk soap to my website as soon as it is made and cured!

Well, I am off to the garden and the greenhouse - I will try to get pictures of those up this next week!

Blessings!









11 comments:

  1. It delights me to see animals interact with each other on small farms. You just don't see that now a days with the large confinement operations. Thanks for sharing these wonderful photos. I want goats....waaa. I should have never sold mine. The gal who bought them from me told me they all kidded. I miss them. Just have my hands in too many projects right now.

    ReplyDelete
  2. What beautiful babies!!!! We didn't beed our girls last fall and I miss the babies and the milk! Looks likeyou have a wonderful cow too! Blessings...

    ReplyDelete
  3. Congrats on the new babies, they are darling....
    I just love goats and can't wait until I can have my own!
    Have a blessed day and week ahead!

    ReplyDelete
  4. HI Cheri!

    Thank-you for your kind words at my blog.

    I haven't visited your blog for a few weeks and was thrilled to see and read your posts on the birth of your baby goats and the arrival of your bees!!!!

    I used to raise both----now you've got me missing them terribly! Maybe I'll have to get back into raising them.

    I'm glad that the baby goats were born without any trouble. I had one attempt to be born 'backbone' first. That poor baby was almost bent in half. I had to push it back in, straighten it out, find some legs and help deliver it. It was born alive and healthy---amazing! Your city kids would have really been 'grossed out' by something like that!

    May God continue to bless you and your family!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Love the story and pictures, Cheri! You have beautiful children and beautiful animals. We're hoping to acquire a couple of goats next year. Is there a particular breed you would recommend for dairy goats?

    ReplyDelete
  6. MM,
    As the 2 legged kids get older, you will be able to add 4 legged kids again - My 12 year old does most of the care of the goats while my 16 yr. old takes care of the cows. My boys are such an integral part of the farm...couldn't do it without them :)

    Patti & Sweetpea, thanks so much! The baby goats are my favorite farm animal!

    Firekeeper,
    I have just discovered your blog and have truly enjoyed your writings...I will be back often. I love the goats and the bees - both are easy to care for and bring such rich rewards! We have also had some difficult births - breech, sideways, etc. You are right about the city kids - it amazes me how far removed they are from reality. We had some college kids here once who were surprised that the milk that came from the goats and cows was warm....I couldn't help but laugh....I guess they thought it arrived pre-chilled!

    Emily,
    Thanks...you must have the gift of encouragement. I have been reading and enjoying your blog also! I love the Alpines. The Nubians have a greater butterfat content but are more expensive to feed and they are noisy goats. The Alpines are easy to care for, inexpensive to feed and their milk makes wonderful cheeses and delicious milk. We looked at every breed when we started... and are happy with our choice. Just make sure that the goats you buy have come from a herd that has a history of tests proving the herd to be CAE and CL free. Email me if you need more information.
    Blessings,
    Cheri

    ReplyDelete
  7. Cheri,
    What sweet, sweet babies those are! I have enjoyed so much being able to reap many blessings from you and Chris' friendship! I have gotten to make soap, and the other day we did bath teas. It was wonderful! Thank you for sharing your knowledge and enthusiasm! I feel the same as Chris....I want goats! And as much as I love raw honey, you can keep the bees....eewww :)

    ReplyDelete
  8. Thank you, Cheri! My mom had a couple of Nubians years ago. They are big! I like the looks of your Alpines. I'm sure that in the future I will be in touch for more advice, so I'm grateful for the offer.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Emily,
    I look forward to our goat talk someday!

    PM,
    I have learned so much from others - it is wonderful that we can have an agrarian "community" even if we never meet....we can still share ideas, thoughts and knowledge!
    I highly encourage you about the goats but also about the bees.....they really are very easy!

    ReplyDelete
  10. I'll consider the bees...we do have a nice place out here for them. Thanks again for the encouragement....have a great day!

    ReplyDelete
  11. You haven't posted in awhile and we are craving an update!

    ReplyDelete

Related Posts with Thumbnails