Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Over the Weekend...

Since I had been here a year, the fella took me shopping...we originally intended to go out to eat, go to a clothing store to get me some much needed additions to my wardrobe and then do the grocery shopping.
Well, on the way to town we have to pass the feedstore.
They also sell animals....chickens, ducks, geese, rabbits and occasionally, goats.
We stopped to get some chicken scratch and some sweet feed.
We looked in the corral behind the store.
GOATS!
Three lovely Boer does, one doe of unknown breed and a doe that was a Boer/Nubian cross.
The amount the store wanted per goat was not within our budget. I checked all the goats over...one very friendly and ancient Boer doe had only one good teat, but she was hugely pregnant. The two younger Boers looked good, but a closer examination of one showed she had had mastitis before and one teat was messed up. The other Boer doe had a better udder, but something about her didn't look quite *right* to me.
The unknown breed doe was lovely, but wild to the point where she was almost feral. All three of those does were pregnant.
The Boer/Nubian cross was not pregnant. Around three years old, with a nice udder, she was docile and curious about these strange people wandering around the paddock. Her udder looked perfect, with no defects or signs of previous infection.
I wandered up front to talk to the owner of the store. Told him I was interested in one goat, but she was not pregnant and her price was too high. Offered him half of what he was asking.
He agreed!
Dinner out was rapidly cancelled and we put our new goat in the back of the truck and tied her down and I stayed in the back with her to keep her calm.
The ride home freaked her out and she struggled a bit and bleated everytime we hit a bump. An interesting ride home!
I named her Molly!
She is so pretty!
Adorable floppy ears and the cutest white *socks*.

Soooooo Pretty!
Look at that smile!
Molly has settled in well. Wang (our buck) was VERY enthusiastic to meet the new girl!
She is getting along well with the rest of the little herd, although she has not met Gabrielle and Champagne yet as they are in a different pen.
So, I didn't go out to dinner and I only got one pair of new jeans and the rest of our shopping was curtailed until next month.
But, sometimes, you have go for an opportunity when it appears.
Besides, who wouldn't want a new goat for a present!?

In other news...I tried to put Penelope back in the chicken coop yesterday.
This morning, I found her wedged behind the roost missing her newly grown tail feathers.
It took a lot of effort to get her out, but with my sons help we were finally able to effect her release.
Back in with the milking does she went!
Penelope Fluffbottom is, sadly again, Penelope Chickenbutt.

She and the does had a happy reunion. When I left them, Penelope had eaten, drank plenty of water and had snuggled down with Champagne.
So, I guess Penelope is to be a permanent companion to our does. She and they seem content and happy with the situation. The fella is not happy that Penelope is not *producing*, but I think she will eventually lay eggs, just have to construct a nesting box for her in the goat pen.

2 comments:

  1. Molly is cute! The fella is sure gonna have a hard time topping that birthday present when Christmas rolls around!

    Penelope chicken-butt ...poor girl! If she's happy with the goats and can regrow her butt feathers and maybe some of her self-respect, I say let her live with the goats. You might need to construct a Chicken Creep ...kind of like a calf creep where the calves can get in to eat grain and supplements but the cows are too big to fit through the rails. Otherwise, when Penelope lays eggs, the goats might either accidentally break them or just decide they like them. But if you make her a nest box where only SHE can fit into the opening, the eggs might be safe. It could still be open, just with a margin of protection from a goat-proof barrier all the way around. Oh the lengths we go to for our critters!!

    Happy belated birthday, Lamb! May this year be one of your best!

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  2. Wasn't a birthday present...was an anniversary present! My birthday is the end of October! I really, REALLY want a set of goat harness and a small cart to train the bigger goats to pull!

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