Pages

Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Small Noises...

This morning I checked on the incubator, as I have been for the last 28 days.

But today...

As I leaned closer to it, I heard a very distinct noise coming from within the Styrofoam walls...

A very small noise...

A quiet, but steady peeping! Upon closer inspection I found that one of the eggs had a small hole cracked into it,  and from there came the small noises! It is so cute watching our first duckling start to hatch, and hopefully within the next 24 hours it should be ready to come out of the incubator and explore the big world!

I'll keep y'all posted... :)

Thursday, May 26, 2011

My Best Friend

Yes, I do have a best friend. She's the best of the best. She's always ready to go on an adventure with me (or sometimes vice versa), always ready to sing with me, she's a good listener, she never judges, and she's gentle.

My best friend is: Heidi. My ugly duckling that I rescued.


She and I have had some royal battles together. I remember one night in particular where I was ready to reach for the .22 after an episode with her on the milk stand. But over time, we won each other's respect, and things are going much smoother now. She has blossomed into a sweet tempered lady. Last week, someone came out to see my cow and with them came a hyper three year old girl. That little girl desperately wanted to play with my goats, but they all ran in fear from her! Except Heidi. 
Heidi allowed herself to be pulled, shoved and whacked by that little industrious soul for who knows how long. Little wonder that my other goats ran in fear!


For a few days now I have been feeling under the weather, and at first I groaned at the thought of milking the goats. Milking when you're sick is bad enough, but goats always know when you aren't feeling good and do their best to make you feel just a little more miserable. Capri and Ivy didn't fail me in that area. I don't know when those two imps have ever been so exasperating! The surprising part though, was that Heidi knew I wasn't feeling good and practically walked on eggshells around me.

I must say it was nice. I was expecting prank after prank from her, but she has been extra gentle with me lately. 


Heidi is definitely a goofy gal. She gets grumpy when it rains, and stomps around in the barn. Ever seen a goat stomp? It's pretty funny. ;) She tries to sneak up on people, but her creaking joints always give her away. Yesterday, she got her head stuck in one of our chicken feeders and started running around madly, trying to get it off. I'm afraid it took some time to disentangle her from the clutches of the feeder, due to the fact that I couldn't stop laughing! 
She loves rolled barely above all else in life, but snubs alfalfa pellets as if they were poison. She won't go back into the pen after milking unless you scratch her on her favorite spot. If you fail to respect her demand, she will stubbornly stand in the gateway and let the other eight goats out. She has mastered the art of doing a withering glare, and gives the look quite frequently to rambunctious goat kids. She snores when she sleeps, and her ears twitch when she dreams. She's a great big bully to a couple of the goats, but loves the ducks. She's the herd queen and she knows it.

She's ma' friend, and I don't know what I would do without her...

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Upcoming Goat Show!

Woohoo! There is going to be a dairy goat show at the Oregon State Fairgrounds on June 4th-5th! I won't be showing any of my goats at this one, but I am planning on being there and enjoying all the sights! You can read more about the show HERE.


Will I see you there?

Saturday, May 21, 2011

Sold...

She's gone...


T'was a most amusing adventure, trying to get her in the trailer. But it ended up only taking us about 10 - 15 minutes; which surprised me. She went to a good home, and will be a 4-H project for a young girl. The new owners already have cows, so they are used  to the pranks that bovines like to pull, and Poppy will finally have someone her own size to play with. 

Farewell Prankster Poppy... T'was nice knowing you! Rest assured that I will never have another cow, unless it's a beef steer! I'll stick with goats, thankee' very much!

Thursday, May 19, 2011

New Pasture


It was time. The other half of our pasture has finally reached a height of 3-4 feet tall, which meant one thing.

It was time to call in the horde (er, cough, cough, I mean herd) to start mowing it!

The electric fence was dutifully put up, and the aforementioned herd of gamboling goats (and one ornery cow) made their way to what seemed like paradise to them!

It was so cute seeing Capri's two week old kids munching on the towering grass. :) (below is Aylah)


[sigh] I love Melilots badger stripes... And her spots; let's not forget the spots!


It's been especially nice to see Heidi gorging herself. The poor thing has been losing weight lately, due to her trying to give too much milk! 


T'was very hard to get any decent pictures, as the grass was so tall! Not to mention, Chamomile kept on jumping on my lap whenever I knelt down. ;)


Frodo...


Samwise...


Frodo again! I love those spots!!


And who is this, sneaking amongst the grasses!?


She cleverly hides her face from view of the camera, but I think I know who it is...


Voila! 'Tis Penny! Did y'all forget that I had her? The poor dear has been in quarantine for awhile now, but she has been deemed ready to rejoin the herd! It's been so fun watching her as she excitedly explores the place. :) She does still walk with a limp, but that will hopefully fade with time. 


Her tummy is also starting to get very round; I can't wait to see her babies!! 



All's well, that ends well. :)

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

So Sweet

I love my goats. I love their size, their quirky personalities, their colors, their long ears...

But their small size, especially. :)

A few family members have been feeling under the weather for the past few days. So, to cheer them up, I brought a little visitor inside, this morning! Sweet little Frodo came inside and willingly took a nap in bed with his charges. It was so cute...


He just laid down, and started snoring softly...


Now we'll just hope that Frodo doesn't want to continue to come inside, when he's full grown! ;)

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Holding My Breath

Poppy's prospective buyers came out today...

She (cow) behaved beautifully, the people loved her, and things seemed to go well.

The buyers left, saying they would give me a 'yes' or a 'no' within the next 24 hours.

So now I'm waiting...

For an answer...

Sunday, May 15, 2011

To My Darling Poppy...

Dear Poppy,

Do you know how many years I dreamed about having my own cow?
Those Jerseys looked so irresistible with their big, brown eyes, and fawn colored coat.
I wanted one so badly.
So I got you, darling Poppy, In October of 2010. You weighed only 50 lbs. and I could carry you around.

I never would have guessed, Poppy dearest, what was to come in those months ahead of us...
I certainly wasn't prepared when it came time to dehorn you, and I had to put duct tape on your head afterwards. I must say that you made a very cute Martian.

I never would have guessed that we would have adventures such as the time when I couldn't get you out of the chicken coop at 10 PM. You weighed about 250 lbs. at that time, honey. That's a good deal more than me. I pushed, shoved, pulled, pleaded, threatened. But no, you wanted to stay in that chicken coop. If I remember correctly, it was also raining that night, and I didn't have a hat on.

Remember the time when you stubbornly wanted to go walking up the road? You were so big, that I couldn't get you to turn around. Alas, that big logging truck came at an ill time... You took one look at that rumbling monstrosity and high tailed it back to the barn, with me in tow. Poppy, I think that truck driver is still laughing as he recalls the girl who got dragged across the road by her galloping cow, and then slammed into the barn wall because she couldn't stop. Do you know how sore I was, the day after that, Poppy? I never would have guessed that we would have an experience such as that..

Nor would I have guessed that you would step on my goat kids, bully my older goats, chase the chickens, and bellow so loudly that I thought you were dying.

Nope. I never would have guessed any of that, Poppy dear.

I thought I had you figured out. You had pulled so many stunts, that it didn't seem possible for you to think of anymore. I guess you're smarter than you look.

You really outdid yourself this afternoon, Poppy my Poppy. When I looked into the pasture and saw the chicken tractor three feet farther than where I had put it this morning, little tiny chickies running around everywhere, and YOUR hoof prints skidded into the ground, around the crime scene, well... I never expected that! Poppy, do you know how hard it was to catch all 32 of those chicks? Of course you do. You were right behind the goat kids, having so much fun chasing those poor chicks around. You didn't know those balls of feathers could move so fast, did you? And I'm sure you were laughing behind those big, brown eyes, as you watched me catapult myself over the fence to grab that one ornery chick who was about to fall into the creek. We wouldn't dare mention that you were eating the chicken feed that got spilled on the ground, either, would we?

Poppy dear, four people responded to my Craigslist ad about you. And all four of those flaked on me. Please don't say that it's fate. That I'm stuck with you for eternity... Poppy, I think I do still like you, but good heavens! You are giving me a run for my money, and you have officially turned my once-peaceful barn, completely upside down!

Supposedly someone is coming to take a look at you tomorrow. Poppy, you will behave when he comes, won't you? Pretty please? I've trained you to the halter, I've worked with you for months. Why do I have a sinking feeling that you are going to pull a new stunt tomorrow?

You lay down in the afternoon, and serenely chew your cud. You look so sweet when you do that... If I bribe you with a treat, will you try to look that sweet when the prospective buyer comes? 

Poppy, you have taught me so many lessons about keeping cows... Things I could have never learned from a book. Now I think it's time that you teach someone else all those wonderful lessons. Maybe they'll survive you, better than I did.

Your worn out handler,
~Caity

P.S. Please stop chasing after Chamomile when I'm not looking. It's getting rather tiresome having to constantly watch you!


Saturday, May 14, 2011

The Update That Was Asked For...


A friend asked what the verdict was about my cow...

The answer is: I am selling her.


She's a sweetheart, but she's just too big for my goats. I had to make the decision about keeping one or the other, and I chose to stick with goats. She stepped on two of my kids (I'm sure it was on purpose!), and that was the absolute last straw. So I posted her on Craigslist.
 It all works out in the end I guess. If she sells, then it will pay for a years worth of grain and hay, I can get my milk parlor built/remodeled (right now it's an empty horse stall), buy a few more does (female goats) before breeding season, and possibly buy a cream separator.  The hard part is just getting her sold! 

So that's where I'm at right now in life... 

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Occupation?

Well, if I must give an answer as to my occupation, then I will say this:

I'm a grass farmer. 

A grass farmer who specializes in dairying, that is. ;)


I just grow grass here; and the best way to do that is to put livestock on it, to keep it growing well... 

A Promise Of Things Yet To Come...

Delicate...

Fragile...

Beautiful...


Blossoms that hold a promise of things yet to come...


Unfurling...

Blooming...

Flaunting...

Fading...


Their short lives will eventually give way to something better...

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

The Broilers Are Out To Pasture!

I decided to be daring, and put the broiler chickies into the chicken tractor today!


Dad and I put this together yesterday in about 2 hours. I handed him the screws, that counts as helping to build it, right? ;) 

This tractor is 8'x8', with a tarp roof. It was cheap to make ($51.98), quick to build, but it's also really sturdy; which is nice. :)

The chicks have been LOVING the sunshine!


My, what big legs you have, chickie! 


They have all been having fun exploring their new digs, pecking at the grass, scratching at the ground, and just plain enjoying the space! 


A Sunny, Warm Day...

It's warm today.

So nice and warm, in fact, that I got to wear my Crocs while outside...



It was warm enough for the ducks to take a little stroll together...



It was warm enough to let the animals into the other side of the fenced pasture...



It was warm enough to let all the goat kids out to play...





It was warm enough to make everyone sleepy...




Some of us couldn't stop yawning...


It was warm enough to merely watch life go by...







And then it was warm enough, that we fell asleep again...