First Spring Rain

We're having an early Spring this year. Of course, it's not technically "Spring" yet and  won't be until March 20th. But it is raining, so I'm calling it Spring. There is something so fresh and earthy about a Spring rain, that makes one want to dance and sing, cuddle baby animals and laugh. However, woe is me, we might not be having any baby goats on the farm this season.

Although we left Roxy with a wonderful little buck for nearly two weeks in early December and she did indeed go into heat while she was there, she never seemed to get pregnant. We brought her back last weekend, but I'm afraid that she didn't get bred while there. All hope is for that she's tricking me and will suddenly drop some unexpected babies in either April or July. Since I don't think she will, I'm not drying her off. I'm going to keep milking her and try to breed her next September for late January or early February kids. Maybe she'll keep her milk production at no less than half a gallon a day for the next few months if I'm really nice to her... she can be hard-headed, like me.

'Till then, I'm planing to to find myself either a pregnant or recently freshened dairy doe. I think I'll be looking for a miniature or Nigerian one. They are so cute and easily handled. It's obvious to me that it could be hard to find a goat of that size that produces much milk, but that isn't to daunting to an optimist! (I'm not sure if am an optimist, though... hmm...) Anyway, wish me some luck!

Aw, shucks. The rain turned to snow. Don't count your chickens before they hatch! Or, in this case, don't count on Spring until it's sprung! (Yes, I know that was lame. :-P)

A long overdue post

Yes, I know that I haven't posted in a long time. And yes, I know that you have been waiting. I have been very busy… But I’m back and writing another post, so let’s get to the point!

First, I have several updates:

1.  I sold Aphrodite. Hay prices were up and we had 8 goats on the farm (this includes Carina’s goats) – it was time to downsize a bit. She found a very good home and will be a pet for the rest of her days… Happy Aphrodite.
2.  Roxy had her babies! Good news: on June 1^st, she delivered all girls! Nice Rah…  Bad news: one of the three doelings was a stillborn, approximately 2 weeks dead. This made the birth complicated and a former goat-leader from my 4-H group had to come over and help her out. More good news: Roxy made it out alive and recovered quickly!
3. Carina moved! Her family and their goats moved to a nice property with a big barn. We miss them but are happy for their good luck in buying such an awesome place!
4. I’m breeding Roxy again, this time to a Nigerian Dwarf buck. LaMancha ones are scarce when you don’t want to drive over an hour, and I think that the tiny babies that she’ll have with the Nigerian will be easier for her to deliver… I don’t want to risk losing her again.
5. And last, and probably least, I have changed the look of my blog. Take a look around! Tell me how you like it.

I hope that I can make several posts during this last month of the year and that they will somehow make up for the lack of posts in the last six months. So long... for now!

Roxy's Delivery - Part One

I admit it, a little fuller is an understatement

On Saturday June 1st, at 8:15 am, I was feeding the goats. I was, at the moment, feeding Roxy and she had just finished her grain. I was reaching for her collar to take her out of the milking stall, and thinking to myself about Roxy and what was going on inside of her.

Roxy was due June 4, but lots of goats had been kidding 4-7 days late this year - for some unknown reason. On the other hand, LaManchas are known for often kidding 3 days early. Taking those two facts into account, Roxy would probably kid on her due date. I'd already emailed Brittney (last year's 4-H goat leader) and asked if, in case of a difficult delivery, she could come over and "go into" Roxy and help out a bit. She'd said sure. My kidding kit was in the milking stall already - just in case she had the kids before the 4th, but so far she was showing none of the kidding signs. Or was she? Hadn't her udder looked a little fuller this morning? Hadn't her ligaments felt just a little softer? I bent down to check her udder.

Look at that giant belly!

Suddenly, she stopped pulling toward the grain bins, away from my grasp. She paused her breathing and gasped a little. Then she started going for the bins again. My heart jumped. Had that been contraction? I pulled her out of the stall and bent down to check her udder again. Definitely beginning to fill up.

After feeding the goats their hay, I walked back to the house to get a proper breakfast for myself, and I thought about everything. I do a lot of thinking. When Carina's dad came to milk Dicey and feed her babies, I thought, I would coolly tell him what I suspected. We'd then move Dicey's babies out of the kidding/baby pen, where they had been moved to from Carina's house a week ago, and put Roxy in. Then I would come back to the house and text Brittney, the 4-H  goat leader, Cassie, the owner of the buck Rah that Roxy was bred to, and call Carina, who was out of state visiting relatives and wouldn't be back until late Sunday night. Then I'd check on Roxy every hour or so and try to find more signs.

I finished my eggs and wondered about Roxy's babies. How many would she have? I thought three, as her belly was 17 inches wide, but she might have only two. Was today the day, really? Would the kids be boys or girls? Rah had sired mostly girls and, though I wanted girls, I didn't want to make the boys (if there were any) feel unwanted. Yes, even boys would be nice. Would the babies be white like their dad or be mostly black like Roxy? How about the ears? Would they be big or tiny like Roxy's?

Then I thought about You, reader. By the time you read the post I would write, those babies would be out and running around...

To be continued!

Roxy is now (hopefully) Pregnant

When I went to milk Roxy yesterday morning she was wagging her tail almost non-stop, which is one of the signs of heat. I gave Cassie a call and we were soon on our way over, Roxy in the back of our car. We were lucky, as she was in standing heat. All it took was to put them together for fifteen minutes, then we loaded Roxy back up in the car and went home again. Her due date is June 4.

Update on Roxy

On Tuesday we brought Roxy home. She was happy, but not bred. It seems that I somehow made a slight mistake in my timing for bringing her over; I missed the beginning of her heat and when we dropped her off she was beginning to go out of heat.

A good time to breed a doe is shortly after they go into heat. The best time is in the middle of their heat. Another good time is near the end of their heat, but some goats don't like to be. Roxy seams to be one of those. At the end of her heat, though she was wagging her tail violently, she would not let Rah touch her. When Cassie held her to see if she'd let Rah come near, Roxy broke away and ran to the other side of the pen. She didn't use her voice, but with her eyes she said: "How dare you!"

We'll try again soon, and probably to Roxy's joy. Roxy very much enjoyed herself there and she has a good reason. Cassie has a warm barn, really nice alfalfa-mix hay, and water heaters to keep the water warm. Even so, I can tell that Roxy is glad to be home. And I'm glad to have her back.

Breeding Time!

Today I brought Roxy to stay five days with Rah, a Saanen buck, belonging to one of my friends, Cassie.
Rah is three years old - Roxy is four - and has several offspring in Cassie’s herd. I would have originally preferred to breed Roxy to a LaMancha buck, but it was just too hard to find one a short driving distance from where I live.

Cassie has several bucks: 2 Saanans, 1 Alpine, and 4 Nubians. It was hard to decide which to breed Roxy to, they were all very wonderful bucks, but in the end Rah, one of the Saanens, won out. Rah is very friendly, loves attention, has a great pedigree, a wonderful conformation, is registered with ADGA and has champion daughters (4H county fair: Grand Champions, Reserve Champions, 1st places...) Did I mention that he is quiet, good-natured, and comes from high-producing lines?

A Saanen would have been my second choice anyway; they have many benefits. Their white coloring helps them keep cool in the summer but at the same time they are also well suited to cold climates - they originated in the Swiss Alps. They are also the largest of the dairy breeds, which should balance Roxy’s smallness. Saanens also have very calm, quiet, lade-back temperaments which helps them deal with changes better. They also have very high production – and Cassie’s are certainly no exception. Crossbreeds are also said to be sturdier and more disease-resistant then purebreds, which is yet another benefit of breeding Roxy to a Saanen.

Quoting Rancho Snowfall Dairy Goats (http://ranchosnowfall.com):

“We are often asked what is the best breed of dairy goat, and the answer has always been a Saanen LaMancha cross for us. These animals are truly hard workers in the milk parlor with an exceptional balance of vigor, high production, and good components. Throughout the Rancho-Snowfall history, you will find that experimentals have played an active role in milk line.”

Bucks have microscopic scent glands in the skin located right behind their horns. During breeding season, these scent glands produce a strong odor that most people find offensive. It's meant to attract the does, but if I were one I sure wouldn't be attracted. Rah is very friendly, though, and was kindly rubbing his face, neck and mouth all over me. He was trying to be nice, but believe me when I say that I was very fragrant by the time we left. Outside of the breeding season, bucks are perfectly normal - for a goat, that is.

We seemed to have had perfect timing, as Roxy is just going into heat but hasn't reached a standing heat yet. We just put Roxy and Rah together, and as soon as she's ready she'll let him do the job. When that happens, Cassie will give me a call so that I will know Roxy's due date.
Merry Christmas!