Sunday, February 26, 2012

Timmy, Tommy and Toby

The boys are three days old now and we are starting to breathe more easily. After they were born the weather turned cold but they were snug and Daisy kept them warm with her milk and her body. We got down to 3F/-16C and last night the gale force winds made it difficult to open the storm door on the house. The trip to the barn at 10pm was made in record time as I had a south wind behind me but I felt every step back to the house. The babies were in their little corner with Daisy on one side and Randy on the other.

These goats are so very different from our sheep...more so than you would expect. They are not just a flock they actually live and function as a family unit. The matriarch is most definitely Petal and she will tolerate nothing less than complete obedience. They all follow her out of the barn when it is time, they follow her back in, they lay in the sun when and where she determines fit. Not only do they eat when she decides but they eat WHAT she tells them. Even Randy listens to Petal. They follow her at a set distance, too close and they will be pushed away, too far and Petal rounds them up and tells them in no uncertain terms to get their act together. Yet when Daisy was getting close to giving birth, Petal gave her special dispensation to stay apart from the rest and to stay in the pen as labour came closer.

Once the babies were born, Petal sniffed, nosed and memorised their scents, acknowledged their presence and has left them alone since then, allowing Daisy to do her job of raising them. It will stay that way until Petal feels they are old enough to pay homage to the matriarch first hand rather than by proxy through their mother. Hyacinth, their one year old sister seemed a little jealous the first few hours but once she realised we were still scratching her head at every opportunity, she settled into the role of older sister, laying by the babies while Daisy eats or drinks. If these actions are anything to go by, she will also be a good mother when her time comes. Randy has been fascinated by the babies. At night he will be found laying down close to Daisy and the boys, sometimes with the kids between them. Daisy allows us to handle the babies but Randy is less trusting and is usually unsettled till the babies are back in Daisy's care.

We go down to the barn at least 4 times a day to check on them and I admit it, this is not a chore. Standing at the gate watching them, even if it is to watch them sleep is a joy. Touching their warm soft bodies is just wonderful. It won't be too long before they start exploring their new world and then the real fun begins.

It's hard to tell where one body begins and another ends:


 waking up is a slow business:

Mama is always close:
 Daisy has them sleep between the tin (draught protection) and the stock panel so they can't get flattened:


Proud Daddy wants to remind me I am only tolerated and not to push my luck:


Jake knows better than to get near new mothers of any breed but he loves to watch them:

Thursday, February 23, 2012

New life on the farm!

When I returned from the barn a couple of days ago I commented on Facebook how very pregnant Daisy looked. We kept an eye on her for the rest of the day and saw her sides moving and altering shape; it was obvious the babies were turning. At one point she looked wider than she was tall or long, with a huge pyramid-shaped lump on her left! She kept away from the bustle of feeding, moved to quieter spots and laid out in the hay enjoying the sunshine rather than follow Petal, the caprine matriarch. Last year she gave us a pair of beautiful twins, one of which we kept to replace a doe that died. She had looked just as large last year. Yesterday she seemed reluctant to move far from the goat pen. They are able to come and go as they please by using a stile over the gate that the sheep are unable to navigate, their feed is not suitable for the sheep but, as Daisy seemed reluctant to navigate the stile I decided to put buckets of water in there for her.

This morning I walked into the barn, put feed in the old mare's private feeder and, as I turned to fill water buckets I was stopped in my tracks by a sound. All our animals are vocal around us but this was the sound of a new member of the family. A baby goat protesting the distance of its food source! Forget the buckets, I hurried to the other side of the barn to the goat pen and, sure enough there was a baby goat.....no, two baby goats..........oh wow, THREE baby goats! Daisy protested the presence of Jake, but it took him less than a second to spot the babies and back away without need of a command. He shows new mothers the utmost respect, whatever their breed. When Jake retreated, Daisy allowed me to check out her babies. Three absolutely beautiful boys.... all cleaned, dry and fed, already showing curiosity for their surroundings. 

I raced to the house to fetch both the camera and the Baby Lamb strength a vitamin A, D & E supplement that we use on all newborn lambs and kids. Wouldn't you know that this is one morning that Anita has gone to town to a funeral and will miss these first-born of 2012! 








Daisy is such a gentle, affectionate goat; her daughter, Hyacinth is equally affectionate and fond of people. She is a wonderful mother and has done us proud today. I doubt we will milk her this year, she will need all her energy to raise these three robust boys. Life is good!