Coming and Going

It has been busy around here this spring. We have had some comings and goings that have involved two young families moving to a new state.


First off is the coming, we have two new bunnies here. My little friends, grandkids of Clare,


are moving to the great state of Texas and don't want to stress their bunnies on a long cross country trip. One day last week they brought Charlie and Chelsea to live on my farm...along with the nicest rabbit hutch I've ever seen. More like a rabbit tractor.
Charlie is a friendly guy and very handsome. Luckily Charlie has been fixed so there will be no little ones.



Chelsea is the pretty one.




It was very hard for my little friends to part with their beloved rabbits so there were many tears shed that day. It really broke my heart to see two bunnies so loved by the children and the parents. I promise to do my best taking care of them K and A.

The bunnies were a big hit with the kids on Farm Day. I would have liked to have taken one out but didn't want to inflicted undue stress...on me...not the bunny.



And now the going........

Zipper and Boy have found a new home with the nicest family around....

Look, it's the frugalmom



And the frugaldad...



and their three frugalkids...


Even though it's not very frugal driving 4 hours for goats I'm sure glad they did.

Here are some photos of our visit.








I'm calling this one-The apple doesn't fall too far from the tree



Also, if you are ever coming to buy goats from me you must bring these.


I'm just sayin'

Conquer Your Fears

The other day, a kindergarten boy came up to me and said, "I have a permission slip in my backpack that says we are going to your farm."
Near tears he added, "I don't want to go to your farm."
"Why"
"I'm afraid that something will run over me at your farm."
"Oh you don't have to worry about that. Nothing will run over you."
"Well I think you should keep all the animals in a pen when we come."
"O.K. I will.

A few days later...
"Do you have any animals on your farm that run over children?"
"No, I promise."

On the day of the trip to the farm his mom brings him to school. He has begged her to stay home. He doesn't want to go to the farm. She brings him and makes him go.
She says she has the only child that doesn't want to go on the field trip.

Worth A Thousand Words

Farm Day

Field Trip to the Farm

Yikes! Three kindergarten classes plus parents are coming to the farm today. I'm hoping Mother Nature will give us a break on the weather.
Story and pictures at 11:00

When To Butt In

For the last year or so I have been having predator problems in the form of a wire-haired Chihuahua mix. The neighbor's dog is squeezing through my fences to pluck chickens and chase goats. I have spoken to them several times about it and have gotten various responses, including that it was my responsibility to keep their dog out of my farm. Since it is hard to fence out something the size of large rat I continue to see Pickles in my farm from time to time, apparently small enough to fit under Koo's protective radar.
This morning I was cleaning around the chicken pen when I heard a big thud, the sound of something with the wind knocked out of it, and then a shrill yelping. I came around the corner and saw Cora Belle, with that smug look she gets when she's made a good connection, and Pickles running for home with her tail between her legs.
I guess Cora Belle was just practicing with the other goats for a time when it would really count.

Got Milk?

We do. Sweet Nigerian Dwarf milk. Cora Belle and Buttons are milking like dairy goats...in miniature. It is clean farm fresh milk and I know where it came from. So now, if everything goes to **** in a hand basket, I can eat eggs and drink milk...



or make an omelet with cheese.

The It Factor

He has it.

A Rouen Duckling

I grew up on the banks of Clover Creek. My backyard was a wetland full of Mallard ducks. When my son got ducks many years ago we chose Rouens, the domesticated Mallard. Too heavy to fly they still have the same beautiful wild coloring that the wild Mallards have.



And the ducklings look like the same wild ducklings I saw every spring of my youth.

The Lucky Ducks

"What are you doing tonight?" my son said to me.
"Because I bought you some ducks at Dels and they would like you to pick them up tonight"

My Mother's Day present. My duck loving son bought 5 ducks for me.

So Hubby and I took a little trip to Port Orchard to pick up the ducks.
The bored salesgirl showed me to the stock tank that contained the baby ducks. Preparing to hand pick my little ducklings, I was surprised when she started just grabbing any duckling she could get a hold of and plopping it in the box. I started to protest and then decided to chill and let fate take over. The ones she caught were the lucky ducks.


Lucky to come live beyond the sidewalks.

Shirt Tail Win

It was a beautiful day to go to the show. Sun and farmland always puts me in a good mood. The showgrounds were charming with old cabins conveniently placed around to change into your white pants.
I really hate white pants.
I showed Cora Belle and the goatfarmer showed a very uncooperative Buttons. She (Buttons, not the goatfarmer) did not want to be there. She thought this was a very bad idea. But with some professional handling she got herself third place in her class of nine. She is as cute as a button.

Cora Belle was once again all business. She was all nervous and whiny until we walked into the ring, then she settled in and chewed her cud. She's a showgirl...with a lop-sided udder. A big no no in milk goats. Two out of the three judges liked her and admired her dairy character and had a whole lot of nice things to say about her but couldn't get over her lack of symmetry and awarded her fourth place in a class of nine beautiful does.

It was exciting to see Notty's mom in Cora Belle's class...and then she won all three classes and was Champion in one ring only to be beaten out the other two times by a beautiful doe that is the mother of.....goatfarmer's new buckling.

Cora Belle and Buttons were so happy to be home and the babies were happy to see their udders, lop-sided or not.

Now read this account of Buttons' performance.

Another Good Reason to Homeschool

While brainstorming for ideas for Mother's Day cards, the kindergarten teacher asks the children to think of something their mother does for them.

"I can't think of one thing my mom does for me," said a tiny blond girl.

"My mom tackles me," a little boy chimed in.

"My mom takes me outside," said a sweet little boy.

"Well, my mom FORCES me to go outside," said another.

The Making of a Super Model

Cora Belle has not had an easy time with motherhood. She has been a real prima donna. First she wouldn't eat unless she was with the rest of the herd so she was wasting away to nothing. I had to put her in with the herd to eat and take her back out again to be with her babies. Then I put her in with Buttons and her babies and that worked...for a while.
Then the babies were only nursing on one side so that side got huge and the other languished from lack of attention. Not very becoming on a supermodel. So I had to pay more attention to her milk production and started milking her out at night. That has worked pretty good and now Cora Belle has what I call a working girl's udder. She is milking almost 4 lbs a day. She is definitely a milk goat in miniature.
Now lately she is obsessing about the other goats. She is head butting everyone until they, and she, have a bloody head. Even through the fences. She will not leave poor Buttons alone so for the sake of the rest of the goats, Cora Belle and her babies are in solitary confinement, which means...see above....no eating.

Is it raging hormones? She won't go out to pasture and eat she just stands in front of the goat pen and gives all the other goats the stink-eye until someone starts butting through the fence. Even her brother Fil.

Now all this wouldn't be such a problem if I hadn't entered her in the goat show on Saturday.
So as of today I have a skinny, slightly lopsided, bloody headed goat to show.
She better not rub that head on my white pants.

update: tired of Cora Belle's drama and because I tend to over think things, I threw her back in with Buttons and turned around and went to work. The last thing I saw was CB and Buttons cracking heads. This afternoon when I went down I was afraid to look. Expecting her head to look like hamburger, I was surprised to see no blood and the bald patches trying to heal. Buttons didn't have a scratch. I guess the drama is for my benefit.

Happy Goativersary Danni

It's been a year, so now, Danni, can officially be called "goat lady".