What's Blooming Beyond The Sidewalks

No Kidding

It appears that there will be no kids born at our small farm this year. The girls, being mature, are showing all the signs of cysts in their privates. Oh I gave it a good try all right. I drug Lexi over to the honeymoon suite every 20 days or so only to have her come back in heat. Every time I saw her flagging I called the goatfarmer and begged for one more try. The goatfarmer was very accommodating and even offered some sort of injection to get her to ovulate but I didn't want to bother since I didn't really need kids. I was hoping for kids in July so that goldilocks and my son could come out and deliver goat babies with me. So every time I saw her flagging I got all excited to get her over to the buck...again. When I went to feed yesterday sure enough she was flagging and Semi-Sweet was doing her best impression of a buck. I felt the panic that sets in when you have to get them to the buck like now but luckily I came in the house and counted 150 days on the calendar only to find that she would kid on the same weekend as my niece's wedding. Not an option. So I took my self off to Costco to get my mind off of the goats in heat. It worked and the panic subsided....I'm sure to the goatfarmer's relief.

But I was able to get in on the miracle of birth on Monday. I had asked the goatfarmer if I could please come over and take pictures of her babies and she kindly agreed. I wanted to sit in the baby goat pen and take picture of frolicking babies.....but Mother Nature had other ideas. Bertie, a Lamancha doe was kidding. So after I bottle fed some babies that were born earlier I sat on an over-turned bucket and watched the goatfarmer deliver kids. Much to my surprise I was thrown a very slimy baby and instructed to clean it off and give it a bottle when it was ready. I rushed into the nursery with it and turned it over....a doe....yippee. Then I, along with a very attentive Boston Terrier, cleaned her off and fluffed her up. When she was ready I gave her a bottle of colostrum. About that time the goatfarmer rushed in with another doe for me, and the Boston Terrier, to clean and fluff.


I was in heaven.

So I may not be having any of my own this year but I do know where I can get my kid fix.


So I will leave you with some pictures I took while I was there. Don't be alarmed, the goatfarmer likes her goats with no ears......easier delivery that way.

I couldn't take my eyes off this beautiful girl...she just stood out. Maybe because she is the only one that isn't black or brown. I don't know but she is a show girl.



Oh what a face!

The Secret

I have discovered "The Secret". No, not the secret that Oprah is talking about but something much more important than that, that I have been seeking the answer to for many years. Ever since I was a young bride and put in charge of peeling hard boiled eggs for potato salad at my brother and sister in law's farm. The eggs were farm fresh and anyone that has tried to peel a farm fresh hard boiled egg knows just what I'm talking about. They don't give up their shell without a fight. Half the egg comes off with it. I thought I was doing something wrong. I chopped up what was left of the eggs after the fight and threw away the evidence before anyone could see.
Since my morning routine is one hard boiled egg, a piece of toast and a banana I had to boil two eggs to get just one after the peeling was through. So, as I always do, I asked anyone that had anything to do with chickens their "secret" to getting fresh eggs out of the shell.
The suggestions ranged from saving eggs for a while and using the older ones for boiling to, believe it or not, going to Safeway when I needed eggs to boil.
But quite by accident I came upon the "secret".....
Here it is. Just give the egg a slight rap on the counter before it goes into the pot. A small crack does something...don't ask me what but I have tested it for about a week now before reporting to you the results and it worked every time.
No more struggling to peel a farm fresh egg. I now have the "secret" and all is right with my world.

Ready Or Not

It was time for the lambs to leave the pampering provided in the "green bathroom". They are getting too big and too smelly. I was kept busy cleaning out the large dog crate very day so the smell of lamb wouldn't permeate the rest of the household. Every time Hubby would wrinkle up his nose I was off to the "green bathroom" to spread more shavings. That got old so ready or not on Friday evening down to the farm they went. I put their dog crate in the feed shed, gave them a bottle and settled them in for the night. I had turned the heat off in the bathroom for a week or so to harden them off a bit before the big move.
The next morning, Hubby and I showed up with bottles in hand and I called out, "Lambs, are you still alive?"

Baaaaaaaaaaaaaaa Baaaaaaaaaaaaaaa Baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!

They were still alive.

Saturday was so cold and rainy they didn't get out much but Sunday dawned bright and sunny and out came the lambs for their first introduction to all the animals. Tully needed sunglasses.

Lucy did a lot of "Are you my mother" exploring. The girl has no fear.



Sunny was fascinated with them which I don't understand because he doesn't care one bit about the rest of the animals.

The llamas hummed and the goats just stared. The bad boys, Rowdy and Riot, stayed safe behind little Lexi.

The lambs had a taste of grass.....


And frolicked in the sun. If you have ever seen a lamb frolic it makes all those bottles well worth it.

They took over the nursery pen and settled in to lie in the sun.

But they weren't the only ones to take advantage of the sunny day. It's been a long winter.

But don't you worry Cora Belle, you are still my favorite baby.

Follow Me To Drive Thru Feed

One of my favorite outings is a trip to the feed store. We just happen to have a drive thru feed store in our neck of the woods. Very ingenious I think. No getting out of the car. You just pull up to the office and are met by a smiling man offering chocolate or a cold bottle of water if it's summer. You pay for your feed and drive through a series of stalls as a strong young lad throws feed in the back of your truck. Now that's my idea of shopping.
So on Sunday I was out of pot bellied pig food and shavings so needed to make a run to Jerry's Drive Thru Feed. Yep, he is even open on Sunday...he has no life (his words not mine).
Hubby and I debated what time he opened and I thought for sure it was 10 o'clock so off we went. We were wrong.


The sign said that he opens at 11:00. Not a big deal we had a hot travel mug of coffee and all the time in the world. But out came Jerry 20 minutes before he opens and swung the gate for us to enter.

He reminded us that he opened at 11:00 and presented us with his hours handwritten on a slip of paper and then gave us another one "to put on your fridge".

As we drove to the office we came upon these.

Apparently you can drive thru livestock shop too.

I took a few pictures of Jerry when he wasn't looking. He kept turning around to see why we were stopping and I would quickly put down my camera.
When we got up to the office to order he was right there with the chocolate. Yum, peppermint patties today.
I ordered my feed and then handed him my credit card. Then I told him I wanted to take his picture and write about him in my blog.
Blog? What's a blog?
I tried my best to explain to him what it was but he never got past the Internet part. He got so excited he ran back in the office and put on his "good hat".
With a big smile he posed with chocolate in hand.
"Please be sure to say I'm single," he said.

I assured him I would and we drove off to have a strong young lad throw feed into the back of our truck. When I looked down, I saw his clipboard and the credit card receipt that I hadn't signed yet still in the truck.
Hubby called out to Jerry and said, "Hey Jerry, you forgot your money."
Jerry ran back to the truck to retrieve his clipboard, pen and the receipt that I had signed.
As he walked away you could hear him say, "Man, I almost lost my pen and clipboard just because I got so excited to be on the Internet."
Hubby and I laughed all the way home.

So ladies, he's single, gives out chocolate.....and has hay connections. What more could you want?

Update! Jerry's hours are Tuesday through Sunday 10-6. They are closed on Monday.

Moly

He never knew a day of hunger, was never tied to a tree or chased by a dog, always had shelter and companionship and was gently ushered out of this world by my kindly old vet.
Rest in peace Moly.

It Made The Children Laugh and Play To See A Lamb At School

I can say, now, that all those bottles were worth it when I saw the kindergarten class that I work in enjoy seeing the lambs come to school. They have been hearing about them for a few weeks so were so excited to see them in the classroom. Sure I gave them the lecture on being calm and quiet so the babies wouldn't get scared but they could hardly contain themselves when the lambs explored their room. Kids are so free to show their joy. They jumped and clapped. They wanted to hold them and touch them.

We fed them bottles, which the lambs were too excited to eat, but the kids didn't care. There were lambs at school!


And other than a little piddle on this girl's pants....


And a little poo on the tall boy's arm.....


A good time was had by all.

photos by my friend, foxtrottinglady

Not Again!

We hardly ever get snow in Western Washington. This year is different. This morning I woke up to this....



So I decided to post a few pictures of flowers to remind me that spring is right around the corner. These were all taken while I sat on the couch.





And a picture of my new chicken that I found in Boulder.


And Stormy's sad eyes. Don't let them fool you she is the happiest dog in the world.

Especially when it snows!

The Differences Between Sheep And Goats

Oh how fun it has been around here with lambs in the bathroom. Although I can't wait until they make the transition outside, I have had the opportunity to observe the differences between baby goats and lambs.
Here is what I have observed sitting in the "green bathroom" on the toilet (lid down, of course) bottle feeding and watching the lambs.

Sheep smell different than goats. Not bad but slightly different. And I've had plenty of opportunities to smell them lately.

Sheep sound different. They have a musical baaaaa with a little vibration at the end. Like Kelly Clarkson.

I think sheep get a bum rap in the smarts department. I find these lambs to be very smart. Especially Lucy. They are even fairly litter boxed train. One time as I sat on my throne, each one jumped back in the crate and went. I couldn't believe my eyes. Chalk one up for the sheep.

Sheep like to stay together. They flock. They will have bursts of independence but move as one, usually right behind me, the big sheep.

The lambs jump and play but stay on the ground more than baby goats. The lambs don't jump on top of anything. They have moves very similar to a Lipizzaner.
Goats are more like a rodeo.

I have enjoyed watching these babies grow up. It has been a bit of a challenge at times especially with Little Bit. She has been very frail. I named her Little Bit after Goldilocks who was called Little Bit as a child by her dad. And she is just a little bit. So Little Bit has been pampered. She gets her bottle first while everyone else baaaaas in the crate.

Here is a small movie of them. And I mean small. I haven't figured out how to load movies very well so don't blink.


But the biggest difference is....goat tail up, sheep tail down.