My herd is up to eight goats.. 2 werthers, 2 bucklings, and 4 does.. I had the opportunity to buy Ginger's sister, but fought the urge!! Why do they make kids so cute????
The farm I bought Ginger from was another catch-the-goat-with-a-net farm.. ugh.. Maybe it's just me, but isn't it much nicer to have goats that don't run from you? The funny thing was that the farmer was keeping his goats as pets, not meat or dairy, so I'm even more puzzled..
So, an update on my dating service.. Kao, my FF, is getting some teats!! I'm still curious to see if she is just prepping for heat or if the job was a success.. She hasn't been flirting with the boys lately, but Pumpkin sure has!! I feel badly for her because she is such a large Norwegian and just isn't the delicate ballerina goat that Kao is.. Luckily my buckling, Buster is up for the challenge.. He has always been my brave goat.. Pumpkin is kind and seems to be fully aware of her size..
I've been reading up on the hoof-trimming posts.. I checked out the goats and Kiko, Kao, and Kona, who I've had the longest, have great hooves.. easy to trim and clean, but Pumpkin has HORRIBLE hooves!! I'm going to be trimming hers down a bit at a time.. She doesn't seem to mind, but I need to change my mind-set on how I interact with my herd.. With three goats, it was easy to manage two jumping on my back, nibbling on me, or grabbing my cigar out of my mouth, but with eight goats, it was too much.. lol.. go figure.. I watched a video where the farmer placed his goat on a leash with a bucket of treats, so I think I'll give that a try.. I think most of my battle will be minimal when I separate one goat at a time..
Overall, I'm enjoying every minute with my goats.. I can't wait for kidding!
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