One Big Happy Family

One of the strangest kiddings I've ever had: Maple and Acorn are mother and daughter and I never separated them. Acorn nursed her mother until she was around eight months old and Maple finally weaned her by herself; letting her nurse that long made one of the best does we've raised on our farm. After Acorn was weaned, I saw no reason to separate her from her mother and she was old enough to breed so we put them in with our red buck. Well, apparently, they got bred pretty close to the same time because they both kidded on the same day. Now for the strange part...they both kidded in the shelter within minutes of each other, I'm assuming. I was at work and it was almost dark when I got home to feed. I didn't see Maple or Acorn and I knew they were both close to kidding so I started looking for them. I found them in the shelter with two kids but had no idea what I was about to discover. Maple, the mother, was cleaning a traditional colored doe and I found a red and white paint beside her who looked like he had just been born, still laying in after birth. I figured he was her kid also and she just hadn't finished cleaning him. Well, Acorn (daughter) saw the other goats eating and she went running towards the feed pans. I shined my light on her and noticed signs of birth under her tail. Since the buck kid was still wet and Maple wasn't really cleaning him, she would lick him occasionally, I thought he must belong to Acorn and she had no idea what to do. Also, if he made a sound, Acorn would come running to check on him, but that was it, she would stand around him, but didn't attempt to clean him.

We moved the entire family to our horse trailer because we had the barn full since my horse was in there. After getting them all in the trailer, Maple started to clean the little buck so I think he must have been laying in enough of her after birth (gross) that he smelled like the doe kid and she kind of adopted him. Acorn still liked the little guy, but she wouldn't clean him. Keith and I stood around and watched them from outside the trailer for a good half hour and Maple continued to clean him so we decided to go eat supper and check on them in a few hours. When I went back out to bottle feed my girls in the barn I checked on the new family and Maple had completely cleaned the buck kid. I rustled him up, which always seems to make them mad, just so I could make sure he nursed. He went straight to Maple and started nursing so I knew everything was going to be okay.

The next day, I found a strange situation, both kids were nursing off both does! I saw the traditional doe kid nursing from Acorn and the buck kid nursing from Maple, then they would switch. And yesterday, the buck kid was nursing from Acorn and after a few minutes she made him stop, so he went to Maple and started nursing from her! I can't separate them now so we booted my poor horse out of his barn stall and put down fresh bedding for the big, happy family. Both kids are doing great and so are both mothers so I can't complain. All I can do is stand back, scratch my head, and thank God they are all okay.

Newest Addition

I've been checking my does thoroughly every day patiently awaiting new arrivals and was finally blessed with a beautiful doeling yesterday. I had noticed Ivory's udder was bigger, but it didn't look tight like they normally do before a doe kids so I figured she was a few more weeks off, well she showed me! She gave birth to a cream and white little girl who I have not named yet. I am having a contest on Facebook to come up with the perfect name and have received an enormous response!

I was a little worried about the kid though. She was born in the field and her dam couldn't have picked a better day, there was plenty of sunshine yesterday and it was nearly 50 degrees. She seemed healthy and strong,but I wasn't sure if she had nursed and her dam is one of my unfriendliest does. Keith and I moved them to the barn and continued to watch for the kid to nurse, but she never did, she kept looking for the teat but we never actually saw her attach to it. Ivory didn't like us around her or the kid so we decided to wait and see because 90% of the time, the kid has already nursed and they just want you to leave them alone. She was up and walking and seemed fine, her mouth wasn't cold and she seemed energetic which normally means they have nursed.

We put in fresh hay, water and grain and left the two to bond. My bottle kids are in the stall right next to them so I figured I would check on them every time I bottle fed. I went back to the barn for the last feeding of the night around 10pm and the kid was laying in the corner. I made her get up so I could check on her and she did with no problem. But she was making a horrible crying sound, it didn't sound like a normal kid cry so I got worried and decided it was time to make absolutely sure she had nursed. I had the bottles with me so I milked some colostrum into one of the bottles. I gently forced the bottle into her mouth and she sucked it dry, I had only milked about two ounces into the bottle. After seeing that I milked another four ounces into the bottle and she immediately sucked it down too. I then put her under her mother and helped her get hold of the teat, she nursed and nursed so I'm assuming she hadn't nursed before then. I got out of the stall and continued to watch them, her mother moved around to get to the new hay I had just put in and of course jerked the teat out of the baby's mouth. She followed mom and got down on her knees and got hold of the teat and continued to nurse. After that I felt such relief. I haven't been to the barn this morning, but I pray everything is okay. I will make sure I see her nurse again before I leave for work this morning, but it's been my experience that after they nurse that first time, they know what to do and you don't have to worry anymore. I'm sure Ivory was uncomfortable from having such a full udder and the little bit of milking I did must have relieved some pressure, then when the baby nursed it all came back to her about what she was supposed to do.

The Joy of Bottle Babies

People are constantly asking me "How do you do it? or Why do you do it?" My answer....I love goats!!! Yes, bottle raising goats is a lot of work, it's expensive, and it's time consuming, but the pride you feel in knowing that you raised those beautiful animals is worth every bit of time, money, and frustration you might feel.

My bottle kids are now five and six weeks old, they are from two different dams, which means I have at least six more weeks of bottle feeding. I follow a pretty simple routine that has always worked for me, so why mess with perfection. I give each girl 15 ounces of goat milk in the morning, 15 ounces in the evening, and 11 ounces at bedtime. They also get free choice hay and 16% goat ration from my local Co Op. They are growing like weeds so I must be doing something right. I also vaccinate my kids because, unfortunately, I've lost kids in the past to enterotoxemia. Therefore, all bottle babies receive C & D Antitoxin every two weeks until they are 12 weeks old, then they get their CD/T vaccination. If the kids are from a doe that has been vaccinated with CD/T three weeks before she kidded, and the kids got adequate colostrum from the doe, then I do not give them the C & D Antitoxin because they received the antibodies from their dam. At 12 weeks old, they are also vaccinated with a pneumonia vaccine. These are the only two vaccinations I give my goats and this health regimen has always worked for me.

My bottle baby girls are healthy, happy and spoiled, which is all that matters to. We had a chilly, but beautiful weekend so I cleaned out the barn and of course, they had to help. I piled up the wasted hay and they scattered it back out for me, they kept the cats busy by butting and chasing them, and they occasionally tripped me, so we had a blast! In conclusion, all I can say, if you have the time, the resources, and the will, bottle feed those babies.....you won't regret it!

Updates

Let me start by saying I plan on posting at least once a week if all goes well. I hate looking at blogs that haven't been posted to in forever and unfortunately mine is one of them.

Okay, now for updates....it's been a busy weekend for me. I got a new Kentucky Mountain Saddle Horse named Shamrock, Rocky for short. He's such a sweetheart. I don't know what it is about him, but it's like we hit it off immediately. I feel like I've known this horse all my life, we just instantly formed a bond! I haven't got to ride him yet, but I've had him out grooming him and letting him eat some of the new grass that is growing before winter kills it all.



Then, I got two new goats. I've always said I hate bottle feeding, but apparently I was wrong. I raised five goats on a bottle this year and swore I would never do it again, but I lied. Yesterday, I got two LaMancha/Saanen cross girls. They were born on November 1st and 9th so I will be bottle feeding most of the winter...AM I NUTS??? They are prescious though. I'm actually writing this while waiting on daylight so I can go give them a bottle before work.





I'm expecting several does to kid over the next few weeks so I'm sure I will have a lot more to write about soon. But as I mentioned, I will try my very best to post at least once a week, so please keep reading.

Sad Times

UNBELIEVABLE...less than four years ago I had a herd of 72 goats and could actually afford to feed them! Now, my herd numbers have dwindled down to only 16 goats and it costs as much to feed them as it did when I had 66 more.

There is more demand for goat meat in the U.S. than ever before, but because of rising feed costs, producers can't stay in business. The cost of fuel to operate farm equipment has driven grain and hay prices to ridiculous highs and they just keep rising! The feed for my horses went up 30 cents from last week to this week and a 50-lb bag of 16% goat ration from my local Co-Op is now $11.36. This same bag of feed was less than $8.00 four years ago. I've tried feeding my goats other rations, but the cheaper priced feeds only cost me more in the long run. I've had more problems with hooves, parasites, breeding, and kidding than ever before. I recently switched back to the 16% goat ration and the change in my goats is remarkable.

It's such a sad time...there's an increase in the need for goat meat and more people are interested in goats for breeding, showing, pets, and clearing land, yet few people can afford to get into the goat business and profit. It breaks my heart to see all the herd dispersal sales. On the other hand, I've seen some record goat prices lately so it makes one wonder...are things turning around?

For the past few days I've been interviewing goat farmers for possible articles and so far none of the people I've talked to have any plans to go out of business. Albeit, most have down-sized to 20 or less goats and are striving to keep their heads above water. When asked about the future of their farm, the answers have all been unanimous, "I plan on increasing my herd as soon as things turn around."

As mentioned, my herd is down to 16 goats but I too have plans to grow. I have several does who will kid in the next few months and hopefully there will be some kids worthy of retaining. I'm also looking at several goats for sale and know of at least one doe that I am purchasing.

Truthfully, having a small herd of goats has its advantages: less time spent feeding daily, less hay and grain to buy, less time vaccinating and trimming hooves, and it's easier to observe for any signs of illness. BUT...nobody ever said goat farming was easy and I miss having a large herd.

All I know for sure is that I LOVE GOATS and I will do whatever is necessary to keep Ivy Dale Acres running.

So Proud of My Little Girl

I am so proud of what I hope is the last bottle baby this year. I've been bottle feeding goats since February and I am so over it! Little Ms. Coral was born about six weeks ago, she is the last baby of our prized herd sire, Big Red, who passed away in March. Coral was a twin, but for some reason her mother didn't want to take care of her babies and I lost the other kid. Their dam cleaned them up after she had them, but left them and wouldn't have anything else to do with them. I moved the family to the barn and held the mother so the kids could get colostrum, then I started them on a bottle. Their mother kept them clean, let them sleep with her, and did everything a good mother should do except let them nurse. I've always heard that a mother animal knows when something is wrong with her kids and won't take care of them, but I was certain these two girls were healthy. Unfortunately I was wrong about the paint doeling, she had a seizure while I was feeding her one night, she came out of it, finished her bottle and seemed fine, but the next morning she was dead.

Now, back to why I'm proud of Coral...for the past two weeks I've been trying to get her interested in grain. She never tried to eat with her mother, I have them together in the barn, but I still bottle feed, so I wasn't sure how I was going to get her to start eating. Everyday I would pry her mouth open and put a little grain in and she would spit most of it out like I was trying to poison her or something, but today my work paid off!!! I always let her roam around outside while I'm feeding my mare and colt and her mother. She likes to explore, chase the kittens, and pick a little grass. Today I left the lid of the feed barrel and when I came out of the barn, there was Coral chowing down!!! I was so happy I nearly jumped for joy!!! The teenage boy that I hired to help me was watching her so he thought he would be helpful and went and got her a scoop of feed out, but she wouldn't have anything to do with it. She went right back and started eating out of the barrel. Apparently it's HER WAY OR NO WAY!!! Guess that's just the way we red heads are.

Co Op Must Love Me

I'm pretty sure my local co op must love me. I feel like I'm keeping their doors open. Of course I know I'm not their sole source of income, but dang it, when I give them half my paycheck every week, it sure feel like I am!

I normally make four or five trips there every week because there's always something I've forgotten or run out of unexpectedly. Well, I stopped by the other morning because I was running low on horse feed and I needed to get a bag or two to get me through until the weekend which is when I normally stock up. I went in, they always greet me by my first name or "the goat lady" so I guess you could say we're on pretty friendly terms...lol. Anyway, Glenna, one of the ladies who works the front counter asked me what I needed that day and I said, "just a bag of horse feed today." She said $8.10.....I nearly fainted. $8.10!!!!! for one 50lb bag of horse feed that not more than a year ago I was paying $5.25 for! I noticed it had been going up a few cents every week, but that price was almost a dollar more per bag. I gained my composure, paid her, and proceeded to the back where my ticket is printed out for the guys to pull my feed and load it. The nice young fella got the dolly and was loading my feed and as he passed by me, I said, "you're gonna have to push me out on that thang cause I still ain't recovered from the price." He laughed and said, "hop on." I tell ya, I just about took him up on it.

Moving onto the weekend when I buy my big load of feed, I left Co Op feeling like I had donated a kidney. Goat feed is now $10.92/50lbs with rumensin or $11.42/50lbs without rumensin. I just don't understand why medicated feed would be cheaper, but I'm assuming it's because my goats hate it, therefore, I have to buy the more expensive bag. All in all, I gave Co Op $160 in one day! My husband says I'm crazy and that I should sell some of the animals, but as long as I can, I'm holding on. I have my goat herd down to 19 goats and two more are for sell. The horse population, however has increased to 7!!! Horses aren't worth the feed you feed them these days, you can't hardly give one away, but I love 'em and I'll keep mine.

I think I see a lot of part time jobs along with my full time job in my future :(