The "everything is OK" thread

Alice In TX/MO · #1 02/21/11, 05:14 PM

At this time of year, we do get focused on problem solving and helping each other with issues that arise. It's important to remember that things go WELL, also. Please feel free to add a post about what is going right at your goat farm.

I have one doe in milk, a Mini-Alpine first freshener, who is increasing in production every day at two weeks fresh. She's making over 1/2 gallon a day now.

Her buckling was adopted by a late lactation LaMancha, who is nursing him AND contributing a bit to the house milk.

There are five does yet to kid. Two in March, three in May.

So far.... so good!

Pony · #2 02/21/11, 05:44 PM

I am t-totally tickled with Trub's lactation thus far. Just talked to Emily this morning about how pleased I am. Getting 1 and 1/2 gallons a day, less than a week into it.

She has the three kids on her all day/night, and all of them are taking the bottle in addition to suckling Trub.

Hale, hearty, and happy - AND looking forward to picking up the new buckling this weekend.

julieq · #3 02/21/11, 05:57 PM

THANK YOU Alice! I've found myself checking out the other HT threads the past few days, as opposed to the goatie threads as they're just too depressing.

All is grand here! Bunch of hairy, preggo ND and mini does and a couple of smelly bucks just standing around eating. No one's in milk. Looking forward to the first bouncy kids in March!

yarrow · #4 02/21/11, 06:24 PM

So far so good here... Our plans ***HAD*** been to have *NO* kids until mid-march.. BUT.. don't know if anyone remembers my offering a really nicely bred, very flashy Amberwood buckling for sale back in late Sept??? He actually lives down in AR now, with another HT member.. (I sold his pen mates and he was miserable alone. So I decided to place him. He was so sad, I convinced myself he was *too young* to breed any of the does and let him spend a couple weeks in with the doelings...

We are nearing the end of our very first *unplanned* teenage pregnancy. Ruby Gloom is handling the whole thing with ease, eating her weight in hay everyday, sleek & shiny, bright eyed..making a nice udder
... ME??? I'm a nervous wreck.. She is my favorite 2010 kid. (solid black doe, just lovely & a real sweetie) I have no real due date (I know that March 1st is 150 days from the day Billy Idol, left).. so sometime between NOW and then. I'm spending LOTS of time watching her, checking her ligaments..I'm afraid to leave the house for more then a few minutes... I'm excited (it's should be a really nice breeding).. but I'm a worry wort and she's *my baby*

So.. I pace & watch & wait & wait some more.. Gloomy is so sick of me.. she is making me *pay* her in crackers, for her to let me check her ligaments...

Here's the mom-to-be
Ages Ago Acres Ruby Gloom
The "everything is OK" thread - Goats

and Mr. ** Dasterly Deed** Amberwood Twister's Rebel Yell
The "everything is OK" thread - Goats

susie MO Ozarks

Backfourty,MI. · #5 02/21/11, 06:33 PM

Susie they are going to make such nice looking babies, can't wait to see pictures!!

Pony don't forget to post pictures of your new little buckling! What do you do with 1 1/2 gallons of milk a day for the 2 of you?

Alice, I'm with you & a couple more months to wait for kids here, but that's OK with me, hopefully it will at least be around 50 or 60 degree's by then I hope!

Goat Servant · #6 02/21/11, 06:33 PM

For the first time ever Lela was talking to me shortly before kidding. She usually has them unannounced & she is normally quiet. Took her to kidding pen where she did her job.
Livewire showed a tiny bit of amber goo so off she went to "proper" facility.
An hour later she kidded. Didnt know there was a #4...helping dry off the others, putting iodine on navals & all of a sudden whoosh! A breech doeling 2hrs later.

Emily that Mr Dastardly Deed is a beaut!

libbypayne8 · #7 02/21/11, 06:41 PM

Things are lovely here. I sold my only trouble maker and now all is peace on the goat front. I am almost sure that my does are bred and I should be expecting babies mid May. In the mean time I get to borrow a super milking doe while my girls are dry the next two months. Plus super milker (that should be the name of a super hero in a goat comic) is bringing her two babies along for her visit. And one of those babies is going to be my first buck! All is well here and I'm glad to see that other people have good stuff going too!

momagoat61 · #8 02/21/11, 07:02 PM

Everyhing is going well here. I went to a friends house yesterday to get a baby goat FIX for myself and oh my goodness, was it ever a fix. My friend had 18+ new babies that have been born within the last week and 1/2 and there was babies jumping and bouncing everywhere. I fed bottle babies and held babies and even went down to the buck pen and visited her bucks. I even drank my FIRST goats milk and it was delicious, creamy and sweet, better then any store bought milk could ever be. My friend milks and shows a lot of her does and she currently has 50 plus does. She has Lamamcha's, Nubians, and Alpines. Still can't get over the taste of the delicious goats milk, it was ice cold and some good stuff, makes me wish I had been milking some of my girls over all these years. It was hard not to bring home several babies, If I didn't already have my four goat lots being used I think I would have had to bring home a couple bottle babies but I restrained myself, well for now anyways, but hey that might change. I was so proud of my self for trying the goats milk I just had to share.

coso · #9 02/21/11, 07:05 PM

I've had a seven year old and a three year old kid. No problems, and both does are milking well. I'm surprised with as many people that are on the goat forum we would be seeing even more problem threads then we do.

farmmaid · #10 02/21/11, 07:53 PM

Things are wonderful here too. Four does have kidded: quads, triplets, twins and twins. All are thriving, does too. Three bottle babies in a stall in our garage, their mom had the quads and only 1/2 an udder, BUT..three lovely purebred Nubian doelings. I left the buckling with the doe.

SO nice, I walk right into the attached garage (heated) with slippers and jammies for the last feeding and rock them (YES, rocking chair) while I feed them. Two are brown with lots of spots and the third is black with silver hairs althrough her coat except her legs...white ears.

We had 6 doelings and five bucklings. Three kids are spoken for and we are keeping one, maybe two (three) doelings! I have a Saanan hopefully due June 1st also, bred to our spotted Nubian buck.

Sheep will start lambing in about 4 1/2 weeks. Only have three due, Katahdin, but hope to increase the herd by, well.......all ewe lambs! They are bred to a black Katahdin. We bought a Dorper ram lamb last summer so hoping for ewe lambs to "close" our herd and then breed the cross.

Ncie to hear good news from different farms, we are very blessed......Joan

Oat Bucket Farm · #11 02/21/11, 08:15 PM

Everything is going good here. Trimmed feet yesterday. Three very pregnant FF here. We are officially on kidding watch with Tally. She is due March 1st. Her ligs are starting to soften and her udder is in the making. She is doing a talking grunt thing while she eats (she is normally a completely silent doe) and even talked to me a little when I put my hand on her belly to feel her babies moving around. She is a FF. I know that we are most likely still a few days out but I don't want to take any chances. Tally is my girl and I am so anxious and nervous. I don't even care what she has (although I did have a talk with her about doelings,lol) just as long as she has an easy delivery.

BigWig and his wether friend Buddy have alternated between eating,lounging around,eating, running like wild indians and head butting,eating, jumping on and off their spool and their wooden box,eating,snoozing in the sun,eating... etc.

Bradenberry · #12 02/21/11, 08:43 PM

I'm glad to see the happy-everything's going well stories! I'm a newbie with 4 pregos & getting anxious reading about all the crazy things that can go wrong. I'm just hoping all mine will be able to do it all by themselves! Can't wait for the kids!!!

LearningLife · #13 02/21/11, 09:14 PM

After Chevy kidded with a perfect, single doeling four weeks ago, we were like worried new parents - running out every chance we got to check on little Kate. We found some wonderful help with disbudding at a local goat dairy farm, and her little head is healing nicely. She has great fun tormenting her Auntie Piglet, and we adore watching the two of them prance about chasing each other.

Our biggest excitement lately came today when I was actually able to get a bit of milk from Chevy. We are very new to milking, and while she's very gentle and easily handled, I think my inexperience makes her a bit nervous when it comes to standing for milking. We haven't been rushing it, as I don't mind leaving Kate on her as we work toward successful milking together.

Adam and Percy seem to enjoy their "buckiness", lounging, munching, butting heads and flirting with the girls across the fence. Percy has discovered that he can roll a barrel by walking on it while it's on its side. He's quite a clown sometimes.

I know that simply owning any livestock critters involves some loss and turmoil, but I'm awfully glad that our beginning experiences have been so positive. I'm giving a big part of the credit to Cannon_Farms for offering such wonderful, healthy animals for us to start learning with. Thanks, C_F, for trusting us with our beauties!

pygmybabies · #14 02/22/11, 02:25 PM

Here is a video of the new kids playing, helping not be so upset with Muffin losing her babies. You can see Muffin seems to be doing so much better.

http://s199.photobucket.com/albums/a...=VIDEO0022.mp4

Sonshine · #15 02/22/11, 02:27 PM

We've got two new kids and 2 does in milk. Now if I can just get the hang of milking them we'd be great.

Minelson · #16 02/22/11, 02:52 PM

Pygmybabies..Love the video! they are so cute

I'm glad Muffin is doing ok now

Backfourty,MI. · #17 02/22/11, 04:00 PM

Well farmmaid, goat servant, coso & learninglife.....I want to know where all the cute baby pictures are? I am really surprised Minelson didn't already ask that!

Pygmybabies your little ones are adorable.

mabeane · #18 02/22/11, 04:33 PM

Oh my, so good to see good news. I was beginning to think every kidding came with problems. I have four does due to kid March 17 to 22. My buck arrived Oct. 21st and went right to work! All the does look great. The two FF are making udders and the other two are walking barrels!
I can't wait.

CaliannG · #19 02/22/11, 05:41 PM

This winter has been a scaling back for me. I decided that I was biting off FAR more than I can chew with hatching out bunches of chicken, trying to get a farm planted, trying to build new sheds, doing milking, yadda, yadda, yadda....

So I finally looked around and went to cutting things out.

Of the chickens, I sold everything but my four Barnavelders and my mother's Silkies.

I sold all of my goats, including those in milk, and I am now down to just two Minis, who are due God Knows When. Mardis Gras has formed up a nice udder, but nothing that tells me she will kid any century soon.

I am still trying to sell the horses. Surprisingly, in this economy, it is difficult to sell or even give away luxury animals. Who'da thunk it?

However, everyone is happy, healthy, and when I got back from town today, Brie greeted me by doing one of those Goat Dressage movements of jumping through the air and kicking her feet at the same time, making me laugh.

Oat Bucket Farm · #20 02/22/11, 08:47 PM

So are you going to stay at just two mini goats Caliann?