Look Who I Woke Up To

Now I know this does not mean much to most but we do not have brown squirrels around here. In fact, we have the cutest black squirrels with tuffs on their ears. They always stay in our forest so imagine my shock when I heard my dog barking her head off. I went out the back door and here was this stranger making horrible chatters at me and my dog. Now I admit it, I do not trust squirrels........ I know it does not make sense but I just do not trust them. This one was pissed and scared - not the best combination. I tried to get thru breakfast but heor she and my dog just would not let it go. I went outside with a broom and only managed to chase it onto the porch light. After throwing sticks, dirt clods and even water I figured I would just go play with the goats and either the dog would get it or it would figure out how to get off my log house.

Just another reminder that we are getting too many unwanted neighbors around here.

I just love Rasputain's Color

I am still trying to capture the true color of Rasputain but I just do not feel that my camera is going to do it, but here are two more pictures I found of him. I think his head is going to get too big if I keep taking pictures of him - but I think I have handle way over a thousand fleeces and I have not seen this color. Just LOVE my KIDS.....................

My Big Boy MONTY

Monty is such a big boy........
As he stands next to his mother Maggi he was protecting her from me. Not sure why he thinks I would harm her, maybe she has told him that I had my hands insider her. He is a true leader. He even has the horns already to prove it. He is the only single born and if you remember he was the one I had to assist with the birth but he sure has the respect of everyone in the barn. He is not a bully but rather he walks with pride, purpose and passion. He walks out in front of everyone but always looks back to make sure the group is O.K.

Monty makes his own style of fun - Loves to jump off the sides of the barn, wiggles under panels but most of the time he loves to jump in and out of the feeders. The others have not mastered the curved, slick bottoms but Monty could be a hocker player. He is a joy to watch play - this is what all of us should be doing in our lives - PLAYING AT FULL SPEED..........

First to be born, First to be out of the Barn

The two brave boys of the barn.........
Rasputain is on the left and Rafael is on the right - they are all boy and full of energy. They spend their days jumping on everything. They use every mom in the barn and have even taken to jumpin on and off Chief - their protector and babysitter.

I still have not been able to take a great picture of the color of Rasputain but when my son was here Sunday he could not get over his fiber color. Also, Nick (my son) held him for almost the whole time he was in the barn. Rasputain loved the cuddling and I see him producing great kids in his future (Rasputain that is).

Rafael is the peacekeeper. I have seen him many times step between two little one's who have gotten out of control with pushing and butting heads. He also give his time to babysitting with the newest set of twins and you will find him licking their heads while they nap under the heat lamps. They are not only breath taking in their looks but more importantly they have tender souls...........

We are so Happy to See you !

Here comes Esmaralda's kids at full speed. On the left is Ellery and on the right is Eva. It took me a long time before the name of this little girl came to me. Then one night in the barn when I had fallen asleep waiting on another set of twins to arrive it was like someone whispered in my ear " EVA" and then came a shout in my ear " EVA". I jumped out of my chair thinking someone was in the barn and as I looked around there she was - out of her pen and at my feet - EVA it is I said! The moment I said her name she darted back to her pen and sat next to brother.

Ellery is just like the character who played in the Ellery Queen Mystery TV Show. He is a kind, disoriented, bumbeling but very intelligent gentlemen. He always gives in to Eva, is the least aggressive of the little boys but always first to figure things out. He also has figured out that I am the good guy and the food provider - what a sweet little guy.........

Well Kiss My BUTT - Kate has a few things to say

Sorry for being so long in keeping everyone up to date but life around here moves at light speed. As you can see Kate is not wishing to have her picture taken. Everytime I brought the camera up she flipped her butt to me - so a BUTT picture is what I got. But what a cute Butt !

This was the kids first day out of the barn and into the pastures. It took me several hours to get them to come out but finally the greeted the sunshine and started to play. Kate has taken her role as second in command - all the kids allow her to have first hay, water and the choice spots in the barn. There is rewards in being the offspring of the head girl - POWER..... and she knows it.

Thursday - What a DAY - Maggi had a tricky delivery

At lunchtime I thought I would go out and check on everyone. Well, Maggi gave me that look - the scared s**tless look that happens when the Mother is not sure if her body is going to explode. I got her in the pen I made for her and then spent the next three hours trying to keep her in the pen. As her contractions grew closer, her wild eyes grew bigger. I grab my chair and started to give her slow breathing patterns. Then I tried to maintain eye contact with her to have her track my breathing. Just then, her mother (Esmerelda) in the farest pen started crying out to her daughter. Then in the pen next to her mother was her grandmother (Eboney)and she joined in. Soon the barn was filled with the ear piercing sounds of concerned relatives. My Great Pry dog had enough of the noise and left the barn.

After two and half hours of hard labor Maggi was still unable to push the baby out. I went and put on my rubber gloves and told her that she had five more minutes and then I was going to have to help before we reach the point of no return. Just then I viewed two small white hoof buds and a tiny nose. I thought maybe things would be O.K. but with the next push I saw another foot. That spells trouble. Either I had a set of twins trying to come out at the same time or I had the baby turned in a way that it would never clear the birth canal. Either way - I had to act NOW !

I placed Maggi against the wall (she was really not happy about that) and put my knee on her neck so she would not move. With the next contraction I pushed the hoof back in that was the last to appear and then grabbed the two hoof buds and pulled. Out came the little boy with a blink of the eye. I quickly climbed over the pen gate and Maggi took over. She quickly started cleaning him but he wanted to NURSE.......
Before she could even get his face cleaned off he was nursing up a storm. What a champ.

Twenty minutes later he was clean, dry and well feed. Now down for a nap. Maggi was not letting me get anywhere near him -- so no pictures yet -- but I keep trying. He is very active and very social. He has greeted the twins in the next pen and has kissed the dog many times. All in all a GREAT DAY !! I think I need a shower and a strong cup of tea.

Wednesday is Esmerelda's Day

At 3:00 in the afternoon the Drama Queen started with her VERY loud cries. Now for those of us who have given birth I so understand her pain but this girl has a set of lungs that curl your hair. Esmerelda is not a nice girl to deal with and during her labor she dug so many holes in her pen that it looked like a war had happened. For those who have never seen a goat give birth - they paw at the ground to create a bed for them to lay in and push against. Then that same hole keeps the new babies in one spot and out of sight from those who might want to eat them. She had about six huge holes and the dust flying in the air was choking all of us. The first picture is of the little girl who was born at 3:45 with tons of cries from the Mom. As Mom was licking her clean up started the contractions for the second kid. Less then five minutes and out came the little boy. Now Mom was running in circles trying to lick clean two very active little ones. So I took the little boy and toweled him dry while Mom worked on the little girl.

This is the boy resting after I got him cleaned up and dry. I am sure he is going to be a heartbreaker. Look at that face.

Next was a bitter sweet day

On January 29th at 3:00 am in the cold morning this little girl was born. Quite and cold she was weak and struggling to get the attention of her mother - Eboney. Five minutes later her brother appeared. Mom got busy working on him and I took over for the little girl. I took her to the pen I made for myself and started up the hairdryer and rubbing her with towels. While trying to keep her alert I was talking with her and out of my mouth came "Stop being such a lazy kate" Don't ask me why but it is so fitting. Meanwhile the bottle was heating in the kettle next to me. Once she was warm I gave a small couple of drops down her throat and she perked right up. I quickly placed her back with Mom and took the little boy.


I started the same treatment on the little boy but his was not breathing steady and his heart rate was weak. After trying all I could in the barn and wrapped him in wool blankets and ran toward the house. There for three hours I tried all the tricks my eleven years have taught me but in the end it was not meant to be. I held him as he passed and then sat with him for a short time. I needed to get back to the barn and check on Kate.



Kate is doing wonderful - it is 7:00 in the morning and she is full of life. Her name fits because whenever she lets out the smallest sound her mother comes running. Eboney will bend her back legs so Kate does not even have to move herself to reach a teat. What a Lazy Kate........

I told you !!
These two cute boys where the first to be born on Monday, January 28th at 2:10 in the afternoon. The mother is a cashgora and the father is a red angora. As you can tell they love being with each other. The white with gray under tone boy was born first followed by his brother. His fiber colors are amazing. Black undertones on top of a carmel taupe. His has white markings flexed over his face. The little white buy had a little trouble getting mom to take care of him until I went in and gave him a little bit of a bottle and then sprinkled some of the milk on the brown boy. Mom was concerned enough about the taste on her boys that she then divided her attention between both equally.


They are very close and loving to each other. There play time is wild and full of joyfull jumping but nap time is close together with loving rubs against each other's heads. They are super friendly and already come to the front panel of their pen to get me to rub their heads. This is just the beginning of the sweet little kids.