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Wednesday, February 20, 2013

New Arrivals & Unique New Bonds

I had originally intended to start off 2013 with an update of our move and all that hoop la, but baby goats arrived so they of course take priority :)

Miss Star was due to kid on the 21st. The weather forecast called for "gusty thunderstorms" for the 21st... Since goats NEVER like to be convenient, I was certain she'd wait until her due date and go at 2am, in the nastiest weather possible.

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Color me shocked when I went out on the 18th and she was having contractions…… Late morning, after all chores were finished and in BEAUTIFUL weather... I didn't even have any lost sleep on the typical late night barn checks! This is proof positive that Star must not really be a goat… After all, goats simply can't make things easy and convenient!

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Anywho, 1st lil one had his front legs out, head back over the shoulder….... Took a lil maneuvering, but I got his head turned straight and out he came. This lil one was so vigorous he was sucking my finger while I was trying to get his head turned around properly....

Look at him! Is he not beyond precious?!
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And sadly, yes, you read that right.. it's a he.

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Right on his heels was baby #2. Saw this lil white zig-zag on the cutest, tiny nose.... Prayed as I pulled that it was a doeling...

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Of course, this one was also packing a pair of testicles! I checked three times, and no matter how I prayed, crossed fingers and checked repeatedly, he stayed a he.

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So very bummed I didn't get my much wanted Tonka daughter, but I'm thankful for the safe kidding and vibrant, healthy babies.

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Now, I pull all kids at birth here and bottle raise them. They are raised on heat treated colostrum and pasteurized milk as part of a CAE prevention program. I literally catch the lil ones before they hit the ground and whisk them away before momma can see or hear them.

As a result, momma licks and cleans me, bonds to me and never has to go through the stress of being separated from kids she has bonded to and raised for 6 months or so at weaning time.

This all usually goes off without a hitch. Momma adopts me, loves me, baby talks to me, and tries to lick every inch of skin off my body. This time, we had a lil bump in the road.

That bump just so happens to look like this:
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This is Houdini, the NOSIEST cat ever. She insist on being the in middle of EVERYTHING.

Usually it's cute, endearing even…. But when you're forearm deep in the back of a doe, you really don't need a nosey kitty in the way. Despite tossing her aside and shooing her away several times, she was persistent in being right in the middle of the mix.

Well, curiosity killed the cat! Ok, not literally, but she's not happy…… As I was easing boy #2 out, a HUGE gush of birth fluids gushed out, right on Houdini... She was instantly soaked to the skin! The look on her face was beyond hysterical, but I didn’t have time to help her, I had new babies & a new momma to care for….

On my trip back out to the barn to tend to Star, I find her frantically cleaning Houdini. Houdini would try to escape, Star would start talking and tote her right back into the barn again.

Houdini would yowl, and try to sneak away…..Star would ignore her protest. She’d talk to her, lick her, cover her in a bit of hay and was just over the moon happy with her new baby!

Houdini was absolutely disgusted by the thick covering of goat slobber that was now her new permanent accessory… The smell of cud still lingers on her fur…

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I drug a reluctant Star away from “her baby”, got her cleaned up, milked and gave her a nice bucket of hot molasses water.

At this point, I still smelled like “baby”, so I got my fair share of the typical licking and fussing too...
After getting the immediate needs of everyone taken care of, I headed inside, got a much needed shower, then went out again to see if Star wanted to eat...

She sniffed me and took in my new, non-baby, soapy smell…….. She looked at me in confusion, snorted, then ran from me, straight to her feline child….. Star gently snatched her up and away she went to the barn for a baby bonding/cleaning session...

Houdini manages to escape, Star wails for her to return... The moment one of us walk out to the barn, Houdini's nosey nature once again gets the best of her, and she runs out to see what we are doing... Only to promptly be caught again by Star.

Poor thing never learns!

Happy kidding everyone! We have girls due next week, all the way through mid March, so I’ll be back with new baby pictures soon…

22 comments:

Lindsay said...

I love this post! Too funny! The cat's face says it all! Congrats on the kids :-)

Everstuff said...

I can just see all this playing out in my head. Nosy cats always get into the most fun don't they?

Cali said...

Hilarious! Too bad about the bucks, but they sure are cute

~*~The Family~*~ said...

They are cute and lucky kitty got herself a momma, like it or not. I wonder how long Star will think that is her baby.

* Crystal * said...

Thanks for stopping by y'all! :)

Huge bummer about the buck kids... I had to sell Tonka before we moved and I REALLY wanted doe kids from him, so the bucks are pretty disappointing. But, the woman who bought Tonka will let me use him again so maybe there's a chance to try again.

As to the cat...lol She keeps brining it on herself and won't stay away. lol I'm thinking if the kitten obsession doesn't fade soon, I'll bathe the kitty in a perfume-y soap and see if the goaty smell can be washed away and cut the odd bond.

Jan said...

Having seen Star in action where Houdini is concerned, Houdini has my sympathy. Poor kitty looks like a rag-a-muffin with all her wet fur and new age hair style thanks to Star. Bucks are precious.... I love playing with them.

jeweledantler said...

Every one of my goats gave birth this week. Every one had twins and all we BOYS! Something must be in the water :)

* Crystal * said...

LOL Jan, "rag-a-muffin" is certainly a good description for Houdini's current look :)

Jeweledantler, I *really* hope there isn't something in the water! This is my first doe of the season to kid..... I need the others to throw a few does my way. Last year I only had one doeling born....

Michelle said...

OMGoodness!!! I'm laughing so hard! That is the best birth story EVER! I love that Star has her very own baby, who won't have to be taken away from her at weaning! So sweet!

P.S. Have you ever considered adding some sort of spam blocking? I subscribe to comments/replies, and you've got some real weirdos leaving comments that have nothing to do with the posts.

* Crystal * said...

Hey Michelle, I thought I had a spam block thing set up... I know I get spam, but it always shows in my "spam" comments on my dashboard.... Being tech challenged, and STILL haven't had a chance to really figure out this new blogger, I'm not sure what to click to reduce spam. Any suggestions? I still don't understand spammers..... Who on earth has that much time to waste being pointlessly annoying??

Anywho.... lol I'm hoping this kitty love will pass.... When it warms up, Houdini is getting a bath!

Patty said...

Yay! A post! This is hilariously funny. I love it, and of course it happened to you, and we got to hear about it in the most entertaining way! :) Thanks for sharing with us.

Anonymous said...

Wow.I looked up the pedigree on the kids daddy from your old po, very nice stock. All ur goats are so nice and so well cared for I really like to come here and see the pictures and read ur stories. Are these kids sold? If I want to buy a kid from you how do I do that? I think I am only 2 hours away from u now. I gots 2 nubians but they have very bad bags and not much milk and I can't make their feet look right I think I trim them wrong. Would like to have a famous noodlsville goat :) haha Please let me know how to reach u. Thanks Denise

* Crystal * said...

Aww hi Patty!! Your enthusiasm always makes my day when I see your comments :) Thanks so much for the kind words.... You wouldn't by any chance want a wet, smelly kitten would you?? I had to put her in the house so I could milk this morning.... Otherwise Star would see her and start yelling her protest... After all, if she sees her feline baby, it's not right for the human to be stealing the milk...lol But with no Houdini out there, she ate her grain and let me milk in peace:)

Hi Denise! Thanks for stopping by to comment :) And thanks for the compliments on Tonka. He is such a nice buck.... I kept a daughter from him last year and I just love her.

As to kids for sale, these two boys are sold already. The lil flashy man is headed to the Houston area and the other boy is leaving with a friend. If you are interested in a kid, you can just shoot me an email..... I have Alpines due the 27th & 28th. Rosie the Nubian on March 9th, Mocha the Lamancha on March 14th and Heidi the Alpine on March 19th. No does from the Lamancha breeding will be sold, I'm trying to get as many Tonka daughters as possible.

As to your does feet, if you end up wanting a kid and come out here, I can show you how to get the feet trimmed up right if you'd like.... If you we're closer I'd go help you with yours, but I can't afford to drive that far :( As to bad udders... Everyone has a style udder they prefer. All my does have well attached udders and are easy to hand milk. If you end up this direction I can show you a few and let you milk to see which you like best. :)

Thanks for stopping by, you should be able to email me by clicking on my profile and that outta bring up my email address :)

Michelle said...

Okay, this is a case of the blind leading the blind, because I'm not all that tech savvy, either, but I'm gonna try. Click on Design at the top right corner of the page when you are on your blog and signed in. That will open what I consider the control panel. On the left hand side there is a menu. Settings is the last item. Click on that.It will open a drop-down menu from the same spot where settings is and two places down is Posts and Comments. Click on that. You can choose how comments open: whether it's a full page, embedded, a popup window, etc. You can also choose who can leave a comment, and whether you want to moderate comments. I have selected always under comment moderation. That alone deters most spammers. I've only had one comment that I had to delete in five years of blogging. (Knock on wood!) You can also choose whether to show word verification, which also helps to prevent spam. I have that set to yes. I hope this helps!

* Crystal * said...

Woo Hoo! :) Blind leading the blind eh? Least the trip will be entertaining :) Actually those instructions don't sound too complicated at all! Not sure if I can do it on my phone, but will definitely try it when I'm on the laptop again :) I went and checked the spam comment folder and was shocked at all the spam... And you're right, it was some weird stuff, lol Thanks for the help Michelle :)

Michelle said...

Hee hee! Yep. Things can definitely get entertaining when it comes to me and computers.

If it were too complicated I couldn't do it. It will only be a question of whether I was able to communicate the instructions correctly.

Yep, spammers are somethin' else! You're most welcome. I hope it works. :-D

Michelle said...

O.K. This is off topic, but I didn't know if you'd get it if I went to the copper bolusing post. My does weigh 85 and 72 pounds. It's a no brainer to me to give the 85 pounder 4 grams of copper, but for the one that weighs 72, would you also give her that same dose. She is under weight, IMO, and I'm trying to get her to pack on a few pounds. I'd also kindof like to go ahead and copper my doe who is due to kid in a week and a half to three and a half weeks. Would this be a bad decision? Should I wait until she has kidded?

* Crystal * said...

Since a good portion of the rods pass through the system without lodging in the rumen, I round up the dose. So I'd give both does the same some and don't stress over trying to count grams for an exact 72lb dose :)

Won't hurt a single thing to bolus while pregnant...... Sabrina, the crummy looking Alpine doe in my copper blog was heavy pregnant when I brought her home.... Not only did I not hesitate to bolus, I even re-bolused her a few weeks later to try and get her over the severe deficiency hump she was in. Her pregnancy went well and she had an unassisted, easy birth of triplets :)

Michelle said...

Thank you so much for all your help and advice. 'Tis done! Hopefully they will pick up on their weight and be all shiny and healthy looking by spring. (Not to disrespect the person I got them from, they are just a bit underweight for me.)

Rebecca said...

Oh my goodness, I laughed out loud at that one. Poor kitty...but just too funny. I had to laugh at the "checking three times" too because I have done that myself. Wishing those testicles away but so far it has never worked. Probably will keep trying though. Good luck with kidding, we're all done and on to lambing.

Leigh said...

Houdini is a tortie! No wonder she's so bold and curious. So funny though, about the whole incident. A very fun read.

Glad things are obviously going well. Would love an update on your new place and how everyone has adapted to the move.

* Crystal * said...

LOL Rebecca, I think all of us goat folks do the multiple gender checks on those darn bucklings!

Yes, Leigh! Yes, that lil Tortie is full of mischief :) Will try to get updates on the new place soon :)