Triplets! And twins!

We had begun to despair of Sally giving birth on time.  The children had enrolled in Livestock 4-H for the first time this year.  We learned that, ideally, the babies destined for 4-H should be on the ground in January or February.  I thought for sure that she would give birth toward the end of February or beginning of March but we didn't know exactly when she'd been bred.  We had dropped her off at another farm for nearly a month last fall.  Well, it was drawing close to the end of March and, still!, no kids on the ground. 

Then Sunday Sally started to show signs that she was ready to go. She began to call and pace and grind her teeth. We put her into her small pen and checked in on her periodically. Sure enough, around five that evening, she lay down and gave birth to a pure black buckling.  

 

A brown and white painted doeling was born next and it seemed as though she was done.  She'd gotten up and was licking the two clean but DN mentioned he could see her belly moving again.  Sure enough, she laid back down and had a third!  

 

 

 He is a traditional-looking Boar with a white body and a black head except he has a large white blaze on his face.

 

Clover came over to see what all the fuss was about.

 

The little black buck, although he was born first, is the smallest.  He took a long time to figure out how to nurse.  Finally we squeezed a little bit of milk into a dropper and forced it into his mouth.  That seemed to give him more strength but we noticed he was not up and about like the other two.  His hind legs splayed out behind him like a frog's and, if he did struggle to his feet, they would bend inward toward his body instead of away like a normal goat's do.

 

DD and I went out later that evening and made little splints out of popsicle sticks and ace bandages to encourage his legs to bend the right way.  The extra support seemed to help and he moved around pretty well with them on.  We took them off the next morning and he's been fine ever since.

 

Tuesday I was at the office all day and we were a little late getting out to do chores.  DD and DS had headed out to the barn before me.  I was still in the house warming up Stew's bottle.  As they approached the barn they heard baby goats crying.  At first they thought it was Sally's triplets calling out but then they saw Clover had given birth to twins! 

  

Clover is Daisy's 2011 kid.  This was her first time giving birth and she was completely bewildered.  She also seemed almost afraid of the babies.  They were trying to nurse and she would back into the corner and headbutt them away from her. 

I quickly gathered the things we would need and headed out to the barn; rag towels to help dry kids, a small container for the iodine, dental floss for the cords and a gallon of warm molasses water.

We pushed Clover against the wall and held her there while the babies got their first drink.  We draped the rag towels over Clover's body and rubbed her down with them then picked up the baby with that same towel and rubbed the babies dry.  After that, she seemed to accept her babies; she was licking them with more gusto and let them drink without us having to hold her.  We found she had had one boy and one girl.

After the babies were dry, warm and fed we tied off the trailing umbilical cords with dental floss and cut them then dipped the stump into iodine.

We always give the new mommas a drink of warm molasses water.  They all seem to really enjoy it and it helps them recover their strength.  Clover, though, wasn't sure.  She sniffed it a few times but didn't try it until we brought in Daisy and offered her a drink.  As soon as Daisy began drinking, Clover shoved her nose in and drank down the rest.

We named the new Saanen babies "Chrysanthemum" and "Sweet William" continuing with the flower theme.  We'll call them "Chrissy" and "Billy."  We'll get better photos of them once they can venture outside.

The sun came out for a few minutes so we let Sally and her babies out to explore.
 

The doeling is by far the largest and the most curious.  We named her "Suzie."  She was galloping around in large circles venturing further away from her momma than the two boys. 

 

She sniffed noses with Fynn.  Fynn was a little hesitant.  He's had first-hand experience with what happens when he gets too close to a new baby!  He's been rolled by both the milk cow and the goat when he wasn't paying attention.

Although this spring doesn't feel very spring-like yet, we know it's on its way when spring babies start arriving!

DS with "Nick."

  

DD with "Pablo."

 And, best of all, both children have their 4-H project for the year. 

Hooded Mergansers in the Pond

During breakfast this morning, we noticed some ducks in the pond.  At first we thought maybe it was the Wood duck back for another visit.

 

Back in January the children noticed a Wood duck on the edge of the pond.  It appeared to be a young male and they were convinced he was injured and would freeze to death in the cold weather.  They caught him and put him in in the barn with the chicks.  Only then did they come to tell me what they had done.  I was concerned he would go into shock or would give our chickens some sort of wild duck disease or something, but he seemed quite content to sit under the heat lamp and to share the chick's food and water.

 

 

Still, I insisted he go back outside so they carried him back to the pond.  When they put him down he fled into the underbrush and we didn't see him for a couple of days.  Now, ocassionally, he'll be back in the pond for a day or two and then will be gone again for a while.  Last time he visited he had a female Wood duck with him.

 

So we thought maybe the four ducks on the water this morning were Wood ducks until we looked at them through the binoculars. 

 

 

Three of them have distinct white heads.  It was tough to get a good photo since they were so far away and becuse they're so active, but when we looked through the binoculars we could see them better. 

 



 

It appaeared the three males were squabbling over the female.  They were chasing each other across the pond.

 

 

When we looked them up online we found their name, "Hooded Merganser," and a better photo of the male.  They really are stunning.

 

 



 It was fun to sit and watch them this morning.  Maybe we'll have a family of Hooded Mergansers soon!



Waiting for Babies

Poor Sally now is nearly as wide as she is tall.  We're expecting her kids any day now.

After all the goat kids sold last summer we were left with three goats; Daisy, Clover and Sally.  Each has her own personality.

Daisy

 

Daisy is the herd matriarch; the undisputed leader. She established her dominance the first time she met Sally by biting her on her side as we were loading them into the truck. I didn't even know goats bite!  

 

Daisy is clever and naughty.  She's figured out how to open most of the doors into the barn.  She either headbutts them or wedges her nose in and shoves them open.  She never forgets the source of illicitly-gained feed and will check back frequently to see if more is available.  Her favorite treat is an apple and she will watch it arc through the air and then chase it down like an outfielder if we throw one into the pasture for her.  

 

Sally

 

Sally was a rescue at an auction. Her dame gave birth to her on the truck and Sally was going to be destroyed - it was too much trouble to try to keep momma and baby together through the auction. A farmer friend of ours took and bottle fed her. She's turned into a sweet doe. 

 

She is quiet and reserved.  She would rather stand back and wait for an open spot along the trough than push in among the other goats to eat.  She loves to be scratched.  If she's eating and someone begins scratching her neck or back she'll stop chewing as if in concentration.  DH is her favorite person.  She likes to scrub her face on the top of his head every time she gets a chance.

 

Clover

 

Clover is Daisy's daughter.  She was born in 2011 as one of two matching doelings. 

 

 

Daisy has passed much of her personality along to Clover except that Clover will tattle on her mom when Daisy is getting into trouble. When Daisy pushes open the door to Lily's stall and gets into the barn, Clover will baa and baa. We know when Clover is crying that Daisy is in the barn and is probably eating either more than her fair share of hay, or Lily's alfala, or she's gotten into the grain bin. Thankfully Clover hasn't yet figured out how to open barn doors like Daisy has.

All three does are pregnant right now. Sally is due any day. Poor thing waddles when she walks. Clover should give birth late this month and Daisy sometime in April.

 This is Daisy at the front door of the house.  I think she'd prefer to be an indoor goat!

Daisy and Sally crashing our picnic.  I was laughing so hard I could scarcely push Daisy off the picnic table.  I was just trying to rescue the pickles before they knocked them down!

Sally in her small, temporary pen for the night. We separate the goats at evening chores so that if Sally gives birth overnight she'll have her own space.

 

Daisy at the gate of the barnyard.

 

Forget Me Not Farm just wouldn't be the same without goats and we're looking forward to meeting this year's crop of kids!

One of the hazards of rural living . . .

DH hit a deer last week. 

Or, rather, a deer hit him . . .  Again.  *Sigh*

Last year a deer jumped into the right, front side of the Jetta while he was driving the children in to school.  Poor DS was sitting in the front seat when it happened and was still a little jumpy a couple of days later.  The damage to the Jetta was severe enough, and the car was old enough, that the insurance company totaled it. 

So we shopped around and found DH another little commuter car.  We paid it off and, wham-o, another deer collision!  DH had just dropped DS off at his Boy Scouts meeting and a small deer jumped off the bank and leaped right into the side of the car.

 

At least the poor thing didn't suffer.  It was dead pretty much right away.  And, thankfully, DH wasn't hurt.  He just wishes he could have avoided it.

 



Both accidents happened nearby.  One of the hazards of country living, I guess.

Hope all your travels are safe and deer free!

Chores

The past few weeks have flown by.  The weather has been cold for long stretches at a time.  It was cold enough, in fact, that the pond froze over!  We've been here nearly three years now and this is only the second time the ice has been thick enough to walk on.  DH and the children spent the morning pushing snow off the ice and we had an impromptu skating party that afternoon.  About 18 children enjoyed skating, if they had them, or just sliding around in their boots.  The other moms and I had a nice chat inside the warm house while DH played on the pond with all the kids - it was perfect!

The cold weather has made chores more difficult.  Frozen water buckets are a constant and all the animals are eating a little more because they're burning more calories just to stay warm.  Lily, the milk cow, is inside almost all the time when the weather is bad and, boy, can she muck up a stall in no time! 

During the week, DH and I are up before sunrise.  DH stirs up the wood stove and puts on a pot of coffee while I'm still dressing in (many!) layers in preparation for the cold.  Then we gather up all the stuff we need to take out to the barn:  the milking equipment, pitchers and jars, a bucket of hot, soapy water and Stew's bottle.

 

We bundle up and head outside.

 

 

When we get to the barn, DH concentrates on cleaning Lily's area and prepares for milking.  I throw Lily a flake of her alfalfa hay; feed the goats their hay and grain; check the chicken's food and refill their water (if it's frozen); feed Calico his hay and grain; clean his stall; feed the ponies their hay; give Stew his first bottle; feed Stew and Molly their calf starter and some hay; break up the ice in the large stock tank and the small stock tank; check the cat's food; open the chicken's door so they can go outside and scoop Lily's grain.  By the time I'm done with all of that, DH is usually about done cleaning up Lily's area and we're ready to milk.  We throw down some fresh straw and hook up the milker machine.  Thank the good Lord for the milker machine!

 

 

It does in about 5 - 7 minutes what takes us 45 minutes to do by hand.  That forty minutes is a luxury we don't have most mornings!

 

 

When the cats hear the milker machine going, they come over and hop up on the wall and wait.  DH and I call them our milking crew.  Too bad they don't have opposable thumbs so they could actually help!  They do enjoy the fresh, warm milk, though.

 

When milking is done, I run the milk up to the house while DH cleans the machine and fluffs Lily's bed.  (No, this cow's not spoiled or anything . . .  Much.)  I come back out to the barn to give Stew his second bottle and to let Molly in with her momma for the day.  I also open up the door to the goat's area so they can come and go from the barn during the day.  (It's just easier to keep them penned up during chores otherwise they try to escape and/or come into Lily's area while we're milking, etc.  It's the first rule of chores, "Lock up the goats!")

 

As DH and I come in from the barn, the sun is just beginning to rise.  We get to see some pretty spectacular sunrises! 

 

Then, it's off to the office for DH and sometimes for me.  Usually, though, I have the amazing, wonderful option to work from our kitchen table.  Can't beat that commute and, I have to say, the view from our dining room windows is much prettier!  I am very thankful.

 

Evening chores are a repeat of morning chores except we don't milk Lily, we collect eggs and the children help out or sometimes even just do chores themselves. 

 

It used to be that we'd all go out and do evening chores together but then we'd run into the ugly reality when we came inside, tired, hungry and cold, that we were all coming into a cold, dark kitchen with no prospects for dinner.  I've found it works much, much better if one of us stays inside and makes dinner while the others go out and care for the animals.  As a bonus, the children are learning to put together a meal for the family - an important life skill. 

 

So that's our day, bookended, as it were, with chores on both sides.  It's kind of nice to have the routine.