More Juice!

Though some of you may think this is Wendell, it isn't. It is Johnny working on the electricity -- AGAIN. We can't thank him enough! We now have power in the Cheese Studio and the Tank Room. Becky and I run parts and make sure that the crew has food and drink. The guys will be working on the boiler installation this weekend. Things are really starting to take shape. Wendell has finished the paint on the barn since this picture was taken. He is painting the house today. We are very excited to be nearing the end of construction!

Monica goes home!!!

We received a phone call in response to the Lost and Found ad that we had placed in the newspaper. The lady said that they had been missing their 8 year-old daughter's poodle for over three months. She had wandered away when she was in season. The description she gave matched the little white poodle that Wendell had rescued. This dog was supposed to be very friendly. This was not our experience with her. So, they told me her name was Monica. It was dark when I went out to the kennel where we were keeping her. I called out her name and it was the FIRST time that she ever came to me. It had to be her because we had been trying and trying to get her to come. They came and picked her up the next day. We were all very happy to see her find her owners. A real Lady and the Tramp story. If we could only find "Watson's" owners now. He is still hanging around here. Gets along great with the kitties so we will keep looking for his family. Wendell jokes that he will still be here 12 years from now!

No More Tangles!

Wendell called me on the cell the other day and said that he had tracked down two stray dogs and was on the way home with them. He told me they looked like they had been lost for a very long time. When I saw them I knew he was right. The poor Poodle/Maltese/? mixes were a matted mess! It took Wendell, Becky and I three hours of scissoring to remove their matts. Now granted, we are not dog groomers, but I am sure that this was one of the BEST groomings they have ever had. We have put an ad in the paper's lost and found section and posters around the area. I hope that we can find their owner. It looks like each of them has had a broken leg that healed wrong. Probably from being hit by a car during their ordeal. So sad!

On a happier note ... The 50 baby chicks that I ordered arrived at the post office this morning. We have cheep cheeps again :-) We also have two new kittens. Lexia named them Teeter and Totter. They are brothers and aren't exactly lap kitties yet. One bit me! They were found feral when they were small. So, with a little goat milk and patience, I am sure they will be great rodent chasers. Watch out ground squirrels, T and T will be on the prowl soon.

Thanks to Johnny, I can milk after sundown!

Wow, have we been busy! My lack of posts tell the story. My nephew, Johnny, got lights to work in the holding pen. Yes! He worked so hard up there on the ladder. I really appreciate all that he did. I can finally get rid of my extension cord and lamp to see at night. This helps so much when I go out to check everyone in the evening. We have so much family support and feel so blessed. Thanks also to Alan and Teri for lunch at Raul and Theresa's. It was a much needed break and we enjoyed it very much. Wendell is painting the final coat on the inside of the barn today. Will try and get some pics up soon of the improvement. It looks soooo good. Still a few days until the next kid is due. Wendell is headed to Snowflake to visit David and Kathryn this weekend. Taking some stuff up. Maybe he will bring me a new doe home :-)

Our Secret Lake

Whew! It has been so nice to have a break from kidding. We even took time to hop on the Ranger and ride about a mile to what we call the Secret Lake. Actually, it is an area where the Gila River backs up to a very wide spot. Wendell and I have lived in the area our entire lives but never knew you could go to the "lake" out here. People boat, fish and such on this body of water. It's our new place to go to hang out and just enjoy watching all of the birds and wildlife there. The sunset was much prettier than the picture. Arizona has the best sunsets!

Jerry makes it look easy

Ah, Jerry. She is our biggest goat and lucky for her that she is! We saw her going into labor just before milking Sunday morning. I wasn't happy with her timing since I had to be in Casa Grande for my grandson Luke's 4th birthday party that afternoon. We put her into the kidding pen and finished the chores. It was close to 10:00 am when we were done and still no babies. I had told Wendell he would have to stay behind with her if she didn't get the show on the road. By 11:00 she had given birth to Z33, a black doeling weighing 6 pounds 12 ounces, Z34, a brown doeling weighing 8 pounds 4 ounces and Z35, a brown buckling that weighed 9 pounds 8 ounces. What big triplets! That's about 24 pounds of babies that she had. And, just in time for me to hit the road to Casa Grande. Jerry is a professional in the milk barn and does her job well :-)

Spots of a different color for Carol

Our goat, Carol, is named after Wendell's sister. She is a "redhead" with white spots, or "freckles" if you will. I knew that she was starting to stray from the rest of the goats and hang out alone. I looked for other signs that were more significant, but there were none. Her udder was still small and no discharge, pawing at the ground, etc. So, I went in the house after morning chores and did some bookkeeping. It was around lunchtime for the kids so I warmed the milk and went outside to feed. When I got to the gate there was a little doe kid standing there by Carol (and Luna -- of course) staring at me - Z32. She was still wet and had not eaten yet. I called for Wendell and he brought her to the kidding pen. We didn't know if there was another to follow or not as Carol is in very good condition. We milked her hoping that would stimulate contractions but only the placenta followed pushing. That was it for her. Just one 6.6# brown doeling with black spots on her rump. We named her Taylor. She is quite spunky and is doing great.

Motherhood for Cindy

Cindy has always been a velcro doe. She is always by your side and so sweet. So, when I went out on a stoll through the doe pen, and she was in a corner, I knew it was time. To the kidding pen we went. I grabbed my laptop, sat for a spell and watched another easy delivery. Z30 is a 6.8# black buckling and Z31 is a 6.4# black doeling with a white crown and black ears like her mom. I never get tired watching the miracle of birth no matter what the species. Ask Wendell -- I love to watch baby delivery shows on cable :-) Well, Cindy didn't dissapoint me with her method of delivery, but afterward she wanted nothing to do with those critters that caused her so much pain. Not much of a mothering instinct. She wouldn't even lick them when I presented her with them. When they started standing and walking toward her, she would butt them away. Guess they can't all be good moms.

Say Cheese

You have probably noticed that all of the kids get their picture taken on a milk stand when they are one or two days old. The bucklings face away from the stanchion and the girls face the stanchion. Above is a picture of the moms watching us take their kids pictures. Roger is always interested in the new additions. Pictured from left, Juanita, Martha, Adriana, Mary Lou and Roger.

Marsha, Marsha, Marsha

There aren't many things that can get me to leave a doe that I think will kid in the next few hours. But, the funeral of a dear friend was one of those things. I didn't want to leave Marsha. I KNEW that she would kid while I was gone. It didn't matter. Some things just are too important to miss and Art's funeral was very important. I had to be there for Age and Turtle. AND, it was a Catholic funeral so there was no hope that it would be quick. After saying our goodbyes at the funeral, we went straight home to do the afternoon feeding and check on Marsha before heading over to the Ortiz family home for a get together after the funeral. When we pulled up to the dairy I told Wendell to drive straight to the doe pen. There was a kid standing there looking at me! I jumped out of the car (still in my black dress) and ran to see. Sure enough, Marsha had kidded and there was Luna with two more giving licks and kisses to them. Triplet bucks! They were pretty dry but had not eaten. I rushed to the house with the kids and Wendell milked almost a half gallon of colostrum from Marsha's huge udder. After I gave molasses water to mom, everyone was weighed, fed, navels iodined, vitamin E and B12 supplements given and the kids put in a nice straw bed in the house, we headed back to spend time with the Ortiz family. What a day! We kept the boys inside for the night since they were quite weak, but they were out with "general population" in the kid pen the next morning.

Late Night Lorene

When I finished with Destiny and her kid I was exhausted. After all, on top of milking and feeding, I had 6 does kid in the past 3 days. Not to mention all of those midnight feedings. I hadn't been sleeping well because I kept wondering if someone was in labor so I would get up at random hours and go out to check. I told Wendell that Lorene was going to go any time and would he please deliver her so I could get some rest. He agreed and we put her in the LDR pen outside of my bedroom window. I went to bed and Wendell rubbed my feet. That is the last thing I remember until I heard him say from outside, "We have a head and a leg!" What that meant is that his big hand could not retrieve the leg from its bad position. I jumped up wearing only my nightgown, washed and had my arm inside Lorene within two minutes! It was simple for me since there was plenty of room for my small hand. Out came Z25, a 5.12# brown buckling followed by Z26, a backward 5 pound brown spotted doeling. I didn't get much sleep but I was so glad everything went well. When we finally did get back to bed I had no problem going back to sleep!

Destiny in the afternoon

I just love it when the does show classic signs of labor. This was the case with Destiny. I had not expected her anytime soon but she had different ideas. I noticed that Luna was following her around. Luna is crazy about birthing babies :-) The remnants of the birth are her reward. I know, ugh! But, she is the best goat midwife ever. I have been keeping an eye on Luna lately and if she is following one around, the time is near. So I put Destiny in the kidding pen and sat down with my laptop and watched. Slowly but surely, two legs and a nose appeared. Not much progress was being made so I stepped in and helped to pull a striking black and white 6.4 pound buckling, Z24. Destiny drank her molasses water eagerly. It was a warm day after all, then I milked her and she headed back to the rest of her friends. The kid is doing well.

Arvilla never gets a break

Arvilla started into labor about 5:00 in the morning. I thought I would go about my chores and keep a close eye on her. Well, a couple of hours later, all I was seeing was one foot. Not good. I scrubbed up and went in to feel what was going on. The kid had one leg down and his head and other leg were in the birth canal. This means he is stuck at the shoulders. I tried to push his head back enough to get my hand past the pelvis and pull up the other leg. I have to do this slowly especially since she is a first-freshener. I finally was able to retrieve the leg and after that a 6 pound 12 ounce buckling, Z22, slid out with ease. I was drying him off and looked back at Arvilla only to see that she had popped out a 6 pound 5 ounce doeling, Z23, without missing a beat. I quickly grabbed her up out of the goo and dried her off. All are doing well. Arvilla's udder has a lot to be desired, but if she can put it in the milk tank we will keep her around. So far, so good.