We finally found our dream rental in November, after having searched for an entire year. We began to move in the 1st of December. It is a roomy little house on five wooded acres. There are clear spaces where little meadows flourish and it is very private. We have spent the month moving things and getting acclimated to our place. For January, our goal is to fence areas for our horses and our goats! We are extremely excited about being able to move our small herd up to this slice of heaven. It is far superior to their current location. Because there is no fencing in place at our new rental, I had to take all of our animals to my dad's place. He has a small piece of acerage with a large run in shelter. There is a small seperate pen with a lean-to that I am keeping my bucks in. All of the does can go inside to be warm and dry, and I put up some panels that they can go under to get away from the horses. However, my dad's property does not drain at all, and the field is a muddy disaster. I also am unable to seperate anyone efficiently for any reason and feeding everyone so that no one gets bullied out of food or steals grain from one another is quite difficult at this point.
I have also collected an enormous pile of pallets and tin roofing material from which I plan to construct several small goat houses. I plan to have three or four roomy pens with a goat house in each one, then put up two or three does in each pen at night and during feedings, then open the gates during the day to allow them to roam their field. Our new house also has a deck on the front and back of the house, and I am making a portable kidding pen to sit on the back porch. All night kid-watch will be much easier if I can simply open the back door and check on a laboring doe once every 30-60 minutes. I'll have plenty of lighting available and any supplies I need available directly through the kitchen door.
All of my does are now bred, except for Banshee. She is simply still too small. She has honestly doubled in size at this point, which is amazing. She looks stunning, and reminds me of an ugly duckling morphing into an elegant swan. I plan to show her as a dry yearling. If she gains enough size, I would love to shoot for a Jr. Championship and earn a leg with her. I definitely think she has the potential. She has already gained a great amount of length. I am floored by her progress. She has a ton of capacity, a very wide stance and large little teats for her age.
She did come down with some sort of respiratory infection this last week. She had runny eyes, and although she ran up to the fence when I came to the barn and gobbled up her grain, she retreated to a corner by herself afterwards and only nibbled at her hay. I decided to take her temperature because she was acting a bit abnormal and had those goopy eyes. She had a fever of 105-106 (my thermometer was being a little strange.) I gave her some LA200 for a few days and a baby aspirin to bring down her fever, and she is back to her loving, perky self. I am going to see if I can find any of the pasturella vaccine at the Grange. I checked for it at Big R but they didn't have any. I have heard a lot of controversy about the vaccine, that it is a waste of money, that it is a miracle, etc. The thing that turned me was the positive things some breeders I respect had to say about their year on the vaccine opposed to their years without it, and they report that they are now pneumonia free. I reason that it isn't too spendy, and the worst that happens is that it doesn't really work. However, I find that preventative actions are a lot less spendy and heart breaking than attempting to deal with diseases when they crop up. Especially something that can be as sneaky as pneumonia and take your animals down without notice.
I don't have any more photos at this point, but I plan to take some over the next week so I have fluffy winter pictures. I also decided to sell Val. I may wait until she kids, but I also may simply sell her bred if I have anyone who is interested. It is time that I switch over to all registered stock if I am going to be as serious as I want to be about my program. I have a doeling reserved out of one of Camanna's does that is due in August. My first choice is Camanna CS Sweet Harmony (TX Twin Creeks AB Cresendo x Mountain Quest Cinammon Swirl). She can be seen here: [Harmony]
She is out of Black Pearl's grand-dam, and I am trying to diversify my herd a little more...However, I have always really adored this doe. She is very long bodied, has that elegant look I am really looking for in my animals, and is so very dairy and angular. And boy is she flashy. I would love to get a clone of her in terms of color. She is bred to an absolutely amazing buck, an instant favorite as soon as I saw a photo of him. He has gorgeously correct legs, a problem area I see in a lot of Nigerian bucks. He is very long and uphill and you can see how correct and conformationally gorgeous he is even under all the thick fur in his pictures (which is usually very hard to do on a lot of animals.) I am also floored by his pedigree, I just love it and could really use those lines in my herd. He is Dill's D Lucky's Image, and can be seen here: [Lucky] He is the second buck down.
My second choice is Camanna TC Arabesque. I am not looking to add too much to my herd during kidding or show season, so I was looking for anything she had due in the summer. That and she already has a lot of reservations for the does I really liked due in the spring. I already (hopefully) have a doe kid coming from Bellafire Farm during the spring. I will know what my options are when the two does I am interested in from their farm are ultrasounded in January. That way we at least know how many kids are cooking and can see if there is a chance to get on a waiting list. The owner wants to retain a doe kid from my first choice, who is a first freshener. So if she is carrying a single I am out of luck and go with my second choice, hoping that she doesn't decide to retain anything from her if she only has one female. In any case, Arabesque is by Pecan Hollow SF Texas Crusader and out of Camanna CS Acapella. She is very long bodied, correct, with great legs and a nice topline. I love her coloring as well and her breeder commented that her sire's mammary systems have been very impressive so far. I would love to see her bred to Lucky as well, but will be happy with whatever the breeder chooses. She definitely has more experience than I do and an eye for what crosses well. She also noted she would like to see more leg angulation on both Arabesque and Lucky, so I am guessing she won't breed two animals she feels has the same issues. If I were able to choose which buck she were to be bred to, and it is not to be Lucky...I would love Flamin Fiasco, who is by Red & Blue Paisano. I know that wouldn't add diversity to my herd because I have two breeding animals by him, but I was very impressed by his get. I am also fond of Moondoggie from Poppy Patch. I could use more moon spots!
I am almost, most definitely purchasing a kid from Bellafire Farm, but she asked that I hold off on my deposit until she has them ultrasounded. My first choice is Pholia Farm HB Macy Marie. She is by GCH Piddlin Acres Hit the Bullseye +B and out of Pholia Farm RA Mirage 5*M. I always love Piddlin Acres and Pholia Farms animals, and she has a lot of Jobi in there, which is a line I'd love to have as well. She can be seen here: [Macy] She is the third doe down. She is a beautifully light buckskin with blue eyes. If she only has a single doe, my second choice is Poppy Patch PB Peggy Sue, who I really like. She is by NC Promiseland PAL Playboy *B and out of Poppy Patch FM Daisy Mae. Definitely wouldn't mind some more PromisedLand in my herd. Tomhawk's grand-sire is PL I believe. Peggy Sue can be seen here: [Peggy] She is the third down.
