The Goat Saga Continues...

Those of you who see my Facebook posts regularly may already know this:  Edna did, in fact, have twins!

However, for reasons unknown, she rejected the second one born.  When Googling "rejected goat kid", I found MANY articles on how to care for the little one, and I quickly realized that this phenomenon is more common than one might think.  Unfortunately, no one seems to truly understand why this happens with goats more than any other livestock.

Therefore, we were faced with the task of keeping this cutie pie alive, as the alternative, unthinkable to all of us, just wasn't gonna happen.

So, we had a goat living in our house for three days...

Once Don and Grace felt confident that all bodily systems functioned properly...and, yes, that got pretty messy, so Thank God for our "easy-to-clean" faux hardwood flooring...Grace re-introduced her to her goat family... outside!

Definitely, a bit confusing for dear little Ellie, our only female thus far.  She seemed to think she was a dog....in fact, even today, a week later, she gets excited when she sees her dog family running around the field next to the goat pasture.  The other goats, besides Edna who keeps her distance, have accepted Ellie and she is beginning to romp around with the other young 'uns.  Grace will have to continue bottle-feeding her for a couple of months, though.

Tilly, with her stout boy, Ridire.

Papa Vincini

We also learned this week, that Vincini, our buck, did NOT breed Satine on her last heat cycle of the breeding season as we thought.
(That's September through March.) 

How do we know?  Well, she came into heat this week and Papa Vincini caught it this time around for sure...Oye! 

Vincini and Satine

That means Satine will give birth during the coldest time of the year, which presents some different challenges for us.  You know our motto though:  Adapt and Overcome!

Tilly is a terrific mama, watching over all the little ones!

In other news:

Isaac, aka. "Classified Tech", has begun his training regimen.  He's doing splendidly for a beginner, and Don and Rosie feel confident that he'll be ready to race come springtime.


Here's hoping for a somewhat mild winter!  Cooperative weather will be very helpful, since we train him on the road; a 3.5-mile loop that encircles our property and includes some good hill work for stamina.

And, finally, the puppies are growing too quickly!  (Excuse the Soresto collars - they haven't quite grown into the adult size, yet, but the puppy size is too small.)

Watch for an update in a couple of weeks...One never really knows what craziness will occur 'round here!

(Aaand, in 4 weeks our plane will be landing in California - woohoo!  Expect awesome photos right here upon our return!)