Goats, Goats, and more Goats

We sold off all of our Nigerians except for Spike and Blue last week. It was hard to see them go, but Gertie, Violet, Blackjack and Archie all went together to live with a lonely llama up in Seabeck. I miss my sweet babies the most, especially little Blackjack. Who couldn't love this face?



So I'm having some baby Nigerian withdrawals. Luckily young Mr. Buckley, one of our six month-old lamancha bucklings, has kept my mind off of missing my babies by keeping us running after his wily little butt. He's turned into quite the little escape artist since the does started coming "into season". Goats do not seem to have the same moral hangups about "dating" their twin sister, or their own mother, for that matter, leaving us to stop things from getting creepy and inbreed-y.

We came home from a few days of camping to find that Buckley had been out for the majority of the time that we had been gone. It wasn't our critter sitter's fault. When a horny teenager sets his sights on a lady love, there is absolutely no stopping him from his pursuit.

So there is a possibility that we may have some baby lamanchas due in January. We had really hoped to avoid a winter delivery this coming year, as last winter was all about fretting over babies comfort and body temperatures. But the best laid plans...

If they are preggo, then we're going to have to start the drying off process, which I really have no experience at all with. The learning curve in this animal husbandry business is steep. How do we know if they're pregnant? Will their being pregnant make their milk taste funny? How soon should we start drying them off? How do we dry them off safely? Ayeyiyiyi!