goats – Page 2

LGD Life – The Adventures of Boris and . . .

February 19, 2016February 19, 2016 thetuckerfarm

Petra! Sorry for those of you routing for Natasha. I just can’t yell that across several pastures.

It’s been a week since Petra arrived and I feel terrible I haven’t introduced her formally. I wanted to give her some time to adjust, and to be a dog. Yes, “be a dog,” a notion that is somewhat foreign to me.

I’ve spent my entire life loving dogs, often going beyond that by dressing them up, the babying, cooking their meals, etc. And I will still do that! But these dogs (Livestock Guardian Dogs) are different. They don’t want all of that, and of course they don’t need it. So as much as I want to scoop these adorable puppies up and love on them constantly, I don’t. I let them do what they love – work.

They’re still in the bonding phase where they are getting to know all of our animals, and vice versa. They are fantastic with the goats and donkeys, but can’t be fully trusted not to chase a bantam chicken yet.

Petra was ready to work from the minute she got here, feeling more comfortable around the goats than me. Don’t get me wrong, they love us too, but are even happier romping with the goats all day. They don’t come bounding at me when I call them, and that’s okay. I want them to prefer staying with the animals.

This has certainly been a unique experience for me, considering I never imagined myself raising working dogs outside. I learn something new every day and know these dogs are happiest while working. I will not interrupt that. I’m so thankful they are in our lives and will soon be protecting our animals. We hope you will follow along… the adventures of Boris & Petra have just begun!

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The Many Faces of Motherhood

July 30, 2015July 30, 2015 thetuckerfarm

As most of you know I recently had a baby. I was instantly connected to Jane even though I had never met her. Just like my first daughter, I simply love her unconditionally.

We celebrate life on the farm often. We’ve had puppies, kittens, bunnies, and most recently, goat kids born! But motherhood is hard business and a job not to be taken lightly. I’ve seen the many faces of motherhood and they are interchangeable between species.

The most recent addition to The Tucker Farm is a little goat kid! She was born a few weeks early in the middle of the pasture and sadly, we missed the whole thing. When I found the kid and her mom, Pepper, they were beneath a tree at the back of the pasture. They were surrounded by the other animals who were interested in the new kid. Pepper is a first time Mom, but her instincts are top notch. She was head-butting any creature that got too close to her kid, whether it was a tiny kitten or a much larger donkey.

Over the past 24 hours, I’ve watched her emotions range from anger, to frustration, to joy … all stemming from the instant love for her kid. Her facial expressions say it all.

Pepper never takes her eyes off of her kid, which is how I am with with both of my girls. I hope that they too will someday experience the joy of motherhood.

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Twins!

June 15, 2015June 15, 2015 thetuckerfarm

If you had your money on Ruth going into labor before me, you are a winner! Ruth gave birth to twins on Saturday, June 13th, a doeling & buckling.

This was our first kidding at The Tucker Farm! I have been reading about goat labor non-stop and getting advice from fellow goat owners for weeks now, trying to prep myself for any possible issues that could arise. I’m lucky enough to have a lot of experienced friends close by that were on call to be goat doulas. I had been watching Ruth for the typical signs of impending labor, such as, her udder getting really full and her ligaments disappearing. But these things were never obvious to me, even on the day of labor.

On Saturday morning I let all the animals out into the pasture as usual. Ruth came out of her stall but didn’t follow us up to the pasture. Since it’s been 90 degrees here and she waddled as much as I do, I was not going to force her out. So I led her back to her stall and gave her fresh water and made sure she had plenty of hay for the day. My husband, toddler and I then went off to run errands.

We returned around lunchtime and I wandered down to the barn to check on things. Much to my surprise, I found this!

Unfortunately, I missed her actual labor. The kids were very wet when I found them and Ruth had just started passing the afterbirth, so it must have been quick. Mama Ruth is an experienced Mama and an excellent one at that. I’m thankful that in our journey to be more sustainable she made things a bit easier.

What’s amazing about kids to me is that they are already “kidding” around at only 24 hours old! Quite different from puppies & kittens. Nothing is better than watching kids play!

We look forward to watching Mama Ruth raise her kids and can’t wait to finally have our own goat milk! Believe it or not, we didn’t just get goats to be pets and weed whackers, but we got them for milk! Both my daughter and I are unable to drink cow milk, so we’ve been buying goat milk from a local dairy for a few years. Of course in order to have milk, you must also have kids. We have another doe, Pepper, due in August . . . so more kids to come!

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It Takes a Village to Raise a Farm

June 1, 2015 thetuckerfarm

Our next human family member is due in a few months so we had to dive right into getting the farm ready. The only way I can manage a farm and family is by having a streamlined routine everyday. This means proper fencing, safe housing, and an efficient barn/feeding routine. We had none of these things when we moved in.

When we moved in, our barn roof leaked, the fencing was ancient, there was no dog yard, and of course no routine. Fortunately, our “village” of friends offered to lend a hand. We are lucky enough to have friends and family that have trucks, ladders, tractors, experience, and most importantly, the willingness to help us!