The Perfect Kid 2.0

I might be getting ahead of myself.  I’ve been working for years to get the perfect kid–one who is descended from all fifteen original lines on the farm.  There’s ten girls and five bucks.  And I’ve worked hard to get a kids from all of them.  Finally, next month Pretzel and Frodo’s baby will be descended from all of those lines.

Pretzel

Frodo

But in the time it’s taken to get there, I’ve added two more bucks to the mix: Benji and Gabe.

Benji

Now I’m already thinking ahead on how to get a kid that has all of the previous fifteen lines plus Gabe and Benji.  And I need it to be a real mix.  I don’t want just half Gabe and then the other half is a mix of everyone else.

Gabe

So I’ve figured out a path that starts with four kids being born this year:  Rosie and Xerxes,

Rosie

Xerxes

BJ and Zora,

BJ

Zora

Gabe and Antigone,

Antigone and Gabe are supposed to give me my next generation milking doe.

and Bubbles and Frodo.

I want a buck that looks like Bubbles and is sweet like Frodo.

Of course, they have to give me two bucks and two does.  If I mix those four kids to get two kids then those two kids can be mixed to get the perfect kid 2.0.  Have I lost you in all that mixing kids?

Baby, It’s Cold Outside

We struggled to reach the freezing point on Monday.

She isn’t happy with the frozen pool.

Penelope in front of the Love Shack

The sun came out late in the afternoon, but it didn’t bring any warmth with it.

The cold predicted for Monday night arrived.  By the time I went out just before sunup (Tues) to check goats, the thermometer was sitting at 7°F.

Perdita. Nobody outside went into labor, but I checked frequently.

By 8:30 when I finally got out of bed to stay, the fog had settled and created hoarfrost.

Inside, it was nice and warm.  Well, it was much warmer than outside. Why do they insist that fresh pile of hay makes a perfect bed?

Antigone on a pile of hay

Hilda in labor

It was also the best place for Hilda to be.  Because she had her babies Tuesday afternoon.

Hilda with her boys–one looks like her; one looks like Benji.

Two big Benji boys.

The Buck Conundrum

I have a problem with bringing bucks to the farm.  They get sick. They die.

Sam

Seriously, I cannot seem to keep them healthy.

Grover Street (had pneumonia; I sold him and he apparently really bulked up)

For the first however many years, I know now it was copper.

Boeris Van de Yell

That’s why I didn’t get a new buck for several years as I tried to figure out the copper.  Then I finally brought Benji to the farm.

Benji

That didn’t work out well. So I don’t know what to do because I still need new blood.  I have two bucks, but they are both Osboer bucks.

Xerxes is a Fionn baby

One option would be to buy a buck and just sell it after the breeding season.  But I’m not sure I like bringing bucks here and selling them because every new goat I bring comes with the possibility of new health risks.

Frodo is a Fionn grandbaby

The other option is to see if I can keep a Benji buck if I have one that is nice looking because the boys who are born here seem to do just fine.  That’s not totally new blood, but the only Benji baby I’ve kept is Ostara, and Sidney or LilyAnn would be a good option for keeping a Benji buck.

Sidney is bred to Benji

I guess we’ll have to just wait and see what happens with the Benji kids before I have to worry about it.