More of the Herd

What is that?

Dolly

Rub-a-dub dub, it’s Dolly in a tub.

This just proves that goats and tubs are like cats and boxes.  Mr. Peacock isn’t technically part of the “herd,” but I just had to share him.

Glover and Jack took their turn in the tub with Haley beside them.  They all really like hopping in there and napping.  I came out one time and Onyx was in it with her boy.

Glover, Jack and Haley

The June kids on the picnic table.

Top: Jack Middle: Ivy, Sunshine, Lemuel: Bottom: Glover and Pretzel

I’m going to say that the llamas are a part of the herd.

Maybeline coming up from pasture in the evening

After all, they are here to protect the goats.

Aurora

I can’t believe how big the spring break kids are getting.

Jasmine and Aladdin, Pluto, Chunky with Cinnamon, Caroline and Purl behind

Perdita is still not happy about being re-weaned, but at least she’s going out to pasture with everyone and not sitting around crying now.

Popcorn is still sweet and cute. He’s a good boy.

Popcorn

So is Myson.  I still think it’s funny how he likes to stand up on top of things and watch over the rest of the herd.

Myson

The two bucks seem to like my tarp tent.  With the hot weather we’ve had again, it has been nice for them to be able to be under it and catch a breeze.

Xerxes and Freddie

Sometimes, Lemuel and Jack like to hop up in the cattle tank (it’s empty).

Lemuel, Sunshine, and Pretzel

They really are silly.

Moving Goats Again

I decided it was time to move goats again.  Sidney and Moira were in the Love Shack, and there really isn’t much shade.  There’s even less green stuff to eat.  They really needed out.

Moira and Sidney in the Love Shack

Hilda and Cupid were in the same situation in the greenhouse, but it is a bit bigger indoor space.  That makes it a little better.

Cupid in the Love Shack

Anyhow, I decided to do some moving and rearranging to give all my  moms plenty of pasture.  I also hoped to keep Tiger from getting stuck in the fence.  I waited until the herd went out to pasture.

in the Back Forty

I started by dividing my barnyard in half with a couple of panels.

The llamas on the north half of the barnyard

Of course, the llamas showed up just as I was getting ready to do my changes.  I put another panel in the barn to divide it.  Then I decided to bribe the llamas to go back to the other side.

Odie

It worked!

Maybeline and Aurora (Odie behind)

Next up was using some feed to bribe my moms in the north paddock to go into that pen I had just created in the barn.  That was also easy peasy.  I shut them in with one of my panels that I had previously had dividing the barnyard.

the moms from up north

Of course, the kids were still hanging out up by the gate, but I decided I’d deal with them later.  I had all the adults out of the way.

Ivy, Jack, Glover, Lemuel, and Sunshine

Then I went to the buck room.

Freddie and Tiger

They were going to move north.  Xerxes and Freddie were easy.  They just followed me right up.

Xerxes and Freddie (Sunshine and Ivy under the tarp)

I had to go back and bring Tiger with me.  Once I got them up there, I shut the gate.

Tiger (Xerxes and Freddie checking out the tarp hut)

About the time I was getting ready to catch the kids and put them in the barnyard where there moms were going to be, some little Perdita girl slid off the top of the quonset hut under the tarp.  I had completely forgotten about her.  I caught her and put her in the barnyard and then went back to catching the five kids.

Perdita and Ivy

Then I let the moms out of the barn to get their kids.  I’m really sure I had already caught Lem.  Oh well. I caught him again and put him back on the sided I wanted him on.

Lemuel looks tiny beside Freddie.

Then the moms decided they were going to go hang out in the barn again.  I guess that was good because I realized I had forgotten to block the openings by the cattle tank.  They could have just walked right out to the Back Forty.  I am not trying to keep track of these eleven kids on forty acres.

To block the cattle tank holes, I had to remove the door from the greenhouse, so that let Hilda and Cupid out.

Zinnia, Glover, Haley, Joani, Cupid, and Tansy

Then I just had to open the Love Shack.  Um.  My panel was kind of sunk into the ground with the grass holding it down. It took a fair amount of work to get it pulled loose.

Then Sidney and Moira were out.

Sidney and Moira

I could not get everyone to come down to the side I wanted them on.  They were all hanging out in the barn, so I finally gave up for a while.

Eventually, when I let Haley into the milk room to change her bandage, everyone else thought they should come beg for food.

Haley’s foot doesn’t slow her down much; Perdita on the bench

I used that opportunity to finish dividing the barnyard in half again.  Pretty soon, everyone else came back up from pasture and tried to figure out what was going on.

Tomorrow, I’ll finish the saga.

Surviving the Heat

I am trying to pamper everyone to make sure they survive this early horrible heat.

That means I’m giving the chickens some treats of frozen tomatoes from last summer’s garden.

Mr. Peacock is still dancing for the ladies after the barn creates shade for them in the evening.

Notice the hens ignoring him.

Again, I think he’s handsome even if the hens don’t care.

I had to fish Jack and Ivy out of their little tarp hammock because they were overheating in there.

Kind of a shame because they looked awfully cozy snuggled in together.

Jack and Ivy

Joani keeps hiding Glover under (or in) a tree.

Glover

I had a little plastic food pan filled with water for the goslings, but they have pretty much outgrown it.

I put out another big kiddie pool, and they are enjoying it.

I swear, I put fresh water in the pools every day.  The goats and llamas spend a lot of time in the shade.

Aurora thinks she’d like to come into the air conditioning

Zinnia likes the new tarp hut.

Zinnia with Ivy and Jack

I also make sure there’s plenty of fresh water everywhere because that is very important.