Saturday’s Plans

After a cold rainy, snowy end to the work week, I was happy to see things clearing out Friday evening because I had big plans for Saturday.

Antigone and her babies enjoying the sun that finally came out.

Frodo, Lemuel and Benji having hay for supper before getting moved (and sold) in the morning

Remember, I have to get everything moved around in order to get Aphrodite shut in for her oopsie baby coming next week.  So bright and early I got up and chased Lemuel around for a bit.  He actually wasn’t too horribly difficult to catch.  He’s small enough I could get him loaded myself.

Good-bye Lemuel

By the time I got back from taking him to the sale barn, the goats had all gone out to pasture.  Unfortunately, the llamas had just come back up to the barnyard.

Maybeline in front of the boys in the Love Shack

Aurora staring in the milk room because that’s where the food is.

I decided to go ahead and trim Benji and Frodo’s hooves to see if the llamas would go back to the other side of the barnyard at least.

Frodo is so sweet (if trying to eat my fingers is sweet)

They didn’t, so I just filled a pitcher of llama food and led them over.  Let me tell you, it is dangerous walking across the barnyard with Odie and Aurora in there.  They get way too pushy for food.  I’m not sure if Odie spit at me or Aurora, but it was tense.

Maybeline, Aurora, and Odie

Anyhow, I got them to the other side and put my panel across the barn door so they had to stay there.

I forgot my pitcher in my haste to get the door shut.

By this time, Xerxes and Freddie came to see what all the ruckus was about.  But I wasn’t quite ready to get them on the front pasture.

Xerxes and Freddie up north

I had to move the moms and kids first.  I took a pitcher of sweet feed and stood at the door of the buck room and called to them.

They came on the run.

They are so easy to get in because they love their food.

I am so ready to have my garage back.

While they were eating, I shut the gate so they couldn’t go back out on the front pasture.  They could only have the little pen right on the side of the garage.

Antigone wondering what’s going on

Next, I opened the gate to the front pasture and got my little pitcher of sweet feed to reward the bucks for coming with me.  I had the food pans set out and it was ready.

Then it was time to bring the bucks down.  I opened the Love Shack gate and let Benji and Frodo out. They are young and inexperienced, so they just kind of hovered and wondered what the heck was going on.

Benji and Frodo

I opened the gate up north and called to Xerxes and Freddie (they had wandered back over to the old garden area.  They are smart and know that when I call, they will get a reward (aka food).

Freddie and Xerxes

We went across the barnyard with them following almost on top of me.  They didn’t hesitate to go right where they belong.  And I gave them some of the sweet feed.

Meanwhile, Frodo and Benji were still clueless.  Benji was just kind of wandering.  Frodo decided to see if the pitcher that had llama food would taste as good as it smelled.

Frodo

I went and shook the rest of the pitcher of food in front of them, and then they figured it out.  We headed back to the front pasture and they got a treat too.

All four bucks were moved and Lemuel is off the farm.  Easy peasy.

Benji and Frodo in front; Freddie and Xerxes behind

Now I just had to move the girls and get the herd back together again.

More Moving Goats

The cold broke just in time for the weekend.  That’s good because I needed the three days of cold (as opposed to brutal cold) to make a couple more adjustments in where goats were located.

Zinnia finally came into heat and got bred, so she and Joy could go back to the main herd.  Honestly, I was also looking forward to going back to milking in my nice warm milk room instead of the garage.

Zinnia

I also hate having goats alone, and Freddie was by himself.  I needed to put him and Xerxes together again.

Freddie

The only question was where and how. I really didn’t think the two mean bucks should get the warmest accommodations on the farm when I have old ladies who are struggling with surviving the winter.

Victoria shivering after the last cold snap ended.

So Saturday morning I decided to trust that Xerxes would just follow me through the barnyard to the north pen.  But I always move bucks when the rest of the herd is out in pasture, and that isn’t going to happen for another six weeks probably.

Myson, Chiffon and Moose–no reason to go out in the snow

I got just a little corn and went to the west side of the barnyard and tossed it around.

Rosie and Tansy searching for the last kernel.

All the goats but Coral and Dolly ended up over there.  I tied a panel across the barn door and just left those two girls.

Dolly and Coral on the east side of the barnyard

Xerxes is such a good boy (As long as I don’t try to touch him)!  He followed me right out the garage door.

He did pause by the little gate into the barnyard because my dog was going crazy barking at him.

Sky

But he decided grain was worth walking past a barking dog.  Then he went right in the north paddock.  He and Freddie acted like they hadn’t been separated for the last two weeks. Thank goodness because I’m tired of fighting goats.

Xerxes and Freddie

Zinnia and Joy followed at a more cautious pace.  They were disappointed they didn’t get grain too, but they got it at milking time.

Joy and Zinnia

Then I wrangled Flower over to the buck room.  She really dropped weight during the last cold spell.

Flower

She was followed by Coral.

Coral

Then I brought Victoria over.

Victoria stopping for her snack in the milk room

The nice thing about the buck room is that it is an insulated room in and insulated building.  While we’re cold, I just shut the door, and their body heat and a heat lamp will keep it nice and warm.  This really is the only chance for Flower to make it through the rest of the winter.

Victoria, Flower and Coral enjoying the sunshine.

I decided to leave Antigone in the Love Shack with the three little bucks because she can’t get stuck in there, and the boys are all three good to her.  Frodo tries to play with her occasionally, but it’s not like he’s being mean to her.

Antigone

And she’s not getting stuck. So, unless I had to move any other goats into the buck room, this was the arrangements until further notice.

Prepping for Fence Work

I already mentioned that my fence between the Back Forty and the corn field had to be replaced this year.  Well, I started prepping for that this past weekend.  I started by making a shade in the Love Shack because I figured it would work to hold my weaned girls while the whole herd (including their moms) were on the front pasture.

Love Shack

On Friday night, I shut the opening to the lane with a panel.  All the goats and llamas were shut off the Back Forty.

In the morning, I had to go and take some of the pieces of cattle panel that I’ve been using the last year or so to secure the fence so that I could reinforce the fence between the barnyard and the lane.

I also secured my panel a bit better.  We’re going to be working by that corner of the barn.  When we’re done, the goats and llamas will be able to get behind the barn.  We’re going to take down the big trees that have grown up, and then the goats will keep it cleared.

After getting everything secured, I opened the gate to the front pasture.

Some kids didn’t even notice it.

Jester, Six, Fannie, Archie (behind), Freddie, and Jester

The llamas wanted to go out to pasture to eat, but they don’t usually go over by that gate, so I opened the other gate to the front pasture also.

Archie checking out the open gate

It wasn’t long before Aurora headed out.

Aurora

The llamas explored and might have startled the kids who were still being lazy.

Aurora and the kids

Then Maybeline and Odie went out into the really tall grass.

Maybeline and Odie

Tomorrow, I’ll show you how it went with the goats.