isaac!

So we finally picked up our new billy goat on Sunday. Man, is he cute! He was born on May 4th, and looks super healthy and happy. Well, mostly happy. Already he is stubborn as all get out, but also very loving and affectionate. Because he was so young and was still nursing, we needed to train him to drink from a bottle. I don't think it's a good idea for babies to be taken from their moms so early because it's pretty stressful on them, but because he is going to be living with us for a long time as a stud, we also need him to think that we are his moms. He is going to get really big and horny, and if he isn't friendly, he's going to be a problem! So...we are feeding him from a bottle, holding him whenever we can, and letting him take naps with us. I slept with him in the barn the first night, and I'm really glad I did. He was totally scared by all the new noises. The following day he was so frantic to get out of his pen that he hung himself by his back hoof. Suddenly, he became a house goat. Erin gave us a huge dog kennel, and he sleeps in there. He is, for the most part, house trained! I think it was a bit of an accident, but whatever, it works. He cries when he needs out, goes in the exact same spot, and seems pretty much ok with everything. Still, I hope he isn't missing his mom too much. The goat girls will be giving birth any day, and when that happens, the little ones can spend some time together. He'll have some new friends to hang out with.



I have been trying to let the girls and Flower graze everyday, but it is quite the pain. The girls are completely destroying their fencing, and I have to really keep an eye on them. Flower got her head stuck in the fence the other day and pretty much had a heart attack. She was so hot I was really quite worried about her. I ended up shearing her with scissors! That took a while. A pro takes about 10 minutes, and it took me well over an hour. But she is cooler now, I think, and looks quite fancy. My camera broke so Diane came in the middle of the shearing and took some pix. When I get a new camera, I'll make sure I post one of the completed Flower. She was pretty sweet about it. Of course Little Richard was a complete asshole and kept trying to eat her wool. What a nuthead. Whenever he wants her food, he pulls her wool, which hurts, and so he gets what he wants. Yep, did I mention he's a bit of an ass?