Genipher's Journal

[Genipher]

I have never seen a goat desperate enough to jump more than 4ft.

So excited for you though... I am sure you will enjoy them.

We may try to come visit later this year... So I actually might get to see them.

We just got 3 rescue Nigis but they are my first time owning any. You are going to have to post pictures of yours!

I'm excited too. And a bit nervous.

Hey, that would be great if y'all were able to visit. You know we moved away from Albany, though, right? We're back on the coast! I'd still like to come visit YOU guys someday. "A" is saving up money to travel. I keep telling her she can start out by traveling to Alaska. (hint-hint)

Do you have pictures of your rescue goats?

 

[Genipher]

I have a list of Things To Do before the goats arrive and I find myself procrastinating. Mostly because it's been so rainy the past week or so. Wish I could stop the rain. I think I despise the constant downpour as much as the goats will. Ug. Can't. Wait. For. Summer!

Anyway, I still need to:

(1) Buy a mineral feeder. Which I can't seem to find at our feed store, so I need to order one online. Did I mention we only have ONE feed store? Sometimes I really miss living in Albany. I had several different places I could go to buy feed and supplies (that's when we had rabbits and chickens) when we lived up there. Here, there's a monopoly. Never did much like that game...

(2) Build a hay feeder. Saw an interesting do-it-yourself video on youtube on how to make one but...things are never as simple as I think they're going to be when it comes to "projects".

(3) Get a fence up on the top tier (red line shows where the fence will go) . Multiple reasons we're doing this: to keep our toddler from running along the edge and falling off and to make a run for the dogs. Then it'll be easier to do a Doggie Poop Patrol and I can keep the mutts away from the goats. Of course, I'll need my husband, Mathman's, help with the fence. We'll be making it with t-posts and welded wire.



(4) Move the Rock Graveyard that was left here when we bought the place. The rocks are currently piled up next to the fence, so they'll need to be shifted to another location. If the goats discover they can launch themselves over, they'll have a loooooong fall into the parking lot next to our house (we're on a hill).

(5) Burn the azalea branches, leaves, etc. that we cut down.

(6) Create a milking stand in the second half of the shed, using the existing shelf. The wood probably needs to be stained, I need a ramp, and a head part for the stanchion. Oh, and another feeder.

(7) Move the old chicken roof to create a ramp from the top tier, to the bottom. Should make a fun toy.

(8) Put up extra lights in the shed. Just discovered these neat little things. They run on batteries and can be hung up on a nail or, since they have a magnet, can be stuck to metal. They also have Velcro. So, many options for installing them. I need a couple in the second half of the shed, since there doesn't seem to be any lights on that side (despite being hooked up to electricity).



(8) Fill in the myriad of deep holes the dogs dug. On the flip side, our older dog caught two gophers! Or maybe they were nutria? I'm not 100% sure. So the holes aren't for naught.

(9) Not sure if I should seal the cement floors on the second half of the shed. I'm planning on using that part as a milking area, so I probably should protect the floors.

(10) Order cdt.

(11) I'd like to find a cupboard to store some of the goat supplies (needles, copper bolus, etc). I'm keeping an eye out at the local thrift stores.

(12) Install the baby gate to separate the two halves of the shed.

(13) Lay down lime and shavings (that'll be a last minute chore).

(14) Add lattice to the short part of the fence leading to the woods to dissuade goats escaping into the woods.

I'm tired just thinking of everything that's waiting to be done.

 

[SA Farm]

I hear you on the exhausting amount of things to do. Spring work has begun here and I’m feeling your pain!

I have a few of those light switch things. I have rechargeable batteries for them (they take 4 AAA) and the switches can be a little finicky - as in I thought the batteries were dead, but I just needed to flip the switch half a dozen times to get the light to stay on.

Here’s a hay feeder idea I found on Facebook that I was thinking of using for my sheep Either this or the tote with holes cut into the side and the lid winched on to keep waste to a minimum. (Sorry I don’t have a pic of that one)

 

[Genipher]

I hear you on the exhausting amount of things to do. Spring work has begun here and I’m feeling your pain!

I have a few of those light switch things. I have rechargeable batteries for them (they take 4 AAA) and the switches can be a little finicky - as in I thought the batteries were dead, but I just needed to flip the switch half a dozen times to get the light to stay on.

Here’s a hay feeder idea I found on Facebook that I was thinking of using for my sheep Either this or the tote with holes cut into the side and the lid winched on to keep waste to a minimum. (Sorry I don’t have a pic of that one)
View attachment 60766

I love the hamper converted into a feeder! I need to check my Walmart! That would be soooo much easier than trying to make one!!

Yeah, a couple weeks ago I bought one of the battery flip-lights just to see how they worked and if I liked them. My 4-year-old decided he wanted it so I let him have it. Figured it'd be a good test to see how long the battery would last and how it held up to being constantly flipped on and off, on and off. It needs new batteries but is pretty sturdy!

 

[Baymule]

Isn't it great to have a whole form of people who "get it" when everyone else thinks you are nuts?

 

[Genipher]

Isn't it great to have a whole form of people who "get it" when everyone else thinks you are nuts?

Yes!

A couple days ago I was talking to one of my best friends and mentioned getting goats (again). She basically told me I'm too stretched already with the kids and homeschooling, which makes me feel like I'm going to fail before I start. I know I shouldn't care so much what people think but comments like that bother me and make me doubt myself. I keep thinking that other people have large families, homeschool, and still manage perfectly fine in the farm world (right @TAH ? ) , why would I be unable to do it? I get that it's a lot of hard work but I feel for our family, it will be worth it.

I was even told I should make my children my passion. They definitely are. But does that mean I can't have any other interests? Maybe I'm just so excited about goats right now that it sounds like all I can talk about. While I shrugged off the comment at the time, it sorta hurt my feelers.

On the flip side, my aunt (who lives faaaaar, far away) found out I'm getting goats and was gushing to my mom about it. My aunt is super excited for me. She got chickens last year and we text back and forth about them. She takes such good care of her hens...they're like her kids. She spoils them so much! I'm looking forward to sharing pictures and stories with her about our goats. So I guess not everyone thinks I'm loony.

 

[SA Farm]

Only people who have no desire to live the goaty dream themselves would think you’re loony
Just tell your friend to think of it as you have passion for all 9 of your kids

 

[Genipher]

We bought ourselves a PhD a couple weeks ago, thinking we'd do traditional wooden posts for our top tier fence. My husband, Mathman, got one, 2' hole dug...and then we switched gears and decided to go with t-posts and welded wire.
Since then, our 4-year-old son has been drawn to that hole like a moth to a flame. This morning he told me he found something in the hole that I NEEDED to see. Turns out this little fella was hanging out at the bottom.



Thought it was a baby snake at first but then I saw it had legs. Is it a Newt?

My son is currently following it around, nudging it with a stick to get it to move. Fun times!

 

[Genipher]

Left town overnight with the family this weekend so we could buy a new car. Not "new" new, but new to us. Now we'll have 2 cars, which will be a blessing. It was getting rather old driving Mathman to work and picking him up every time I needed the car for the day.

Anyway, realized while we were gone that I won't have the luxury of leaving the house overnight for much longer. Our eldest child "dog sat" the one night we were gone but...we're planning on going camping this summer with some of the folks from our home church, like we do almost every year, and my eldest kiddo isn't going to want to be left behind to watch dogs and goats.

I'll probably end up going camping for the day and returning home at night with the younger children (my back can't take sleeping on the ground anymore, anyway) but the whole thing reminded me of when we went camping yeeeears ago with some friends. I think it was a Feast of the Tabernacle campout and every family was supposed to bring a certain amount of food to be contributed to a main "kitchen". One thing we were supposed to bring was "2 gallons of milk". I laughed when I discovered a family had brought their milk goats as their "2 gallons".

I suppose, if I had a trailer to protect them at night, I could bring the goats camping with us. But I think the stress would be too much for them, yes? Anyone ever taken their goats camping before?

 

[SA Farm]

I’ve heard of people training their goats to go camping and actually use them as packing animals. I doubt they would use milk goats though. You’d want something a bit bigger and stronger for that, but the idea isn’t a new one at least