The month of February is already over. It was not as productive of a month for us at Pure Water Hollow as January was, but there were 3 fewer days and some uncooperative weather.
CHICKENS:
Our egg production was down from last month (a record number of 165 eggs in Jan). But we were pleased that we still collected 121 eggs, given all the freezing temperatures and cloudy, yucky days. I don’t think they lay as well during foul weather.
There are still 21 hens in the coop and 9 more hens that we need to move into the coop.
We harvested four more roosters in February for about 14 pounds of finished meat in the freezer. We still have 4 to go.
The expense for keeping these chickens was, again, about a bag and a half of cracked corn, which was $9.80 for a 100-pound bag. (They have since raised it to $10.10, but I bought extra at $9.80) So we fed them about $15 worth of corn in February. Not too bad for 14 pounds of meat and 10 dozen eggs.
We cleaned out the coop on the 22nd and put fresh straw in the nests. It was easier cleaning the coop this time because there was so much straw in there for litter. Apparently, the more litter there is, the easier it is to clean out the droppings. We used our wood mulch for litter this time, instead of straw, since it was free.
The flock seems to be very healthy, now. None died this month or are acting sickly.
PIGS:
All four have continued to grow and prosper during February.
We fixed the trough so that one part of it comes out of the lot and we have it slanted slightly so we can feed them without having them knock the bucket out of our hands. I’ll try to show pictures of it sometime so you can see what I mean. We have continued to pick up old milk for free from the distributors and mix it with corn feed meal. We have usually mixed two gallons of milk with the corn meal to fill up a 5-gallon bucket to 2/3 full. We have increased from 2 of these buckets to 3 of them per feeding. Some days they only got this once, and other days they got the wet food twice, depending on if we were around or not.
I have also put in a self feeder with the nutritionally mixed dry “pig chow”, so they have access to that all the time. They have not been using it much, however. I may have it up too high, or maybe they won’t mess with it as long as we are feeding them the slop regularly. It was a $60 investment, so I hope that it will be an asset to us.
The feeding costs were more for the pigs in February, as they are eating more like hogs now than little pigs! We went through 4 – 100 lb. bags of cornmeal, and almost 2entire 100 lb. bags of the pig chow. The corn meal was $8.75 each and the pig chow was $14.oo each for a monthly total of $63.00. Las month was about $40.
We used another 3 bales of straw to help them keep warm through a very cold February. The bales of straw still cost $4.75 a piece, so we have used $14.25 of straw for the pigs again in February.
We had noticed some bugs on the pigs so I put some Insectrin dust on them January 24th. I followed up with two more dustings in February and now they seem to be completely rid of the itching and bugs. There is still plenty medicine left in the bottle. (The chickens might benefit from it a little later this spring.)
Most of February we had freezing temperatures, so my self waterer would not have been very useful. It is all clean and ready to install. I just need a good afternoon to try and get it in their pen. We continue to carry water from the pond for them almost every day.
Matthew and Christina think they witnessed a successful mating attempt between Rufus and Sally on February 26th. If it took we can expect piglets around June 21!
GOATS:
We bought a little wether on Feb. 2nd at a charity auction. He is the first goat we have owned. We decided not to bring him home right away because of the severe cold weather we were having, but we did bring him home on the 15th.
We have been working on getting a small area fenced up on our kudzu hill. The fence is now complete, except for a gate. It turns out that we have used 4 – 50 feet rolls of fence. Each roll was almost $30 so, including tax, the fence expense so far has been $126.60. This was much more than I was planning for and I had to split up the fence purchasing into two times to soften the impact on the pocketbook. It will cost a fortune to fence the entire kudzu hill like I am planning. We need to budget in buying a roll or two of fence every couple of weeks and working up to the entire amount we need gradually. Hopefully, this small area we have fenced will be OK for Little Joe in the meantime.
I bought a 100 lb. bag of horse mix for him for $12.75. This should last for the next couple of months because he does not eat much of it at a time.
We still need to complete a small shed for him up in the fenced lot. I have the materials and we have made some of the cuts, but I need to get time to put it all together.
GARDEN:
Not much happened with all the freezing and snow we had. We did order 12 blueberry plants, 12 cherry bushes and some hanging strawberry plants.
I have yet to prune the fruit trees and grape vines.
WEATHER:
We finally had winter! February saw many single digit nights at Pure Water Hollow. For the first 18 days of February the temperatures only got above freezing by a few degrees on a couple of days. We had two three-inch snows and several dustings of snow, along with some freezing rain. During that time the local school system was only in session for four days and our church had to cancel 4 of 5 services. (Two Sundays and two Wednesdays).
The last week and a half of February was nicer but cloudy. We had .2 inches of rain and 9 of 10 days above 50 degrees. The 22nd was 65 degrees and the 25th was 70 degrees!
MISC:
We got a new Great Pyrenees dog and two black Pyr-Lab puppieson the 22nd. We took them to the vets on the 27th for their shots and because one of the puppies was acting sick. The expense so far has been $147.24 to the vet! This was also more than we wanted to spend, but we want the dogs to be healthy. The two puppies ended the month needing to stay at the vets. If we chose to not go this course, they would have almost surely died soon. It turns out they had Parvo when we got them and they are currently fighting for their little lives. The vet is doing the IV treatment and keeping a close eye on them. (Please pray for them, that the Lord’s will be done.)
March looks to be another wonderful month at Pure Water Hollow. We are excited to see how the Lord will bless!
11 comments
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LittleHouse March 1, 2007 at 2:02 pm
We have been praying for your little puppies since we heard they were sick. Please keep us up to date with how they are doing.
How is Lisa doing? Is her back any better?
Glad to hear about all the Blessings God has done this month:)
Many Blessings,
Ma
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sheryl March 1, 2007 at 2:33 pm
I really like your idea of keeping track of how much feed you use and what you spend a month. We really don`t keep track but since this is a new month. I think I will start and see what we do spend. I love the end of the month review. You do such a great job with you posts. I know dh puts all the receipts in a bag in the safe for taxes. I guess I really should be writing it down.
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geoff March 1, 2007 at 8:12 pm
This is great. Thanks for posting all of this. I really appreciate actual figures. We just started raising goats. We have 3 Does and 4 kids. What kind of Fencing did you get? I think we paid over $211.00 for a 300 ft roll of Goat Fencing. It is really good and is supposed to take a lot of abuse from goats but with all the electric fencing that we have on it the goats don't even touch it.
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geoff March 1, 2007 at 8:26 pm
I just read the post you made when you got the goat. You said that you used a fence with 2×4 squares, that sounds like a good plan.
Again, I really appreciate your blog. Thanks!
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Heritage Hill Homestead March 2, 2007 at 8:59 pm
Hi, I just came across your blog and enjoyed your monthly report, what a great idea!Marilyn at Heritage Hill Homestead
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Mom March 2, 2007 at 8:59 pm
Spring is just around the corner and Springtime in Kentucky is wonderful. Southeastern Kentucky is my favorite place to be. maa's mom
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littlehouse March 5, 2007 at 2:43 pm
Hi, I found this neat web-site about "free chicken feed" Thought you might want to check it out
http://thedeliberateagrarian.blogspot.com/2006/11/free-chicken-feed.html.
Many Blessings,
Ma
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farmerswife March 5, 2007 at 10:32 pm
I really enjoyed reading your blog! You have some good ideas! Take care and God bless!
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Chas March 7, 2007 at 8:43 am
Hey, great blog. I really enjoyed reading this entry and I am going to try and keep track as well as you have about our expenditures each month on our animals (when we get them ). Thanks for the great advice!Blessings,Chas
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Geoff March 7, 2007 at 11:44 am
That was an excellent comment From Littlehouse about the site: thedeliberateagrarian.blogspot.com/2006/11/free-chicken-feed.html. I am going to try hanging pales of… well… all over the place.
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mom2ahousefull March 8, 2007 at 9:18 am
Thought you might find it funny that Luke recognized your barn. He walked by the computer and said "What are you doing with a picture of Lisa and Eric's barn?"
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Monday, February 26, 2007
Our New Pyr-Lab puppies
We took some pictures of our new mixed Great Pyrenees/Black Labrador puppies. I don't think the pictures do them justice, but I thought I would show some anyway.
We are still not sure what we want to call them. I have been calling one “Bear Cub” and the other “Princess”, but I'm not sure if those names will stick. It is hard telling them apart right now!
This is my favorite picture, even if it is a bit blurry:
I don't think they are as sad as they look! They play and wrestle with each other, but they sleep a lot, too.
It will be interesting to see what they look like as they grow up. They have a longer coat like a Pyr, but the markings of a Lab. I think that their heads look more like a Pyr, too. I wonder if their build will be more of a Pyr? Their mother is a smaller Pyr, so they may grow up to be the size of a lab, but maybe a bit huskier?
If anyone has any better names for these two little girls than Bear Cub and Princess let us know your suggestions!
Thanks.
4 comments
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sheryl on February 26, 2007 at 1:31 pm
They are cute as can be. I like the names, sounds like they fit them. sheryl
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Nancy on February 26, 2007 at 7:38 pm
AWWWW. too cute! They remind me of some puppies my sister and I had when we were little. They were a male and a female and we named them Shiek and Sheba.LOL
I like the names you have picked out!
Nancy
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LittleHouse on February 28, 2007 at 9:36 am
Your puppies are so cute. The girls can't wait to see them in person. I like the names Midnight and Luna (for a lunar eclipse) Just ideas for you.
I hope you have a wonderful day:)
Ma
Laura likes Oreo and Midnight for names.
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harmonyhomestead on February 28, 2007 at 3:38 pm
They are gorgeous!
We have a black tri Aussie named Chloe, but we call her Miss Bear because her puppy waddle reminded us of a bear cub.
I like the names you mentioned.
We are still not sure what we want to call them. I have been calling one “Bear Cub” and the other “Princess”, but I'm not sure if those names will stick. It is hard telling them apart right now!
This is my favorite picture, even if it is a bit blurry:
I don't think they are as sad as they look! They play and wrestle with each other, but they sleep a lot, too.
It will be interesting to see what they look like as they grow up. They have a longer coat like a Pyr, but the markings of a Lab. I think that their heads look more like a Pyr, too. I wonder if their build will be more of a Pyr? Their mother is a smaller Pyr, so they may grow up to be the size of a lab, but maybe a bit huskier?
If anyone has any better names for these two little girls than Bear Cub and Princess let us know your suggestions!
Thanks.
4 comments
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sheryl on February 26, 2007 at 1:31 pm
They are cute as can be. I like the names, sounds like they fit them. sheryl
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Nancy on February 26, 2007 at 7:38 pm
AWWWW. too cute! They remind me of some puppies my sister and I had when we were little. They were a male and a female and we named them Shiek and Sheba.LOL
I like the names you have picked out!
Nancy
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LittleHouse on February 28, 2007 at 9:36 am
Your puppies are so cute. The girls can't wait to see them in person. I like the names Midnight and Luna (for a lunar eclipse) Just ideas for you.
I hope you have a wonderful day:)
Ma
Laura likes Oreo and Midnight for names.
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harmonyhomestead on February 28, 2007 at 3:38 pm
They are gorgeous!
We have a black tri Aussie named Chloe, but we call her Miss Bear because her puppy waddle reminded us of a bear cub.
I like the names you mentioned.
Torrey's Mt. Mint
Learning about the wild plants growing on our property has been a hobby of my wife's for several years now. She has become quite knowledgeable.
My brother suggested some time ago that pictures of useful plants that grow wild would be helpful. I decided that he is correct, especially thinking about one of my purposes for writing this blog. Future generations who may live here could benefit from her knowledge of the wild plants growing all around, right under their nose. It will help me, also, to become more familiar with our useful plants.
Yesterday, on our walk, Lisa decided to pick some mint to make mint tea. The most abundant mint in Pure Water Hollow is a type of mountain mint called “Torrey's Mt. Mint.”
Here it is flipped over to show the purplish shade under its leaves.
This picture shows up the leaves purple underside compared to the green topside better:
Here is enough to make one good cup of tea.
It will bloom with white flowers this summer, but you can make tea with it anytime. It can be used fresh or dried and she saw that it was already growing fresh last month, in January. Those plants are now withered due to our February freeze, but there are plenty plants that are growing all around now.
All she does is crush up the leaves and make a tea bag out of cheese cloth. She then lets it steep in hot water for about 10 minutes and sweetens it with sugar or honey.
It was delicious!
1 comment
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sheryl on February 26, 2007 at 1:42 pm
I purchased a book called A Guide to the Wildflowers and Ferns of Kentucky. I want to use it for nature studies and journaling for school. Thanks for posting about the mint. You come up with so really good ideas for posting. Sheryl
My brother suggested some time ago that pictures of useful plants that grow wild would be helpful. I decided that he is correct, especially thinking about one of my purposes for writing this blog. Future generations who may live here could benefit from her knowledge of the wild plants growing all around, right under their nose. It will help me, also, to become more familiar with our useful plants.
Yesterday, on our walk, Lisa decided to pick some mint to make mint tea. The most abundant mint in Pure Water Hollow is a type of mountain mint called “Torrey's Mt. Mint.”
Here it is flipped over to show the purplish shade under its leaves.
This picture shows up the leaves purple underside compared to the green topside better:
Here is enough to make one good cup of tea.
It will bloom with white flowers this summer, but you can make tea with it anytime. It can be used fresh or dried and she saw that it was already growing fresh last month, in January. Those plants are now withered due to our February freeze, but there are plenty plants that are growing all around now.
All she does is crush up the leaves and make a tea bag out of cheese cloth. She then lets it steep in hot water for about 10 minutes and sweetens it with sugar or honey.
It was delicious!
1 comment
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sheryl on February 26, 2007 at 1:42 pm
I purchased a book called A Guide to the Wildflowers and Ferns of Kentucky. I want to use it for nature studies and journaling for school. Thanks for posting about the mint. You come up with so really good ideas for posting. Sheryl
Friday, February 23, 2007
Our New Great Pyrenees
Yesterday we became proud owners of another Great Pyrenees dog! Chief, the Pyr that we have had for almost 3 years now, has needed a friend for some time now.
Lisa saw an add in the paper for Pyrenees mix puppies, free to a good home. It took a couple of days before she finally got through, but the man still had 2 puppies left. He wanted to keep one of them, but said we could have the other! Their mama was a Great Pyrenees stray that he had rescued about two years earlier. Their daddy was his Black Labrador. The puppies are 8 weeks old and look just like Pyr puppies but they are completely black. (They are absolutely adorable, but I haven't taken any good pictures of them yet. They were sleeping when I had the camera out. I will see if I can post about them some time in the future. For now I just want to share about our new Pyrenees mama.)
She may not be full-blooded Pyr, but she definitely has the look and disposition of one! She is extremely friendly and loves children. (If she is not full-blooded I would be surprised.) We happened to get her, seemingly by chance, but I don't believe in coincidences. I believe God had the whole thing timed out for us! The man did not really want to give her away, and we felt badly for him. I think he has been taking good care of her, but he lives near a town. The dog had gotten in the habit of visiting Pizza Hut and Wendy's and Jerry's restaurants, which are just a few tenths of a mile from his home, and some of the restaurant owners did not like a big white dog at their drive-thru windows begging for food!
The man did not return our call the night before , but when Lisa called him yesterday afternoon he told her that he just got off the phone with Jerry's and the dog catcher was after the Pyr and her two puppies and he was going to try to get her away from Jerry's before the dog catcher got her. He said that if we could get up there right away we could have all three of them!
We made haste and got over to that town! He said that he couldn't stand the thought of keeping her chained up, and now he was afraid that both puppies had learned to go to the restaurants, and there were a lot of people around there that had it in for them. He felt better knowing they would have a good home out in the country with us.
Here she is:
You can see our old gray and white cat, named “Cat”. He seemed to like her:
We are keeping her and her puppies up at the barn right now, in hopes that they will feel like they should protect that area. Little Joe has not been moved up there to his lot yet, but he will soon be near the barn. We are hoping the “guard the flock” instinct will be there for her.
Her name was “Foo Foo”, from the man we got her from. Foo Foo is not a Pure Water Hollow name so we had to change it. I wanted to keep some of the phonetics the same since she already recognized her “Foo Foo” name. We decided to name her after one of the Pyrs that my parents raised for breeding when I was a child. Her new, Pure Water Hollow name is now “Mamoo”! She seems to like it very well!
Welcome, Mamoo, to your new Pure Water Hollow home!
3 comments
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sheryl on February 23, 2007 at 2:25 pm
You are so lucky. She is pretty. How is the fence coming?sheryl
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The Unlikely Homesteader on February 23, 2007 at 8:19 pm
And good for Mamoo and the puppies too! It's a win-win situation.
My dad had a great pyrenees and we absolutely loved him.
~Nancy
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Meme on February 23, 2007 at 8:56 pm
Can't wait to see what the puppies looks like….The kids look like they are having a "WONDERFUL" time on the ice…My granddaughter would love to be there. She is always asking when will I bring her to where it snows….lol
Have a good one and enjoy Mamoo……..Debbie
Lisa saw an add in the paper for Pyrenees mix puppies, free to a good home. It took a couple of days before she finally got through, but the man still had 2 puppies left. He wanted to keep one of them, but said we could have the other! Their mama was a Great Pyrenees stray that he had rescued about two years earlier. Their daddy was his Black Labrador. The puppies are 8 weeks old and look just like Pyr puppies but they are completely black. (They are absolutely adorable, but I haven't taken any good pictures of them yet. They were sleeping when I had the camera out. I will see if I can post about them some time in the future. For now I just want to share about our new Pyrenees mama.)
She may not be full-blooded Pyr, but she definitely has the look and disposition of one! She is extremely friendly and loves children. (If she is not full-blooded I would be surprised.) We happened to get her, seemingly by chance, but I don't believe in coincidences. I believe God had the whole thing timed out for us! The man did not really want to give her away, and we felt badly for him. I think he has been taking good care of her, but he lives near a town. The dog had gotten in the habit of visiting Pizza Hut and Wendy's and Jerry's restaurants, which are just a few tenths of a mile from his home, and some of the restaurant owners did not like a big white dog at their drive-thru windows begging for food!
The man did not return our call the night before , but when Lisa called him yesterday afternoon he told her that he just got off the phone with Jerry's and the dog catcher was after the Pyr and her two puppies and he was going to try to get her away from Jerry's before the dog catcher got her. He said that if we could get up there right away we could have all three of them!
We made haste and got over to that town! He said that he couldn't stand the thought of keeping her chained up, and now he was afraid that both puppies had learned to go to the restaurants, and there were a lot of people around there that had it in for them. He felt better knowing they would have a good home out in the country with us.
Here she is:
You can see our old gray and white cat, named “Cat”. He seemed to like her:
We are keeping her and her puppies up at the barn right now, in hopes that they will feel like they should protect that area. Little Joe has not been moved up there to his lot yet, but he will soon be near the barn. We are hoping the “guard the flock” instinct will be there for her.
Her name was “Foo Foo”, from the man we got her from. Foo Foo is not a Pure Water Hollow name so we had to change it. I wanted to keep some of the phonetics the same since she already recognized her “Foo Foo” name. We decided to name her after one of the Pyrs that my parents raised for breeding when I was a child. Her new, Pure Water Hollow name is now “Mamoo”! She seems to like it very well!
Welcome, Mamoo, to your new Pure Water Hollow home!
3 comments
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sheryl on February 23, 2007 at 2:25 pm
You are so lucky. She is pretty. How is the fence coming?sheryl
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The Unlikely Homesteader on February 23, 2007 at 8:19 pm
And good for Mamoo and the puppies too! It's a win-win situation.
My dad had a great pyrenees and we absolutely loved him.
~Nancy
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Meme on February 23, 2007 at 8:56 pm
Can't wait to see what the puppies looks like….The kids look like they are having a "WONDERFUL" time on the ice…My granddaughter would love to be there. She is always asking when will I bring her to where it snows….lol
Have a good one and enjoy Mamoo……..Debbie
What Difference A Few Days Make: Ice Sliding, Snow, & Spring Flowers
With the temperatures of the past few weeks sustaining below the 32 degree F mark, last Saturday the children took advantage of a science principle that demonstrated the state of H2O below 32 degrees.
Notice how green everything is around the pond? During the time we were up there we observed a science principle which demonstrated the state of precipitaion when the temperature is below 32 degrees.
The snow did not deter them very much. It was exciting to watch everything turn white before our eyes, and they kept playing. We were experiencing a magical moment up there!
They made a make-shift sled out of a feed sack:
It was time to go back to the house. On the way home I had to take a picture of this hole in the hill that is just in front of the barn. I have wondered if we would we find a cave if we dug it out?
It was amazing how much snow fell in such a short time. Before the day was over, we had our second 3 inch snow of February!
Here are some more pictures of the recent snow Erica took while the children took a walk:
Of course, Chief went with them:
So that was Saturday and Sunday. I have already posted about the wonderful turn in the weather this week, but yesterday was the top of it all!
Just five days after the children were on the pond while the snow came down, Erica took these pictures:
There are a whole line of these crocuses along the walk up to our house. I tried to get the whole line next to the sidewalk in a picture, but Lisa thinks the picture looks sideways. I think it looks the way it is supposed to look. Oh well…
Our kitten, Puff, enjoyed the sunny, 65 degree day, and sunned himself next to the floweres:
Yes, I did say 65 degrees! I started to declare February 22nd the first day of spring, but maybe it is a bit early still. We had frost this morning and 30 degrees at 7:00am.
Yesterday was beautiful, though! We are looking forward to more of those days to come!
(And we got a new dog with two pups yesterday! I will try to post pictures of her later.)
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Answering Some Comments About Our Goat Little Joe
We got a wether the other day and named him Little Joe. I posted just a bit about him and got some terrific comments. Several people asked good questions, so I thought I would address them in this new post.
We have never owned a goat before, so this is an exciting new venture for us. Here is Little Joe for those of you who could not see my first post:
justme commented "I know very little about kudzu but I was thinking a good freeze would kill it? Do the goats like kudzu?"
We have a tremendous hillside of kudzu and it has grown up over tall trees and advanced closer and closer to the barn. We have lost some nice trees to it and it will take the barn out if left to itself. There are places nearby that the kudzu has covered entire houses to where you cannot tell there is a house there anymore. Freezing temperatures do not kill it here. As a matter of fact, it still grows through the winter, even though it is not green. It can grow up to a foot a day in the summer, but in the cold it only grows a little. We have been told that many goats love it, so we are hoping that Little Joe will, too.
OklahomaJamie asked, "What kind of fencing are you using? I've got to get a pen built too."
This will be a new endeavor for us, so I want to try to do it right. I am going to use the more expensive Red Brand welded fence with the small 2 x 4 rectangles. Some people use woven wire with bigger squares and can keep the goats in most of the time, and I've been told electric works, too. Most people I talk to say that a goat will get out of most fences if they want to. I will keep you posted on how it goes. The fence was expensive. It was almost $30 for a 50 feet roll. Here is a picture of the fence I got:
Sheryl was concerned about wild dogs and coyotes. "Do you have anyway of keeping stray dogs and coyotes away? We have coyotes here on the farm. There are a lot of coyotes in my neck of the woods."
As a matter of fact, just over a couple of hills from us a pack of wild dogs nearly wiped out an entire herd of goats! We are supposed to have coyotes around, too, and bobcats! We have not seen any predators, though. We have a Great Pyrenees dog, Chief, that patrols the hollow and they are bred to keep predators away. Hopefully he is doing his job.
(He liked the snow) A Pyrenees can fight off the fiercest predator. One problem is that Chief does not stay up in the hollow where Little Joe will be, but he does run the hills at night. He sleeps most of the day close to our house, but at night we hear him barking all over. We are thinking about getting more guard dogs in the future, also.
Sheryl also asked how many goats we are planning on getting. Right now I would like to get one more, just to keep Little Joe company. Later we would like to get a nanny and a billy and see if we can grow our own herd and become official goatherds.
Finally, Lynn asked, "Is he an alpine? I can"t tell from the pictures. He kinda looks like that, but it's hard to tell."
Actually, I do not know what kind of breed he comes from. I need to ask his previous owner what they think. All I know is that they use the goats mainly as hill clearing machines, but have also used them for meat occasionally. I will have to do some research on goat breeds to decide what kind we would want in the future. Some day we think we would like some milk goats.
Thank you, everyone, for your comments. It seems there are many people who enjoy goats. Hopefully our experience will be a good one, as well. I will try to keep the blog updated with our progress with Little Joe. I have the fence to put up and yesterday I bought some material to build a small building for him, so I will hopefully be able to show you all what we did in a few days.
5 comments
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sheryl on February 20, 2007 at 4:13 pm
I can not wait to see the fence when you get it done. I have enjoyed seeing all your pictures. I have gotten some great ideas from you. I am wanting to get a couple more goats and I need all the ideas. Oh I never thought about bobcats. I am not sure if we have any here or not. I have a friend who raises goats and she has four of the Great Pyrs and she said they are really good at watching out for them. I had one offered for $50and I wish now I had gotten him. He was full-stock but had no papers. I am seriously thinking about going back to the lady and if she still has him and pick him up. Good luck on becoming future goatherds. sheryl
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Organic Farm & Garden on February 20, 2007 at 5:25 pm
I have read that when you have a GP as a pup and raise it with your livestock they will become family and your GP will fiercly protect your livestock (even chickens!) Great pics. I can't wait to see the fence.
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Kitty on February 20, 2007 at 5:42 pm
First I would like to say thanks for posting such great pictures to share with us. I had a goat a few years back that acted like a dog. He would come into my house and sit on the sofa with me. I loved him dearly, but he has since died of old age.
Secondly I would like to thank you for adding my blog to your friends list. That means alot to me. I look forward to reading your post often and checking in.
Have a great week.
Kitty
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Lynn on February 20, 2007 at 10:49 pm
Thanks for sharing your goat story with us. If Little Joe has any alpine in him, he will have some dangly things hanging from his neck. (I don't know what those dangly things are called. LOL) From one of the pics it looks like he may have them, its just hard to tell.
Keep us posted on Little Joe, he is a cutie. And Chief is beautiful. I have a GP, he is in the house, very easy house broken. I know he should be out with the goats, but I wanted him to be more protective of the kids. I have many reasons why. I have read that they will give up their lives to protect what they are trained to protect.
Good luck with the goat. Sorry for the long comment.
Blessings,
Lynn
Purewater adds:
Yes he does have dangly things on his neck! When I asked his previous owner about it he said that some of his goats had that and some didn't. He didn't know why.
And thanks for the "long comment". I appreciated it!
Edited by Purewater on Wednesday, February 21, 2007 at 8:34 AM
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Meme on February 21, 2007 at 12:28 am
Your goat and dog are just beautiful…I had a goat for a very short time since he was really mean..I would go to feed him and he would butt me all the time…So he stayed only a short time on our homestead….lol…Loved the pictures….Debbie
We have never owned a goat before, so this is an exciting new venture for us. Here is Little Joe for those of you who could not see my first post:
justme commented "I know very little about kudzu but I was thinking a good freeze would kill it? Do the goats like kudzu?"
We have a tremendous hillside of kudzu and it has grown up over tall trees and advanced closer and closer to the barn. We have lost some nice trees to it and it will take the barn out if left to itself. There are places nearby that the kudzu has covered entire houses to where you cannot tell there is a house there anymore. Freezing temperatures do not kill it here. As a matter of fact, it still grows through the winter, even though it is not green. It can grow up to a foot a day in the summer, but in the cold it only grows a little. We have been told that many goats love it, so we are hoping that Little Joe will, too.
OklahomaJamie asked, "What kind of fencing are you using? I've got to get a pen built too."
This will be a new endeavor for us, so I want to try to do it right. I am going to use the more expensive Red Brand welded fence with the small 2 x 4 rectangles. Some people use woven wire with bigger squares and can keep the goats in most of the time, and I've been told electric works, too. Most people I talk to say that a goat will get out of most fences if they want to. I will keep you posted on how it goes. The fence was expensive. It was almost $30 for a 50 feet roll. Here is a picture of the fence I got:
Sheryl was concerned about wild dogs and coyotes. "Do you have anyway of keeping stray dogs and coyotes away? We have coyotes here on the farm. There are a lot of coyotes in my neck of the woods."
As a matter of fact, just over a couple of hills from us a pack of wild dogs nearly wiped out an entire herd of goats! We are supposed to have coyotes around, too, and bobcats! We have not seen any predators, though. We have a Great Pyrenees dog, Chief, that patrols the hollow and they are bred to keep predators away. Hopefully he is doing his job.
(He liked the snow) A Pyrenees can fight off the fiercest predator. One problem is that Chief does not stay up in the hollow where Little Joe will be, but he does run the hills at night. He sleeps most of the day close to our house, but at night we hear him barking all over. We are thinking about getting more guard dogs in the future, also.
Sheryl also asked how many goats we are planning on getting. Right now I would like to get one more, just to keep Little Joe company. Later we would like to get a nanny and a billy and see if we can grow our own herd and become official goatherds.
Finally, Lynn asked, "Is he an alpine? I can"t tell from the pictures. He kinda looks like that, but it's hard to tell."
Actually, I do not know what kind of breed he comes from. I need to ask his previous owner what they think. All I know is that they use the goats mainly as hill clearing machines, but have also used them for meat occasionally. I will have to do some research on goat breeds to decide what kind we would want in the future. Some day we think we would like some milk goats.
Thank you, everyone, for your comments. It seems there are many people who enjoy goats. Hopefully our experience will be a good one, as well. I will try to keep the blog updated with our progress with Little Joe. I have the fence to put up and yesterday I bought some material to build a small building for him, so I will hopefully be able to show you all what we did in a few days.
5 comments
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sheryl on February 20, 2007 at 4:13 pm
I can not wait to see the fence when you get it done. I have enjoyed seeing all your pictures. I have gotten some great ideas from you. I am wanting to get a couple more goats and I need all the ideas. Oh I never thought about bobcats. I am not sure if we have any here or not. I have a friend who raises goats and she has four of the Great Pyrs and she said they are really good at watching out for them. I had one offered for $50and I wish now I had gotten him. He was full-stock but had no papers. I am seriously thinking about going back to the lady and if she still has him and pick him up. Good luck on becoming future goatherds. sheryl
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Organic Farm & Garden on February 20, 2007 at 5:25 pm
I have read that when you have a GP as a pup and raise it with your livestock they will become family and your GP will fiercly protect your livestock (even chickens!) Great pics. I can't wait to see the fence.
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Kitty on February 20, 2007 at 5:42 pm
First I would like to say thanks for posting such great pictures to share with us. I had a goat a few years back that acted like a dog. He would come into my house and sit on the sofa with me. I loved him dearly, but he has since died of old age.
Secondly I would like to thank you for adding my blog to your friends list. That means alot to me. I look forward to reading your post often and checking in.
Have a great week.
Kitty
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Lynn on February 20, 2007 at 10:49 pm
Thanks for sharing your goat story with us. If Little Joe has any alpine in him, he will have some dangly things hanging from his neck. (I don't know what those dangly things are called. LOL) From one of the pics it looks like he may have them, its just hard to tell.
Keep us posted on Little Joe, he is a cutie. And Chief is beautiful. I have a GP, he is in the house, very easy house broken. I know he should be out with the goats, but I wanted him to be more protective of the kids. I have many reasons why. I have read that they will give up their lives to protect what they are trained to protect.
Good luck with the goat. Sorry for the long comment.
Blessings,
Lynn
Purewater adds:
Yes he does have dangly things on his neck! When I asked his previous owner about it he said that some of his goats had that and some didn't. He didn't know why.
And thanks for the "long comment". I appreciated it!
Edited by Purewater on Wednesday, February 21, 2007 at 8:34 AM
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Meme on February 21, 2007 at 12:28 am
Your goat and dog are just beautiful…I had a goat for a very short time since he was really mean..I would go to feed him and he would butt me all the time…So he stayed only a short time on our homestead….lol…Loved the pictures….Debbie
Sunday, February 18, 2007
About Goats
(The following is some of my private correspondance with another homesteadblogger.)
Original message from DuncanFarm:
Hello, Purewater: Thank you for the welcoming message and taking the time to comment. I enjoyed reviewing your blog and the photos of your new goat. We were blessed by the patient assistance of several goat owners along the way who taught and showed us the ’ropes’ as we encountered the various problems; I always enjoy trying to share what we learned along the way when it might be of assistance to someone else. If it will not offend you, I would like to offer a caution regarding the horns on your new Nubian (or Nubian-mix) wether. It is not uncommon in a meeting of goat owners to have several there who have been severely injured by Nubian horns; either by a broken cheek bone, a damaged eye or a puncture wound. Your goat will double his size, and so will his horns. They have significant neck strength and the horns can be quite damaging when they suddenly throw their head back; and, they can use the horns offensively as well. Children hugging alongside the neck of the goat can inadvertantly be injured by those horns. Especially because of my children, I long ago decided not to have any horned goats on the premises. We disbud all our kids within the first 7-10 days. I’m not trying to be an alarmist, but I would ask you to please advise all your children to be cautious around those horns. If you don’t feel that I’m sticking my nose in your business, feel free to ask me any questions you might have regarding the goat’s health or any disease indications. The link I added to my blog is to one of the best websites on the Internet for goat raising and health info. How are your goat’s hooves? Have they been trimmed? Has anyone shown you how to trim their hooves? Okay; I’ll leave you alone now …….. Yah bless…….George
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George,
Thanks for the advice about the horns. So far he has not seemed aggressive at all, but I’ve told the children to be very careful. I hate the thought of sawing his horns off at this point in his life(seems that it would be painful for the goat), but we will do it if it becomes a problem.
Do you think it looks like he has some Nubian blood in him? All I know is that he is just a scrub goat. The goats he came from were just used to clear the hillsides and, on occaison, for meat.
I’m glad you mentioned the hooves. We hadn’t put any thought into that. I’m not even sure what to be on the look out for or how to trim them if they need it. I’ll have to do some research in that area.
You wrote an interesting post today. I’ve never heard of basing the Sabboth on a solar calendar, but it sounds like it would make more sense than arguing about whether it should be Saturday or Sunday! Personally, my family has always worshipped on Sunday, the first day of the week (based on our calendar), and try to keep it as a separated day unto the Lord. I’ll have to look into the solar calendar sometime when I get a chance!
Have a great day and God bless.
Eric
Original message from DuncanFarm:
Hello, Purewater: Thank you for the welcoming message and taking the time to comment. I enjoyed reviewing your blog and the photos of your new goat. We were blessed by the patient assistance of several goat owners along the way who taught and showed us the ’ropes’ as we encountered the various problems; I always enjoy trying to share what we learned along the way when it might be of assistance to someone else. If it will not offend you, I would like to offer a caution regarding the horns on your new Nubian (or Nubian-mix) wether. It is not uncommon in a meeting of goat owners to have several there who have been severely injured by Nubian horns; either by a broken cheek bone, a damaged eye or a puncture wound. Your goat will double his size, and so will his horns. They have significant neck strength and the horns can be quite damaging when they suddenly throw their head back; and, they can use the horns offensively as well. Children hugging alongside the neck of the goat can inadvertantly be injured by those horns. Especially because of my children, I long ago decided not to have any horned goats on the premises. We disbud all our kids within the first 7-10 days. I’m not trying to be an alarmist, but I would ask you to please advise all your children to be cautious around those horns. If you don’t feel that I’m sticking my nose in your business, feel free to ask me any questions you might have regarding the goat’s health or any disease indications. The link I added to my blog is to one of the best websites on the Internet for goat raising and health info. How are your goat’s hooves? Have they been trimmed? Has anyone shown you how to trim their hooves? Okay; I’ll leave you alone now …….. Yah bless…….George
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George,
Thanks for the advice about the horns. So far he has not seemed aggressive at all, but I’ve told the children to be very careful. I hate the thought of sawing his horns off at this point in his life(seems that it would be painful for the goat), but we will do it if it becomes a problem.
Do you think it looks like he has some Nubian blood in him? All I know is that he is just a scrub goat. The goats he came from were just used to clear the hillsides and, on occaison, for meat.
I’m glad you mentioned the hooves. We hadn’t put any thought into that. I’m not even sure what to be on the look out for or how to trim them if they need it. I’ll have to do some research in that area.
You wrote an interesting post today. I’ve never heard of basing the Sabboth on a solar calendar, but it sounds like it would make more sense than arguing about whether it should be Saturday or Sunday! Personally, my family has always worshipped on Sunday, the first day of the week (based on our calendar), and try to keep it as a separated day unto the Lord. I’ll have to look into the solar calendar sometime when I get a chance!
Have a great day and God bless.
Eric
Changing Kentucky Weather
There is a saying many folks hold to here in Kentucky: “If you don't like the weather, stick around a day or so and it will change.”
We got almost 3 inches of snow yesterday. Quoting from weather.com, For tonight, 2/18: “Some evening flurries with clearing conditions expected after midnight. Cold. Low 8F(that's cold). Winds WNW at 5 to 10 mph.”
For tomorrow, 2-19: “Plentiful sunshine. Turning warmer. High around 45F. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph.” I like that word “plentiful” when it describes sunshine.
We have not gotten much above freezing for all of February, so we're looking forward to tomorrow! Perhaps a good day to prune some fruit trees…
Added on Feb. 20th:
I thought I would go ahead and tell the rest of the story about our change in temperature. Weather.com predicted our day would be 45 degrees here in eastern Kentucky, but I saw 56 on our thermometer!
It raised from 10 degrees at 7:30am when I fed the chickens in 2 1/2 inches of snow, to 56 degrees at 3:00 when we fed the pigs in plenty of mud!
The children went from very bundled up sled riding this morning, to not as bundled up snowman making around noon, to wearing a light jacket or flannel shirt at the barn this afternoon.
A 46 degree rise in temperature in just 7 hours is some pretty crazy Kentucky weather!
This morning it was 50 degrees at 7:30am. The chickens seem to like it!
I ended up going to town yesterday and not doing anything with the fruit trees. Maybe sometime this week…
Added on February 21: Last night we had a big thunder storm with a lot of lightning!
5 comments
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Crooked Creek Farm on February 18, 2007 at 11:58 am
the weather is pretty crazy around her, isn't it? We can't wait for spring here. Our spring bulbs are up, so there is hope, even if they are covered with snow right now!
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sheryl on February 18, 2007 at 12:20 pm
Did you all get ice last week? The ice was just starting to melt and then it snowed last night. We got 2inches if not a little more. I want Spring. Sheryl
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Purewater on February 18, 2007 at 2:20 pm
We did get a little ice last week, especially on Wednesday, but we also had plain rain, although it never got much above freezing.
The week before was, of course, our other 3 inch snow!
The county school system here has only been in session for 4 days so far in February! I know yours has missed alot also, Sheryl.
Stay warm and enjoy this coming week. After 45 degrees tomorrow we can expect a week in the 50s! They say next Saturday will even be in the 60s so spring is near! (Or maybe we are just returning to our January weather?)
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Lynn on February 18, 2007 at 4:44 pm
Okay, I don't like to see those temps. this week, because personally, my kids and I have waited ALL winter long for this. We got 4 inches of snow. And we are loving it. I was afraid we wouldn't get any! Now, I don't want it to leave. We didn't get much ice. The main part of it missed us.
My grandfather used to say that all the time about the Kentucky weather. Its just grand to live in Kentucky where you just don't know what to really expect. Now, I dread summer!! I don't like it at all.
Stay warm!!
Blessings from this Kentucky winter girl,
Lynn
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The Unlikely Homesteader on February 18, 2007 at 6:44 pm
I think we're about to see ours change. We've had really cold temps, a little snow, and some ice and now I think they are calling for 50's all week. Go figure. Up and down, up and down….
We got almost 3 inches of snow yesterday. Quoting from weather.com, For tonight, 2/18: “Some evening flurries with clearing conditions expected after midnight. Cold. Low 8F(that's cold). Winds WNW at 5 to 10 mph.”
For tomorrow, 2-19: “Plentiful sunshine. Turning warmer. High around 45F. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph.” I like that word “plentiful” when it describes sunshine.
We have not gotten much above freezing for all of February, so we're looking forward to tomorrow! Perhaps a good day to prune some fruit trees…
Added on Feb. 20th:
I thought I would go ahead and tell the rest of the story about our change in temperature. Weather.com predicted our day would be 45 degrees here in eastern Kentucky, but I saw 56 on our thermometer!
It raised from 10 degrees at 7:30am when I fed the chickens in 2 1/2 inches of snow, to 56 degrees at 3:00 when we fed the pigs in plenty of mud!
The children went from very bundled up sled riding this morning, to not as bundled up snowman making around noon, to wearing a light jacket or flannel shirt at the barn this afternoon.
A 46 degree rise in temperature in just 7 hours is some pretty crazy Kentucky weather!
This morning it was 50 degrees at 7:30am. The chickens seem to like it!
I ended up going to town yesterday and not doing anything with the fruit trees. Maybe sometime this week…
Added on February 21: Last night we had a big thunder storm with a lot of lightning!
5 comments
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Crooked Creek Farm on February 18, 2007 at 11:58 am
the weather is pretty crazy around her, isn't it? We can't wait for spring here. Our spring bulbs are up, so there is hope, even if they are covered with snow right now!
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sheryl on February 18, 2007 at 12:20 pm
Did you all get ice last week? The ice was just starting to melt and then it snowed last night. We got 2inches if not a little more. I want Spring. Sheryl
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Purewater on February 18, 2007 at 2:20 pm
We did get a little ice last week, especially on Wednesday, but we also had plain rain, although it never got much above freezing.
The week before was, of course, our other 3 inch snow!
The county school system here has only been in session for 4 days so far in February! I know yours has missed alot also, Sheryl.
Stay warm and enjoy this coming week. After 45 degrees tomorrow we can expect a week in the 50s! They say next Saturday will even be in the 60s so spring is near! (Or maybe we are just returning to our January weather?)
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Lynn on February 18, 2007 at 4:44 pm
Okay, I don't like to see those temps. this week, because personally, my kids and I have waited ALL winter long for this. We got 4 inches of snow. And we are loving it. I was afraid we wouldn't get any! Now, I don't want it to leave. We didn't get much ice. The main part of it missed us.
My grandfather used to say that all the time about the Kentucky weather. Its just grand to live in Kentucky where you just don't know what to really expect. Now, I dread summer!! I don't like it at all.
Stay warm!!
Blessings from this Kentucky winter girl,
Lynn
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The Unlikely Homesteader on February 18, 2007 at 6:44 pm
I think we're about to see ours change. We've had really cold temps, a little snow, and some ice and now I think they are calling for 50's all week. Go figure. Up and down, up and down….
Friday, February 16, 2007
Some Thoughts On Homeschooling
(The following is my reply to a private message concerning homeschooling.)
Hello _______,
Here I am in 3rd period. I have only 2 students out of 7 here today, so they are just watching a movie. We missed Wed & Thurs and then came today and we are off Mon for Presidents Day. Not many showed up today.
I said all that to show that there are many, many days in the public school when the students do not get much education. I am convinced that more good gets done on a homeschooler’s ”off” day than the public school’s ”on” day. Even if the academics don’t all come together, that is not always the most important thing.
The important thing is that they are in a safe place where they are loved and will be able to learn lessons in life when the bookwork doesn’t go well.
Bookwork is important, but it’s just a small part of homeschooling, I think. For us, it has been a very rare thing for the children to go all the way through any text book from start to finish in one regular 170 day public school year. Lisa has come to the point where she picks and chooses what parts of the books to go through completely and carefully and what parts to just skim and not spend much time on, and what parts she can skip all together.
And then there are all the other life lessons that happen all the time without planning for them. We feel that those times more than makes up for anything lacking in the ”official classroom”.
For us, academics are not the most important motivation to homeschool, even though the academics are usually better in the long run. Helping to guide them into being the servants God wants them to be, knowing and loving His ways, is our main job.
Did you notice the post on skylarks blog a day or so ago. It is rather interesting especially considering how you are feeling right now. It is at
http://www.homesteadblogger.com/muddyboots/45476/Even+%22Real%22+Teachers+Have+Doubts%21.html
Here is a quote from a public school teacher from that post:
"And once again I become depressed, convinced that the other teachers are better than I am, that my kids aren’t really learning anything, that I’m not really doing my job, that all my plans and excitement never end up actually happening, that I am a failure and I am failing my kids."
I felt compelled to comment on the blog. If you did not see it, you ought to take a minute to check it out. It’s not very long.
Lisa has been doing better in her back, but she still has to sit down regularly when she would rather be up and about. I will show her your message when I get home. She may have some other words of wisdom to give you.
Keep your head up, and realize that you don’t have to stress about homeschooling. Put it in God’s hand and relax. I will be praying for you the rest of today and we will continue to pray for you. We are so happy that you are homeschooling!
Love,
Eric
Hello _______,
Here I am in 3rd period. I have only 2 students out of 7 here today, so they are just watching a movie. We missed Wed & Thurs and then came today and we are off Mon for Presidents Day. Not many showed up today.
I said all that to show that there are many, many days in the public school when the students do not get much education. I am convinced that more good gets done on a homeschooler’s ”off” day than the public school’s ”on” day. Even if the academics don’t all come together, that is not always the most important thing.
The important thing is that they are in a safe place where they are loved and will be able to learn lessons in life when the bookwork doesn’t go well.
Bookwork is important, but it’s just a small part of homeschooling, I think. For us, it has been a very rare thing for the children to go all the way through any text book from start to finish in one regular 170 day public school year. Lisa has come to the point where she picks and chooses what parts of the books to go through completely and carefully and what parts to just skim and not spend much time on, and what parts she can skip all together.
And then there are all the other life lessons that happen all the time without planning for them. We feel that those times more than makes up for anything lacking in the ”official classroom”.
For us, academics are not the most important motivation to homeschool, even though the academics are usually better in the long run. Helping to guide them into being the servants God wants them to be, knowing and loving His ways, is our main job.
Did you notice the post on skylarks blog a day or so ago. It is rather interesting especially considering how you are feeling right now. It is at
http://www.homesteadblogger.com/muddyboots/45476/Even+%22Real%22+Teachers+Have+Doubts%21.html
Here is a quote from a public school teacher from that post:
"And once again I become depressed, convinced that the other teachers are better than I am, that my kids aren’t really learning anything, that I’m not really doing my job, that all my plans and excitement never end up actually happening, that I am a failure and I am failing my kids."
I felt compelled to comment on the blog. If you did not see it, you ought to take a minute to check it out. It’s not very long.
Lisa has been doing better in her back, but she still has to sit down regularly when she would rather be up and about. I will show her your message when I get home. She may have some other words of wisdom to give you.
Keep your head up, and realize that you don’t have to stress about homeschooling. Put it in God’s hand and relax. I will be praying for you the rest of today and we will continue to pray for you. We are so happy that you are homeschooling!
Love,
Eric
The First Goat of Pure Water Hollow
It was a charity auction for a cause we were already supporting, and they had a cute little wether there, and we wanted to get goats sooner or later, and, well, I just couldn't resist.
We let him stay at his farm through all this recent cold and snow, but yesterday we decided to go get him. If we waited until the cold and snow is over the previous owner would have to keep him until spring, and we didn't think that would be right. So even though yesterday stayed in the 20s all day, we brought him home. At least it was sunny.
Here he is:
We have named him “Little Joe” after his previous owner, who is a friend of ours and his name is Joe. Little Joe is 11 months old right now and is expected to grow to be twice the size he is now, so he won't be little for long!
The children like him, but he is not very used to people yet. Hopefully he will warm up to us. These pictures were taken just after we got him to our home.
We are working on a small pasture for him up at the kudzu hill. Matthew spent several hours diggin up around 20 metal posts one day that were around the hills from years gone by, and we have already got them placed. I have bought the fence we are going to try to use but we still need to attach it to the posts and we have to build a shelter for him up there.
Here is a picture of what his little pasture looks like right now:
It will be interesting to watch him clean it up and see if he can keep up with the kudzu.
In the meantime, we have him chained to a doghouse full of straw. When I fed and watered the chickens this morning before I left for work he did not come out of the dog house. (It was 10 degrees so I guess I don't blame him.)
Lisa made a funny that did not hit me until after I was driving away. I said something about hoping Little Joe was still in the dog house and did not get loose sometime in the night. She said that she thought he was still there because he probably would not have gone to the trouble to put the chain back in the dog house! I started to laugh about a half mile down the road!
We hope to get more goats in the future to keep Little Joe company and help us with our kudzu problem. For now, we will have fun adjusting to being goat owners.
7 comments
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Mom on February 16, 2007 at 8:51 am
Little Joe is very cute!!!! I love his name.
Belle~homesteadgirls
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1 on February 16, 2007 at 9:41 am
I know very little about kudzu but I was thinking a good freeze would kill it?
Do the goats like kudzu? BTW that is a good looking goat.
I was also reading that they were going to try to make an alternative fuel out of it, something like what they do with corn.
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OklahomaJamie on February 16, 2007 at 1:41 pm
I love your new wether! He's so cute on that leash. I will have to get a collar and leash and train my goats to walk with me.
What kind of fencing are you using? I've got to get a pen built too.
Jamie
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LittleHouse on February 16, 2007 at 4:16 pm
Hello! I love your goat he is so cute, and I like the name! It will be so much fun, if we come to your house this year, and see all your animals! Have a wonderful day!
Love,
Mary
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mom2ahousefull on February 17, 2007 at 10:36 am
Cute goat! I think you'll like having goats
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sheryl on February 18, 2007 at 12:34 pm
He is cute. Do you have anyway of keeping stray dogs and coyotoes away? When I got my pygmy that is the one thing the lady said to me. She says coyotoes love goats and will attack them. We have coyotoes here on the farm. They are a lot of coyotoes in my neck of the woods. I want to get my goats and that is one of my biggest worries about them. I keep mine close to the house and put her up in a barnstall at night. How many more are you planning on getting? Sams cousin has 9 breed meat goats for sale. 7 are register. If I had the money I would buy them because is great deal. If you know anyone or yourself that is interested, send a me message and I will tell you more about them. Good luck with Little Joe. Sheryl
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Lynn on February 18, 2007 at 4:58 pm
Cute name, I love it. Is he an alpine? I can't tell from the pictures. He kinda looks like that, but its hard to tell. Those collars are great for goats. My goats each have their own collars, they wear them all the time. And they are use to the leash, except for Jake(Nubian billy).
Good luck with the goats. If your family is like mine, they will really enjoy the goat. They are great pets.
Many Blessings,
Lynn
We let him stay at his farm through all this recent cold and snow, but yesterday we decided to go get him. If we waited until the cold and snow is over the previous owner would have to keep him until spring, and we didn't think that would be right. So even though yesterday stayed in the 20s all day, we brought him home. At least it was sunny.
Here he is:
We have named him “Little Joe” after his previous owner, who is a friend of ours and his name is Joe. Little Joe is 11 months old right now and is expected to grow to be twice the size he is now, so he won't be little for long!
The children like him, but he is not very used to people yet. Hopefully he will warm up to us. These pictures were taken just after we got him to our home.
We are working on a small pasture for him up at the kudzu hill. Matthew spent several hours diggin up around 20 metal posts one day that were around the hills from years gone by, and we have already got them placed. I have bought the fence we are going to try to use but we still need to attach it to the posts and we have to build a shelter for him up there.
Here is a picture of what his little pasture looks like right now:
It will be interesting to watch him clean it up and see if he can keep up with the kudzu.
In the meantime, we have him chained to a doghouse full of straw. When I fed and watered the chickens this morning before I left for work he did not come out of the dog house. (It was 10 degrees so I guess I don't blame him.)
Lisa made a funny that did not hit me until after I was driving away. I said something about hoping Little Joe was still in the dog house and did not get loose sometime in the night. She said that she thought he was still there because he probably would not have gone to the trouble to put the chain back in the dog house! I started to laugh about a half mile down the road!
We hope to get more goats in the future to keep Little Joe company and help us with our kudzu problem. For now, we will have fun adjusting to being goat owners.
7 comments
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Mom on February 16, 2007 at 8:51 am
Little Joe is very cute!!!! I love his name.
Belle~homesteadgirls
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1 on February 16, 2007 at 9:41 am
I know very little about kudzu but I was thinking a good freeze would kill it?
Do the goats like kudzu? BTW that is a good looking goat.
I was also reading that they were going to try to make an alternative fuel out of it, something like what they do with corn.
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OklahomaJamie on February 16, 2007 at 1:41 pm
I love your new wether! He's so cute on that leash. I will have to get a collar and leash and train my goats to walk with me.
What kind of fencing are you using? I've got to get a pen built too.
Jamie
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LittleHouse on February 16, 2007 at 4:16 pm
Hello! I love your goat he is so cute, and I like the name! It will be so much fun, if we come to your house this year, and see all your animals! Have a wonderful day!
Love,
Mary
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mom2ahousefull on February 17, 2007 at 10:36 am
Cute goat! I think you'll like having goats
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sheryl on February 18, 2007 at 12:34 pm
He is cute. Do you have anyway of keeping stray dogs and coyotoes away? When I got my pygmy that is the one thing the lady said to me. She says coyotoes love goats and will attack them. We have coyotoes here on the farm. They are a lot of coyotoes in my neck of the woods. I want to get my goats and that is one of my biggest worries about them. I keep mine close to the house and put her up in a barnstall at night. How many more are you planning on getting? Sams cousin has 9 breed meat goats for sale. 7 are register. If I had the money I would buy them because is great deal. If you know anyone or yourself that is interested, send a me message and I will tell you more about them. Good luck with Little Joe. Sheryl
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Lynn on February 18, 2007 at 4:58 pm
Cute name, I love it. Is he an alpine? I can't tell from the pictures. He kinda looks like that, but its hard to tell. Those collars are great for goats. My goats each have their own collars, they wear them all the time. And they are use to the leash, except for Jake(Nubian billy).
Good luck with the goats. If your family is like mine, they will really enjoy the goat. They are great pets.
Many Blessings,
Lynn
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