In the early evening, when it starts to cool down, the goat kids come out to play. They chase and bounce, and climb to the top of their tub, an upturned metal water basin. Yesterday I saw the two littlest ones, Lips and Nose, chase each others tails round and round on top of the tub. They like the way their little hooves make deep rumbles as they play. Their game ends with jumping into the air and flinging their ears back while they chase each other to the barn.
Peaches, my big doe, seems to be a sturdy goat.
And her kids are very sturdy too. Especially young Nibs, who looks muscled but feels soft like velvet.
Her kids eat hay and grass now, but she still lets them nurse, and she never seems like she's getting too skinny from feeding her big kids. Her kids, Newnoo and Nibs, are tame and easy to handle.
Her udder stays full, and sometimes I look at all that milk, there for the taking, and wonder why I don't help myself to some. It's like I own and goat milk dispensary and yet I have no goat milk!
Young Noobi is smaller than her mother, Peaches, but seems to be handling her first kids gracefully. She looks thinner to me, like she's lost all her baby fat feeding her own babies. I've given her an extra dose of herbal wormer, and make sure both does have access to the pasture at all times. I give them hay and sunflower seeds, but I don't feed grains.
Noobi's udder is full too, but smaller than Peaches udder. She's young, and maybe just a smaller goat overall. Will she continue to grow now that she's a breeder, or is this as big as she will ever be?
Her kids are the wildest babies yet. Noobi was my first baby, so she got lots of handling and is tame like her mother. Her kids rarely get held, and they run from me when I get close. They won't make very good milkers if they are afraid of the milk maid.
Lips and Nose are adorable little girls. They aren't chubby, but they seem strong and energetic.
If I sit still long enough, Lips will come to me, but she stays just out of reach. She's curious though, so I think I could tame her with a little effort. It's time for all the goats to have their feet trimmed, so I'll introduce the big kids to the milk stand, and let the little kids watch the action.
Haha Little Buck! He doesn't understand why I want attention from those little kids when he's more than willing to rub his silly head on me!
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