Just Kidding!

It is about to begin! My dairy goats are about to explode! I have a small herd of dairy goats. They are mixes of LaMancha (earless), Nubian (looooong ears) and Oberhasli (medium ears). We have a variety of ear sizes but most of them are descendents of a wonderful goat I used to have named Esther. She imparted a deep chocolate coat with a cream underbelly to all her offspring. She also passed along her gentle nature and generous lactation.

Daisy, Esther's granddaughter and Opal, Esther's great granddaughter are both due to kid any day now. Daisy, especially is showing all the signs of an imminent birth. So, I sleep on the couch and go out to the kidding pen every few hours all night long. Many of my friends who have never been involved in animal husbandry kindly suffer through my moanings for about 2 week every spring. Those who have ever owned cattle or sheep or goats give me that knowing look that says "Hang in there". There seems to be a consensus that kidding season, or lambing or calving never killed anyone.

As much as I complain, I wouldn't trade kidding for anything in the world. I become an annoyance to my friends. Once the babies are born and the milk starts to flow, I can't talk about anything else. I love those spindly legged little kids. I enjoy watching the family bonds develop and the herd dynamics. Little is more pleasing to me than the sleek coats of my herd in the springtime. I can easily identify with many passages in the Bible that were just words before I became responsible for a herd.

As kidding season progresses, I will try not to ONLY write about goats. It will be difficult, but I will try!

Triplets from last year!