Welcome Spring......celebrate the Solstice and feeling the wheel turn💜

Kids will Be Kids

Two kids were born on the 3rd of March, late in the morning, and I knew they were here by the tone of the big dog's bark. Running up and down the fence line in front of the shelter she was all in a panic. The four remaining goats perched together tight on the corner of a raised board supported on a cement block. They were all heads turned toward me as I stepped outside. 

if you ever get the chance to spend time around goats look on one eye to eye and notice the rectangular view they have of the world. Goat pupils are not round like ours they are more like a widescreen TV compared to an old tube television set. In the wild they are a prey animal and have been for a whole lotta years. Therefore they are designed to notice everything; each rustle in the bush, a far off chainsaw or who the hell else knows what. They are on high alert and hear stuff even dogs and dolphins don't hear-  it's a definitive goat thing. 

 They stare a lot - some people find it unsettling- hell it IS unsettling but kinda cool too in a 4-H wanna-be kind of way. 

 

Anyway they were all staring at me. By the time I got to where mama Cocoa , the big hot choccy shaded Tog/Fainting crossed doe had just delivered twins one buckling  was just trying to stand up. 

I looked in the cozy warm jug we had made for her the day before to see another little guy still trying to figure out who turned the lights on. One was white and one was dark and in the weird glow off the heat lamp the whole scene took on a darkroom colour. 

Cocoa was standing, she seemed fine, was quite diligently cleaning her babies, softly nickering to them, and all I did was watch. And take pictures. And tell Cocoa what a good job she did to deliver twin billys quite literally on her own. It was obvious she knew what to do.  I removed the placenta when she easily passed it about two hours after kidding- her babies dry, fluffy, wobbly and so ridiculously cute by now- it wasn't really as gross as it sounds. Bit of a trip in that whole darkroom themed vein- but I've changed diapers that have been worse. No big Meh. 

They were up and at 'em within 20 minutes and nursing within the hour. Again....mama Cocoa knowing what to do....pretty cool stuff. My kids see the whole process, ask all the appropriate questions and the answers seem easier with these two puppy-sized goats wobbling around. One is the exact same colour as the billy goat which makes pointing out he's his daddy a whole lot simpler to a 7 and 3 year old. See? It's that 4-H stuff I'm crushing on again....sorry. Frickin' LOVE 4-H.