Millie, the milk stealing goat

I have mentioned previously that our youngest goat (Millie) is still nursing her mama (Aurora) at 9 months old, and I am trying to stop it.  We were separating them at night, but it is so cold that they need the warmth of cuddling, so we are trying taping to wean her.  When you tape the udders, it is simply a piece of low stick tape you place over the teat, going down one side, covering the hole, and coming back up the other side.  This was working well, except that it made Aurora kick like a maniac every morning when I went to take it off, and again when I tried to put new on after milking.  

Saturday, my parents came up to stay the night.  I wanted to make pancakes for breakfast, and just needed 1 and 3/4 cups of milk to add to the whey I was using.  We have been getting 3-4 cups or more of milk a day, so I saw no problem and premixed everything except the milk in before I went outside to do my chores.  As soon as I walked into the goat shelter I could see her udder was empty.  The teat tape was completely gone!  Millie had somehow managed to get the tape off and drank all the milk.  She was quite pleased with herself and was happily munching on hay while I put Aurora in the milk stand.  After getting every drop I could, I still had less than 3/4 of a cup.  Before I headed back inside, I made sure to not only go up and down the teat, but also around that tape with another piece to secure it.  She was not getting my milk again!  Poor Aurora though, she hates that tape.  

Fortunately, I had more whey, and a tiny bit of milk in the fridge so I combined those and made the pancakes.  They ended up very flat, but tasted good. The good news is, I did end up running to the farm store and got a heated bucket, so at least I wasn’t breaking ice!  Best $25 ever spent.  

With goats, it is always something.  

No time for cozy, there are chores to be done!

Today is one of those days where you question your life choices.  At 7 a.m. while most people are warm and cozy in their home or office, I am suiting up and heading outside.  The sun isn’t fully up, and as I make that first step outside, milking supplies in my arms, I immediately feel my nostrils freeze and my lungs seize.  First, I go to open the chicken coop door, even though I know they will not come out.  Their water is frozen solid, even with the heated cinder block, so I put it outside run and check for eggs.  There are none, so I head over to the goat shelter.  

I forgot to put teat tape on Aurora yesterday after milking, so all it takes is one look at her udder to see that Millie - the 9 month old “baby” who is larger than her mother - has emptied it.  I get 1/4 of a cup, and resign to just give it to the cats.  I do remember to put the tape on today, and make sure to let Aurora eat all the grain before I let Millie the pig out of her side of the shelter.  Their water is frozen rock solid as well, and weighs a ton, so I haul it out of the pasture also.  

Gloves aren’t really an option when you use your hands as much as I do, so my fingers are frozen, my cheeks are burning and my eyes are watering as I walk back into the garage hauling the milking supplies and frozen water. As I fill a new bucket with warm water in my kitchen, I reminisce on the days of summer, when my morning chores took 15 minutes and I did it in a t-shirt and jeans.   (Have I mentioned that winter has not even begun yet?  It’s only December 15th…)  I head back out with the water for the goats and chickens, place them in their appropriate spots and watch as Aurora gulps the water.  Poor girl.  I look around the shelter and am glad that I decided to pile straw in their bed last night, but notice Millie is eating the hay we stuffed in the cracks to block the wind.  Goats.  

I trudge back through the snow and cold (I’m so dramatic, there is only 3 inches of snow, but it is well below freezing!), take off my boots and layers, and head inside.  I’m grumpy and I know it.  It’s nearly 9:00, I haven’t had my breakfast or tea, and I am frozen.  I realize I am writing the “for sale” ad in my head for the goats and stop myself.  No, I can’t give up.  I want to see their babies, and I’m looking forward to attempting to get more milk than last year so I can make yummy things.  I set my tea, clean the milking supplies, and make breakfast while I ask myself whose idea all this was, anyway.  Oh, right.  Mine.  

For now, I will enjoy my warm home and hot tea.  In a few hours I’ll be back out replacing the waters with unfrozen ones again, and I just may run to the farm store for that heated bucket later.  Maybe we should move the goats and chickens closer to the house, after all.  I’m thinking directly out the garage door.  Who needs grass?  

What we are reading, our book of the week for November 21, 2016

Kevin and I switch off at night, one of us reading to the younger girls while the other is either reading to Jujubee or listening to her read to us.  This week, Kevin has been reading from Oak Meadow's Fables book to the younger girls, and I have been reading to Jujubee.  Normally, I post a picture book that is good for the whole family as our "Book of the Week", but we have been enjoying this so much that we wanted to share.

Our book is from the series The Land of Stories.  This is book one, The Wishing Spell by Chris Colfer.

This is definitely a book for older children.  Jujubee is 11, and there are some parts I am unsure of as I read, and some small parts I skip that I just don't feel are appropriate.  The kids in the story are also 10 or 11, and their father has passed away in a car accident.  Before the accident, he and their grandmother often read many fairytales to them and they all loved that time they shared.  Now that the father is gone, it is just the two of them (they are twins) and their mom, who is struggling to make ends meet and works a lot as a nurse.   

The boy, Conner, struggles in school, often falling asleep in class, even though he could easily do the work.  The girl, Alex, is an overachiever, and their teachers often ask why he is taking it harder than his sister.  Their mom ends up having to work on their birthday, so she asks their grandmother to come visit them as a surprise.  She gives the kids her cherished book of Fairy Tales, and that is where the adventure really begins.  

Jujubee and I are halfway through the book, and she looks forward to our reading every night.  The chapters are quite long, so sometimes I have to split them into two nights.  I am also enjoying the stories, however, like I had mentioned, there are mildly inappropriate sections.  For example, in one chapter, Conner makes a comment about a photo of Red Riding Hood scantily clothed and it being "memorable".  Nothing too risqué, but I felt it could have been left out altogether.  I'm hoping the incidents do not increase as we get farther into the book, but we are looking forward to seeing how it turns out!

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Farm update - November 4, 2016 Breeding the goats - Artificial Insemination...

I can certainly say I didn't know what I was getting into when we decided to get goats.  Of course we knew that you had to breed them in order for them to make milk, but we didn't realize how difficult that could be when you do not own your own buck!

Your options, if you do not own a buck, are to either take your doe to a buck, have a buck brought to your doe, or artificially inseminate (AI) your doe.  The first time Aurora went into heat, I talked to my friend and arranged for us to visit her buck, who was in "rut".  Oh my goodness, was that ever hilarious.  After I packed her up into a dog crate in the back of my van, hauled her over there, watched the (fruitless) mating session and, ultimately, her deny him, we were still without a pregnant doe.

Fortunately, my friend also just got a tank (I cannot recall what it is called right now) that holds frozen "straws" from a buck.  So, I looked through the online catalog (this was hard, considering I had no idea what we wanted from a buck, genetically) and finally chose one.  My friend bought the straws - we choose a nice Lamancha buck) and held onto them until Aurora went into heat again.

A doe cycles every 21 days.  I took that little fact to heart and really thought they would be like clockwork.  They are not.  Well, finally on Friday we noticed she was in heat again, and my friend came over to AI her.  I felt awful for my poor girl.  It seemed awful.  5 minutes and we were done, and now we wait!  If she goes into heat again we will know it didn't take.  AI is only about 50% effective, whereas the traditional method is more like 90%, I believe.  If it doesn't take, we can AI her again, or breed her to a buck.  Fingers crossed we have babies in 5 months from her.  We still need to breed Millie, and for her we may do a Nubian buck, I'm still not sure of my plans.  There are extra straws if we decide to AI her with the Lamancha.

This is the only photo I have of her that day.  I was trying to get a "before" picture for size comparison.  

A beautiful day for a hike

Oh my goodness, this weather has been amazing!  I cannot believe it is November.  I'm sure we will be paying for it later, but we are definitely enjoying it now.  My husband took off work Monday and Tuesday, so Tuesday we decided to go to a park about 35 minutes away from our house.

Fall is the perfect time for a hike.  The trees are gorgeous, the parks are mostly free during the week, and, even better, mostly empty!  We took a hike around the lake, tried to use our new skills to identify leaves and trees, and played by the water.

Kaybug had fun with the binoculars 

After our hike, we had a picnic lunch, then played at the playground before taking another walk around the empty campground.  

We couldn't have asked for a more perfect day, and are so glad Daddy was able to join us.  

Gotta keep 'em separated

Have you heard that song?  I think it was by Offspring? Ah, my fun alternative "grunge" stage. My poor parents.

Anyhow, last night I put Millie into a dog crate inside the goat shelter. I have been getting 1/4 cup or less each time, and the no kicking was a fluke, if you remember my last post about that. Aurora is not a fan of being milked. I kept getting advice to separate mom and baby at night and milk in the morning. I finally sucked it up and did it. 

So this morning, I grab all the supplies and head out. I decided to bring an extra bowl, and a jar with a lid to try to save some of the milk when she kicks the bowl.  I should have gotten about 5 extra wipes, as well. 

Aurora used to hate getting on the stand, but now hops up eagerly and puts her head in the catch. Good goat, things are starting off well. I empty her food into her bowl and she eats like she hasn't had food in weeks. In reality, it has been 12 hours and she has unlimited access to Alfalfa hay. 

Time to get to work. There is no comfortable position to do this in, I have come to realize. At least not when you have to push yourself against the side of the goat to keep her still, while holding one of her legs and the bowl in one hand, and reaching past your arm to milk with the other hand. I am right handed, so I think I need to adjust how I have our stand situated. 

In several books I have read, they talked about "milking routines". Many people will play music, hum, or sing to keep their goats calm. After she kicked the bowl a few times, I started singing. It definitely calmed her down (and made Millie stop calling for mama) so I kept going. You're dying to know my song selections, I just know it. So here they are:

Hush little baby

ABC's

Twinkle twinkle little star

Old McDonald had a farm

John brown had a little Indian

Rock a bye baby

And any other nursery rhyme I could remember

After I had repeated each of these a thousand times, I began making up my own songs. I should start recording myself because I'm kind of a musical genius. 

When I stopped singing and focused too much on milking, she would remind me by kicking the bowl to the ground. Sometimes I got her so relaxed she pooped. Thankfully I am aware of the signs and removed the bowl as soon as I saw her tail go up. Three times she pooped!  This is why I wish I had brought more wipes. I kept knocking the poo off the stand with a wipe, and when she kicked me she would get mud on my hand and arm, so I needed to clean myself. Next time!  Live and learn. 

There were times when things would go really great and I would try not to think about how great it was, or adjust myself in any way, hand cramp be darned, incase it reminded her that she should be fighting me. During those times I felt like this awesome farm girl, milking and singing out in the pasture on a sunny morning. Ahhhh. Just as I start to feel confident she kicks me. Thanks for keeping me humble, Aurora. 

After 40 minutes of this, my back and hands could take no more. I released her, then released Millie and watched as she effortlessly finished milking Aurora. I thanked them both, and took my milk inside where I filtered it 4 times, once with a coffee filter added in for good measure. It wasn't dirty, but it did have hair in it and who knows what else so I felt better filtering it repeatedly. I put it in the freezer so it could cool quickly, then placed it into the back of my fridge. 

We ended up with 2.5 cups of milk before filtering, and about 2.25 after filtering. My daughters were so excited to see so much milk after my previous attempts that they all congratulated and praised me, so it's worth it.