Everyday holds a new surprise in the goat world.  

     One–you find a month old kid in a dry shed, almost dead.  He is dry.  The other 3 kids have been outside and are damp & chilled, but not the one acting like he is all but dead.  Don’t know WTH.  He was fine.  But surprise, not now.  The Dragon Lady is on the job trying to save him.  She saved him when he was born, we’ll see if she can do it again.  I recommended a shot of Crown.  It always brings Bill back to life.  I’ve seen caro syrup, milk from Verlin, water, heating pads, heater, towels, etc.  No Crown for the goat…alright, I’ll surprise everyone and have a shot for him.  Just trying to be a team player.   

     Two–Had a doe kid that was due last Friday.  I didn’t pen her up.  I left her out in the pasture with the rest of the brombies grazing the triticale.  Why?  She didn’t look bred.  Maybe due in mid-may with the next round.  But not now.  No bag.  No swelling.  I even looked at her again on Saturday, Sunday and Monday just to make sure.  The Dragon Lady even thought that she didn’t look like she was due until  mid May or later.  Guess what?  There was a surprise today.  Six days past her due date and no physical signs of getting ready to kid.  I counted the does in the corral and just happened to hear a sqwuack from the barn (you know, that sound that only a baby goat or a beaver with his nuts in a trap makes).  There was a live kid in the basement of the big red barn.  She had done a nice job of dropping a kid and nursing it already in the warmest, driest place she could find.  The only problem…another doe kid.  But it’s alive, so we’ll gladly take it.

     Three–The $ doe has decided to eat and start to milk.  We’ve got a chance.  Schneberger was bringing a dairy doe on Thursday, but $ surprised me and decided to make a hand.  I DO NOT want any bottle babies  (let me reiterate the fact that I DO NOT WANT ANY bottle babies), so I am happy, happy, happy that she is going to make an effort.  Maybe we can still make a $.

     Four–Big I called me tonight to tell me about his physical.  No surprise that there is a story to go along with the physical.  The big surprise….he is healthy!!  The Doc told him to keep doing whatever it is that he is doing.  What??!!  

     We haven’t got a lot of measureable moisture, but what we got has gone straight down.  We’ll take it.  The ground was covered white with snow today.  Surprise!! It’s April, but we still live in NW Oklahoma.  We’ve got barns and good facilities as a whole around here, but it is hard to deal with these kind of weather extremes.  70 on Sunday and will be 70 again on Friday with freezing temps and snow, sleet & drizzle in between.  That, my friends, is why they make Draxxin, Baytril  and Excede.

Stay flexible but not limp.