goats (again)

we are still debating the future of the nubian mama here (thanks shannon for the heads-up on the possibility of CL). i am waiting on a return call from a local vet (whom i don't really care for) as well as a follow-up email from my cousin (a vet) on our options. i may haul her down to my cousin's clinic (1 hour away) for a blood test if need be to verify it is CL.

i have spoken to the previous owner and he doesn't think it is CL. he was very adamant but what would one expect a previous owner to say 'oh yeah, i knew she had it, that's why i got rid of her!!!' he wants us to try to stick a needle in the abscess and draw out the pus first (what a vet did for him previously for another goat with a similar condition that the vet stated was caused by getting poked on barbed wire and created the abscess). he raises a lot of goats and talks about worming and giving yearly shots and such on a regular basis so he sounds legit. i just don't know if i can trust him or not.

we are in a holding pattern.

in the meantime, i am considering bottle feeding the babies as they don't seem to be getting full from nursing. they nurse almost non-stop and i've never seen any kids nurse so much. i might go the lazy route and teach them to drink the milk from a bucket. less time consuming.

as for the alpines, the kid is skittish as can be. i need to purchase a collar for her and then start annoying her to death until she gets friendly. she needs to be separated from her mama as she is not weaned. at 6 months, it's high time. i'll probably end up selling her because 1. she's horneless and 2. she'll probably never wean. we have that problem with our 1 yo doelings right now although motherhood seems to have cured one of them from nursing anymore (cinnamon).

i put the alpine up on the stanchion today to trim her hooves. she was shy and cowered down every time i picked up a hoof, squirmed and kicked. i ended up clipping too close and she bled like a stuck pig. i finally had to get some salve to put on it to stop the bleeding because pinching it with a cloth wasn't working. poor thing. i'm trying to make friends with her and i end up bleeding her.

once the weather breaks, i'll get some decent pictures of the new group and post them. having the gloomy, rainy weather has given me the spare time to play with them since i can't work in the mud puddle formerly known as our garden. i heard our potatoes gurgling earlier today.

today i am getting some cow's milk to make butter. i cannot wait!