Not long after we got Georgia and Zephyr we were offered three more goats from one of hubby's coworkers because they weren't going to breed goats anymore. They were Boer and/or percentage Boers. We don't know much about them except that they might have been shown at one points and that two of them had had kids before. I don't normally like taking goats with such murky histories, but they are really nice does for a really good price. We quarantined them and did blood work on them at the same time as the Myotonic does.
We got the results back and everything was negative! So we eventually moved them in with Jasper to breed.
They all had names and we haven't changed them. This is Big Mamma. She is obese!! She weighed over two hundred pounds when we got her. She is the one who has never had kids before and we're 99% sure the reason is because of obesity and copper deficiency. We are treating those things and crossing our fingers. She came into heat and Jasper successfully bred her, we'll just have to see if she takes. If she comes back in heat in a week she may have cystic ovaries that we will have to treat, but it's not a big deal.
Isn't she adorable. She is so cute because she walks up behind you and positions her head under your hand so you'll pet her. :)
Isn't she adorable?? We're not sure how old she is, but I'm guessing around the same age as Coral based on her horns and teeth.
Jasper looking all manly hehe.
Big Mamma getting her close up when hubby was taking pictures hehe.
This protein tub is the bane of my existence! They get so nasty from the molasses!! Wait until you see the pictures. We have switched to a bucket style that is much better, but they have to finish this one first....
This is Dottie. She's really old (not sure of exact age) and has had kids before. She looks rough because she's also copper deficient and was wormy (I'm not sure if her previous owners were doubling or tripling the dose of dewormer, goats take a lot more than other animals for it to work). She's looking much better, but it will take a while for her coat to improve.
She has such a sweet face. She is the most skittish of them all. She will get close, but doesn't care to be touched.
Jasper showing off his nasty molasses and pee covered face and beard and his red crayon from his marking harness all over his legs. He is filthy! He's going to need a bath!!
Big Mamma is so huge!
The third is LeeAnn. I didn't realize I hadn't gotten a better picture than this. She's drinking out of their automatic waterer. She is percentage Boer and must have some dairy goat in her. All three of the does are pretty big (as big as Coral or bigger in Big Mamma's case). They make Garnet and Topaz look like shrimps, but it's unfair to compare them since they are mature.
LeeAnn sneaking licks of the protein tub. She is the friendly (and loudest) of the three. She loves attention and food. I think she's going to be a really good mom.
A better picture of Dottie. She still looks rough, but much better than she did.
Hubby put a roof on the hay feeder. I love it!
When we did the blood tests we also did pregnancy tests on Big Mamma (they had her out with a buck before we got her), Georgia and Zephyr just to confirm that they got pregnant. Big Mamma's test came back negative, which was verified when she came into heat within days of being put out with Jasper. I'll share the test results for the other two in the next post.
They are all so cute!!! We hope everyone does well!
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comments about Cam - we are so thankful. So far, she's doing well!
I miss you on FB!!!
KZK
I miss you on FB too!! I almost wish I could delete my real life acquaintances and all of their meaningless posts and way too numerous shares so I could just see the good posts from my blogger friends. That sounds so bad but all FB seems like anymore is complaining, flaming, sharing memes, politics, etc. No one has anything nice to say anymore!!
DeleteGive Cam a hug for me please!
Old Dottie looks so sweet - & kudos to Hubby on that roof because wet hay sucks.
ReplyDeleteMaybe a dumb question but - is a marking harness somehow to show which does he has mounted?
Yep that's what it is for. They were originally designed for rams because people tend to have large herds of sheep, but now they make them for goats. It makes it so much easier to know when the due date is. When pasture breeding if you put the buck out there for six weeks then you have a six week range where the doe could give birth. Using the harness you just write down what day you see her marked and then you have a due date within days instead of weeks. It's especially helpful when they are kidding in cold weather because if you don't find them in time they can freeze to death (although we do hang heat lamps they don't always know to use them). So yeah, it's very helpful. It makes kidding so much less stressful. Good guess!!
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