newton's the goats journal

Bruce

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Perhaps you can get the calf to "walk" on the lead by having it come TO you since you said it is affectionate rather than trying to get it to walk WITH you?? Maybe with a little tension on the lead the whole time he is coming to you he will get used to the feeling and you can transition to walking with him.

This from someone who has NEVER taught a calf (or anything other than a dog YEARS ago) how to walk on a lead so a grain of salt is supplied with this suggestion ;)
 

Kathi Davis

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Your beginning could be an exact mirror to mine. I got a call from my Mother who took my two kids to a sale with her for "help" only to find out that she bought them each a goat. Could not even tell me the kind but that they were both Boer goats (she guessed right. LOL). Anyway..... she brought them home and they were so young that we (by which I mean Me) had to bottle feed every 4 hours. I grumble but it was fun. We just ended up selling Tex and Max because they were getting so big that they were knocking the younger kids over when they would try to play with them. While they didn't mean to be hurtful we sold them to a couple that had bigger and stronger play toys. lol. We have however 4 more Boer goats that will be market projects for 4H and are anxiously awaiting 3 Nigerian Dwarf babies to come home. So I totally understand the crazy part of it. But isn't it so much fun. :)
 

newton the goat

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Your beginning could be an exact mirror to mine. I got a call from my Mother who took my two kids to a sale with her for "help" only to find out that she bought them each a goat. Could not even tell me the kind but that they were both Boer goats (she guessed right. LOL). Anyway..... she brought them home and they were so young that we (by which I mean Me) had to bottle feed every 4 hours. I grumble but it was fun. We just ended up selling Tex and Max because they were getting so big that they were knocking the younger kids over when they would try to play with them. While they didn't mean to be hurtful we sold them to a couple that had bigger and stronger play toys. lol. We have however 4 more Boer goats that will be market projects for 4H and are anxiously awaiting 3 Nigerian Dwarf babies to come home. So I totally understand the crazy part of it. But isn't it so much fun. :)
It's awesome to hear that I'm not alone in this sort of happening. Your lucky you could figure out what breeds they were... I'm still thinking there may be a little of something else in her besides sannan and nubian..... she has a beard now :ep.... to be honest I'm relieved my dad didn't grab her twin brother as well... that would have been a nightmare lol.do you have any pictures of your goat's? I love seeing other people's flocks :)

I've been thinking of joining 4H for a while now but I don't know if I have time... my dad when I asked him if I should, greatly encouraged it said it would be something that I would really like lol.
I wouldn't trade this experience for the world!even though we had a but of a rough start, to this day it is still worth it !!! :D =D
 

Kathi Davis

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Have not got my Nigerians home yet will be the first of next month and the end of May before they are all home. But we did get our Boer goats for 4H. Must say are they not some of the cutest things in the world. They are so ornery it is awesome.
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newton the goat

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Today... has been interesting. First, Newton is being a butt and will only let the babies nurse when she feels like it which isn't often (at least when I watch her) though their bellies aren't shrinking and they have grown immensely in the past few weeks so I guess I shouldn't worry too too much.

Secondly, I was at the neighboor hood dairy farm like usual, this time I was grooming one of my favorite heifers who seems to have a minor obsession with me, and when I shifted my weight ( apparently poop isn't the most solid slippery thing to stand amidst), my leg slid right out from under me thank God I landed with my butt on a patch of straw....moorley ( the heifer I was grooming) stood stock still and stared at me, then took advantage of my weakness and decided to give me a tounge bath :sick then the other heifer decided to join her in the process of licking me... and just my luck I felt honestly like a new born calf, because no matter how I tried my boots wouldn't grip the floor. The farmer actually walked up to the rail and watched my struggle eventually offering me a hand after howling for a solid 2 minutes. Then after getting me out of the pen, told me if I wanted to, when I joined the 4h club, they would not only let me use any of their calfs, but they would also sponsor me! :weeeSo that's good news ... though I was also warned if I slacked off on any school work I would be banned temporarily from the barn :ep So if that's not incentive to do well .... well I don't know what is then lol.

*Btw update on the calf... the flop strikes again!! o_O
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He just lay there .... for a solid minute..... and because of his size he's almost too heavy to lift lol... look at that look of satisfaction!!!
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Honestly I hope he doesn't turn out like his momma, she's a complete fruit cake with extra fruit on the side and a glass of fruit juice to top it off... she just leaps around like it's nobodies buisness kicks the automated milking machine and jumps whenever the farmer even attempts to get her out of the way and charges into the other heifers...ohhh please let him only have momma's face and nothing else :fl ... The Farmer Says he likely Won't Take After her since she wasnt Well socialised as a calf and he is already pretty good for his age.:fl
I'm proud with his progress on the lead training, though he only does well if he feels like it *sigh* Well it's still a work in progress... but he does walk beside me and he has learned to slow his pace when I tell him "slowly" so he's pretty smart.... (yay. .. this should be fun :confused:).. my friend wanted me to add a category to the name thing, she pointed out that over half his spots look like hearts so she suggests some romantic name like romeo or something of the sort..

With all this busy hubbub, I'm grateful for the quiet nights. The ones when coyotes choose to roam a different property, and the tree frogs sing to their hearts content. And the moon jist sits there iluminating the world below it. It is extremely relaxing and though they are few I'm grateful for the ones I have.
 

newton the goat

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