The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Goats => Topic started by: Roxy on September 25, 2011, 11:47:17 pm
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It is usually late September before we see any signs here. Unfortunately, the first to start calling is not one we want to breed from yet!! Little Lily the pygmy x sanaan. She is very loud at the best of times (being Bobbys daughter, thats not surprising). So, the noise is ear spltting. She is wasting her time though, at only 6 months old
Should not be long now until the other 5 females start ....hopefully not all shouting at once though!!
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Still quiet round here but I expect we'll have the yelling for a maaaaaaaan before long. ;)
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Only 1....? We've had five in today. It's been chaos. Four of the milkers have been in season today, but only two of those four are getting put in kid, plus there was one kid in season yesterday, and a different one today.
The boys are up to high do........
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Have only 3 Saanens to go now.... start kidding 22 January.... does this mean winter will be early and then we will have a decent Spring ?
I think animals are much more accurate with the long range forecast.... that is until this lot get it horribly wrong !!!
Taking bookings now for kids 2012 !!
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Mine haven't started yet, though Ellie's milk yield dropped remarkably yesterday and isn't back to normal today - no yelling or tail flicking though, so maybe a 'practice'
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I bought a Pygmy Billy for my girls last Wednesday - so it been chaos here - what a bunch of slappers - lined up along the dividing fence showing off the goods - it's calmed down a bit and hopefully we'll get into a new routine
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3 down and 3 to go ;D First kidding due 5th Jan, so first ones will be done and dusted before lambing starts in mid feb 8)
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My two haven't started yet and was starting to worry but these posts have put my mind at rest, will just have to wait for nature, not too worried as happy to kid slightly later in the spring, fingers crossed :love:
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3 down and 3 to go ;D First kidding due 5th Jan, so first ones will be done and dusted before lambing starts in mid feb 8)
Oooh- has Spring been done yet? Her sister was done this week, and also her half sister goatling was done yesterday as well. Was looking at a picture of her just the other day and wondering how she was doing.
Beth
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Boiling hot today, girls lay out on the hay trailer sunbathing ......certainly no interest in boys. Not going to get any in kid yet, still far too early for us. We had a pygmy kid in December two years ago - -19 it was, coldest day for many years. I was so worried about the kid, but no need. Early March is a favourite time for the other pygmy to kid.
I do not want to be running out to a goat house in a blizzard to check on a female in the middle of the night - so mid April onwards is about right for kidding.
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My 2 British Saanen's have not shown any signs of heat yet. Should I be concerned?
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No sign from my Toggs either, I'm praying I'll get results of CAE test before they start, if I don't, I'll miss a lovely billy who goes back to his owner soon. Last year first season was Oct 27th, both nearly caught me out, came back in season 2 days early, 14/15 November, ideal for April kidding.
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Nothing going on here either but as I don't actually have a billy lined up, it gives me a few more weeks of searching for one that isn't 300 miles away :-\
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blimey Skirza
just looked at where you are (I love looking at where people live), there can't be many up there, any mountain goats wandering about?
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LOL...saw some the other day funnily enough, but they were down the road about 80 miles...still.....
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up there 80 miles IS just down the road isn't it?
Got a 'billy rag' last night, waved it at the girls, and (by coincidence?) this morning bleating and wagging tails for England (or UK?), took them to billy boy this afternoon, they didn't want to know, nothing like making a fool of their 'mum', Left them there, they jumped out of their pen, owner of billy decided to let the billy boy out, mated each 3 times before nightfall. As I said, nothin like making a fool of their mum! ;D
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OMG ....the small white youngster, Lily is at it again .....ten times worse this season. I am adamant the smaller ones are the noisiest, and most determined to reach the billy. I kept her in her house to make sure there were no "accidents" with the billy, as she is only 8 months old. What did she do - squeeze through the gate pen, up one paddock, through another, and under the fence to the enclosure where Elliot one of our smaller males lives. He must have thought all his christmases had come at once! Thankfully I heard that familiar billy noise when they have a female in their sights, and rushed down the field before damage was done. It was not easy getting Lily out, as she did not want to come out and leave her new man......little madam!!
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Our Toggenberg, Flash, has come into season today, I think. She's making lots of bleating noises and roaming her paddock, peering over fences and calling.
Our other goat, Bella, is a Saanen and she's just being her normal quiet self.
We've no billy to breed them from but at least I can note the dates down for later.
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I would offer you the services of our handsome AN billy - but from your profile see you are not exactly local to us ;D
Our big white Sanaan x B Alpine girl is in season today.
So that just leaves the two AN ladies ......hopefully next season the three larger goats will have been covered.
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Thanks for the offer, Roxy, but yes , we're not really local to anywhere.
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All of ours seem to have held amazingly enough. All 5 are due in February. It makes my decision regarding Evita easier- I was thinking of kidding her but waiting until April or so as she didn't kid til May this year. But as everyone else is due in February, I'll just let her run through. Will be lovely to have them all kidding in short period- haven't had that for ages.
Beth
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If all goes well, the two AN'S and the Sanaan will all kid pretty close together, and the kids can be company for each other - and I will be bottle feeding all at the same time of course. Deliberately waiting, as we do not want kids before April. Got two smaller females to put to either Bobby or Elliot, and one pygmy x already in kid.