The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Goats => Topic started by: ballingall on October 16, 2012, 07:42:00 am
-
We did this for a while previously, but it might be good to restart it, as I think there are more "goaty people".
So what are you up to this month, with the goats, or in the goatshed? Exciting times in October, watching for goats coming in season in the UK.
Beth
Ps, haven't got time to post my response now, will do it tonight.
-
Brilliant idea, Beth :thumbsup:
Well, this year we are having a year off of mating/kidding (and no cades next year either!!) so although the girls are having quiet seasons (due to not having an entire billy about) we aren't acting upon it.
Trying to dry the maiden off so that she can put a little weight back on for winter. Buying in some more straw and hay and looking out for fallen trees thanks to last nights mini-hurricane!
-
At the moment we have 4 visiting B. Saanans we are waiting to come into season , we have two of our own in season that we are giving a break from kidding this year, We covered 2 x B. Togs of our own +1 pure Tog yesterday, so it's all happening here, Our B.Tog billy (Tallis) is a happy boy, while our B.Saanan billy ( Purcell ) is most upset as the girls aren't co-operating.
-
Still trying to dry Enid off, if by the end of this week I haven't won I will change plans and keep her in milk.
So I will be either....
Getting all 4 girls ready to visit the billy next month OR sending 2 to the billy and keeping Enid and Millicent here. Milk Enid and have Millie to keep her company.
I would rather send all 4 off for the month as then I have 4 weeks to do goat paddock maintainence without help of the Caprine variety :D
If all four go then I will bring in the ram (soon to be here :fc: ) and his wether company to graze the grass down hard for a week.
Add to that the bringing home of the hay and I think that'll do for the month :thumbsup:
-
Dandelion & Burdock are have a good time getting people to talk to them (welders sitting have dinner with them) and we are getting hay and strew delivered for the winter -
both are in kid so just keeping an eye on things
made cheese for the first time (not bad eh...)
barn (from pallets) is holding up, next pallet project is a house (if San lets me)
-
If all four go then I will bring in the ram (soon to be here :fc: ) and his wether company to graze the grass down hard for a week.
Are you planning to have the tup eating the grass in the goat paddock? I wouldn't - goats are not that tolerant of worms as are adult sheep, and you may import a problem into your goat herd that you really could do without. Unless you can get sheep wormed and cleared (with poo samples) well before they go into goat paddock.
-
My goats and sheep have already shared land before I realised it wasn't a good Idea :-[ But this time when the girls come home and Rammy has eaten everything I will be able to rest it till spring before anything goes back in there :thumbsup:
However I am also very mean and worm + pen ANYTHING that moves on to my sheep or goats pads for 48 hours. Fingers crossed I have avoided any issues. But the goats just won't eat the grass ::) seems such a shame to waste it.
-
But the goats just won't eat the grass ::) seems such a shame to waste it.
Yes my goats have almost stopped grazing too... they only mess about when they go out at the moment....
-
Oh my little princesses will never eat the grass ::) , the nettles and thistles yes, and anything we deign to carry to them but grass?? their reaction is exactly :huff: :goat: :huff: :goat: :huff: :goat: :huff: :goat:
I have to bring the sheeples in or mow it :-\
-
Well two girls dried off this week, one will be AI-ed beginning of November, has her sponge to go in on Sunday, another one (plus goatling) will go boarding for a while ooop north. Still milking three, but things are calming down now.
Trying to work out how to board two others and sponge the third one to take for mating only after the ther two have been done and bring others back.... logistics was never my strong point....
-
Getting organised to take Curry to the abattoir, while anxiously watching Pom for signs of coming into season as I want to mate her this autumn.
Making plans to extend the goat shed and wondering where the money is going to come from.
-
We are building a new Billy shed and paddock so there will be no more musical chairs with the one paddock and he can have his privacy when I pimp him out. He is going to serve one of my two as she has not been mated for three years now , the other has kids with her( late ones). We are keeping the kids and castrating them as his companions in his new pad.
-
We are waiting for 6 of the goats to come into season and for Blossom not to come back into season as then hopefully it means William has caught her.
We are also trying to prepare for a new shed to go up and if all goes well will be bringing some new Boers to join the mad house
-
Since that frost the other morning my girls have been standing at the gate looking towards the boys and wagging tails and bellowing ;D
-
Maybe I should say something in here at last!
It seems like it's all go just now- you'd think autumn would be quieter, but it seems not.
3 of the 4 BT/BA cross goatlings have been mated, to the little BT male kid, Glen. Sunbeam has been mated to Karamac, the AN male kid. Comet has been in season over the last 2 days and has screamed the place down- she too has been put to Glen, however she has succeeded in teaching the boy kids to jump out of their paddock! Now that wouldn't have been an issue, as they could moved into the shed in the field instead- but, my mother decided it would be a good idea to borrow an adult BT male as well, so the only free space will be occupied!
Mum and Alex went to pick him up today, brought him home, and mated Lantana to him straightaway.
I need to get a extension sorted out for the boys to live, but like MGoM, it's all about time and money.
My sister's field shelter is due to arrive this week, but they need to leave it for a week or so to make sure the neighbours are happy with it, before they can lay some paving slabs in it, and their 5 goats can move out of our shed into theirs! That will create more room, but we still do need to make billy shed extension, as it will help fr storing hay as well.
Only the 3 ANs , the 1 remaining goatling, and a BT milker left to mate.
Beth
-
No signs of seasons at the moment, maybe because I'm still milking? Rowan trying to dry off, Ellie still going great guns :thumbsup:
Got week off in a fortnight, got to move about 30 bales of broken, mouldy hay out of the hay barn. Heart sinks at the idea since it will all have to move moved by fork by yours truly and I've absolutely no idea where it's going to be put to rot but wherever, it will also have to get there by fork and foot due to the land round the barn. :-\
Then I can go and collect my hay (and pay for it :o) after which I shall feel happier about the winter coming.
-
Oh forgot about drying off. Still milking two goats twice a day, one once a day, and two every 2-3 days (they're nearly dry).
Koffi is supposed to be running through, but she is only giving a litre morning and night. It was always going to be a struggle to run her through. Comet is being kept on twice a day milkings until she goes off to live with my sister, despite the fact that she was mated this week. She's still giving over 4 litres a day anyway- prob about 4.5 in fact.
Beth
-
Our lot once they start coming into season they come into season every 3 weeks even if they are in full milk
-
New Billy pen and shed sorted! OH is an Angel!!!!