Goats
Best Dairy Doe in Show at the 2018 Albion Fair!
This was our third year showing our goats at the Albion Fair. It turned out to be a year of ups and downs. We had some great wins with our goats, but also ended up being sick and missing half…
Just One More
Our little yearling, Maizey, gave us a surprise blue-eyed buckling today just after noon. It was very nice of her to decide to birth her little boy on a day I was working from home, conveniently during my lunch hour.…
Baby Goats, 2018
I had intended to post this sooner, but I was exhausted. Mama goat Candy started showing signs of being ready to give birth late in the evening on March 28th: her udder was filling, her ligaments were soft, her back…
Kidding Season: 2018 Preview
I don’t know about you, but I have some serious spring fever. Northwestern Pennsylvania had a pretty harsh winter this year with record breaking snowfall. Recent days have been mercifully milder though. Our snow has melted and temperatures are gradually climbing.…
2017 Albion Fair, Goat Show Results & More
This year, the Albion Fair ran from September 12-16th and it was our second year showing (read about our first year here). I was fortunate to be able to take the entire week off work so I could enjoy it…
Transporting Goats
In 2005, I was fresh out of college and bought my first car that was truly MINE — a bright orange Honda Element EX. I got a lot of side-eye when I bought my toaster-on-wheels, but it has been the most…
4-H Roundup and Counting Down to Fair Season
As summer approaches its end, the busy season for 4-H begins. Now is the time the kids are perfecting their project books, fitting their animals, and honing their showmanship skills. Fair season is almost upon us. Ben has been practicing…
The Bucklings are Here
My little goat herd is complete, at least for the foreseeable future. On Tuesday evening, we drove an hour and a half to West Sunbury, Pennsylvania to get our little bucklings from Hills of Highland Farm. I wish I would…
Building a Buck Barn
Exciting news–yes, even more exciting than a new load of hay for the goatie-goats. (Though they may disagree; they were pretty psyched about the fresh hay!) We are getting a Nigerian Dwarf buck. Actually, we’re getting 2 unrelated bucks —…
Two Months Milking Our Goat
Have you seen”Anne with an E” on Netflix? I recently finished the first season, and it took me right back to my childhood when I was first introduced to Anne of Green Gables. One thing I loved about this new…
The Kids are Here!
Candy kidded around 8 AM Monday morning. She had one buckling (on the left in the photo above), and one doeling (on the right). The doeling is called Maizey (or “Mae” for short, as they were born on the first…
5 Ways to Know If Your Goat Will Be Kidding Soon
As of this writing (April 26th), kid-watch 2017 continues. Every day I check on Candy multiple times (both in person and via web cam when I’m away from the house). While I’m seeing some progress, we’re still not there yet. The…