As I was sitting in the warmth of the house yesterday, I noticed the kid goats running and playing in the sleet. My biggest worry is that some of the little fellas will be abandoned during cold weather. A couple of winters ago during a storm similar to this one, Sam discovered two kids abandoned by their mothers. I dubbed the two little nannies "Dixie" and "Goose". About four or five days later, Mike found a little billy goat practically frozen to the ground. I didn't have much hope for this one but was willing to give the baby a chance. I named him "Joe".
Even with their rough beginning, all three goats made it to goat-hood. Mama decided she needed some goats to "clean up" the pens around her house. Thank goodness I had a place to take them because Sam was ready to shoot them. (Sancho goats can become pests as they begin to discover the world outside their pen.) I loaded all three in a large dog kennel and took them to Segovia. As luck would have it, Mama called me about six weeks later and said, "Come get your goats. I'm through with them." WTH? I'm pretty sure that wasn't part of the plan.
Upon getting them back to the ranch, Sam told the goats they would have one week to become members of the herd and act like goats or they would be shipped to market. I would like to believe the goats actually understood Sam because they eventually stopped hanging around the back gate. We thought we could use them as lead goats when gathering the herd. That plan backfired when they jumped in the Ranger instead of following it back to the pens.
Joe is one of the prettiest billy goats we have in the herd. Dixie and Goose have become good mothers to their own little ones. All three goats still expect to eat from my hand when I shake the corn bucket. There is always a chance I will bottle-raise more goats but I will always have a soft spot in my heart for Joe, Dixie and Goose.
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