Courtesy Sue Weaver My baby goats look even cuter now that they are dry. |
Meet my newest sons, Biscuit and Bijou. Aren’t you surprised they were born in October? So was Mom.
See, one night in early June, my daughter Jadzia came in heat (dairy goats don’t usually do that when it’s super-hot outside). She smelled so nice that I shinnied over the barrier between my run and the dairy goat barn and I bred Jadzia. When Mom found me in the morning, she was not amused. She put a strand of electric wire along the barrier (ouch!) so it wouldn’t happen again. And she marked her calendar, just in case.
A month or so ago, slim, svelte Jadzia started getting fat. Mom sighed and carried the birthing kit to the barn.
Wednesday afternoon, Jadzia went into labor. She pushed and pushed, she didn’t take rest breaks like most does do. Finally, a kid started coming out, but he seemed to be stuck. Mom gently pulled as Jadzia pushed, then out he came. Mom stripped the goo from his nose and toweled him off. Then she placed him in front of Jadzia’s nose. Jadzia sniffed, tentatively licked, and then she began licking her baby in earnest. But Mom saw two more hooves at Jadzia’s vulva. Here came the second kid back feet first but so quickly that Mom didn’t have time to help. She named the boys Biscuit and Bijou.
Jadzia is a perfect mom and my new sons are extra cute. And because I’m their dad and their granddad, Biscuit and Bijou are their own half-uncles!
