Oh Susannah

Susannah - daughter of Montana who is the daughter of Hannah daughter of Crybaby. Sweet little Susannah is the smallest of the Class of 2010 on Buhlaland. On the right you see a picture of very feisty and rowdy kids - you do not see Susannah in this picture.









Here is Susannah - within a few minutes of her birth - she has been cleaned up and able to nurse so now resting to get energy after an abrupt and probably frightening entry into the world.

Susannah likes to "hang out" with her mama - Montana isn't the best mom in our little herd but she is all Susannah knows.

Montana has a year old daughter from Class of 2009 - we broke the cutesy pattern of names in 2009 - little doe's name is Sugar Pie (as in Sugar Pie Honey Bunch - you know that I love you) Sugar Pie is a tad jealous of mama's attention being given to intruder Susannah - as in the family portrait where she tries to unceremoniously push Susannah out of the picture!


Susaannah's closest kid pal is Milky Way - Milky is a rowdy girl but seems to calm down and be just friends with Susannah.

Amigo on the other hand irritates Susannah - a lot!

In the chute where we feed the Class of 2010 additional grain to help them grow big and strong - Susannah occasionally has a struggle pushing in for her share - the look on her face says it all "hey - do something about these greedy guts!"

But we're sure she'll be happy in the herd - with Milky Way around she knows she's got a friend.

Soon the Class of 2010 will reach an awkward stage where cuteness isn't their primary attribute - until then - we are clicking pictures and loving us some babies - when Susannah lets us catch her and nuzzles us - it is GOOD on Buhlaland.

Some too cute and some not so much!

Baby goats (kids) are absolutely adorable - frisky and curious about everything. The mamas are interesting - it has been 2 years since we had babies so some of the first timers are actually 3 years old. Most are doing a great job - not sure what I'll do with the one who rejected her very healthy little buck baby. He is in the pictures of a frantic mouth seeking the bottle - you need to know ,when the pictures were taken - he'd already had more than a full bottle. Gluttony becomes the ruler when he doesn't have mamas attention.











Beautiful little reddish brown doe needs naming - I've put it off because I needed to see who was staying and which ones we'd sell. I think she is staying - her mother's name is Blackie (really original of us don't you think?)

The black eared mama is a first timer named Montana (yes daughter of Hannah) her baby is exceptionally sweet and also nameless thus far. The two little bucks in a picture together - one is my bottle boy and the other is Kaj (now named Josiah) who was sold last night to a little girl for her 4H project.

Sunsets are so peaceful - the trees are budding up but still bare limbs silhouetted against the sky - it is good on Buhlaland and we are grateful for each day.

Psalm 134 (The Message)
A Pilgrim Song 1-3 Come, bless God, all you servants of God! You priests of God, posted to the nightwatch in God's shrine, Lift your praising hands to the Holy Place, and bless God. In turn, may God of Zion bless you—

God who made heaven and earth!

All God's people said -----Amen!

Out of words plenty of pictures

I really don't have much to say - as of this evening we have 15 babies and a good possibility of 4 more. Six lively little girls and the rest wild and wooly boys. Watching them is a joy - new life and warm weather today made for great fun. DH named a pretty little doe born to our sweet Lucky Girl - her doe is now officially Lucy. All good mamas - I only have one rejected baby - a perfectly healthy little buck - first time mama so perhaps she'll be better next time. It is birthing season on Buhlaland and we love it.

Finally a girl!

January 29


Her name is Bubbles - courtesy of a friend in New York State . I also have a poem from a friend in Spain but I need to get her permission to reprint it here. She is definitely a Bubbles - wonderful healthy and feisty little gal.

Aliya Gives Me A Name:

Yes, my name is Bubble's, it was Aliya's great choice, I love to skip and to play, and stay out of trouble's. And in the heart of Texas, small miracles happen, baby kid goats are being born, whilst the weather is frightening. My soft coat is warm, and my silky ears are long, perhaps when Aliya see's me here, she will sing me a song! Best friends, yeah, that's Aliya and Bubble's, you'll see our friendship a'growing, and lots of photo's of me. Keep your camera charged up, dear, sweet Linda Sue, I'm smiling and happy, and my friend Aliya is too!

My trusty Spanish/boer mix doe Pearl did a great job yesterday giving birth, cleaning up her babies and now being very protective of her twins in the midst of a crowded pen. The baby with a white "saddle" is a little fella - currently called BuckG(just using letters for the time being). The lovely little gal is our first female of this year's batch of kids. She is quite active and figuring out the rules of the goat pen as she goes. I wanted to get some pictures of her so a friend could name her - but having Pearl's girl still long enough to photograph proved a challenge! I don't like to post blurry pictures but I had a half dozen or more completely blurry ones.

Looks like she is thinking about trying to eat - but no teeth just yet. For now she is getting plenty of nutrition from her mama. It is sweet on Buhlaland to have healthy kids -

I'm not kidding, we're kidding

Early yesterday my cell phone was ringing - caller ID showed our BFF was calling. She had a crisis and her hubby was out of town. We jumped in the car and headed off to play Rescue Rangers. (I'm always nervous leaving the house in pants pulled over my nightgown and a coat - just so risky - with my nightgowns not at ALL risque!) A La Mancha doe tried to get through a gate and got "stuck". The herd members behind her decided it would be target practice to ram her and wedge her more tightly into the space.DH worked on it for a while and we were able to release her.

Back at our place a first timer doe was in definite labor. YoYo didn't do well with the labor part of the process but seemed quite taken with baby "A" - pretty little buck. Just before she got "A" completely cleaned up - along came "B".

We went from a medium sized "baby Bump" on YoYo to cute buck, then oh my goodness two little nubian bucks. Buck "A" has not been able to stand very well as yet, a condition not helped by rejection by YoYo. Ah the joys of bottle feeding.

YoYo occasionally pays attention to Baby" A". His hind legs are splayed out (you can see in the picture). This evening he managed to stand on his own for a full ten minutes.

Two of our other does look ready to deliver. I am praying they don't reject a baby. Bottle babies are cute for a few weeks. Part which is hard for me is I have to deal with a baby trained I am his mama and I will take him to the butcher - dadgum it isn't fun. DH said we can plan on keeping a few wethers, we'll see how things turn out. The kids will start getting names in a week or so.

There is a moment when you have a female goat - then suddenly there are two goats - a doe and her kid. It is a miracle every single time. Here on Buhlaland, it is kidding time and that is good.

Looks who's coming to dinner (and breakfast and everything in between)

A handsome little 3 week old Nubian buck. He met the MIL (Ethel) today and she approves - we'll have the little guy in a week or two. He is a bottle boy - currently being fed his mama's milk but by bottle (she rejected him). Hope he will be contented here - we don't have any kids this year and he won't be doing buck duty for a good long while yet! Looking forward to seeing how this new addition to the herd works - hope it isn't too stressful for him or for us. New life on Buhlaland - always interesting. We're working on a name for him - we already have a Nubie in our herd so that is out.

Does and others

Better a meal of vegetables where there is love than a fattened calf with hatred. Proverbs 15:17

We are having some friends over for dinner tomorrow after church (that would be lunch in other parts of the USA). The menu is challening my culinary inventiveness- there are food sensitivies/preferences involved. Mentioning that is not a complaint - I love the challenge . Currently looks like we'll be having beef pot roast with carrots/potatoes, baked chicken, salad, fruit platter, wheat rolls, apple crisp and an eggfree/milkfree chocolate cake. So there'll be more than vegetables but also fellowship with absolutely NO hatred. To segue to the goats is too complicated so here is the tale of how we started keeping goats:

When you live on even a little acreage in Texas you definitely want to maintain the ag property tax exemption. At least the tax savings was our line of thought when beginning our goat enterprise! fter being given a buck and a wether 4 years ago, we purchased does with some kids and began to fence. The fencing and much of the physical/engineering work falls to my multitalented spouse. I do maternity duty and make runs to the feed store or veterinary supply. A goat herd justifies the agricultural exemption even though definitely not a money maker most years. 2007 has brought a glut of animals on the market - so we are in a holding pattern to schedule selling this year's wethers. We are keeping does born this year. Right now I am still having fun naming the does. In case there are ever people actually reading this blog and you are new to goat terminology a quick dictionary: in a group of goats, male goats are bucks and female goats are does while their babies are kids. My favorite (lame) joke is that goatkeepers are the only people society won't condemn for selling their kids! Anyway - neutered male goats are wethers. Enough classroom - three '07 doe kids need names. First choice of naming rights go to our new friend, Ellie.

This lovely little gal pictured to the right (now officially named Violet) is a twin born in January - her mother's name is Crybaby, she has older half sisters, Hannah and Bananna and is very long legged for her age. She loves to eat tree leaves while standing on her hind legs like her mom. The next candidate (Now known as Montana - rhyming with Bananna and Hannah as well as honoring the TV show)is a granddaughter of CryBaby. CryBaby's identical twin does from 2005 are Bananna and Hannah - this '07 little doe was born to Hannah . She is white with long black ears like her mom and grandmother.

Last but definitely NOT least is Nubiana's little doe (Ta DA! Drum roll please for the lovely and feisty ELLIE )- a fraternal twin born about 7 weeks ago. She is a pretty dark brown color with white - I especially love the big white blaze down her face. Her brother is white with light caramel markings. She is very feisty - never backing down from the older/larger kids and staying very close to her male twin. Unlike her mother - she will have horns - the hornless trait doesn't breed true.

Below is Nubiana - with a bit of plant hanging hanging out of her mouth. She is naturally without horns - we do not dehorn our goats. Nubie is the mother of Norman (shown in previous post). This is the little buck (named Boudreaux - our Cajun attitude little fella - let the good times roll!)born two days ago having a meal with his mom, Norman, protecting him from my camera! Norman is definitely a sweet gal. Her kid from 2006 is a doe named YoYo - which makes Norman "YoYo's Ma" - an affectionate homage to the great cellist!

Today's post is longer than most will be - I'm at the real estate office and it has been very slow today. My hard working husband did mowing around the house and weed trimming around our office. He came across a couple of copperheads - this is a bad year for snakes and we are cautious when the grasses get high. :::shudder::::: one of the goats - Bananna, apparently was snake bitten recently - poor gal had a very swollen head but slowly is recovering. It is always an adventure here - some adventures have happy endings! See y'all later.