I've Been Busy

It's been a hectic last few weeks, as my family knows. First, with my sister-in-law, Brandie, getting a lung transplant-https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/brandierhoades/journal

Then, Dad had a heart attack last week-he is recovering well! 

It is starting to calm down now, and we have a lot to praise God for! 

I was delegated to start a church website where we can post sermons-here is the link to the work in progress. https://www.centervillealc.com

Thanks to those of you who commented and emailed me with ideas about Mr. Black! I really appreciate your feedback, and am happy to report that he is looking better. 

I had sent some blood in for mineral analysis, and here are the results. Him being low in copper, and on the lower side of normal for selenium and zinc, is what I figured. I don't know what to make of low magnesium though, and the phosphorus level being as high as the calcium is concerning to me-the calcium:phosphorus ratio in goats is supposed to be at least 2:1, or up to 8:1, to prevent bucks from forming stones in their bladders. 

All that said, blood testing for copper levels is actually not accurate, as goats store copper in their livers. To get an accurate assessment, you really need to send in a piece of liver, which isn't really feasible to do on a live goat. 

Also, when I told an online group what the results were, one person told me that blood testing for any mineral isn't accurate-I'm not sure if I believe that or not... 

 

Anyway, I wasn't really sure what to do with this new information, and while I was pondering it, something happened-spring came. With the onset of warmer weather, Mr. Black began shedding, showing a very nice, shiny, black coat under all that nasty winter hair. The hair that was missing on his topline and face is also coming back, and the dandruff is disappearing. I don't know if that is all due to the fact that, for the last month or so, he has been consuming his minerals at a rate of half a pound a week, or if it's just the warm weather and sunshine, finally kicking his body into action. At any rate, he is looking much better, and I don't plan on supplementing anything more at this time.

 

My favorite dog in the whole, wide world, wanting to go chase a calf.

I did let her do it for a little bit too. I find it so beneficial to video my sessions-I see so much where I can improve. A dog will almost always do what you tell it too-it just depends on you telling it to do the right thing, with tone, body language, positioning of the cattle, etc. 

I did a terrible job in this video, but hey-we got the calf moved! 

Speaking of calves, we have two of our own born so far! The first one was a solid black bull, and then this big heifer was born yesterday. Her dam is at least 13 years old, and has given us a very nice calf every year. We are bottle feeding this last calf so that we can send the cow to slaughter without being pregnant, like she would be if she raised this calf and went to summer pasture like our cows do.  

I really like this heifer, and asked Dad if I could buy it from him-he just gave it to me instead. Thanks, Dad! 

 This is my Holstein bull calf, that I may have never introduced on my blog. I got him back in January to consume the extra goat milk and leftover milk replacer that we had. He's the calf I've been training Jinger on, but I think we need to move to the yearling feeder calves now.

When I brought my ducks to the farm store to sell them, the store had some Red Ranger broilers for half price. I decided to get a dozen to try. We hated how colossal the cornish cross broilers got, so wanted to try something a little less "genetically modified."

 Desi had a little doe, whom Mom named Annie Laurie, last Saturday. She also had a dead, rotten buck, which was the hardest kid to deliver that I've had yet. Head bent back, legs folded, hair falling off by the hand full when I was trying to reposition it-it was bad, but at least the whole thing didn't fall to pieces when I pulled on it. It took me 45 minutes to deliver that kid, and I felt like Herriot with my arm all numb. When I finally got it out, it had no hair on its neck because it had all come off when I was trying to get it out.

I don't think Desi is out of the woods yet-she's just acting off, and still passing chunks of nasty stuff. 

Marion, who has never looked the same since Kate ripped her ear off. 

 Some of the does playing around.

Minx likes rolling in the dirt like a horse! Of course, she sat up as soon as I got the goat paparazzi out of in front of the camera and aimed the lens at her.

Little Flora!