Well, as you know, we picked up three new does the first of the month (thankfully we got through Snoqualmie Pass before the snow began and just kept coming. Anyway, as those of you who have been following this blog, know that I made some serious errors in knowing WHEN my original does are due to kid. So, one of these new does that we got, she was OBVIOUSLY in heat (hanging through the fence - calling the boys - shaking her tail) and I decided that I was going to see what would happen if I paid attention.
Well, let me tell you! We let Showdown in with her and he immediately bred her! Then he continued to chase her - we watched them for a little while and it finally became obvious that she was bred (we can discuss this at another place and time!) Anyway, she then was just following him around (different than him chasing her) and leaning on him (Oooh, I love you ... Oooh, baby!)
After about two hours, I went out and was watching and you knew the party was over - he was at one end of the yard and she was off doing her own thing. Another afternoon delight that ended without speaking!
So, while we're STILL waiting on these boer goat kids from the fall breeding, I know that on July 2 (or thereabouts) we should find ourselves with more kids!
My daughter is doing 4-H this year with her Boer Goats at the Clallam County Fair! We are very excited as we await the arrival of these kids - she's anxious to see which kid is going to be going to the fair with her.
She is also the owner of one of the boer goat does that we're waiting for kids on, and she's anxious to see if she's got any kids that are worth something that she wants to show.
So, still we wait ... but we're a lot smarter than we were before!
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Saturday, February 2, 2008
Thank Goodness For Friends!
Okay, I've finally admitted it ... I didn't know what I was doing when I did it, but now that I've done it, I'm not sure what I did!
This all has to do with breeding boer goat does last fall. We have raised llamas for more than 5 years, and for those of you that don't know, llamas don't have heat cycles. They are induced ovulators, meaning that it requires the act of breeding for the girls to ovulate (get pregnant.)
Well, we were just plain ignorant as it relates to breeding boer goats, and never thought to pay attention to WHEN the goats bred - but rather, without thinking - assumed that when we put the buck in with the does, that 150 days later we'd have babies. Well, okay, maybe not ALL of them in 150 days, poor Buddy would need some rest between calls. But, as we have learned, that is most definitely NOT the case.
I have a very dear friend and co-worker that used to raise dairy goats (she says it's been a lifetime ago), but she's the closest person that I know that come and let me know if I've even GOT a bred doe - YEAH!!! We will have babies!!! Now, it's a matter of when.
Bootsie, Hayley's doe, is definitely bred, definitely bagging up (although she's not filling up yet) so the assumption is that she's got a couple of weeks to go.
Sam, my big paint doe, is definitely bred and probably due about the same time as Bootsie.
And all the other girls that I thought were bred, probably are. But, the timing is still the question.
I think, if this is something that is true, that although Buddy was in with the girls for awhile, until we brought Showdown onto the property, he probably was only playing with the girls. BUT, when he realized that there was a new guy in town, it seems he went to work - and if Jeanette's right, most of these does are due in the exact same time frame.
So, while my patience level has dropped - and my "is it ever going to happen" questions are pathetic ... it seems it will ... and next year, we'll KNOW when they're due to kid ...
Thank God for friends!
This all has to do with breeding boer goat does last fall. We have raised llamas for more than 5 years, and for those of you that don't know, llamas don't have heat cycles. They are induced ovulators, meaning that it requires the act of breeding for the girls to ovulate (get pregnant.)
Well, we were just plain ignorant as it relates to breeding boer goats, and never thought to pay attention to WHEN the goats bred - but rather, without thinking - assumed that when we put the buck in with the does, that 150 days later we'd have babies. Well, okay, maybe not ALL of them in 150 days, poor Buddy would need some rest between calls. But, as we have learned, that is most definitely NOT the case.
I have a very dear friend and co-worker that used to raise dairy goats (she says it's been a lifetime ago), but she's the closest person that I know that come and let me know if I've even GOT a bred doe - YEAH!!! We will have babies!!! Now, it's a matter of when.
Bootsie, Hayley's doe, is definitely bred, definitely bagging up (although she's not filling up yet) so the assumption is that she's got a couple of weeks to go.
Sam, my big paint doe, is definitely bred and probably due about the same time as Bootsie.
And all the other girls that I thought were bred, probably are. But, the timing is still the question.
I think, if this is something that is true, that although Buddy was in with the girls for awhile, until we brought Showdown onto the property, he probably was only playing with the girls. BUT, when he realized that there was a new guy in town, it seems he went to work - and if Jeanette's right, most of these does are due in the exact same time frame.
So, while my patience level has dropped - and my "is it ever going to happen" questions are pathetic ... it seems it will ... and next year, we'll KNOW when they're due to kid ...
Thank God for friends!
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