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October 6, 2022Our farm is teeming with animals big and small and some are for companionship, some for milk, and some for eggs or meat. Lets meet our friends who will be permanent staples on our land!
First up:
Mary Lou
Mary Lou and her baby Cindy Lou were our first goats. They were sold to us by our close friends and while Cindy Lou never seemed to like me, Mary Lou always has. She is a mini nubian goat and doesnt produce much milk for us but she is special in her own way.
Cindy Lou
Cindy Lou is Mary Lou's daughter and though she has never been very sociable, she is a sweetheart who loves her mama. We are hoping to get a few babies from her this fall or winter!
Margo
Margo is a Nigerian Dwarf goat mix and is our BEST milker! She is sweet as can be and gives us about a half gallon of milk per day. She is very sociable and loves getting pets and her photo taken!
Lucy
Lucy is Margo's sister and the fiestier half of the two! She loves to be pet but HATES getting milked. She is our second best milker so we put up with her shenanigans but are hoping she will learn to relax and be a dream like Margo. Just like children though, she has her own personality and that makes her unique!
Jenny
Jenny is one tough girl! She is Lucy's daughter and while she isnt a big milker, she is strong and lovable. Jenny suffered an attack by our poodle Maggie. She couldnt walk, was bleeding from her neck and legs, and there was blood in her milk. It was advised that we put her down. Steven had hope though. We gave her a chance to survive and not only did she make it but she is back up on the milk stand like nothing ever happened!!!
Shadow
Shadow came to us from a woman who was giving her and her family away for free. She came with an intact buck, a doeling, and a sister. The buck was so aggressive that he had to be rehomed but what we didnt know what that he had gotten Shadow pregnant first!!! Woo! Shadow is shy and very difficult to find at times but is kind. She will one day be one of our milkers and we will be so blessed by her milk and her babies!
Clarabelle
Clarabelle is our one and only cow and will be a great milk source in a few years. She is playful and sweet but shy with our kids. She is a Jersey cow and will provide great A2 milk and cream. Yum!
Our Dogs:
Lady
Lady is our grumpy old lady! She is a pure bred rough collie and loves Steven, Mr Catholic Comedy, like crazy!! She was a discount puppy and stole his heart and came to our home just after our first child was born! She is about 8 years old.
Maggie
Maggie, short for Mary Magdalene, is a pure bred standard poodle. She was brought into our family as a therapy pet for our daughter and is amazingly sweet and loving with people! She loves cuddling and running around like crazy!
Unfortunately she also loves to hunt our farm animals and is kept under strict surveillance at all times. She has taken the lives of dozens of animals but is an amazing family dog so she gets to stay in the family anyway.
Tiana Snow White
Tiana was named by my youngest twin who at the time was 5 years old and is a pure bred mini ausie. She has so much spunk and is very stubborn. She listens to no one and does her own thing. She came to our family to be a herding dog for our new farm. Unfortunately she is not yet trained but is a great companion!
Evee
Oh Evee! Our little ball of fluff! This sweet girl was named by our oldest child who was 7 at the time and very much into Pokemon. ugh. Anyway, she came to our family to be a herding dog as well and expected her to get a bit bigger. She didnt. Haha! She is a tiny little fluff ball with lots of spunk and very smart! She is a pure bred Shetland Sheepdog. Don't let the breed of the dog fool you. She couldnt intimidate or herd any sheep to save her life!
Chickens, Ducks, Geese Oh My!
We are learning many things about caring for chickens. One thing is that they fly. They dont for very long but they can get right over our fences. The next thing is that everything is always trying to eat them!!! We have dealt with poodle attacks, hawk attacks, and what I can only assume is maybe a raccoon or something on ground level that can break through chicken wire. The chickens are guarded by 3 chinese geese. The geese have no names because they might become Christmas dinner.
We also have several ducks that do nothing but quack, waddle, and poop in every water source they can find. It is quite funny to hear what sounds like laughter when we are wandering about. Its like they know we are completely clueless at all of this!!
These are our main animals and we are adding and subtracting all the time. Our hope is to become at least 90% self sufficient within 5 years and be able to provide a fun, educational, and exciting life of hardwork and love for our children and grandchildren in the future!
St. Francis of Assisi Ora Pro Nobis!