Welcome Aster and Gertie!

Uh oh! More goats?!?

Yes!

This morning we climbed into the (almost) goat-proofed camper and made our way down to Massachusetts to pick up two more goats: Aster and Gertie. These girls came from the Hillman Farm in Colrain, MA, which is home to ~30 CAE-free, SFCP-tagged dairy goats. The girls rode fairly well in the van, but it soon became obvious which of the two personalities was dominant: Gertie's. While Aster tried to sleep and be a good goat, Gertie nipped at her ears and moved her from one side of the camper to the other. When she wasn't bossing Aster around, she was pawing at the floor to hoard the hay between her legs. What a nut! Despite Gertie's behavior, the ride went smoothly and the girls arrived home three hours after their departure.

When we opened the van's door, Gertie jumped out ready to go, while Aster sat passively chewing her cud. She didn't see a reason to get out, and it even took some coaxing with grain.

Aster needs a reason to get out of the van.

We let the girls out into the upper paddock, and, as per their breeder's suggestion, we moved Grant to the lower paddock so they could establish some social relationships without Grant's horns.

Gertie poses while Grant looks on from the lower paddock.

Aster poses with a mouth-full of hay.

These girls are exactly what we were looking for when Hops passed last weekend. They're 3 1/2 years old, primarily Alpine with a little Nubian, and neither one is bred. Aster is still milking, so we can dry her off or continue milking her, while Gertie is dried off. Both have freshened every year, and so we're giving them the year to take a break.

Now we're just keeping our fingers crossed that Grant will integrate without abusing the girls with his horns. Hopefully they (and we) will be able to figure out the goat social hierarchy without too many injuries, and our goat herd will be viable once again.

I think I even heard someone on the farm say they were looking forward to milking again. Maybe next year there will be kids, and that means milk, and milk means chevre! But at least we have the option and Grant has company.

Oh, Goats! I guess we just can't live without them!