Twilight Posted July 6, 2015 Share Posted July 6, 2015 I started doing this when in my teens..... have continued it off and on through the years....now have had two jobs in the last 30 days. For 21 years before I moved this place my DD and I had a nice show string of productive dairy goats. We got other people started in dairy goats and in showing etc. But when I sold the farm I retired from such life and did not miss it very much. My last two jobs have been with goats.......a fine show herd of meat goats and now a herd of dairy goats. This job will be for 6 days...and it entails far more than I was told but that is what you run into in a job like this. Like drive over 4 times a day and feed the week old kids...two times a day is the limit with what I am being paid so I toted the kids home and I am going to regret it. But I do not have time to be running over there all day. No I do not ever want to have goats again, or if I do 1-2 will be enough certainly not the over 40 I was caring for at our own farm. Just because I am retired does not mean that I have nothing to do!!!!! Besides two acres to mow , daily picking up of limbs, keeping the house in good repair, and the list goes on..... I only got 1/2 or less of the lawn mowed this morning, with all the rain we have had it has known no slowing down of growth. Quote Link to comment
Mt_Rider Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 I inadvertently babysat 2 three-month old goats....till we could find the frantic owner... four days later. Even if they ate grass, I don't have fencing to let them graze. Mine free-range under Koa's watchful eye. Four days was enough...just not set up for them. Awful CUTE tho! MtRider ...sounds like this job is a LOT of work, Twilight! Quote Link to comment
lovinit Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 We are having wild fire to the North of us, and the are over 10,000 evacuees. Mt.Rider, the news makes me think of you every day. There is an effort going on to go back in to get pets and other animals. Quote Link to comment
Mt_Rider Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 OH...that just stops my heart! {thread drift...sorry} I'll be praying for any and all who are Evacuated and esp. for those with pets, livestock......and for the wildlife. You don't want to hear the stories of wildlife that don't make it out. MtRider ....wish we could send you some of this lovely rain that has us absolutely soggy...and enjoying it! Quote Link to comment
The WE2's Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 Putting on a foil hat...going to the Edge... Quote Link to comment
Jeepers Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 I'm glad this job is 'only' for 6 days! I'm sure it feels like a month though. Wildfires are something we don't have to contend with where I'm at. I've never lived where they are a problem. I can imagine how horrifying they must be. I hope you are safe where you are! Quote Link to comment
Mt_Rider Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 They must be bad fires....some parts of CO is getting health caution due to the smoke coming down from the Canadian Fires.... We're so foggy ...not sure how smoke could infiltrate??? MtRider ...how's it going, Twilight? Babies cooperating? Quote Link to comment
lovinit Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 Nine new fires in twenty four hours. I think there are 112 burning just now. No fire here but we do have advisories for the smoke coming down. My old dog likes it because we let her in the house where it is cooler and she can breath better.we have been hauling water up around our house, make the robins sing love songs to my husband Quote Link to comment
Mt_Rider Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 Stay safe, Lovinit...and MrLovinit!!! Know your EVAC routes. Have stuff ready to get out if it comes your way. MtRider Quote Link to comment
Twilight Posted July 8, 2015 Author Share Posted July 8, 2015 This job is a real concern to me. Although I have been on this place countless times visiting, I have never been in shall we say control of it. Folks, there is one thing that is imperative !!! You must practice consistency with animals. At all times they must respect you that YOU are the master!! Frankly I do not approve of farm animals as pets, they must preform for you some way. They can be therapy but even so obedience is a must. I have now been over there 5 times milking, feeding etc. They respect me as they have no respect for the owner. I demand it, they respond. In all actuality animals behind a fence look for a protector and it should be you. But if they find they can walk all over you...... you are worthless to them and it is a bad thing to be worthless to an animal. Goats for instance must never be allowed to climb on you and you start that training as kids. They were born on the ground they stay on the ground. You feed them bottles... you feed at udder height not with them standing on their back legs or on the fence! You keep them low they stay low. train them as babies and do not let them forget their training. Furthermore, the goats of all ages belong behind a fence. They get out, fix the fence, put up and maintain a hot wire if necessary but they stay where they are put.!! Why? Goats like to go where they can be a pest and get in trouble, try you to see what they can get by with. They can be greedy get into feed and gorge causing bloat, founder, or even death. They do not belong on the front porch, you should have enough pride to keep your porch clean of goat poop which you can only do by keeping the goats where they belong!! So the two spoilt does were out when I went over, had cleaned up the chicken feed etc.. made a royal pain of themselves. Their evening feed dishes were definitely deficient. I have no idea how they are getting out but I do know in my visits to this place in the past, they were out more than they were in. This is encouraging bad behavior! Not here but someone else I know... her goats got out and slept in the road, I have no idea how many goats she lost because of this but it was quite a few. Another one I know lived on the highway and her goats got hit and did vehicle damage that she had to pay for. Goats can eat poisonous plants and die. This is why it is the owners responsibility to control over where their animals are. And there are many other reasons. The LGD is kept in a small pen because he is food aggressive , train him now!! I stood over him and ever time he growled I said NO! that was the end of that. This is a seriously dysfunctional family I am working for and it is with deep concern I see these things for they have toddlers. But the children have no more training than the animals nor respect for them. The children are allowed to play in the feed room with the feed...... which they do and waste no end of it. I had no idea things were in this condition and I do not ever want to take care of this place again. I want nothing to happen on my watch and I will take care of them as if they were my own animals. I pointed out before they left that the chickens are sick..she did not leave me medicine. I destroyed one this morning... Chicks that had been in the brooder in the house until they left Sunday were put out in the yard in a cage on the ground near the eaves of the house. There is little I can do to change the situation. All I can say this is a grief to me for I know the breeding of many of these does and hate to see what is happening to them. I grieve for the children because of what is happening to them, not sure they have the strength of character to make anything of themselves when they are on their own. Sorry this is so long ..but any of you that do not have animals but want to get them...learn all you can before you obtain any type of animal or poultry. Make sure you can provide a safe environment for them, be prepared for any type of weather,and please do not get in over your head!!! It takes strength ,money, determination to live on a farm and take care of everything. You also must be willing to listen to a mentor! Quote Link to comment
Jeepers Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 So very well said Twilight! Sad situation. Quote Link to comment
Mt_Rider Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 (edited) Yes, agree. One more thing I learned about goats with horns....never touch their horns and they won't interact with you with the horns. "Mother" told me that before I got mine and one had horns. My other one is disbudded. I've always warned visitors to leave the horns alone. Watch your eyes/face when you bend over them....just cuz they'll toss their heads - not meaning to poke you. I've never had her be aggressive with me, nor even rub her horns on me. Likes her forehead scratched tho but I don't do it often. Safer to scratch their back and rump. I do free-range my goats due to no goat proof fencing on rental property. But I had a hard choice when the number of goats was too many for good management on this property and circumstance. I reluctantly gave away all but two. Hated to do it. Kept thinking we'd move....place where we could fence properly. Couldn't wait any longer when they kept getting onto the road and running me ragged. Nope, cannot continue to do that! I keep everything enclosed that they could get into like food, etc. ....other than that rope on the plastic sled. {Oops.} I now am careful to tuck up things like that cuz goats are extremely curious. Kept the two that are well bonded to me and each other. Good manners. Run to the dog if she barks [in THAT tone] from wherever they are on the property. Run to their yard/house when it begins to rain. Run up here also when I rattle a can of grain. [my ace in the hole if I need them!] Got rid of donkey when she decided to head for the road all the time....very unsafe for her and vehicles! Cannot invest in fencing so bye-bye to her. Large dogs...yeah, I explain to my darlin' at regular intervals..that the very air she breathes is MINE! "MINE" is the first signal I taught her, in fact. She's pretty good but strong-willed, independent-thinking dogs need occasional reminders. My horses respect the fencing even if the frontline is slowly being buried by the county grading/claiming a wider and wider road. Can't put Ms. Hysterical back in the paddock until we can repair the damage to the fence she did....and can't do that till the creek goes down. It's been above flood stage for months now. No matter. They have PLENTY of grass this rainy year. Twilight, it is risky to be responsible for that situation. Just do the best you can....I know you will. Tragic that they won't take precautions for the children either..... My neighbor is taking care of the place down the hill from her. She watched a large bear [the aggressive one we have?...dunno] empty all of the many bird feeders kept at that place. Then proceeded to break the latch and dig into the wooden box for garbage cans. Nothing to attract but cat litter, since owners were gone. Habit tho. Owners response was "Oh Goodie! I hope he's still there when we come back!" They FEED the wildlife, including bears. :frying pan: Nooooooooooooooo! The caretaking neighbor was very upset by this revelation. My friend who lives right next to this house on the other side had a visit yesterday afternoon by that bear. Chipmunk must have taken shelter in their underground water drain. Bear tore it up to get at something. Ripped it from the downspout drain. Right outside their front door! And the idiot neighbors are encouraging it's presence near human habitation. Wrecking the wild instinct that would formerly have kept it far away and fed a natural diet. Auuugh! MtRider Yogi should not get the pic-a-nic basket. Edited July 8, 2015 by Mt_Rider Quote Link to comment
Twilight Posted July 8, 2015 Author Share Posted July 8, 2015 I did not mention horns...because ..horns in the show world for dairy goats are not allowed. I would never own a horned goat because of the extreme danger of those sharp horns. They can kill other goats deliberately. They can hurt people unintentionally (or not). My DS was bending over a kid that moved its head just right to pierce her lower lip. So thank you, MtRider, for mentioning them because that is a very important fact that should be known about goats. Carelessness/foolishness with wild animals can end in demise. Quote Link to comment
The WE2's Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 This job is a real concern to me. Although I have been on this place countless times visiting, I have never been in shall we say control of it. Folks, there is one thing that is imperative !!! You must practice consistency with animals. At all times they must respect you that YOU are the master!! Frankly I do not approve of farm animals as pets, they must preform for you some way. They can be therapy but even so obedience is a must. I have now been over there 5 times milking, feeding etc. They respect me as they have no respect for the owner. I demand it, they respond. In all actuality animals behind a fence look for a protector and it should be you. But if they find they can walk all over you...... you are worthless to them and it is a bad thing to be worthless to an animal. Goats for instance must never be allowed to climb on you and you start that training as kids. They were born on the ground they stay on the ground. You feed them bottles... you feed at udder height not with them standing on their back legs or on the fence! You keep them low they stay low. train them as babies and do not let them forget their training. Furthermore, the goats of all ages belong behind a fence. They get out, fix the fence, put up and maintain a hot wire if necessary but they stay where they are put.!! Why? Goats like to go where they can be a pest and get in trouble, try you to see what they can get by with. They can be greedy get into feed and gorge causing bloat, founder, or even death. They do not belong on the front porch, you should have enough pride to keep your porch clean of goat poop which you can only do by keeping the goats where they belong!! So the two spoilt does were out when I went over, had cleaned up the chicken feed etc.. made a royal pain of themselves. Their evening feed dishes were definitely deficient. I have no idea how they are getting out but I do know in my visits to this place in the past, they were out more than they were in. This is encouraging bad behavior! Not here but someone else I know... her goats got out and slept in the road, I have no idea how many goats she lost because of this but it was quite a few. Another one I know lived on the highway and her goats got hit and did vehicle damage that she had to pay for. Goats can eat poisonous plants and die. This is why it is the owners responsibility to control over where their animals are. And there are many other reasons. The LGD is kept in a small pen because he is food aggressive , train him now!! I stood over him and ever time he growled I said NO! that was the end of that. This is a seriously dysfunctional family I am working for and it is with deep concern I see these things for they have toddlers. But the children have no more training than the animals nor respect for them. The children are allowed to play in the feed room with the feed...... which they do and waste no end of it. I had no idea things were in this condition and I do not ever want to take care of this place again. I want nothing to happen on my watch and I will take care of them as if they were my own animals. I pointed out before they left that the chickens are sick..she did not leave me medicine. I destroyed one this morning... Chicks that had been in the brooder in the house until they left Sunday were put out in the yard in a cage on the ground near the eaves of the house. There is little I can do to change the situation. All I can say this is a grief to me for I know the breeding of many of these does and hate to see what is happening to them. I grieve for the children because of what is happening to them, not sure they have the strength of character to make anything of themselves when they are on their own. Sorry this is so long ..but any of you that do not have animals but want to get them...learn all you can before you obtain any type of animal or poultry. Make sure you can provide a safe environment for them, be prepared for any type of weather,and please do not get in over your head!!! It takes strength ,money, determination to live on a farm and take care of everything. You also must be willing to listen to a mentor! Wisdom for sure! I know when my first husband and I raised rabbits, lots of people thought we were "too fistidious" with them but we had hard earned money tied up in our working does and bucks, and the fryer sized went to market and put meat on our table. Same when we raised hogs...when the neighboring farmer saw our feeders she said "I guess you were right about the way to do it" :-) She had a young calf down and we "just happened" to have some electrolyte solutions that we injected and the calf was up with hours. Would never raise hogs again though :-) Quote Link to comment
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