Goat – Asbery's Echoes

Meet Rubio

This is Rubio. She lives at my Dad and Mom’s along with her goat friend, Hazel. They are both Boer Goats. Hazel is Drew’s goat. Given to him by his Great Uncle Jerry. At the time Uncle Jerry gave her to Drew we didn’t have a place to keep her so Dad took her in. And he became attached! So, he then brought Rubio home from Uncle Jerry’s so Hazel could have a companion and they both live together at Dad and Mom’s where they are spoiled rotten! They even get daily treats of Fruit Loops!

Yesterday evening we went to Dad and Mom’s for supper. We roasted hot dogs over a fire in the backyard. Drew brought Rambler along and Rubio was fascinated. Dad doesn’t have a dog anymore so she doesn’t really see dogs much at all. Hazel paid no attention but Miss Rubio stood on this rock for a very very long time and just watched everything we did. I’m not sure if she was keeping an eye on Rambler or Drew or if she just liked the commotion of all of us out in the backyard. It was funny as she usually pays no attention to us at all.

It was a beautiful evening to sit outside.

It was a beautiful evening. The humidity had died down and there was a nice breeze. A wiener roast in the backyard was the perfect ending to a busy weekend of working on projects and getting a few things done. Rubio seemed to think so too!

Stitching Time

I finally got some stitching time in for me. It took me forever to get these three done – Sheep Heap, Goat Load and Hen Pecked. I had to stitch two of the Goat Load for others before I could finish one for myself! I will admit they came out pretty darn cute when they were finished into cupboard keeps. I’m not sure what I’m going to do with these three now. I’m thinking they would look cute framed but finding the right frame could be a challenge. They may end up in my HUGE pile of to be finished projects for now. We’ll see.

Then I started this one last night. I love bringing these little characters to life with my needle and thread. I swear that sometimes they talk to me as I’m stitching! To sit and stitch in the evening – there’s no better way to relax and unwind after a busy day. I know for sure I would simply fall asleep in my chair if I didn’t have something to do with my hands. A day without stitching doesn’t happen often for me and I usually have Drew snuggled up right beside me. Although those days are starting to be fewer and fewer. I’ll miss it when he decides he’s just too old to sit with him mom anymore.

Oh Hazel

Miss Hazel has done it again. She got her head stuck in a fence and tore up her ear. Not only once but twice. Dad called the vet and the vet had him run in and get some medicine for it but he didn’t think they needed to stitch it. They were afraid she would just do it again and tear the stitches out. So I got to help hold her while Dad gave her a couple of shots and then sprayed medicine on her ear. She didn’t like the shots and she doesn’t like the spray. The shots were a one time thing but the spray has to be done three times a day until the wound is healed. At least she chose a time when the flies are gone so we don’t have to worry about keeping them off of the open sore. And the spray must sting because she shakes and shakes her ear after we let her go. We give her some cheerios as a treat after every treatment so that makes her happy. She will now always have a funky looking ear but that’s okay. We love her just the same! Helping Dad like this brings back memories of growing up and helping around the acreage. There was always some animal to help out with be it hogs, sheep, rabbits, dogs, cats, a goat, horses. Sometimes I really miss those days. And I think Dad does too. He told me likes having livestock around again to mess with. Even it is only a couple of goats!

Oh Hazel

Hazel caused a little bit of trouble when she got home. Since we don’t actually have a place for Hazel at the moment, Dad volunteered to keep her over the winter until we can get a place fenced in for her. Dad is glad to have her to maybe get some weeds eaten down in his lot. Unfortunately, Hazel came home with us on a Monday and on Tuesday, she escaped. We spent Tuesday night looking for her to no avail. Dad felt awful. He called Uncle Jerry to see if he had sold the rest of his goats. Uncle Jerry proceeded to bring one of his old dairy goats along with another little goat to stay with Dad and Mom in hopes that they would help lure Hazel home.

She was spotted following the neighbor’s cows around. And she came out of hiding once when Mom went down and called like a goat but once she realized it was Mom and not a real goat, off she went. Then, thanks to a neighbor who had an “animal caller”, they took that down with them along with the old tame dairy goat, used the caller and lured Hazel back to the barn. She followed the dairy goat up no problem. I’m sure after spending three nights “in the wild” and all by herself she was ready for some company.

So we brought her home on Monday, she escaped on Tuesday, then she was home again on Friday evening. Saturday afternoon I took Drew over to spend time with her. She was a little skiddish, and why wouldn’t she be. The poor thing had had quite the week. Taken away from her herd, loose in the wild, back to a strange place. But Dad can catch her as she seems to have warmed up to him quickly, and we spent some time just talking to her and petting her and letting her get used to us. She’s a sweet little thing and has the most beautiful ears. It will take some time but I think she’s going to fit right in with us.

We went back over Sunday evening and took supper to Dad and Mom and spent some more time with Hazel. And Nanny and Rubio – as the other two goats have been named now also. Uncle Jerry will be taking them home at some point but how can you not name a goat? Nanny is a big pain in the behind. She is tame as can be and gets into everything and eats everything – including your clothes. Rubio on the other hand has never been handled and doesn’t want to be messed with. So for now Dad will have a good start on getting rid of those weeds with is new goat herd!

Meet Hazel

Remember Winston the goat? Well, Winston is to blame for Miss Hazel coming to live with us! Not really but he sure didn’t help! Drew has been begging for a goat, long before we camped with Winston, and Uncle Jerry just happens to have goats that he raises to sell. And he just happened to have this little brown one. And it just so happened that he was going to be selling the goats last Wednesday. And he really wanted Drew to have this goat. And then we camped with Winston and guess what? As of a week ago Monday we are now the proud owners of a goat!

Hazel is a Boer goat. There’s a good market for meat goats right now and that is why Uncle Jerry raises them. As you can see – if Drew wanted Hazel, he had to go out amongst the herd and catch her! He did a good job too but she did get away so Uncle Jerry helped out a little. It was good for Drew though to try.

My pictures aren’t the best as Hazel was in the back of the truck and she didn’t want to be be still. She was a little scared after being taken away from her herd and traveling in the back of the truck. Hazel is living at my dad and mom’s right now as we weren’t prepared for a goat. We will have to build her a pen. We know from experience that she likes to escape so we’ll have to be very diligent in our fence making endeavors. But that’s a whole other story to tell! Oh yeah- I’m in love with those ears!

Winston the Goat

This is Winston. We met Winston when we went camping at Lake Darling. Winston kept everyone entertained – especially the littles but he had the adults wrapped around his little finger too. Winston was so sweet – I decided he needed his own blog post!

Like I said – the littles loved him but as you can see the big kids loved him too! Winston acts like a dog. He follows his owners around just like a dog would but without a leash. He spent Saturday night with us while we sat around the fire. He would wander from person to person and want to be petted. But he never let his owner get too far away. He kept his eye on her!

He wore a bow tie on his collar and he wore diapers and a onesie to bed at night and slept in the tent with his owners. Now that is where I would draw the line! No goat diapers or goat sleepovers for me! Winston is used for goat yoga and I’m guessing he gets loved on a lot. He’s also hosting a family movie night this weekend in his barn where you can come watch a family movie and pet him and his goat friends. He also was a big incentive in what is now a new member of our family. I think I’ll leave that for another post!