Are we a farm yet?

 

Let's begin with the bucks that started it all. Meet Oreo and Snickers (Yes, my children named them). Two years ago, Valentine's Day was approaching, and my husband was acting very suspicious. Many times, we would stand outside, and I would mention how SOMEDAY I wanted goats and chickens. Not particularly at the time, as we were renting a house in a close-knit small town. It didn't exactly have an HOA, but there were still ordinances in place prohibiting livestock housed within 150 feet from other residents. We wouldn't exactly be following those ordinances, and my husband, let's just say, doesn't always do things in order or follow the rules ;) Anyways, as the holiday crept up, he kept mentioning baby goats, asking "have you ever thought about what kind of goats you'd like to raise?" I had not. I knew nothing about goats! Well, as destiny would have it, we had a lady nearby that was selling Nigerian Dwarf goats (probably the best to start with as they don't tend to be bigger than a dog). She had a few bottle babies available. My husband took it upon himself to arrange to buy the goats and brought me with him. He told me right before we met her (in case I told him no)! He showed me pictures of the babies, and I just couldn't resist. 

I did not grow up with farm animals or livestock of any kind. The closest I came, were some chickens that my grandparents had for a short while. She lived in a rural town (at the time) where there were cattle and dairy farms everywhere. It was a boring drive through that town, only seeing open fields and cows. You don't realize when you are young, how you would come to appreciate and crave that sight when you are older. I was used it as a kid. Now everywhere you look in that same town, is a restaurant, strip mall, or parking lot. Anyways, I had zero experience with goats. 

We met this lady, and she hands me this baby goat no longer than my forearm. I was, let's say, less than confident, to even take the goat from her. My husband took the other and we climbed in the truck. He places both of them on my lap, so he could drive, and I am torn between the fear of "what did we just get ourselves into?" and "I will love them forever!"

That first week, let me tell you, was the most nerve-racking week that I have had, to date, with animals. I was doing so much research on goats; my head was spinning. What do they eat? What kind of shelter do they need? What kind of maintenance do they need? Now, as I mentioned before, these were bottle babies. All I needed for now was a bottle and some milk. Seems easy enough, right? I had kids, I had this! Not exactly how it happened. I had bought baby goat nipples and whole milk. My goats were in a new environment and could sense I had no idea what I was doing. I tried and tried to get them to take a bottle. I panicked. They weren't eating! I reached out to several people, posted on an online forum for goats, and watched numerous videos on how to get them to take a bottle. I tried warm molasses on the nipple and in the milk. I tried prying their mouths open with my finger and stroking their necks to initiate suckling. I tried numerous times a day! I even texted my husband, "I can't do this". 

The breakthrough came when I ran to the dollar store and bought regular baby nipples. I picked up Oreo and he instantly grabbed hold of that nipple and chugged. Milk was dripping from his chin and his tail was wagging! That meant he was getting satisfied. I cried tears of joy! I had never been so relieved in my life! I had such high hopes that Snickers was fixing to do the same and all would be right in the world. Boy, was I dead wrong! He would wind up being my most stubborn goat to date. I had to hold him like a football, pry his mouth open, squeeze the milk from the bottle down his throat, and pray he was hungry enough to grab ahold. Y'all, it was day 3 when he would finally start suckling on his own! 

In the midst of Milkgate, there was also the lingering question, where are they going to live? Obviously, goats live outside in a barn! Well, at that time we had an empty backyard in the middle of a neighborhood. We didn't even own a shed! The immediate solution was to completely cover our bathroom floor in pee pads, put down a bowl of water, and some cute comfortable dog beds. You can only imagine how long this lasted! Turns out for about a month! In Texas, it tends to snow and ice over in Feb/March. It was too cold for two babies to be on their own outside. When the day finally came, where the weather was fair enough, we built a small shelter and put up a small, caged arena around it. I could not have been happier! There was something inside me, every day, that delightedly jumped for joy, looking outside and seeing a goat pen and two goats, in my own backyard! They were all mine! I officially felt like a goat mama!

Moral of the story: Do your research, first!