Goats are both inquisitive and mischievous animals, but they do have a special place in my heart.

Our goats get into everything!

Currently, Indian Chimney Farm is home to two Nubian does (females), Sapphire and Diamond, who like to greet our visitors. Though our small farm is primarily an alpaca breeding operation, I felt we needed a couple of goats to spice things up. I have always wanted to have a goat, perhaps to see if they really do climb all over everything and eat just about anything. The spring after we bought our farm, I heard about some available goats that were being milked. Off I went to check out these girls at Fool on the Hill Farm. That’s when I found out how irresistible they are. Jo Roehrig showed me her barn full of goats of all ages. Two that Jo showed me were registered Nubian goats that were currently being milked. I knew they were coming home with me if we could entice them into the back of my Jeep Cherokee. It took a little convincing but we managed and the girls didn’t seem overly traumatized. Next Jo offered me a quick lesson in feeding, milking and toenail trimming. In theory I knew how to milk and trim toes but it's different when the animal doesn't want anything to do with it.

Kim is milking one of her Nubian Goats

That night when Chris got home from work, we had two goats that needed to be milked. They were a little unsure of their new environment but a bucket of grain goes long ways to convincing them things are OK. After cleaning the teats and my hands I settled down for my first milking session. After an awkward minute I got the hang of it and felt like a pro. The girls for the most part behaved themselves. I had a makeshift milk stand and after a few days they knew the routine. After all, I was milking every 12 hours, so I had lots of practice. Once I was comfortable I had to show Chris how to milk. He wasn’t so sure of it but he tried his best. He was able to get the hang of it after a while though he really liked when I milked and he just had to bring the bowl to the kitchen.

Once the milk was in the house, it was transferred to a clean glass jar and refrigerated. Out comes the pasteurizer once we had one gallon saved up. The pasteurizer made using the milk so much easier. Neither of us was able to consume much of the raw milk. Our systems just didn’t have the capacity to deal with it. I decided it was time to make cheese! I purchased a soft cheese-making kit to start with. I didn't know much about cheese making. Soft cheeses are rather easy to make and quite yummy. Chevre rolled with herbs, mozzarella and ricotta were my specialties. Needless to say, I made quite a few lasagnas and stuffed shell dishes that summer. Guests were treated to chevre and crackers. I miss making fresh cheese; perhaps I’ll just purchase some fresh goat milk and get back into making my own cheese. When visitors came to the farm, it was fun to show them how to milk a goat. Sapphire was fine with having anyone milk her out as long as that grain bucket and hay were in front of her. Diamond is a bit shy so only Chris or I would milk her. Once milk production was steadily declining I decided to dry them off. A few months of milking showed me I was happy to have them as pets but didn’t need to milk them daily to enjoy goats. I decreased their grain intake over a couple weeks and changed their hay to a lower quality grass mix from the higher protein hay they had been eating. Then, one day I just didn't milk. The udder became engorged with milk and the goats became very unhappy. All that complaining eventually passed; you just have to be strong and know that you aren’t hurting them. Their body knows what to do to re-absorb the milk. After a couple of days, they calmed down and the udder size began to subside.

The girls took well to life on an alpaca farm, they quickly figured out the alpaca wouldn’t challenge them. The goats get all the hay and the alpaca just stand there watching. A little spit from an alpaca doesn’t do much to deter a goat's head butt. Now the girls rule the barnyard if allowed to run with the alpaca. For that reason I have a smaller paddock for them to run in. When the alpaca are in the pasture, the goats get to go up too. If I happen to be out trying to work in the barnyard both goats follow me around. At least I'm head goat! . I found out one day how true that is. I like to let them roam the yard when I'm doing yard work. I've made sure I know what plants in the yard are toxic to animals (not many). They stick close by and usually just munch grass or a shrub or two if I'm not watching. One day I ran into the back room of the house to grab something when I heard some loud crashing behind me. Both goats were at a full run and bounded up the 4 steps to the back room. Linoleum isn't a great footing for a running goat so it was quite hilarious. They stopped, looked around and zoomed in on a plant (toxic unfortunately). I managed to save the plant and wondered how I was going to get them down the stairs. Sapphire just bounded down after me but Diamond needed a little coaxing. Both goats have been in the house a few times now just to dazzle visitors.

Our mischevious goat Sapphire

I have no plans to breed them in the future, though it would be nice to have some goat kids running around the pasture. Two goats is plenty for this farm. This year Sapphire will be returning in her role as greeter to all who visit the farm. She loves the attention and will allow herself to be led around on a collar and leash.

I hope this little article piques your interest and you come by to meet our two goats. They certainly can be mischievous but with some easy management they are fun farm animals to have around.