It's been two weeks since Cocoa gave birth to twin girls. One was "dropped" out in the field. Her name is Rhianna, and no, she's not named after some singer. She's got a beautiful Celtic name. The second baby was born in the barn, and her name is Frosting. She has a silver ring around her black nose and she look's like she dipped her nose into a can of frosting. Hence, her name.
These two kids are gymnasts. They run, jump, twist, and spring everywhere. They have two speeds...fast and stop!
Danielle spent quite some time putting small hole chicken wire completely around the entire back enclosure so that Cocoa could stay out with her babies and we wouldn't have to worry about them walking through the fence. So now the back pasture is the official "nursery"!
Prissy is not eating her sweet feed very well. She does better when it is mixed with some of the grain we give the sheep.
Danielle is busy making lots of soap. We got a much larger stainless steel bowl for making soap, and she made ten pounds in one go today. This soap is a vanilla oatmeal bar. We're having fun experimenting. Samples of some of the earlier batches have gone out and we hope to sell them soon. They're cured and ready.
Danielle will be doing the fall Fairy festival in Spotsville with Lisa, so we're busy creating stock for the show. Lots of soap sacks, to go with the soap, which will be ready by October.
We've had internet issues for almost a week now. So these blog posts haven't been as timely as we would have liked. Hope the internet will stay up and running so you can hear more soon.
The Maryland Renaissance Festival started this weekend. We are working on an idea to bring the goats to the Faire and do an educational piece about milk production in the 1500's. Also, maybe we'll bring lambs, and talk about wool, spinning, weaving, etc, as it pertained to that time period, also. It's an idea.
Monday, August 31, 2009
Friday, August 14, 2009
Cocoa's Babies!!
A quick post before Shabbat. Cocoa is finally giving birth as I type. We think. Anyway, she gave birth to a white girl out in the field, and to a black girl in the barn. Both have "nursed" and seem to be doing fine. I'm getting this from Danielle, who is there, and I'm here and it's almost Shabbat. But wanted to let everyone know. Just posted a shared picture of the second one on my facebook account. Will let you know more tomorrow night!
Monday, August 10, 2009
A Slow Week--no "problems"
Other than the sticker burrs, everything is doing well. The little goats keep wandering through the fence to eat the "good stuff" on the other side, but they keep coming back to be with the herd. They don't always come when "called", but "mom" doesn't come when they call her, either! They don't go far, and need to "touch base" frequently, so we don't worry.
The goats are going to get a bath today. We made shampoo soap bars for sale, and we're going to try them out today. "Should" be fun.
As for sticker burrs, we think we've gotten them all out of the pasture, but somehow the sheep keep finding more! It's getting to be a burden, catching them to pull out the burrs. I've been tempted to take a seam ripper out to the farm to cut the wool away from the burrs. But since this is our first year with sheep, we don't want to damage the wool for when we shear next spring.
Speaking of wool, the sheep seem to be so hot right now. It's still very hot, and will be, here in Maryland, for many more weeks to months. I know the sheep will be warm this winter, but we don't want to have them overheat before winter gets here! Our saga will continue.....
The goats are going to get a bath today. We made shampoo soap bars for sale, and we're going to try them out today. "Should" be fun.
As for sticker burrs, we think we've gotten them all out of the pasture, but somehow the sheep keep finding more! It's getting to be a burden, catching them to pull out the burrs. I've been tempted to take a seam ripper out to the farm to cut the wool away from the burrs. But since this is our first year with sheep, we don't want to damage the wool for when we shear next spring.
Speaking of wool, the sheep seem to be so hot right now. It's still very hot, and will be, here in Maryland, for many more weeks to months. I know the sheep will be warm this winter, but we don't want to have them overheat before winter gets here! Our saga will continue.....
Monday, August 3, 2009
Sticker Burrs Galore
After such an early start to the day, you'd think we'd go to sleep early tonight. No such luck. We went out to the farm early this evening, thinking we'd situate everyone, and come home and weave. Unfortunately, when we looked at some of the sheep, they looked a little funny this evening. Thank goodness Susan came over to help. Three of the sheep, Moonlight and her baby Stormy, and Ebony (the orphan baby), were covered in sticker burrs, deep in their fur, especially around their necks. It was awful. We had to have Susan hold their heads, and Danielle and I went through their fur and picked out each and every sticker burr. Yucky.
I'm glad we did it. Tomorrow we go through the yards and cut down every sticker burr bush we can find.
So, it's a late night. But we're satisfied.
Danielle spent a great deal of time this afternoon weaving a towel on the table loom. I'm still working on the triangle loom, on a shawl. Both will be available on the Etsy page, which you can access from the website at www.mdkwi.com on the KareDan Farm page. Tomorrow we'll be making a batch of goats' milk soap. You can write for a sample of the soap we've already made. Let us know at info@mdkwi.com
I'm glad we did it. Tomorrow we go through the yards and cut down every sticker burr bush we can find.
So, it's a late night. But we're satisfied.
Danielle spent a great deal of time this afternoon weaving a towel on the table loom. I'm still working on the triangle loom, on a shawl. Both will be available on the Etsy page, which you can access from the website at www.mdkwi.com on the KareDan Farm page. Tomorrow we'll be making a batch of goats' milk soap. You can write for a sample of the soap we've already made. Let us know at info@mdkwi.com
Whew! All Is Well!
We got up REALLY early, got ready, and drove out to the farm this morning. As soon as we got there, by 7:10 a.m., we were already calling, "Turtle! Turtle!" But we decided to check the barn, just in case she had already come back by herself. The back pasture has a fence she can climb through, and it opens into the stall of Prissy, Magic, and Peaceful. Sure enough, she was asleep in that stall with them!! We were so relieved!
We called Susan right away, and woke her up. She hadn't slept well at all, so she got dressed and came right over. The relief in her voice just on the phone was enough to make us happy we'd gotten up so early. Never stand between a maternal woman and a baby...of any species.
So....that saga is finally over. And while the hours may have been just a few, it seemed a really long time.
We spent the rest of the morning cleaning out the yard around the chicken coop. The animals were all in there, and we even opened the gate from the sheep pasture and let the sheep in with the goats. The only ones who weren't in were the alpacas. We don't seem to have as much time for them as we used to. I wonder why?
The trampoline out Jacob's back kitchen door is now covered with all the trash we picked up. Rolled up hose, electrical wire, candlesticks, flowerpots, broken glass (!), boards that had been grown over, and lots of trash. We need to take out a large, heavy-duty trash bag to put most of it into.
We came home and got here about the same time we've been getting to the farm on most mornings. A good morning's work, and now we have the day to weave and garden.
We called Susan right away, and woke her up. She hadn't slept well at all, so she got dressed and came right over. The relief in her voice just on the phone was enough to make us happy we'd gotten up so early. Never stand between a maternal woman and a baby...of any species.
So....that saga is finally over. And while the hours may have been just a few, it seemed a really long time.
We spent the rest of the morning cleaning out the yard around the chicken coop. The animals were all in there, and we even opened the gate from the sheep pasture and let the sheep in with the goats. The only ones who weren't in were the alpacas. We don't seem to have as much time for them as we used to. I wonder why?
The trampoline out Jacob's back kitchen door is now covered with all the trash we picked up. Rolled up hose, electrical wire, candlesticks, flowerpots, broken glass (!), boards that had been grown over, and lots of trash. We need to take out a large, heavy-duty trash bag to put most of it into.
We came home and got here about the same time we've been getting to the farm on most mornings. A good morning's work, and now we have the day to weave and garden.
Disaster Strikes!
I started this late last night, but was too tired to finish it. Please read it as a Sunday, August 2, 2009, post!
It poured this morning. So hard that we realized that none of the animals would be going out to pasture. We aren't milking anyone yet, so we decided not to head out. Susan checked on them later and around 2:30 in the afternoon she let the sheep and goats out into their respective pastures.
This evening we got out to the farm around 8-ish. Susan was already there by the gate, waiting for us. We'd called her on our way out to come meet us. Guess who also met us at the gate? Prissy, Magic and Peaceful. And coming up from the side of the back pasture, from the woods, came Cocoa, Nana, Snowflake, and.....and....and....wait, where was Turtle? Turtle, as you may remember, is the baby girl goat, just four weeks old last Friday.
We called. We ran. We looked. It got darker. We checked the front yard fields. We checked with the sheep. We found out that the goats had broken the ring that the front yard fence was hooked to and that they pushed their way out. One mystery solved. We fixed it. We got flashlights. Susan kept saying she felt responsible and we kept telling her she wasn't. That didn't help any of us from being teary.
In the end, we decided Turtle, being a goat baby, must have hunkered down and kept quiet. Nana didn't realize she didn't have her baby girl until we'd gotten her back in the barn. Everyone was quiet, not even asking (mah-ing) for sweet feed. We think they knew Turtle was missing. Nana kept smelling Snowflake and trying to figure out why there was only one kid, not two.
We finally came back and went to sleep. We'll get an early start back to the farm. I hope we find her this morning. I hope nothing else found her last night.
It poured this morning. So hard that we realized that none of the animals would be going out to pasture. We aren't milking anyone yet, so we decided not to head out. Susan checked on them later and around 2:30 in the afternoon she let the sheep and goats out into their respective pastures.
This evening we got out to the farm around 8-ish. Susan was already there by the gate, waiting for us. We'd called her on our way out to come meet us. Guess who also met us at the gate? Prissy, Magic and Peaceful. And coming up from the side of the back pasture, from the woods, came Cocoa, Nana, Snowflake, and.....and....and....wait, where was Turtle? Turtle, as you may remember, is the baby girl goat, just four weeks old last Friday.
We called. We ran. We looked. It got darker. We checked the front yard fields. We checked with the sheep. We found out that the goats had broken the ring that the front yard fence was hooked to and that they pushed their way out. One mystery solved. We fixed it. We got flashlights. Susan kept saying she felt responsible and we kept telling her she wasn't. That didn't help any of us from being teary.
In the end, we decided Turtle, being a goat baby, must have hunkered down and kept quiet. Nana didn't realize she didn't have her baby girl until we'd gotten her back in the barn. Everyone was quiet, not even asking (mah-ing) for sweet feed. We think they knew Turtle was missing. Nana kept smelling Snowflake and trying to figure out why there was only one kid, not two.
We finally came back and went to sleep. We'll get an early start back to the farm. I hope we find her this morning. I hope nothing else found her last night.
Saturday, August 1, 2009
A Great Book
Have you ever come across a book that so thoroughly engrossed you that time passed and suddenly, the book was finished, but so was the day (or night)?! Today I was fortunate to have one of those times. I began, and finished, the book Goat Song, by Brad Kessler. The subtitle reads, "A Seasonal Life, A Short History of Herding, and the Art of Making Cheese". What a phenomenal book. This is a story of a couple who chose to move out of the city, live out in the country, and raise their own goats to be able to drink raw goats' milk. They learned about cheese-making, had a great time, learned a lot, and eventually made aged cheeses from their super fresh raw goat's milk that they were able to sell in some very fancy stores/restaurants in New York.
In this country, you will find it extremely difficult to find fresh raw milk cheese. America chose the fast route of pasteurization to kill bad things in bad milk, as opposed to the strict supervision of raw milk dairy farms found in Europe. This is one of the reasons that Europeans consider Americans to be lacking in "culture"! The real story will raise hair on the back of your head. I don't know if I can copy anything from the book, but the history is documented in it, and it's well worth the read.
Brad Kessler has written a wonderfully entertaining, informative, emotional "tome" (not to be confused with 'tomme'--an aging wheel of cheese). Although he does compare the 'tome' with the 'tomme' in his book. The story draws you in and keeps you there. He and his wife live in Vermont, and while that is too far north for me, and way too cold, the support the state of Vermont gives its small farms and farmers makes me very envious of them. Maryland is not supportive of raw milk and has done a lot to discourage us. Again, aged cheeses can be sold, but the delicious chevres and mozzarellas that we make must remain "in house" due to legalities.
I highly recommend reading this book if you have any interest in pastoral life, cheese making (a few recipes are included, as well as many other books for you to look into for recipes and tips), or an interest in goats and goat herding.
Our goats are doing well. We're still waiting on Cocoa to give birth, but we keep seeing signs that say she's getting close. What that means in terms of actual dates is beyond us, but the "signs" are there!
We opened up all the yard pastures, and the goats love the complete access. They are "mowing" the weeds and the high grasses, and we're thinking about renting them out!! (Not really, but it's an idea!) The babies are getting socialized with the herd, and tomorrow night may be the night that we separate them from their mama for the night, and milk her part way in the morning. In another four weeks they should be completely weaned and we'll have milk from Nana again. And then, it's back to fresh milk and great fresh cheese!
In this country, you will find it extremely difficult to find fresh raw milk cheese. America chose the fast route of pasteurization to kill bad things in bad milk, as opposed to the strict supervision of raw milk dairy farms found in Europe. This is one of the reasons that Europeans consider Americans to be lacking in "culture"! The real story will raise hair on the back of your head. I don't know if I can copy anything from the book, but the history is documented in it, and it's well worth the read.
Brad Kessler has written a wonderfully entertaining, informative, emotional "tome" (not to be confused with 'tomme'--an aging wheel of cheese). Although he does compare the 'tome' with the 'tomme' in his book. The story draws you in and keeps you there. He and his wife live in Vermont, and while that is too far north for me, and way too cold, the support the state of Vermont gives its small farms and farmers makes me very envious of them. Maryland is not supportive of raw milk and has done a lot to discourage us. Again, aged cheeses can be sold, but the delicious chevres and mozzarellas that we make must remain "in house" due to legalities.
I highly recommend reading this book if you have any interest in pastoral life, cheese making (a few recipes are included, as well as many other books for you to look into for recipes and tips), or an interest in goats and goat herding.
Our goats are doing well. We're still waiting on Cocoa to give birth, but we keep seeing signs that say she's getting close. What that means in terms of actual dates is beyond us, but the "signs" are there!
We opened up all the yard pastures, and the goats love the complete access. They are "mowing" the weeds and the high grasses, and we're thinking about renting them out!! (Not really, but it's an idea!) The babies are getting socialized with the herd, and tomorrow night may be the night that we separate them from their mama for the night, and milk her part way in the morning. In another four weeks they should be completely weaned and we'll have milk from Nana again. And then, it's back to fresh milk and great fresh cheese!
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