Pack Goat Central

Today I clipped and bathed Cuzco in preparation for the Weld County Goat Extravaganza where he's been invited to star again this year. I've never clipped him when he still had so much undercoat, and let me tell ya--it's not recommended! At least Cuzco is patient even when the clippers get jammed in all that "dryer lint". He LOVES to get body clipped and he even seems to enjoy getting bathed afterwards, provided I use warm water (which I did). Last year I bathed him at the fairgrounds and it was horrible. It was an outdoor wash rack with no hot water, and a cold front was blowing in and it was getting dark just as I got started. Poor Cuzco--he was so good about that ordeal even though he shivered violently the whole time. I decided that was NOT a good idea and I bathed him here at home to save him (and me) the torture.

I also bathed Pac-Man, Finn, and Sputnik since they are coming with us too. Pac-Man is sooooo white now, which is very rare because that goat loves to roll in the dirt like a horse. He was terribly mournful the whole time and would not stop baa-aa-ing pathetically. He really does hate water. Finn, on the other hand, loved it! I was able to scrub nearly all of the left-over buck yuck yellow from his front legs. He's incredibly soft now and I can't stop running my fingers through his hair at every opportunity.

Sputnik was a riot. He was ok with the water and tolerated the bath well even though he was upset when the other goats went out of sight. But he went berserk after I dried him off and started to brush him. I have a slicker brush with wire bristles that retract so I can clean the fuzz out of the brush. About half or more of my goats love the slicker brush, a few don't care for it and will walk off if they're not tied, and apparently it drives Sputnik mad. I gave him about two strokes before he snorted and whipped his head around like he was going after a biting fly. I tried again and he did the same thing. The more I tried to calm him down and get him to accept the brush (even just a light touch with it), the more berserk he went. He kept whipping around and snapping at it or trying to butt it. I was forced to give up when he suddenly went air born in violent pursuit of the offending hairbrush and did a 360 without touching the patio. I was amazed, considering he was tied to the fence when he did it. He tolerated the horse-type dandy brush, but he was very happy to get out of there. Thank goodness he's learning to forgive me for these horrible ordeals I sometimes put him through. Once upon a time it would have taken him a week to get over it. He's still sulking a little, but I'm sure he'll be over it by morning.

And now I've got to go and finish packing the truck! I'll be sure to take pictures this weekend!

Your what did I do today posts are always worth a smile!

Have a safe trip and a fun time! I'm sure your goats will steal the event! We'll be expecting a full report and pictures!

Stood by while the fire dept put out a grass fire that was about 100 feet from my house. It was started by a spark from my grinder, drier than I realized around here.

That doesn't sound like much fun. I'm afraid this is going to be a bad year for fires.

Good to hear no damage though. If it were around here, the fire department would probably charge you putting it out. Hope thats not the same there.

Today I put the pack saddles on Bacchus for the first time in his life. He did the usual "try to pry it off with the horns" for 3 minutes and then, as it goes for most goats, he was suddenly a trained pack goat. He did act nervous on the 5 mile walk at first-- More than he'd ever normally be. But that may be because I didn't bring any other adult goat like I usually do. Instead I brought Vincent VanGoat, who did great. BTW Bacchus is only 2, but he's getting really big and looks magnificent in packs. He may be bigger than Shelby in the end. He certainly is heavier-- Shelby has that natural thin type of body while Bacchus has a more robust, rounder build.

Next trip I'm going to try the empty packs on Woodstock. I get the feeling he'll take right to it.

Sasha went swimming in the canal and at the end of the walk had no collar. She's been wearing that same one for 8 years so its sad if it is lost forever since it was a bit of a sentimental item. I may do the walk again and I'll look for it.

Thankfully no charge. We have an awesome volunteer fire dept. I've never seen it this dry at this time of year, hoping for rain.

Today it rained. Big time. And since it rained nearly every day for about a week before that, we're WET out here! The ground is saturated and there is mud and standing water everywhere. I'm going to have to mow my pastures about a month earlier than usual. And if any of this sounds like complaining, it's not. The pastures are emerald green. It looks like Ireland out here! I did a weed reconnaissance yesterday to see what I'm up against, and I was thrilled to find that there is so much grass it's actually choking out a lot of the weeds! Now granted, the weeds that are there are enormous and extremely healthy, but there are a lot less of them than usual. Woohoo!!

Nanno I think you'll find that over the years the weeds become more or less endangered. You have goats. Goats murder weeds that grow over 2 inches tall. Over time this does have its affect on the field. Certainly the kinds of weeds that can stay low-profile can continue a meager existence but for the rest.... EXTINCTION.

I saw the radar and the rain blob over you and wondered how you were handling it. Its damp here but not soaking. Its actually perfect spring weather. We do need the soaking though since the snow pack sucks.