I know some of you have wondered if I was alive because I haven't
been posting like I usually do (which somehow coincides with not
much mail for this group ... funny how that works).
I'm alive and kicking, albeit tired and sunburned, but here's what
I've been up to.
1) training on Ben and Lily. I need a covered arena with sand. My
training class was so nice, and Lily was so well behaved. NOT AT
HOME!!! For some reason she see's that food bucket in her line of
site when I'm lunging her and it keeps her from fully focusing on
me. I feel like I'm talking to my son who is watching spongebob
squarepants. Needless to say, a big horse can wear you out pretty
good if you have to constantly fight them to keep them doing what
you want. It's a battle for attention ... and I better win. LOL.
Ben is doing great too, even though he's been acting out a little.
I think his issue is that he wants to go back to hanging out with
Lily. The two of them are thick as theives these past days. They
are always within 10 feet of each other, and ever since I let them
out to pasture during they day, they are constantly running all over
the place together. It's pretty magnificent to watch at times. Ben
is still a boy though. If any hanky-panky has been going on, it's
at night, and he doesn't leave a mark on Lily. I'm having a fun
time working with him though, and it's great when I get to see those
moments where he just gets what I'm asking.
2) Goats ... Goats ... Great Goats (or stupid goats depending on
the hour).
Last Sunday my wife and I got a couple of Boer/Nubian Billy goats
that were born in Feb. We brought them home from their place.
These goats are very friendly and have been raised by a
loving/caring home. We got them because their owners wanted to find
them a forever home, not a stopping point on the way to the
slaughter house. We got them back to the house, and then the fun
started.
First, they are not trained to hotwire, so they are not scared of
it. Since my hotwire is shorting somewhere, and doesn't work, I had
a containment problem right from the start. It all started with 2
giant horses who wanted to smell these little white creatures. They
were scared to death, and went right out the fence. It didn't help
that Lily was chasing one of them to try to "catch" it. So ... I
was able to get them, and put them in my dog kennel. Looks like
putting up a proper fence was in my cards.
I have a stack of welding wire fencing that I have been meaning to
stretch around my goat pen. This seemed like the great chance. So
on Monday, while the goats were contained in the dog shelter, I set
out to stretch this fencing. Conclusion ..... stretching fencing is
a 2 man job if not more. If you really want to frustrate yourself,
just try doing it by yourself. Now maybe if you have money and can
buy the perfect tool for the job then it might be easier, but when
you're horse poor and are trying to use a couple of cum-alongs and a
steel pipe, it's real hard and time consuming. It also doesn't help
when the day you choose to take on such a task happens to be a 100
degree day. So ... it sucked, and I didn't get much done. Monday
night I had a little help from my father-in-law and got 2 rolls
unspooled and semi tight against the fence. At this time I realized
that I was not going to have enough wire to go around the entire
pen. So I came up with the game-plan that I would finish that
second spool, and then just fix my 5 strand hot-wire fencing for the
rest of it. I also chained the goats out on some nice grass with
the pond in reach for water. And they rejoiced greatly! On this
day I also let the horses out to pasture, so that they would not
interfere as I worked on the goat pen.
Things were fine through the night, and I got to work and put in a
full day without problems. When I got home I got to see what Lily
and Ben had done! Ben found the area where I was working on the
fence, and realized that he could walk over the fence. Ben thought
it was only right that he share this information with Lily. So the
two of them went out, and decided this was their chance to check out
these smallish white creatures that seem to bleat greatly when
separated. Their unwanted advances, caused these goats to break the
chains they were on, and bound around the property, until finally
running through the hotwire fence, and into the pen that was to be
their home. Even though a ornery nanny goat named Chi met them with
her horns lowered, they tolerated her, and soon they were all laying
together, enjoying this peaceful place where no giant curious horse
could get to them. When I got home, I found 3 goats all laying
peacefully together, and 2 horses wandering the fenceline as if they
wanted to get in with the goats.
And all was well at Armadillo Acres, and a tired Tim rejoiced
greatly by spending the night with his wife.
Yesterday morning these goats realized that the human is the bringer
of food. They met me as a great friend when I dispursed some food
to them. Again, there was much rejoicing at Armadillo Acres. And
Tim went to work. To bad the peace through the land would not last
on this day.
I got a call from my wife letting me know that when she went to
leave the house for a hair appointment, the goats came running
through the non-functional hot wire fence to the car. They wanted
more FOOD! They nearly got in the car with her. So Amanda left,
and started driving through the pasture. When she got to our front
gate, she saw the goats running right behind her. They had followed
her in the hopes of somehow getting more food from her. This would
have been fine, but what the goats did not know, was that there were
two giant curious horses in this pasture. Ben and Lily wasted no
time going after these 2. They paniced and began running for their
lives, followed by the horses. As the goats realized that the
horses were faster, they saw only one way out, the barbed wire fence
that led into the neighbors field. SO through the fence they
bound. As the goats tried to catch their breath they soon realized
their mistake. Walking there way, was 20 head of cows. These cows
were also very curious, and some of the mothers did not like the
fact that these little white creatures were in the same pen with
their babies. Soon the cattle converged on them, making them panic
again, and run for their lives. Fortunately, cows are slow, and the
goats ran to the front of the pasture, and out the fence, and were
standing together, scared and all alone in my neighbors front yard.
My wife didn't know what to do, and had to leave anyway. So ... I
left work, found them at home, and helped to provide them safe
passage through the pasture, past Ben and Lily, and back to their
beloved ornery nanny goat Chi. I then went to work, on a 100 degree
day, fixing the hot wire. I was successful, and smiled a sadistic
smile as I watched the goats relized that this silver wire was not
something they should touch. :)
And so the goats were contained ... and there was much rejoicing by
Tim. And peace came across Armadillo Acres. The End?????
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