New Year's Resolutions

This year I promise to remember my resolutions and stick to them to get results. Here are my resolutions for 2010:

1. Butt only those who butt me first - no more fighting unless provoked

2. Take time to contemplate the beauty - sunbathe at least once a day

3. Grasp life by the horns - unless those horns are connected to a much bigger goat

4. A thing not tasted could be a treat wasted - don't be afraid to try new things

5. The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence - my mission is to prove that theory

Well, that should be enough for me to handle for an entire year.

My Heart is Breaking!

Hi hi. This is Pepper Ann. My lovely boyfriend has been stolen! He was here one minute and then all of the sudden he was gone! A man from Vermont came and took him away. The farmer says that he is going to a new farm. I am heart broken! It may not have looked like I loved him but I did. Even though I hit him and pushed him away from the food and jumped on him and tried to throw him over the top of the gate, I loved him! Even though I beat him up every time I saw him and he ran the other direction from me all the time, he was my true soul-mate. He was the only want that understood me.

Now I sit at the gate crying and crying for my love to come back. I will continue to cry until my heart has healed. Maybe I need special treats to ease my pain. Maybe I need to stay in the barn and get extra hay just so my depression doesn't worsen. It could be bad. I could fall off the edge of despair at any minute. An apple would help to brighten my day. A delicious balsam branch would bring my spirit some salvation. Perhaps the farmer will hear my heart-wrenching cries and take some pitty on the poor heart broken. Maybe..

Busy, busy, busy!!

Sorry I haven't been keeping up to date with my postings lately. You would think that with the coming of winter that everything would be winding down on the farm. Well, not exactly... With the coming of winter comes breeding season, and frozen water buckets, and no grass, and yucky tasteless hay, and cold, and snow, and no fun at all! This morning there was snow on the ground. Snow! And the farmer thought we needed to go outside in it. What does she think we are? We are not the abominable snow-goat that enjoys the cold and snow, we are dairy goats that belong inside the warm barn with plenty of hay to eat. The farmer says "Come on, you will enjoy being out in the fresh air more than you will like being in the stuffy, stinky barn". I beg to differ.... At least I got a laugh when the kids came bounding out of their stall only to hit the brakes suddenly when they discovered the white stuff on the outside of the barn door. I thought that the Nubian kid was going to melt for sure! Ha! Welcome to winter little one!

And now some pictures of my boyfriend and his buddy: This is my lovely boyfriend, Bart. Isn't he dreamy?

This is his buddy, Vin. Vin is Pepper Ann's BF. Nubians, what are you gonna do?!

I am in LOVE!

I got to see my boyfriend and he is sooooooo wonderful! He gives me kisses and sticks out his tongue at me. He also has the best cologne in the world! I love him very very much! I wish that I could live with him forever! He is soo great!

DONTCHA!

Dontcha wish your girlfriend was hot like me!!
Dontcha wish your girlfriend was a freak like me!!
DONTCHA!!
DONTCHA!!!


Turn-ons:
Telling the whole planet that I want a boyfriend
Carrots
Chasing the little kids out of my playhouse

Turn-offs:
Not being allowed to see my boyfriend
No carrots
Little kids in my playhouse

Soon, soon the farmer says that I will get to see my boyfriend. She says to be patient and wait. I can't WAIT!!

Martha, Martha, MARTHA!

Okay, this is enough! This blog is not about Martha the goat -- it's about LUCY! Super great that Martha can hike, but she is no where near as wonderful and great as I am. I am LUCY! I am the best! To reaffirm my greatestness, here are some pictures of me over the years.

Here's me back when I was just a doeling. The black and white goat was a buddy of mine that went to a new home. She was Mrs. Brown's daughter.

Here is my twin brother, Travis. He is the black and white one. The other goat is TaDa, my cousin.

Matilda and I last winter in the snow. Notice our luxurious winter coats.

Me the other day. Aren't I the cutest?!

Martha Makes It To The Top!!

On Sunday, Martha tried going up Loon Mountain again. This time the farmer and her could drive in to the trailhead and didn't have to walk the extra 1.5 miles in. Here are some pictures from the hike.

Here's Martha getting kisses from the farmer's friend, Sam, halfway up the mountain.

She made it to the top! The view was amazing!

Here's Martha and the farmer posing near the firetower that was on the top of the mountain.

Martha's getting neck skritches from the farmer's friend Cynthia.

Martha looks very fetching in her "I am not a deer, don't shoot me" orange hiking shirt.

Martha Goes Hiking!

Martha got to go hiking on Sunday with the farmer. I am very jealous but I think I wouldn't have found it so much fun to walk for 4 hours just to go nowhere but up a stupid mountain. Here are some pictures from the hike:

Here they are starting up the trail to Loon Lake Mountain.

Martha started with the leash on but then was let off the leash after they got on the trail a ways.

The trail had lots of bridges to cross. Here the farmer helps Martha over the bridge so her feet don't get stuck in between the loose boards.

This bridge was too shaky to walk on so the farmer carried Martha across the water and set her down on the other side. Carrying her works well for now but once she gets a little bigger it will be harder to pick her up and carry her around water obstacles. I guess Martha will have to learn to get her feet wet.

Marth did well on the trail and got to stop for a snack before they turned around and went back home.

Here they are almost back to the beginning of the trail. It was a nice day with a little rain but cleared up after a bit.


The end of the trail! Time to go home and rest after that long hike!

Finally, I have ARRIVED!

The St. Lawrence Valley Goat Club came to the farm today. Finally I am being recognized for the great and beautiful goat that I am! Finally the masses are coming to worship me, just the way I deserve! Finally I am famous! (sort of)

The club consists of several goat owners all over Northern New York. They range anywhere from having two goats to having two hundred goats. Some are serious show goat people and some are pirate-farmers living off the grid. It's a good group.

Unfortunately the farmer wanted to talk and talk to them all instead of having them stand outside and admire me. They all showed up and immediately went in the house. I waited while they ate lunch, I waited while they talked about tomatoes, I waited while the farmer showed them how to make soap. Finally they came out of the house and walked around the barnyard. I had waited so long that all I could do was yell, "Hey! Look at ME! LOOOOOKKKK AATT MEEE!!". Some people stopped and looked. I tried my best to be super friendly and come to greet everyone (mostly just in case they were carrying treats for me). It was fun.

Well, now I have to get used to the slower paced life outside of the spotlight. Now I have to get used to waiting for my dinner and not being a super star. I suppose I will adjust eventually.

LOL from P-Ann

So, OMG, today I get to write the blog and tell everyone about the other wonderful goats at the farm -- ME! I am soooo excited to give a shout-out to the planet and say "Hey-ay!" to all. Like, okay, I have been so totally wrapped with what's happenin' that I haven't even had time for a good pedicure. It's so unfair! Like yesterday I got all excited because the farm chick got home in time to give me some extra weeds and she totally blew me off to go in the house and talk to the farm dude. How rude! And like the other day the farm chick was gone and the farm dude had to feed me and he totally didn't know what was going on and totally gave me like a way tiny bit of hay. I was so over it in about 2 seconds and was like, "Yo, dude! Where's the rest of my weeds?" He totally left me hanging. So not cool...

Luckily the sun is a blastin' and I am working on my tan out in the weed patch. I hope my 'do doesn't get all bleached out from the 'shine. OMG that would be too much! But whatever... So I better jet and get rollin' with the sun tan. TTYL!! :-)

Good Haircut vs. Bad Haircut!

They say the difference between a good haircut and a bad haircut is two weeks. I hope this is true. You see, the farmer got a little crazed the other day and went after me and my mom with the clippers. Both of us were taking our time with shedding out for the summer and our coats were not shiny and pretty like normal. I admit that I was not in my best form, but I don't think I needed a hack-job of a shave like I got! This mess had better grow out before the Goat Club shows up at the farm in three weeks or I will be pretty embarrassed. I won't come out of my pen if I don't look better. If the farmer wants to try to make me show my face, she can go ahead and try but I won't budge!!
Look at this mess! It's all patchy and uneven. I used to be so pretty and now I look like a sock puppet!

Please don't let the farmer shave my hair again! PLEASE!! Call the Humane Society! Call the ASPCA!! Call PETA! Help!

My Family

Hello everyone! Here are some nice pictures of my family. This first one is of my mom, Gloria. Notice her big udder? She passed that one on to me. Thanks mom for the good genes! She is the leader of this herd. She leads with wisdom and kindness. Someday I hope I can be just like her.

This next picture is of my very handsome son, Black Bart. He is very lovely and is going to be the daddy of all the Alpine kids next year. I think that is a great idea because who doesn't want a hunk like him?

Here we have a picture of my buddy, Matilda. Matilda moved to a new farm but she is still well remembered here. Oh yeah, that other goat in the picture is Pepper Ann. Look at that goofy look on her face, how silly!

Last but not least is a picture of my good side. This was taken back when Matilda and I were roomates. Now I have to live all alone. I don't mind it too much because all the grain and hay are mine and I don't have to push her out of the way anymore.

Somethings Taste Good, Somethings Taste Bad

All this wet weather has me feeling icky with worms. That's right, worms. I admit it, like most in the caprine world, I have worms. They're hard to escape from, especially since all the good grass is located on the ground. As I eat that yummy grass, those horrible worms get in my mouth and then set up camp in my stomach. Luckily the farmer has noticed my problem and has set about to freeing me from the onslaught of the unwelcome invaders. The down side is that the deworming medicine tastes just awful! I am a smart one so I know that any time the farmer comes at me with that big oral syringe there's no fighting it and no matter what I do I will end up with that yucky stuff in my mouth (and some on the farmer's shirt). I wait my turn. I am a good girl, unlike Pepper who runs around all willy-nilly until the farmer puts her in a full-nelson and jams that syringe down her throat. Then Pepper runs around coughing and shaky like the total drama queen that she is. I, on the other hand, take it like a champ and hope that it will be followed by something more palatable to wash the taste out of my mouth (like peppermint nibblies).

Just when I was certain that the big syringe only contained things that taste bad, the farmer surprises me with a syringe full of yumminess! It was full of yummy Red Cell iron supplement. That is my favorite because it is about 90% molasses and 10% vitamins and minerals. Once I got a taste for that I sucked the stuff right out of the syringe, licking my lips the whole time. My mom saw what was going on and when her turn came she grabbed the syringe with her teeth and didn't let go until it was empty. Pepper on the other hand had to have her fill of drama so she gagged and choked the entire time. Argh! Nubians -- you can't live with them, you can't convince the farmer to get rid of them.

So now my theory about the bad tasting syringe is shook to its core. I don't know what to expect the next time the farmer comes in carrying it full of some mysterious liquid.

Wet and Wild!

It's seems to be raining a lot lately. Usually I don't mind the rain because the farmer lets me stay in bed all day with a full rack of hay to eat. Lately, though she has been forcing me to stay outside and get rained on! Most of the day it is sunny and nice but then inevitably it starts to rain and sometimes pour. We all get together and cry and scream to tell the farmer that she needs to come and put us inside. Sometimes she is there and will put us in, but sometimes no one is home and we have to sit out in the rain. I don't like sitting in the rain because it is cold and wet and uncomfortable. Not to mention my hair goes all frizzy and I can't do anything with it.

Then on Friday it was not raining, in fact it was sunny all day for once. And what does the farmer decide to do --- She gives us a BATH! B-A-T-H is a four-letter word. The farmer pulled us out of the pasture one by one and just when I thought she was giving me my dinner, she dumped a bucket of water on me!! She scrubbed and rubbed and put my hair into a complete tizzy. The only consolation I got for this humiliation was a little soggy grain. I can't believe she would ruin the only dry day in two weeks by a BATH! Oh well, I had to laugh when the farmer dumped all of the rinse water on Pepper and that ditz just stood there! She acted like getting all wet and soapy was a good idea to her. Sometimes she can be clueless.

Hopefully it will stop raining soon. I am not a fan of wetness.

The Banshee Sisters

Here at the farm there is "us" and "them". The "us" is me and my mom, both Alpine goats. The "them" are the Nubians. The oldest Nubian is Pepper. She thinks she is in charge. She acts like she is in charge. She isn't really in charge. Pepper walks around with her nose stuck in the air and her tail up like she is the best thing ever. She tries to boss everyone around. Really, the one in charge is my mom, Gloria. Gloria is the queen of the place. Pepper is just the "princess".

Just when I had finally gotten used to "Princess Pepper" and all her goofy ideas, she gives birth to two kids that think they were born with a silver bottle in their mouths! I call them the "Banshee Sisters" because they don't ever shut up! They are constantly complaining about everything. I don't mind being put out in the pasture during the day. They act like it is a death sentence. It doesn't bother me to be fed at 6pm rather than 5pm. They act like they will starve to death at any moment from the lack of nourishment. Each one is louder than the other in their protests to the injustices. Sometimes they even scream just because it is something to do.

The one good thing about it is that Pepper doesn't condone the behavior. She will get after them for screaming. She says she chides them because the cacophony is driving her mad. I think it is because finally there is someone who complains louder than she does and she doesn't like that. Not that long ago, Pepper was just as loud as these two. My... how the tables have turned!

The Way It Is

Yesterday my good friend, Matilda, left. I am not sure where she went. The farmer and two people came way past bedtime last night and took her. They pulled her out of our pen and put a leash on her and took her away. They also took my half-sister Madge with them. I have seen the people the farmer was with before. They have come to visit a couple of times and have brought their little half people with them (they call them "kids", but they don't look like the kids I know - they just look like short farmers).

In the past visits they have made quite a fuss over Matilda. I can't really figure out why. She was a good friend but not a real looker (if you know what I mean). Also she is a little bit of a scatter-brain. She spends a lot of time running around asking everyone "WhAAAAAT's going on?! WHAAAAAAT's going on?!". I was always telling her to just eat some grass and be quiet but instead she always worried about stuff.

Even though she had these faults, I loved her so. She was a good roommate for the last two years. I appreciated that she didn't mind when I was in a bad mood and I pushed her away from the hay manger or pushed her out of the feed bowl. I also have to give her props for putting up with her letting her kids' nurse. I was so thankful when the farmer took my kids and gave them a bottle. But Matilda didn't want any of that. She had it in her head to do things "natural". Good for her.

But now she is gone. I don't think she is coming back. I have seen this happen before. Goats come and live here for a while and then one day they disappear. I am not so broken up about my half-sister leaving. She was so immature and annoying! I have no respect for anyone that can put up with the "Banshee Sisters" like she could. The "Banshee Sisters" are the two Nubian kids that were cursed upon this farm this spring. They haven't shut up since they were born! I think they get louder every day! And yet, Madge would just hang out with them like it was cool. Kids these days, I don't even know what to say! So it is okay that she is gone. The less screaming kids around here, the better.

I will miss you Matilda! Good luck in your new life!

Hello!

Hi everyone! My name is Lucy! I am a two-year-old dairy goat that lives in Northern New York State. I live on a farm with my mom Gloria, my aunt Pepper Ann, and some other friends. Being a goat, I like to do all things goat-like. I enjoy eating grass, eating hay, eating grain, being petted, chewing my cud, watching the chickens, eating tree bark, napping in the sun. I like all things like that.

I hope you enjoy my blog! You can visit the farmer's blog at www.rosesgoats.blogspot.com