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A few pictures of the Nigerian babies a bit more grown up

5/27/2016

It's been such grey, damp weather lately that I found it necessary to go outside for the sun break this afternoon, though I wasn't able to be out there long due to work commitments. The Nigerian kids are now 3 and 4 months old. I'm really happy with the few I've kept this year. Here, I will present them from youngest to oldest.

Twilight

Twilight is out of Tupence Magnum Opus and Tahoma Almond Joy. She is quite stunning, but she is wild as the hills. I like her wedge shape and how balanced she is. Jodi McDowell showed me how to check for future teat placement, and Twilight has very nice prospects. She has exactly her sire Magnum's stance; it's uncanny how alike they are.

Violet

Violet is a little darling. She is tiny and has a playful personality. I've been thinking about selling her, but I'd like to keep her long enough to keep her mom Virelai in milk until linear appraisal at the end of summer. She is out of Tupence Magnum Opus and Goat Mountain View Virelai.

Vidhya

Vidyha is out of Blythmoor Payday and Goat Mountain View Hailey. She is named after a friend of mine from Chennai whom I used to work with. Nobody was interested in buying her because she is plain brown. What a bunch of idiots: this charming doeling is long, straight, wide, and out of my best milker. And, she is polled as well! I love this doe for her tender personality; she always wants a hug from me before bedding down each night. You can see she got her blaze and white bracelet from PayDay. In the first picture, you can see her mom walking away in the background; notice the wide stance and lovely udder! In the second picture, she is laughing with joy over her victory climbing the tree. Vidhya is always happy.

Mansa

Mansa is out of Blythmoor PayDay and Tahoma Mikado. She has a very regal air about her--ladylike and serene. I love how nicely blended she is, her strong chest and brisket, and her refined head. I also like how fast she's grown. Right now, she is actually a bit on the heavy side from being given the opportunity to stay nursing: Mikado's butterfat measured 8%, with over 4% protein as well, on this month's milk test, so you know Mansa is getting tons of nutrition! Mansa is named after my upper manager at TNQ in Chennai. Mansa also has a bracelet on her leg courtesy of her dad PayDay.

Arumugam

Aru, named after my manager at TNQ, is Mansa's brother. I really wanted to keep him as a buck, but I did not feel I could find him a good home. I had a very bad experience selling Ice Storm and Oasis Storm to a home where they were allowed to starve to death. It is hard to find good homes for bucks. So, I castrated Aru, and he is going to a pet home next month. You can see from the pictures how handsome he is. Arumugam has PayDay's full blaze.

Here are some pictures of some of the other goats...

Magnificent

Maggie is out of MR MacLibbyHeart (Mac) and Goat Mountain View Lyric. She is one of my son's favorite goats because she is relentlessly friendly. She has a super cute personality to match her cute face. If there is mischief in the barn, Maggie will likely be in the middle of it, with Violet next in line. Maggie will be a yearling next month.

Hopeful

Hopeful is out of MR Mac and Goat Mountain View Hailey. I really like this doeling and have ever since she was born. I think she was the nicest kid born last year. She is long, straight, wide, with a lovely neck and head, and polled. Gee, sounds a lot like Vidhya! They are both out of Hailey, my best milker. Hopeful will also be a yearling next month. She and Maggie are best friends, as you can see.

Almond Joy

I wanted to get a couple pictures of Tahoma Almond Joy, now 2 years old, so Joan can see how nicely she's matured. I'm really happy with this doe. Well, I do wish she was not so wild, but with time, I am making progress in taming her. She is Twilight's mom, so you can see where Twilight gets her lovely wedge shape. Almond Joy was pretty busy eating, so I gave up on trying to get her to look at the camera. It takes a lot of nutrition to nurse a 3-month-old doeling. Almond Joy should get her milk star on test this year--yep, as a first freshener with a singlet.

Chanson

Chanson is the result of me taking Goat Mountain View Oasis Storm to my friend Joan's house and asking her to pick the perfect mate for him, which was Tahoma Mikado. The result of the match is a gorgeous doe, now 2 years old and a first freshener. Chanson has really surprised me on milk test, doing better than her mom. She should get her milk star this year as well. I am absolutely smitten with this doe. She is refined, balanced, well-blended, with a great brisket and open ribbing, as well as a beautiful head. She is a bit overconditioned here, as she gained her condition back much faster than my other does. I am now weaning everyone off the Chaffhaye and lessening their daily grain, so they will be in top shape for linear appraisal at the end of summer.

Mikado, Chanson, and Virelai grazing

The boys

While the does were out in pasture, the bucks were in their yard. The boys get to graze in the morning, the girls in the afternoon--and no mingling! Mac gets the pallet as he is the most senior buck at 3 years old. Goats consider even a couple inches of height to be significant in the pecking order, so only Mac gets to sleep higher. PayDay has the white blaze. Magnum Opus is the smaller black buck with brown and white, snuggled with PayDay. Both PayDay and Magmun are yearlings. Goat Mountain View Dust Storm (Dusty) is the light buckskin buck. Dusty is Virelai's brother and is polled. I plan to use him extensively for breeding next year. Dusty has the wonderful wide, flat rear with nicely angulated and straight-forward-facing rear legs like his father Oasis Storm. He is 2 years old. I shaved the sides of all the bucks a couple weeks ago to give them some relief from itchy winter coats. But, as it is still quite cold here and often gray and wet, I left the hair on their dorsal and chest, leaving them looking a bit like wildebeests!