Saturday, March 28, 2009

Feeding goats

Taking a bucket into a pasture full of goats is a life-changing experience at any time but when we've received 4 inches of rain in 12 hours it is much worse...since goats HATE water they have been inside and haven't had a morsel of food for the entire time it has been raining.
Yesterday evening I was sure that my 16 does and their 30 something 2 month old kids in one pen were probably starving so I was going to be their hero, their savior, and take them a bucket of feed. Of course, as expected, I was immediately mobbed but I had a head start on them since they were having to run from the barn, what a sight to behold! They were spread out like an oncoming army!
I rushed into the feeding pen, ran from trough to trough filling them as I slopped through water and mud up to my ankles, hurrying to finish and throw the bucket over the fence before they arrive because being caught with the bucket is like being a fumbled football..you have huge players attacking from all sides. I was winning...I know I could have made it ...but one of the troughs was set on a small slope...when my shoes hit the ground they just kept sliding...if I'd been a truck It would have required a tractor to get me unstuck but as it was that mud just sucked me down up to my ankles and with the forward momentum halted I was flat of my back in 4 inches of mud before I even knew what had happened...The goats were almost upon me though so I threw that bucket as far as I could...think goodness goats are predictable and they went chasing the bucket that should have contained their feed.
I used that short respite to drag myself back to my feet and holding to the trough like a lifeline to keep from sliding back down that slick slope, made my way safely to the gate carrying a few pounds of mud and a few new bruises with me.
Once the goats realized the bucket was empty they rushed back to the troughs happily munching their way through the bucket of feed...and to add insult to injury, not a single one of them slid on the mud!!!

1 comment:

  1. lol...you know I just pictured that all happening. How are you feeling?

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