Somehow, I knew I’d be back on here today. For the second year in a row Flora delivered on Good Friday morning. And no, I was not up all night like I had said I might be yesterday. At my last check at quarter to 11 I could tell that Flora was ‘off,’ but certainly nowhere close. So, I went to bed and set my alarm for 2 am to look in on her just in case. Nothing was happening then either, so I went back to sleep and let that be that.

This morning, though, it was evident that Flora would deliver today. Things progressed very quickly to the point where we could see hooves presenting. That’s always a good sign, as goat kids come into the world in a ‘diving’ position. However, that’s where things stayed for a LONG time. Finally, Flora got the head out, and then she stalled again for quite awhile. I’m certainly not eager to interfere, but this kid’s head was big and my instincts told me that Flora could use some help. So, I reached in around the kid’s shoulders, freed its elbows and it flew into the world after that. After we weighed it later I realized that I was indeed correct: this baby weighed a whopping 11.8 pounds! To put it in perspective, last year’s 4 bucklings all came in around 8 pounds at birth.

And, just like last year, we found that we had yet another buckling. Sigh. Cute, though, and he has some flashy colors. But unfortunately, he’s not useful for much more than…. well, that’s the point, he’s not useful.

But, not 5 minutes after he was on the ground his twin came fast and furious without delay. She (YES, a doeling! Woohoo!) is shock white like her mother and, like her brother, she has the floppy Nubian ears of their sire. She is much smaller, skinnier and was hardly moving at birth. Rachel was a little worried, but she popped right up and got herself nursing. Once she was cleaned and dried we could see tans, blacks and browns in her undercoat. Even though she’s white she has such a beautiful blend of color underneath that it will be fun to see how her coat develops.

Gabe and I have been debating the merits of LaManchas (earless goats, like Pepper) versus Nubians (floppy eared goats, like Peony). For the moment Gabe seems like he’s got a fair point on the Nubians. Something about those puppy dog ears on these kids have just got me.