I've grown up!

Howdy Folks!
Can you believe it has been 1 year that I have lived at Windsor Wool Farm??? On July 13th, 2011, I was brought home in a dog crate.

But.....

Now I am big and beautiful!

Ok, and VERY silly!

Happy 1 year to me!
~Pickles

I'm a little Gremlin

"Cute" gets me out of a lot of trouble!

Munchin' in the Sun

Hey Ya'll!

It has been 100 degrees here at Windsor Wool! The sheep are wimps when it comes to this time of year. When the sun comes up, they head to the sheep barn where they find blowing fans and fresh cold water. 

As for me, I remain grazing until dark. This so called "Horrible" weather doesn't really bother me. However, it does kind of bleach my hair. Which I don't think the "Nice Lady" likes.

Well it's back to munchin'!

-Pickles

I grew a beard!

Howdy!
As you can see, I am in the new spring pasture but also something else is different..... I GREW A BEARD!!!! I never thought in a million years that this would happen but I guess it just means I am growing up.

Well, off to munch some more grass!


~Pickles

Goat Facts 101

If you are interested in getting goats, no matter what kind, here are some basic terms you might want to study. Also, if you are ever around people with goats, it's a good way to show off your knowledge!

Bleat -A goat's vocal expression, talking

Browse - Broad-leafed woody plants, shrubs or brush.

Buck -A male goat..also referred to as a 'Billy'..but NEVER in the registered circle!

Buckling - Young male goat, typically of 1 year or less.

Butting - Sometimes playful, usually in aggression between goats by the use of the top of the head.

Creep or Creep Feeder -A feeding area which allows kids, but not adults to enter and safely eat grain like food and hay.
Cud -Soft mass of food regurgitated and rechewed by a ruminant.

Disbud -Removal of horn buds from young goats to keep horns from growing.
Doe -Female goat: also referred to as 'nanny'..but NEVER in the registered circles!
Doeling - Female goat 1 year or less.
Drylot - Method where goats do not have access to pasture or range, where daily feed and water is provided by the caretaker.
Forage -Fiber-containing feedstuffs such as silage, hay and pasture.

Guardian Dog (LGD) - A dog that stays with the goats without harming them and aggressively protects from predators. Not to be confused with a Herd Dog which is used typically for cattle and sheep, but sometimes for goats to herd pastured livestock where you want them to be.

Herd -more than one goat.
Kids -Baby goats
Polled - Naturally hornless goat. Polled goats have two "swirls" near the area where horns would be on a horned goat.
Rumen -First and largest chamber of a ruminant's stomach; found on the left side of the goat.
Wether -Castrated male goat.
Yearling - A baby goat between 6 and 12 months of age.

That's all, folks!
~Pickles

Congratulations Nancy!

More exciting news! "The Nice Lady" told me that my cousin Nancy, on another farm, had kids!  She didn't have just 1... or 2... or 3.... but 4 kids!

Since I know that Nancy's owners read this blog, I wanted to find a way to tell Nancy congratulations. So "The Nice Lady" made a sign for me (which was quite tasty)! 

~Pickles

New Friends!

There is good news here at Windsor Wool!  WE HAVE LAMBS!!!!!!  YAHOOOOOOO!  I like them very much and I can't wait till they grow up a little bit that way I can play with them!  I always wanted fun little friends to play with.  Some of them are black, like me, and others are white like their mommies.

This is Rosa and me.

~Pickles

My First Snow!

Hello Folks!

On January 12th, I saw my first snow fall! As you can see here, I was so amazed at the sight of the frozen white stuff falling from the sky. After I got over my amazement, I had so much fun jumping, running, and kicking up my heals!  My sheep friends loved it too and even played with me for a while.  

This is me in awe!

I am.......

Pretty
Intelligent

Cute
Kind
Loving
Energetic
Sweet

Aren't I cute?

Happy Winter!

~Pickles

Goat Agility

Good Morning!

Here at Windsor Wool, I have heard talk about an agility course being made for a while. So every day I would look to see if anything was built, hoping maybe I could try it out. Well, a few days ago I looked in the round pen and saw jumps and weave polls! I knew this was it; I could finally have my chance to show what I could do. 

When the nice lady was finished doing agility with the dogs she started to walk to the house. I knew then, that there was no hope of me getting to do it. As I walked to go nibble on my hay, I heard the gate open and the nice lady was there!  She hadn't forgotten about me after all! She took me to the round pen and I got to jump. At first, it was a little scary but then I got the hang of it! 

Here is a picture of me doing the jump. 

~Pickles

Leash Time

Howdy! 
I don't get very good Internet reception here at the barn but when I do, I try to write a new entry.


Recently, I have learned to walk on a leash.   The nice lady and I take nice long walks around the farm. 

Gotta Go!
Pickles

Visit my folks!

To learn more about all the other animals at Windsor Wool Farm go to the farm's blog. .windsorwoolfarm.blogspot.com 

~Pickles    

My Successful Escape!

 Hey Y'all!
I've been so busy eatin' grass, makin' friends, and havin' fun that I haven’t had time to post! 


A few weeks ago I was in a pasture with some lambs my age. I was really looking forward to seeing them. When the nice lady moved me in with them I kicked up my hooves, ran and tried to bump heads with them, expecting them to do the same. Yeah right, I forgot. They are sheep…peaceful loving creatures that always obey their master. They’re not goats that are always wanting to get in trouble. All the sheep are worried about is eating, sleeping, and not messing up their wool. BORING!


So I had enough of their hoity-toityness and I snuck out of the fence. Now that I had escaped, I was wondering what I was going to do. A thousand different ideas popped into my head but one stuck… I could go get into the sheep grain! (I like that better than mine because it has molasses in it!) So I ran to the barn and sure enough, it was there. I could just see the bucket glowing and hear the angels singing. And thanks to the nice lady, she didn’t put the top on the bucket very well. So in a flash I was nibbling away. It was heavenly!!!


But that moment didn’t last long…sadly, my cover was blown. The nice lady was still at the barn and she saw me. The reason I still say “nice” lady is because she did let me stay out for a little while to help her finish up some farm chores. It was fun following her around looking at all of the animals.
Everyone is always so welcoming. Right now I am in a very large pasture with the lamb’s mommies. I am enjoying it very much.
~Pickles

I found a friend!

Hello! 

I have adjusted to life at Windsor Wool Farm and things here are going well! The nice people have been sitting with me everyday. They pet me and talk to for hours. I like that alot!  When the nice people have to leave, I get lonely and have no one to hang out with. Until..... I heard this strange squawking sound close by my pen the other day. To be honest, it sounded like a goat with a sore throat! As I listened to the noise, a hen came trotting over to me, jumped in my pen, and politely introduced herself. She said they called her Mabel and her breed was a Red Star.

Now Mabel and I are best friends. At night when I hop behind my hay bale to sleep, Mabel is right there snuggled up next to me. In the morning when I eat my grain, I share Mabel steals some of it. I think we are going to be friends for a long time! 

-Pickles          

A new farm!

Hello!
My name is Pickles! I am an Alpine Goat kid. I lived at Leicester Land Farm until today. Some very nice people put me in a large dog crate and took me for a long comfy car ride. As I slept with the air conditioning blowing on me, I wondered where I was going. About two hours later we pulled into a farm that had beautiful green pastures with a large sign that said that said "Windsor Wool Farm". I remember at Leicester Land they had wool and sheep, just like this new farm. As soon as the car stopped the nice people walked me into a large pen with fresh cold water and plenty of yummy things to eat! I am a little shy when the nice people want to pet me though. I guess I need to work on that! :) 


Well, it's past my bedtime! 


Write more later!   
Pickles