(Ooops! During Frankincense's entry, Elly May grabbed these paper towels I accidentally left near the fence!)
It felt so satisfying for the suspense to be over! Then... thunderclouds rolled in. The sky got almost as black as night. There was wind and torrential rain! Our dog that is never allowed in the house was so terrified of the storm that she was allowed to sit in the entryway!
A sopping wet "Blue Bell" enjoying her illegal napping spot.
It rained so hard that Edna's and Elly May's goat hut blew over! Oh-no!!! Edna and Elly May were dripping wet! They were moved to the cattle trailer (which is also used as a hay barn) for some protection from the storm. Elly May thought this arrangement was great because she found a bale of alfalfa to eat!
The "tipped over" goat hut!
When the storm subsided, we tried getting the hut back on its right side, but it fell apart (many of the boards were weak and the whole thing needed a "tune up" after a year of three goats living in it!) Amazingly, we were able to salvage the materials and build a new shelter on Friday.
This shelter has posts that are set into the ground. It is a bit "cozy" for the goats and the roof line keeps the rain out much better than the other design.
I didn't think about the fact that Elly May would be able to climb up the roof. Hmmm...This design might need some adjustments in the future. But goats are designed to climb, so maybe it satisfies a missing aspect of their habitat.
Since then, things have been peaceful. Today more thunderstorms rolled in. Except this time they SAVED the day! I went to the goat pen and found Frankincense panting very hard. His mouth was open and he had no energy. Although he was in the shade, he couldn't not seem to stay cool. I took his temperature and it was 105 degrees (normal is 102-103). I was almost sure he had heat stress. Then, the thunderclouds rolled in...No rain, but the temperature dropped over 10 degrees and cooled down the overheated baby goat! He got up and scampered around! Praise the Lord for His perfect timing in cooling the earth!
Panting!
Hot goat!
Until next time...
Hope you don't have trouble with a black goat getting hot all the time. How do you cool them? They don't swim, do they?
ReplyDeleteNo, goats don't swim! :) I checked with my "goat keeping mentor" and she said next time it happens I can use a cool rag around his hooves to help draw out the heat. Hopefully as he grows he will learn to regulate his body temperature more effectively.
Delete