A Tattooing Tale

I don't want to see GREEN ink for a long time!

The American Dairy Goat Association requires that all goats in their registry be tattooed as a means of identification.  (See this link for more info.)  I finally sent in the registration information for the 2016 kids, so they needed to be tattooed.

Most goats are tattooed in each ear.  The RIGHT ear contains the herd identification number.  The LEFT ear is reserved for the "Letter-of-the-Year" (2016's letter is "H") and the order of birth in the herd (first kid, second kid, etc.).  It can be tricky to remember which ear is left and right, so thankfully the ADGA registration form has a diagram to help!

Hillbilly waiting for his turn...

Howdy is ready to go!

To begin the process, I loaded the tattoo pliers with the correct identification letters/numbers.  This can be tricky as they must be mirror image!

I tested the pliers on a piece of paper to make sure the sequence was correct!  Tattooing makes me a little nervous because there is no room for error!

I cleaned the tattoo numbers/letters with alcohol before using them.  

I also cleaned each ear with alcohol.  It is amazing how dirty their ears were!

I applied some green ink to a cotton ball...

...and I smeared it into the kids' ears.  I did all of the right ears first so I wouldn't have to change the tattoo.  (All of the right ears got "OBJ8" while the left ears got "H1," "H2," etc.)

I positioned the pliers in the ear and squeezed.  It didn't hurt the goats much (although I did have to get help restraining them).  It barely punctures the skin and they hardly squealed!  However, I am quite relieved that all of the letters seemed to be clearly punched and I didn't hit any veins.

Afterward, I rubbed more ink into the tattoo to make sure that it would be permanently in the skin.

And now I have green-eared goats!  The ink seemed to be everywhere!

Hilarious looks quite nice with her green ears!

The bucks like their new ear color too!

I enjoyed learning to tattoo my goats.  And, compared to the emotional "trauma" of disbudding, it was a relatively simple process.  Now all of the 2016 are registered, tattooed, and ready to their lives as "official" ADGA-registered goats!

"Go Green" with Green Ears

In order to legally register the goats with the American Dairy Goat Association (ADGA), they must be tattooed.  The easiest place to tattoo them is in the ear.  The left ear is for the year identification letter (this year is "F") and the goats "birth order" number (Frankincense was born first in my herd, so he was #1 and Fritz was #2).  The right ear is for the herd identification letters/numbers.  Tattooing goes along with disbudding in my list of goat herding dislikes.  It makes them cry, which makes me feel sad too!

First some green ink is rubbed into the goat's ear.

The number/letter combination is placed into the tattoo pliers.   When the prongs squeeze into the ear, it permanently presses the ink into the ear's skin.

After that, more ink is rubbed into the ear and the tattooing is over.  And the goat is left with green ears for a while!

Green ears!

It is quite funny as the newly tattooed goats rub on the other goats and everyone ends up with little green streaks on them!  It will soon fade and disappear, but for now...

"Go Green!"

The Letter "F"

There is something special about the letter "F" this year.  Let me explain.  Since my goats are registered with the ADGA (American Dairy Goat Association), they will need to be tattooed either when they leave the farm or when I register them (whichever comes first!).  The ADGA recommends that the goats' left ears have a letter symbolizing the year and a number indicating birth order in the herd.  The right ear can be used for the farm's identification letters/numbers.  So, the ADGA's letter for 2015 is...yes..."F!"  When the kids are tattooed, their left ear will be "F1," "F2," and so forth.  (Note, the ADGA omits the letters G, I, O, Q, and U). 

Many goat farmers choose to name baby goats with names beginning in the year's letter.  It is an easy way to remember how old a goat is.  For example, Charlotte was born in the "C" year (2012).  Elly May and Edna were born in 2014, the "E" year.  

I already mentioned that I am excited about the goats kidding.  But since last year I have been compiling a list of potential "F" names.  Let me know what you think about my list:

For the Girls (Yes, I am hoping for doelings!):

Fancy

Fala

Faye

Frisky

Frolic

Flur-de-lie

Fanny Mae

For the Boys:

Fritz

Fredrick

Ferguson

Freddy Mac

Want to join the fun? Leave a comment with your "F" name ideas!

(For more info on tattooing, see the ADGA registration form here.)

Goat News! {Introducing Charlotte & Elly May}

I had just gotten off the phone with yet another goat farm.  I felt jittery, thrilled, nervous, elated, and every other intense emotion on the spectrum.  I was getting another goat!  Well, I was actually getting goats--plural.  And, I was getting a full-grown goat already producing milk.  The adventure sure took an unexpected turn.  Here is how it happened:

The breeder where I purchased Edna never had anymore available doelings.  So, I began calling around to try and get a goat from another breeder.  Strangely, many of the farms had stillborn doelings and/or a huge crop of bucks.

After much fruitless searching, I finally found a "lead."  However, the goat owners were reluctant to sell a doe kid by itself.  They felt that a goat kid really needed to be raised on goats milk (not cow's milk from the store like I had been feeding).  They explained the benefits of raising goats this way and offered to sell me a milking doe with her doeling.  She was a first freshener (first-time mama) with twins, a buck and doe.

As I got off the phone with the farm, a nagging feeling came over me.  A full grown goat?  No.  I don't have a milking stand or a permanent shelter built, I reasoned.  But then again, how hard is it to build these things?  I called the farm back to tell them I seriously wanted the pair!  My only concern was that the kid's name was Enya.  With Edna around, that name would have to be changed to Elly May!

 Enya--now Elly May

Early Monday morning, my alarm woke me up at 5:15 am.  I hurriedly fed Edna, cared for the puppies, and climbed into the van pulling the cattle trailer.  I was so excited (to say the very least)!  About 8:15, we pulled into the farm.  The owners of the farm led us to their goat barn.  It was more like a goat palace!  We started the tour in the milking room.  Charlotte (the goat we were purchasing) was eager to be milked.  She hopped up on the stand and greedily butted her head for some grain.  I learned the process of wiping her teats off with an Iodine solution.  Then I started squirting away.  The milk came out easily, although the whole process was a bit laborious and tedious (teat-ious!)!

A rear view of the goat barn...

Next we were given a demonstration of how to mix up goat ration.  The goats have been on a barley/oat mix.  These grains are mixed together in a large barrel with some sunflower seeds, beet pellet, and molasses.

The goats at the farm had a lovely yard with lots of trees.  Charlotte stood on her hind legs trying to reach some high branches in the trees!  While the big goats played, Elly May got tattooed.  Her one ear has the letters SHTX while the other ear has E4 (E for 2014, 4 for the 4th kid born on the farm).  It is quite funny, Edna is tattooed with E4 as well!

We brought the goats home without event (except for stopping at three feed stores looking for alfalfa hay).  Charlotte seems quite stressed out by the huge change, however she is settling in nicely.  Edna loves having a little playmate, and Elly May is very sociable.  They weigh the same amount (22 pounds) even though they are 3 weeks apart!

Elly May rode in a dog crate, and Charlotte carefully guarded it the whole way home!

Finally Home!

I am learning so much through this process…flexibility, patience, persistence, trust, etc.  "Everything you need to know about life, you can learn on the farm!"  I am thankful to the Lord for setting me in this marvelous classroom.

Sneak Peak: I plan to post a "milking update" soon, but Charlotte milked almost 1/2 gallon just this morning!

Home!

 Edna the Goat is finally on her new homestead!  She was picked up around 10:00am this morning.  Goat ownership has been wonderful so far, although not without its challenges!

As far as I understand, goats in Texas must be tattooed before they leave the farm they were born on.  Edna was tattooed with the 2WS (the farm identification) in her right ear and E4 (E for 2014, 4 for the 4th goat born on the farm).  This tattoo will serve as an identification of the goat, with "codes" for identifying where she was born and what year she was born.

The tattoo process was quite interesting.  First the numbers are loaded into the tattoo gun and tested on a piece of cardboard to make sure the configuration is correct.  The numbers are formed out of many tiny "needles."  The numbers are pressed into the goat's ear, puncturing the skin slightly.  Then, bright green ink is smeared all over the ear and absorbs into the punctures.  The excess ink will be wiped off in a day or so.  Although the tattoo may fade, it should be readable for many years.

In order to prevent the green ink from getting everywhere on the car ride home, I tried placing socks over Edna's ears.  It made for a cute picture, but the socks easily fell off!  Oh well! 

Ahhh....The joys of bottle feeding!  Both Edna and her owner have been trying to figure this one out!  She is being fed pasteurized goats milk for now.  Originally she was drinking from a baby bottle.  She would only drink 1 oz. at the most, and put up a fight every feeding!  After a couple of failed attempts, I tried a larger lamb nipple on a soda bottle.  This arrangement was much more successful and Edna downed several ounces at once.  There is still no schedule to it, except for trying every couple of hours, but hopefully that will come soon.

 Edna stayed in her goat cave for the first couple of hours.  However, it started pouring down rain and the arrangement got all wet.  Uh-oh.  So for now, Edna is staying in an enclosed area in the barn.  I plan to work out more permanent shelter, but raising a goat is just a lot of "trial-and-error!" 

Raising a goat is also a lot of fun!  Edna has the cutest little cry (I think she is looking for her real Mama.)  It feels so good to tuck her wobbly legs under her body and stroke her baby hair.  I look forward to the days and weeks ahead, watching her grow and watching me grow as well!  Warning: Character Lessons Ahead!