Saturday, July 21, 2012

I had one goat too many and sold Nutmeg yesterday. I let her go for $40 less than I wanted. But the buyers paid in cash and I feel confident they will provide an excellent home. I was paying too much for grain and producing too much milk. Meanwhile, the goats are in a too small space and I have no desire sell milk from such a small set up. Plus...milk customers are an ass pain. I won't sell milk to strangers again, until I can set it up properly. 

Its funny how a little bit too much can really screw everything up. All things in proportion, eh? What I'm learning about micro farming is to keep it micro. Do what works and let go of what doesn't work.

In other news, our last Plymouth Rock is not well. She woke yesterday with a head wound that has one eye swollen shut and is leaking goo.  Not good. My first impulse was to chop off her head. But jeeze, I feel like the Red Queen: "off with their heads!" My second impulse was to bring her inside for rehab. But is that really kindest? She put herself in a safe quiet known place in the coop and was resting. Would taking her into a completely foreign land (full of dogs and cats, I might add) make her feel better? Or would that make me feel better? In the end, I decided to mix raw milk and tincture of golden seal into a small ceramic cup. I administered small sips through out the day. She didn't get worse. If she improved, it may have been only through the considerable powers of my imagination. Or possibly through the homeopathic dose of alcohol she was getting off the tincture.

2 comments:

  1. Chickie does look better this morning. She is refusing more goldenseal/milk. But the power to refuse is a good sign.

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  2. way to go! we had one we lost yesterday....first in a long time, with a VERY strange pattern of damage on the neck (no blood) more like head rotting off her shoulders, no goo, just bare skin and her shoulders" all tucked in. We did take her indoors, and she let go during the night. Good luck with yours, - C

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