Our four Golden Guernsey goats are now four years old and have finally matured into big, strong boys. It’s wonderful to watch them playing in the yard, or spending time with the llamas in one of our fields. I could do without their head-bashing games though. I can’t recall when it first started, but for the past few months, it has become an obsession with them. Either a pair face each other head-on, rear up and clash horns at the same time, or they just place their heads together and see who can push the hardest. We wouldn’t mind, but the games sometimes end in one losing a horn and it can be quite a shock to take their bowls out at dinner time to see a scene resembling The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.
Their feet need trimming tonight, a job that I do once every four weeks. I check their horns too and any that are growing towards their eyes or heads are trimmed back carefully. It’s a job I hate. The boys were disbudded before we got them, but it wasn’t done properly and seven of the eight horns have grown back as wobbly “scurs”. They must be held firmly as the end is shortened and any movement by the goat can result in the scur snapping at the base. We’ve collected an assortment of tools for this task – a small hacksaw with the blade reversed, hoof trimmers and a giant rasp. I was lucky a few months ago, when the urgent removal of two scurs coincided with a vet visit for regular worming. The vet kindly helped my husband restrain the victim, while I sawed away, through the horn… and right through my finger. At least Rodney won’t need doing again this year.
Featured above is a photograph I took of Del Boy and Boycie back in January.
Steve Cullum
21 Oct 2021Good luck 🙂
Zooey
23 Oct 2021Thank you. Three down, one to go 🙂
Sid
23 Oct 2021I would have liked to have a little goat but I haven’t enough space in my very small garden 😉☺️
I didn’t know it was necessary to trim regularly their feet and horns! I thought it was something like cats, you know, they trim by themselves… Alright! My mom’s grandfather was a peasant. Me, growing in a big city 😜😁
Have a wonderful Sunday!
Sid
Zooey
23 Oct 2021Goats need a lot of space. Our two llamas and four goats have two acres of land, plus a yard and large field shelter. The goats’ feet need doing every four weeks. Thankfully, the llamas wear their feet down in the concrete yard and only need tidying up once a year. Our shearer does that for us 🙂
Sid
24 Oct 2021Two acres of land?!? My garden is two meters of edges and roses 😂
Alright, goats are not for me. But cats, they are 😜
Have a wonderful Sunday!
Sid
Zooey
24 Oct 2021That’s for the llamas and goats. We also have half an acre of garden. All our cats are indoor only though. You have a wonderful Sunday too my friend 🙂