The Thing About Boys and Girls
July 12th, 2015 · No Comments · Posted in farming
It’s around this time of year–beginning of July–that we separate the male animals from the females. All of the pregnancies on Spy Dog Farm are planned–meaning we do our best to avoid accidents and time our births for spring, sometime in April.
That entails a bit of fancy footwork, inasmuch as we have to find a place to put our two rams–Tucker and Buddy–and our buck Tigger where they can graze for the four intervening months until November, when everyone is re-united to perform acts of conjugal bliss. It also means we have to continuously rotate the rest of the herd–the female sheep and goats–to fresh pasture so they have plenty to eat while the grass is green.
You might well wonder why a small farm such as ours would do such a crazy thing. Can’t we just rent male goats and sheep when they’re needed? In fact, we do know other farmers who travel fairly long distances with their animals for mating services. I don’t happen to own a trailer. And finding stud service isn’t necessarily easy. With all the different diseases lurking around, many farmers are reluctant to entertain outside stock for “bio security” reasons. Having experienced my share of sick livestock, I wouldn’t really welcome interloping animals either.
That being the case, the only way to reproduce is to have both sexes readily at hand. And breed they will, even when you aren’t looking. We aren’t trying to grow our flocks. Other than replacing animals that have died or found their way into the chest freezer, I have to remind myself occasionally that mostly what we’re about is making our own food. For that we only need but a few animals. Any extras we try to sell to our friends and neighbors to support the commercial side of the farm.
But do I really need two rams to take care of seven ewes? Actually, the number is smaller than that, as two of our Friesian ladies have failed to give successful births. One hasn’t even gotten pregnant in the two years she’s been on the farm. Truth is, whether you want to or not, no matter how professional you try to approach things, you do become attached to your animals. They’re not pets, exactly, but you do form a bond. If anybody’s expendable, it would be Buddy. But I’d have to know he was going to a good home.
As for our Kiko buck–Tigger–well, he’s just turned into the finest looking specimen. Big and muscular, with an elegant set of horns, he was sold to us when just a boy with the admonition we shouldn’t expect him to become a pet. In fact, for all his fearsome looks, he’s a total pussycat. And just look at the kids he’s sired. Baby goats may be the cutest thing in creation.
So, for months on end we work on this puzzle, keeping the different sexes separated and moving them from place to place so they can forage and thrive without mating. Part of me looks forward to winter. I know it sounds crazy, considering how harsh winters can be around our neck of the woods. But in many ways it’s a whole lot simpler.
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