Tessie Is A Lady

Tessie is my unicorn girl, the youngest goat in the herd.  (This is not a recent photo.  There's not a blade of green grass to be found anywhere now, and Lucy, on the right, left us a long while back.)  Each of the girls has her own personality, special in her own way.  Tessie is the most ladylike of all.  She is generally not confrontational, which is a good thing due to being the only one armed with a weapon, as it were.  She seldom takes cuts in line to come in, unlike others who shall remain nameless.  When her turn comes, she gets immediately up on the platform, waits for me to fill her bowl, and stands quietly to be brushed.  I can't brush hard enough to suit Esther, but Tessie's hide is more sensitive and needs a soft touch.  Tess gives a half-pail of milk a day.  I might wish for larger orifices as, even though she has nice-sized teats, it's hard work to empty her udder, but one can't have everything.  Tessie doesn't stamp or dance around.  How a goat stands makes a difference when milking, and Tess keeps her back feet apart so it's easy to grasp the teats.  It happens that some grain from the bowl falls on the stand (unless it's Cindy, who eats like a vacuum cleaner).  When finished, the rest of the girls simply get down and get out.  Tessie likes things neat and tidy and must pick up every fallen smidgeon and morsel before leaving.  She has an unusual habit of sniffing the uprights and bars on the stand.  I've no idea what she's smelling, but it's her ritual.  I've got rowdies, complainers, and needies.  Tessie is a lady.