Pedicures & Pruning

The girls all needed their hooves trimmed and it was finally sunny enough yesterday morning to start their spa day.  So as not to keep them on the stand too long, I do just one hoof on each goat per day, so it's a four-day process.  Because Tessie and Nineteen have breakfast served in their room, they're not used to coming to the stand.  I had to bring them, one at a time, out and around and into the milking room.  They argued the point until they saw the bowl of grain waiting.  I'm not above bribery for cooperation.  Not wanting to repeat this for four days, however, I trimmed all eight toes on these two.  If getting them in was hard, getting them to stay out was even more difficult.  "Hey, you have treats in there!  We want back in!"  Finishing the barn chores was a hoot with all the pushing and shoving going on.  I can imagine what today's going to be like.

It was the first day in I can't remember when that I didn't light the woodstove.  By afternoon, I realized it was still sunny and I was wasting it all in the house.  I grabbed the shears and went out to the west point and spent a couple of hours pruning a wildly overgrown wisteria vine planted in the corner of the vegetable garden.  There is a mountain of trimmings, and I haven't even approached the inside of the fence line.  Bessie Anne got tired of gopher holes and lazed in the sun nearby.  Hearing the patter of little feet, I looked down and there were two of the barred Rock hens (Inspectors 14 and 32?) who had come all the way out to the point to make sure I was doing a good job.  Guess I passed.  It was such a good day.