Operation GOAT

When spring is in the air I get the itch to grow our farm.  Last year we had lambs for the first time and this year I am hoping to add a few kids (of the goat variety) to our farm family.  To that end, Ian and I have been casually looking for a Nigerian Dwarf billy goat to introduce to Martha and Mellie.  Not only would their union result in a few kids but also a whole lot of delicious goat milk!

I am very excited to announce that today we brought home our buck.

He came to us from Farmer Peter near Belleville; a kind farmer and his wife who simply had one too many goats.  Lucky for us, we had one goat too few and were within driving distance.

We borrowed a dog crate and Ian rigged up a lovely goat transport habitat in the back of our new van.

 After a brief moment of hesitation this morning (is this goat going to destroy our van?), Ian and Liam headed off on Operation GOAT.  Their mission: to retrieve Farmer Peter's goat and get him home with the least damage to the van (and goat) as possible. 

Despite one special agent falling asleep on the job,

our new billy goat arrived on Gael Glen Farm shortly after noon.

Seamus named him Granby Lincoln and is he ever a sight....and a smell.  Granby has a lovely stripe down his back and a beautiful beard.  He is extremely mild mannered. 

To his credit, Granby also held his pee the entire way from his farm to ours.  Thankfully he did not pollute our van with his, well, stench.  He smells extremely "goaty" compared to Martha and Mellie.  Upon arriving at the farm, Granby let 'er rip and peed for over a minute.  Ian and I exchanged glaces of "is he is still going?", followed closely by looks of relief that that epic stream did not end up in the back of our van.

Introducing new animals into the mix is always interesting.  So far Granby's introduction to Martha and Mellie has gone swimmingly.  They seem mildly interested in each other and there has been absolutely no aggression.  Hopefully they continue to peak each other's interest until the "ram effect" takes effect.

Welcome to Gael Glen Farm, Granby.  We are happy to have you, stench and all.