The GOAT has a couple of different meanings to me these days.. Some refer to the GOAT as the greatest of all time. You ask me it means got out again todayā¦
Let me share with you a childhood memory that I carry with me that will shed a little more light on what experiences has helped shape me into who I am today. Maybe you can relate in some way.
There was a brief period in my life as a child where we had the farm life experience. and I mean It was brief.. I never understood why it was so brief back then but I understand it now.
I grew up with three brothers and one sister. I was a bit of a tomboy so I gravitated towards my brothers back then. I remember my dad bringing home our first goat, her name was Memory. Oh we loved herā¦ I would ride her around the farm like she was my personal chauffeur. Looking back I am pretty sure she hated it but I loved her to pieces. I donāt remember much more outside of the joy she brought me.
One day I came home and Memory was no longer there and the farm life soon became a distant blur. What I didnāt realize at that time was the difficult decisions going on due to financial hardship my parents were having to make. My parents gave me an experience that I will never forget with Memory even if it was brief I remember the happiness I felt like it was yesterday.
Fast forward to today. Goats have always been part of the plan. Ryan is a forward thinker. He sets a purpose to any plan. The goats purpose is to help clear the over grown brush that has went unmanaged for many years on this property and potentially using our goats for milk in future ventures.
Our first experience of goats on the farm was about two years ago. We brought in two Nigerian Dwarf does (female) goats. I immediately fell in love with them like I typically do with any animal.
The plan was that Ryan would be the primary on this goat project. I would be available to offer my expert adviceā¦ totally kidding. We found out pretty quickly that the goats were intimidated by Ryan. They would not go near him nor could he catch them to try to leash train them.
I stepped in to work with them and get them leashed trained. I am by far no expert so it took me quite awhile to get them comfortable. Lots and lots of animal crackers and often times I would just sit with them and pet them and we would go on short walks every day. Little did I realize how much they helped me not think about my daily stressors of my career. They eventually stopped needing leashes and would follow me anywhere.
Winter started to get closer and we were able to get their paddock setup outside. We had an electric goat fence to ākeepā them in.. Winter hit and I would haul water out to them. I remember one day I had just got done bringing water to them and headed back inside and as I am walking away I felt something behind me.. of course itās one of them!
I thought maybe I didnāt get the fence closed good enough so I put her back in and headed back into the house and not even 5 seconds later I look to my left and there she is just trotting along.
Goats are amazing animals but are a lot of work and investment. If you are thinking about goats learn about them first and have the time they deserve to invest in them.
From that day on since they learned how to literally scale the fence there was nothing holding them back. We had to bring them in the barn until Spring and then invest in a goat proof fence.. just kidding they donāt exist. They can get out of anything basically. They just need to have things in their paddock to keep them busy along with something to graze on.
We also recently experienced loss due to illness which hit me like a ton of bricks. We brought in a buck on the property who was unknowingly ill and unfortunately got one of our girls very ill. We ended up losing both of them. Words of adviceā¦ be very intentional on where you purchase your goats from and know how they are cared for.
Itās tough owning a farm let alone animals. Also just learning the basics and the time it takes to do that. We now have added more goats to the property and are expecting baby goats very soon.
If you want to know what it feels like to have joy, excitement, anxiety, stress and frustration at the same time I highly recommend you get goats.
We are working on a new paddock in the front of the property with a bit of a vision..
How cool would it be to stop by the farm because you ran out of eggs or need to pick up a fresh ingredient for an amazing recipe you are trying after a hard day of work.
As you park and get out of your vehicle you see lots of goats running and playingā¦ and when you look around you see a bench with an open seat inviting you to stay even for just a moment. As you sit down from a tough day you see a goat jumping on her newly made goat swing that Jamie has been pushing Ryan to make for years.
You canāt help to smile and forget about the chaosā¦
Looking forward to one day soon seeing benches around the goat paddock filled with people who just need a moment even if itās brief to forget about the chaos.
Moral of the storyā¦. Sometimes the littlest moments leave the greatest impact. Appreciate the littlest moments, trust me they matter.
-āš¼Jamie
Moral Of The Story 