Coyotes Attack
Kylie and Kacie showed goats last year - well, actually Kylie is the only one old enough to show, but Kacie had a goat to keep Kylie's show goat company and she actually got to show it at the Huckabay International Jack Pot last year. Well, Kylie's goat didn't make the cut at Houston and went on to goat heaven while Kacie's goat, Buddy stayed in Stephenville deciding he'd rather be a dog than a goat. Buddy lived in our yard last summer until he ate my hibiscus plants to the nub, pooped all over the back patio and carport, and then began to feast on my garden. Kyle was in favor of sending the girls to my parents for the weekend while we had a big feast of cabrito, but I didn't think that was such a good plan, so Buddy went to live at Pop's house with some goats of my brother's. Buddy had been accustomed to $15 per bag show goat food, so getting adjusted to the rough life of pasture grazing with an occasional bucket of oats insulted his being. But he adjusted and if he only realized his other option at the time would have put him rolled up in a tortilla, I think his attitude would have been much better.
Three nights ago, coyotes attached the goat herd at Pop's house - by herd I mean a total of six goats (two being babies) that hang out with a couple of llamas. They killed a momma goat and one baby, but Buddy escaped unscathed. My brother has decided to cut his losses and is going to sell his goats, so Buddy is headed to the sale barn with them. He can't live here because I've spent too much on landscaping over the years, and I'll be planting my garden in a few months. The coyotes are thick as thieves here as well... just two nights ago Kyle had to fire a shotgun just to shut them up long enough for the kids to go to sleep. It's crazy. Anyway, Kacie is quite upset about Buddy the goat being sold, but it's part of being a country girl, and she'll eventually work through it.
Skunks & Dogs
Our Jack Russell Tuffy has all the character that is synonymous with being a Jack Russell. He's 12 pounds of pure cockiness and has an acute obsession for his ball. His ball is his heroine. If he can't find it, he goes a little crazy. Yesterday evening when I got home from church he didn't meet me in the driveway as he usually does. It was a cold, wet dreary day, so that was especially unusual. Normally he greets me with disgust for leaving him out all day. He much prefers to stay in when the weather is bad.
I immediately went around the house with a flashlight looking for him and calling his name. Nothing. I got in my vehicle and drove down our road to the neighbor (over a mile away) scanning the bar ditch with a spotlight thinking maybe he'd gone up to the road and had been run over. Nothing. I drove back home and pulled in the driveway to see a skunk scuttle out across our carport. I ran inside to get my rifle so I could blast him away, but when I came back outside, he'd run in the pasture and was between our house and another neighbor's work shop so I couldn't shoot him, but I sure wanted to. I'll get him eventually.... Anyway, it's raining, it's cold and I'm worried sick about Tuffy. The girls and Kyle hadn't made it home from church yet and I was dreading telling them the news. The goat issues had been enough animal drama for one week. I know this is small stuff, but it's big stuff to them. OK I admit it. It's big stuff to me as well. As I'm pouring all this out to God, walking through the pasture in the rain sporting my mud boots, rifle and spotlight, I hear a very faint bark that sounds like my Tuffy Dog... I yell louder and his bark gets louder... and here he comes running full blast. Soaking wet, shivering, covered in mud and very, very stinky. I wanted to beat him and never let him down all at the same time. He got a bath and a scolding and all is well today. He's in the house. Maybe he ran away from home because he was mad that we put him out yesterday... who knows.
Hospitals
My mom is in the hospital (that was included in the pouring it out to God moment in the pasture) with some low blood pressure issues that the Drs. haven't quite figured out. I'm concerned and frustrated all at the same time. More to come on that. They are waiting on some tests and should know more in the days coming.
Keep the faith..... Romans 8:28
