The "?" Crew

Bella and Tipsy

Bella, the free-spirit, could do with or without humans. Some friends of ours found her wandering their cow pasture. After a month of trying to find the owners, they gave her to us. They roped her, tied her into the back of the pickup and headed to our house. Bella escaped the rope and jumped from the moving pickup. Toes over tea kettle she went, into the barrow pit. Skinned up knees, a deep cut up the shin and a cracked horn. For once, she decided to stay put. Recaught, Bella made the remainder of the trip in the cab of the pickup. I'm tellin' ya, I'd pay good money to see it. Our friend, the dusty ol' cowboy (who wouldn't be caught dead herdin' goats, by the way), his ol' cow dog beside him and Bella ridin' shot gun.

The first time I saw her, she was in our kidding shed, banged up and bloody, and seriously under weight (running from coyotes will do that to you). As I doctored her and fed her grain, I thought, "She's gonna love me for this." I was wrong.

She's hard to photograph, she's hard to catch. If she even thinks you're going to try to catch her, she gets herself an escape plan. Should be interesting when she starts having her babies... I'm hoping she's having babies. Last year, she faked me out... she was just fat.. no kids. This year, I still don't know.. and if she is, she's a full month behind everyone else... I know these things.

Tipsy is one of Ms. Bennett's first kids, her twin was male and sold. Tipsy has me guessing also. Is she? Isn't she? Only time will tell.


The picture, on my blogger profile, of the baby goat, laying in the grass, that's baby Tipsy. She was the cutest, tinest kid, always laying in the sun. It's like she pooped out quick, so she'd just tip over.


When Ms. Bennett had her, I didn't realize she was due,... I thought she had weeks to go. So, when I came home one day and saw Ms. B running between these two little white bodies, I thought she was playing with someone else's kids. Turned out, she was running between her own two newborns, FRANTIC. She knew she was supposed to do something, but what? Poor Ms. B, anything that moved, other than the babies, was a threat and "What the heck, these little things are trying to suck on me!!" Little Tipsy would get up and try to reach her momma before she turned and ran back to the boy, only to fall flat when Ms. B took off again. I scooped up both babies and took them to a small stall with Ms. B close behind, trying to bite me. I got them all into the stall, draped it with a sheet so Ms. B couldn't see out and at last, they all settled down. Now it's Tipsy's turn. Wonder what kind of first-time mom she will be?