Our Spring came in June this year! First, a "few" of our chickens went broody!
My sons favorite hen, Dot, the Speckled Sussex, went missing. We didn't see any evidence of "fowl play" and I had a feeling she was setting on nest.
Our son finally found her in the ATV shed, quite happily setting on about a dozen eggs!
We also got our first and second batches of chicks. For some reason, our first shipment of chicks was delayed in arriving and sadly it really affected the chicks. We had several that had expired by the time they got here and a couple that didn't have the strength to pull through. We contacted Ideal and they sent out replacement chicks 2 weeks later, along with 10 packing peanuts! (extra male chicks to make sure there is plenty of warmth in the box when you have a small order).
The chicks are adorable - and so little! I have to wonder if it was only Lightening's eggs that hatched.
Unfortunately, 1 of them disappeared a few days later and she abandoned 3 of the others. We found them almost in time and brought them into the house. One was too weak and didn't pull through, but the other two are enjoying the spaciousness of the new brooder!
Our daughter started yelling and came running over to us saying that Clover had a baby! We hurriedly went to the goat pen and sure enough, there was a baby goat laying beside the fence!
Our first Boer kid born on the Ranch!
Black Alder Rainbow Dash.
We got her up and nursed and then put them into the area we had prepared in the barn. Unfortunately, even though Clover is not mean to the baby, she doesn't seem to have bonded with her either and will not stand still for her to nurse, so we are going out every few hours to hold Clover so that Rainbow can nurse. I was disappointed to have missed our first kidding.
On the 29th, my Dad went out early and heard Poppy yelling in the barn where we had already put her in preparation for her to kid. She was lying down and he could see the nose and one hoof of the kid so he gently got the other front leg out and help to pull the baby. I missed it again! but was there shortly afterwards.
We are hoping that Clover is just having the first-time-mommy issues and that next year will go much better for her.
So, needless to say, June has been a busy month! I had not mentioned yet that in May we added to our little family as well. We adopted Isabella from the Canyon County Animals Shelter and my dear friend Kim, knowing that I was wanting to get each of my children a kitten, gifted us with Inola, a beautiful, registered, clouded snow leopard Highland Lynx!