Goats and two-year-olds

This is what feeding time is supposed to look like. I can’t even adequately explain what feeding time is supposed to sound like! Just about the time the sun is going down, and the air is cooling off, and sitting on the porch with a glass of tea or cup of something warm sounds like a great idea – this farm usually sounds as though one would be sitting in a Dolby surround sound theater during a chase scene watching some larger than life monster chasing every living creature in sight. I mean, no people screaming – until we are having to wrestle them all to GET to the trough. But you get the picture, Godzilla on a farm, everything in full yelling screaming panic mode. David does a great job mimicking this menagerie of sound to his unbelieving friends.

So yesterday, when the sun was fading over the hillside, I took a second to go feed the cow who is still here because, Lord, have mercy, he strongly desires to escape from the truck loading! The cow, never gets to eat all of his own food, because even though he outweighs everything on this farm by a few hundred pounds, he just moves and lets them have it. He gives in to the chickens and the goats. But, have no fear, he isn’t losing weight.

So the cow finally got an uninterrupted bowl of his own food. And that is when it dawned on me – Oh no!

You have seen the memes. Silence is golden, unless you have toddlers, then it is suspicious! With 30 some odd goats, silence is awful! I called – nothing. I clapped – nothing. I rattled a feed bag – nothing!

So, I hopped in the car with the windows rolled down, driving slow and yelling like an idiot as I drove along the country road. I stopped and asked all 2 cars who drove by if they had seen an entire herd of goats – they hadn’t. I worked hard to see my neighbors hillside – couldn’t see them. I drove to the white church at the top of the hill to get a better vantage point – nothing.

So, as a last resort, and hoping to find them before dark, I headed up the hillside to the fence line. In my absence, my son had arrived home and joined the search. He is superman, I am sure of it! He had found the herd, outside of the fence (little heathens) on the neighbor’s hillside happily eating and ignoring us. Together we got them all back under the fence where they had escaped and down to the trough.

I have decided a few things.

1. I am thankful that I have now have a written list of goats, by name, handy to take roll at feeding time so we don’t get someone stuck in the fence for days at a time (again). All accounted for!
2. Today, in addition to goat feed, I will buy a few t-posts
3. It is possible that I will get them all bells for their collars so they will “answer” me whether they want to or not
4. This squeezing under the fence line has got to stop!

Hope this little tid-bit made ya giggle! Personally, I am still in eye-roll mode – but I am at still smiling! At least they didn’t go far or eat $2000 worth of landscaping etc.