09 Jun, 2016 – Day Forty-Eight:
The First Escape:
Oh, what a day. It was just a few days ago that I was bragging about how well behaved my goats were. Never trying to get out of their pens. Well, that ended today.
I was home alone and I collared Ginny and was letting her out the field fence, and then was going to see if Hermione or Neville was interested. As I was shutting the gate, Hermione charged the gate and butted it open so fast, I didn’t have time to react. Next thing I know, one of the two goats that I can’t catch is roaming free on the wrong side of the fence.
Not only is this on the property line, but our neighbors have a rhododendron bush about thirty feet from where we were. On a leash there is no chance of them getting anywhere near the darn thing, but now the goat is free. I completely panicked. I started praying. Part of me wanted to go up to the shop and get some feed to lure her back, but another part was terrified to take my eyes off of her.
For about fifteen or so minutes I slowly kept herding her back to the fence line and away from the neighbor’s field. Finally, she got really interested in eating a blackberry bush up against a tree. I grabbed on to her tail as fast as I could, and then a back leg. From there I got her middle and finally got her collard and chained. She didn’t scream or make too much of a fuss.
After that, I didn’t have much fight in me to try and convince Neville. The girls did enjoy the feast, but less than a half an hour later I saw two dogs running around in the field and heading towards us. I, unceremoniously, picked up the girls and carried them back into the pen. They weren’t too happy about it, but I wasn’t going to take any chances.
By the end of this, I was exhausted. I crossed the pen and went to leave out of the main gate. As I stepped through, Ginny tried to force her way out. Seriously?!? I was so shocked. She whined about not getting out for the next 15 minutes. She was very unpleased with me.
This evening, Matt and I got all three of them out, we had to corner and catch Neville, and let them graze for about 30 minutes before dinner. They loved it. Shaking their feed brings them running back in the pen without any problems, but we have to be a lot more careful now.
They have also started bucking up on the fences, when they feel they are being ignored. UGH
This new phase is a doosie.
G’Night.
DeaverHill 