Thank you to our CSA members for joining us for this action-packed, early summer season! We’re thrilled to share the summer vegetable, fruit and egg harvest with CSA members, and we’re happy to share another development on the farm.
Earlier this spring, we began building a hands-on learning program with animals which we mentioned in this piece. We welcomed chickens, then fiber sheep, and finally goats to the farm.
Flan, the sweet brown Nubian doe that joined us, was a former milker at the Prairie Fruits and Creamery goat dairy. We intended for her to help us babysit the three young kids (not related to her) that came with her from Prairie Fruits, help us maintain the silvopasture, and to enjoy a goat retirement.
However, we learned some news about our new doe — there was a chance she could be pregnant!? Apparently, a tenacious buck had snuck into pens recently and the goat farmers were catching on to his tricks. We were given the option not to take on Flan and her potential pregnancy, however, we’re never ones to turn down hands-on learning at the farm.
So when Flan arrived to our farm, Anacleto immediately felt her belly and he knew she was pregnant. As a cattle farmer back in Mexico, he and son, Cleto knew exactly what to look for and for weeks, they assisted Jeff to keep a close eye on Flan.
In May, the team started to see surefire signs she was getting close to delivery. We invited our good friends and fellow Lake County goat farmers, Tyler and Ruthann Kroll, to consult and advise us in how to assist with Flan’s delivery, just in case.
In recent weeks, Jeff and the team alternated regular checks with Flan in the late evening, early morning, and sometimes, even in the middle of the night. On Thursday afternoon, the team noticed that Flan wasn’t in the field with the other goats which was unusual. Sure enough, she was inside cleaning her newborn kids!
Flan gave birth to three healthy kids — 2 boys and 1 girl — who share Flan’s signature Nubian floppy ears. The kids caught onto the nursing quickly. The kids are growing and gaining more energy and curiosity each day. However, this heat wave is stressful on all of the animals. We are giving Flan plenty of electrolytes and fresh water, as she keeps her babies hydrated in the heat. The kids are happy to play in the early mornings and sleep during the warmest part of the day. Smart kids!
We are all giving Flan and her babies space and time to bond for the next few weeks. CSA members are welcome to take a look from the grass when you pick up your CSA share or come to the farm for the late summer CSA event.
In the meantime, enjoy this week’s share of the vegetable and fruit harvest!
~ Your farmers (Jeff, Cleto, David, Anacleto, Miguel, Jen, Gavin) and the Liberty Prairie team