This little gal was born Sunday morning in the sleety rain. Al went out to feed the cattle while I went on to teach at church. He was going to catch up with me before the service. He squeaked in at the very last minute, whispering that Genny had calved.
After church, Al & Eric moved Genny & her new girl up into a stall. The cows would have been content to stay down in the woods but it makes me feel better knowing they are put up.
The goats were especially put out at the weather. The stood under shelter, staring at us as if we could change things. The sheep & cattle think nothing of rain or snow but the goats are just so fussy about getting wet. The advantage of that characteristic in goats is that I don't mind being in the rain so I can get a lot done in the barnyard without the goats underfoot. Someone may get very bold & run out to me to see if I have a peanut in my pocket. They are usually disappointed & run back under cover as I don't carry treats in my pocket if I need to work alone. We did lose power about 5 o'clock Sunday afternoon. We stoked up both fireplaces, lit a few candles, put a pot of water on the fire for tea & moved the tortoise up by the fire as his regular heat source is electric. Everyone outside had hay, feed & water so there was not a whole lot more that we could do. It was pleasant, however, to have our power back on 24 hours later.
We did have one death in the storm. The wicked rooster who loves to chase & spur us was dead this morning. He was an older Phoenix rooster so perhaps it was just his time. He'd also huddled into the tractor barn with lots of sheep so perhaps he was stepped on. Either way, he lived a much longer life than he would have on most farms. For the last five or six years I've been just cautiously avoiding him so that I didn't often get my legs laid open. I doubt many other folks would have been as patient & would have dispatched him when he first showed himself as a cocky young fellow.
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