Shearing, Spinning, and Selling

Well after several weeks of posting ads and getting the word out, I finally found a wonderful buyer for 2 of our angora goats. Ironically, the person who bought them is the same person who sold them to me. haha! My dear friend, Kat from Flying Goat Ranch has decided to move out of showing and breeding Nigerian Goats and get back into Angoras. Kat is a talented spinner and knitter and has come to realize that the beautiful Angora Goats fit her lifestyle plans much better.

And for me, after fielding crazy inquiries about my angoras, such as "would your goats make a good playmate for my dog", or "I can just feed them weeds, and that's all, right?". But the best of all, was the lady who e-mailed from Arizona, from her pagan tribe ranch, out in the middle of nowhere. She really wanted a couple pointy horned goats to create 'spirit hides and skulls' from. Nice, eh?

So, you can imagine how grateful and happy I was to discover that my buddy, Kat wanted to adopt my sweet, beautiful angoras!

But first, Kat offered to help me shear them, so I could keep the fiber. She has really powerful shears and they make quick work of the shearing process. So I was thankful that she was there to offer her services.

First up, with the after-photo, is pretty Lily. She has amazing mohair fiber that I am looking forward to spinning and knitting. (Thats my friend, Kat, too). And you can see my daughter's itty bitty foot to the left. I just couldn't bear to crop that out.Then next up, with her own after-shot, is my sweet Luna. Her fiber was the cleanest because she is the Queen and never has to scrounge for food. This was Luna's second shearing here on Laughing Orca Ranch, and possibly even the second in her entire life. The first shearing was quite a job, but Luna seemed so grateful with the final results. She's my girl and is very special to me. Luna was my first angora, before I was even prepared to bring any home. I rescued her from a terrible situation and she introduced me to many of the special and beautiful attributes of goats.Then, last, but certainly not least, is playful, loveable, and pushy Cloud. He and I became close after I saved his life from bloat.
After we sheared all 3 angora goats, we sat down to a delicious lunch of BBQ hamburgers(Thanks Ranchman John!), homemade tortilla chips, sweet tea and made-from-scratch brownies(Yum).
Then following our lunch, my friend, Kat and I carried her spinning wheels up to my loft and she gave me a little lesson on spinning.Then it was my turn. As you might remember, a couple months ago I attended a wool processing class at another friend's house. I learned a lot about cleaning, washing, and carding wool, but I was stumped and frustrated with my experience trying to spin.
According to Kat, my frustration and difficulties probably had a lot to do with the patience and teaching capabilities of the instructor, as well as the type of spinning wheel.
I used a traditional spinning wheel at the class, but I discovered that Kat's Louet Spinning Wheel is much better for beginners who need things to be simple and uncomplicated. And, also, Kat seems to learn and think in similar ways that I do, so I was more comfortable and able to pick up the techniques much easier. What a relief and so much fun! Thanks Kat!!!
After our spinning session, Kat generously left me a bunch of rollags and her spinning wheel to play with and practice on, until we get together again.

And then it was time for her to gather up all of her spinning materials and head to the barn again to corral the angoras so she could take them home.
But my loving husband overheard my heart and encouraged me to keep my dear, sweet Luna. Which is so big of him because he's never been fond of the pushy, bossy angora goats. But I was so grateful and felt very relieved, as I kept remembering my promise to Luna after she came to live with us. That she would always have a home here on Laughing Orca Ranch. I truly believe that Luna and I have some kind of connection. Can goats be animal soulmates? If so, then she's mine.

So, in the end Luna stayed here, but Lily and Cloud went back to where they came from: A wonderful angora friendly farm called Flying Goat Ranch to be cared for by my super-special, animal-loving friend. We enjoyed having them here and we'll miss them, but we feel good knowing they are going to a farm where they will be appreciated.See you soon Kat! Farewell Lily and Cloud!

Wooly Bully

I just want to post a few recent photos of most of our woolies. The llamas were out browsing around, so weren't available......

But here, first in the wooly bully line up is handsome Cloud. Notice how beautifully his wool is growing in.

Second in the line-up we have Lily, the pretty and shy young lady whose mohair is the loveliest curly, silky texture. I cannot wait to shear her and play with her fleece this Fall.
Third in line, but usually always first, is the matriarch of all the goats, Queen Luna. She is my favored one and will always have a special place in my heart.
And fourth in the wooly bully line up is little Churro lamb, Blanca, who is not as little anymore. She came here so stand-offish and fearful, but now is happy to be petted and given treats by hand, just like everyone else.
And fifth in line is our precious Karakul lambie, Svetlana, who is never far from her pal, Blanca. She has become our cuddle lamb who doesn't mind when any of us snuggle up to her spongy, curly, soft wool.

And what is this little guy doing being included in this wooly bully line up, you ask? (No. Those are not my 'man-hands'. Thankfully, those are John's. He has a soft spot for Pepper, as you can see)
This cutie is our rescue goat, a goat he came to us sort of neglected and over-fed. We were told he was a Boer full-bred...or maybe a cross. Who knows. The lady who sold him to us didn't.
We believe that our cutie Pepper is a Boer mixed with a hair goat, possibly a cashmere, cashgora or angora. He doesn't feel like a typical smooth-coated wiry haired goat. He is super soft, plush and fuzzy. More like a sheep.
And you can see that his fur is possibly being bleached by the sun or just changing color like many sheep or hair goats do. He came here several months ago with jet black fur/wool and it is quickly turning silvery.
Pepper even has some crimp in his 'wool'!
We all love digging our hands into his plush, deep soft fur. It's so thick and soft! If you enlarge the photo, though, you can see that there are tiny siky hairs mixed into the woolier fur. I'm going to try brushing him out and see what I come out with. Maybe it will come out similar to an angora rabbit. We'll see.

Angora Love

Lately we've been working with our angora goats. John doesn't like the angoras at all because they are bossy and head butt all the other goats and sheep. John is very fond of Moon Pie and Pepper and dislikes seeing the angoras pick on them. And they do.
But the angoras serve a purpose on our ranch and they are quite valuable. I also have a very soft spot for my Luna, our first Angora, who I rescued from a bad situation. She will always have a home here on Laughing Orca Ranch.

Well, we've been applying the 'Tellington Touch" technique that I first learned about through my llama training and care guide books. And it seems to be working. All the angora goats are tamer and will allow us to pet and hold them. And they are not as pushy with us and will respect us when we tell them to back off and leave the other goats and sheep alone. It's not perfect yet. But we are enjoying our angoras a whole lot more now.

My 5 year old daughter, who has OCD and mild Aspergers, practically lives in the barn, and loves communing with the critters. All of the animals seem to enjoy her being around because she is gentle, quiet and doesn't harrass or chase them around. It's also very therapeutic for her, too, because the animals accept her and are affectionate and gentle with her, too.

I couldn't choose just one photo from the following because they all make me smile.

Here Luna, the Queen goat, is gently taking pellets from Jenna's hand. Look at Lily's cute face!

Luna was licking and kissing on Jenna's arm and making her laugh. Cloud, our gelding, sure has come around in his friendliness, too. He has some very sharp, curved outwards horns, though. They make me a little nervous. I think he has a more male face compared to our two females.
Everyone waiting patiently for their pellets. They are doing good, too. They could easily mow Jenna right down. Lily is more reserved and tends to stay back.
"Everyone take turns, please" Even Cataleya, our female llama wants a nibble.

Pepper, Rain, Bruises and Fiber

Weird blog title, I know. But I've got such a modge podge of photos and experiences to add in this post that not one title fits. So.....

Both Jackson and I, me upstairs, and he downstairs were worried what we might find upon walking out to the pasture after seeing this sight. The night before Pepper had a tummy ache and even refused food, which is very unlike him. Thankfully, we realized that Pepper was just cuddled up with the lambs, Svetlana and Blanca, fast asleep.
We experienced some very heavy rain a couple days ago. Much needed here, but we were worried about Baby Doll, as she has never wanted to stay in the barn with the llamas, goats and sheep. John decided to try a new tactic by just keeping the barn gate open and giving Baby Doll free reign of the entire 2 acres of pasture, while inviting her to come in and eat the hay left out for her inside the dry, cozy barn. It worked!
It got to the point that John was able to leave the barn without Baby Doll leaving with him. She would remain inside munching happily on her hay. And as the rain drummed down harder, she stayed in the barn, only leaving when the rain stopped or slowed down.
By allowing Baby Doll to decide to go in and stay inside the barn on her own, we finally were able to get her to actually enjoy being in there. Now we are finding that whenever we are in the barn, she wants to come in and join us. She actually seems annoyed that the angora goats are back inside HER space! hehe
We were all so excited to see Baby Doll willingly go in and out of the barn while tolerating the llamas, goats and sheep.

For a few weeks now, my neighbor friend has been trying hard to get her beautiful Arabian, Annie into the trailer, so that she can be taken up to be bred in Colorado. Annie has only been in a trailer one time. And she's stubborn, smart and confused about the entire trailering experience. The other day I went over to lend a hand and we spent several hours, unsuccessfully working at getting Annie just to take one step up on her own into the trailer. We started off using her trailer and then brought over mine, which has a ramp, instead of a step-up. But we didn't make much headway, except in creating a few bruises.
My frustrated and tired neighbor friend and her even more exhausted horse.

Got up to the barn pretty late. Usually Jones, our new barn cat that just showed up one day on the ranch, enjoys coming with us, too. The Angoras like to give Jones a hard time and give him a few head butts. Jones seems to think they are just petting him or loving on him. He ends up rolling on his back and purring. Silly boy! This is Lily giving Jones a hard time.
Jenna loves to spend as much time as she can in the barn with the animals, too. She enjoys hand-feeding the goats and sheep during feeding time. They all seem to like having her around, too. Here she is feeding Cloud, our angora wether.
The other evening, when I had left my camera back at the house, Jones was up in the barn with me and found, what I thought was a mouse. It screamed very loudly when he caught it. But when I got a look I realized that he had caught a baby rabbit! I was able to rescue the baby rabbit and even held it for a few minutes until it's poor heart stopped racing. And then I released it, where it ran back under the hay pallets in our barn. Usually, though, Jones only hunts and captures mice. He's a very good hunter and he seems to capture and eat at least a mouse or two per day. We are working in training him to be a full-time barn cat, instead of hanging out down at the house most of the day and night.
It seems that the rain has another benefit, too. The angora goats' wool looks and feels so much silkier now with a lot of gorgeous curl. I can't wait until fall when we can shear them and I can start working with their fiber. Isn't Lily beautiful?

Critter Walking

Jenna likes to take Moon Pie for walks on a leash, even though he really doesn't need one. Wherever we go, he walks right beside us. But walking on a leash is probably good practice for 4H, parades and PR, so we'll keep doing it, since Moon Pie doesn't seem to mind.
It's funny how the llamas seem to be the leaders as they browse the paddock all day, but once we join them, we humans are the leaders, and we are followed wherever we go. Ironically, we don't even hand out treats in the pasture, either. They just seem to gravitate to us because they like being near us.

Jenna likes to call it our "Critter Parade".
Walking a goat is fun.
My sweet Luna smiling at me. Can't you just see the love in her eyes? I swear that girl steals my heart! That's Cloud, beside her. He's a cutie, too. Rcently he had a bout of bloat that kept me worried and in the barn most of the day and night. It was my fault, though, feeding too much grain. From my goat friend, Kat, I learned how to treat him myself and not to kill 'em with kindness giving too many treats. It's tough because goats are just so sweet and cute, but I don't want to ever go through the fear of losing any of my goats to bloat again.

The odd thing about me spending so much time treating him for his bloat is that he seems more affectionate and friendly towards me. I suppose being force-fed vegetable oil, probios, and being chased around so you don't lay down and put pressure on your lungs, and then being massaged vigorously...for several hours...can make a goat and human much closer. (giggle)
Here's pretty Lily saying Hello!
Lily and Cataleya are pals.
Walking up the hill to the barn.
The Critter Parade!
It was a cold, windy day, but we love to hang out with the animals.

Pasture Pals

(Click any photo to enlarge it)Just a little update on the angora goats, boer goat, and llamas and how they are all getting along. The 2 angoras still stick pretty close together, but they are finally allowing Pepper, the boer goat to join the goatie herd, too. Luna is the bossy one and still manages to give Pepper a hard time, just because she can. Bad goat!

We all voice our displeasure at her whenever she is mean toward our little Pepper, and it does seem to either cool her off or distract her.
They all spend most of the day browsing, playing or napping in their 1 acre paddock. And the rest of the time they are in the barn napping or pilfering hay.

Catlinite, our male llama is always on duty and never lets any strange movement or noise go uninvestigated.
The goats are mostly unaware of any distractions, but always stick close to the llamas, as they seem to realize they are much safer with them around. We are very much enjoying all of our critters.