This year we've had an unusual number of swallowtail butterflies on the farm.  They are quite stunning floating about on their huge yellow wings.  This particularly large and beautiful Two-Tailed Swallowtail was foraging in our flowerbed. 

It's been a busy couple of weeks with a whole new batch of kids.  Our first Grand Design and Patent Design daughters freshened, and we are very pleased with their udder capacity, teat size, texture, and milkability as first fresheners.  Quintus Quinn's first kids were born, and they almost all look just like him -- same color, same length, same style.  Now we're just waiting on Mercy (due the 6th) and Pumpkin (due the 11th), and we'll have a break for a few weeks before wrapping up most of the kidding by mid-June.

What I have found interesting about this whole year is that the does are regularly kidding 2-3 days before their 145 day due date.  We've had a few kid early in past years, usually in warm weather, but never as many as this year.  I sometimes wonder what gets in the air to make them do things like that.  :) 

We have updated the Sales Page with some of the new doelings that are available.  There's also a handsome little polled, blue-eyed, moonspotted, buckskin buckling sired by Grand and out of Peppermint.  And if you're looking for pets, we have a colorful selection of bottle baby wether kids (neutered males) ready for homes.

Yesterday morning MT Rivendells TQ Ygritte had quadruplets sired by Larkstone SP Grand Design *B Elite.  Quadruplets were a welcome surprise -- we thought she would only have twins again, as she didn't look that big.  There are 2 doelings (the chocolate kid and white buckskin kid) and 2 bucklings (the 2 buckskin-chamoise combos, AKA "red buckskins").  Must say it is a beautiful litter.  Already looking great even though they are still little fat wiggly newborns.  And Ygritte is a wonderful mama.

​Both doelings and 1 buckling will be retained for now, and the other buckling is spoken for.

That makes 10 sets of quadruplets this year, and by the look of some of the other pregnant does (especially Cookie and Chantilly), it won't be the last.  MT Rivendells AV Nyala 1*M 1*D is next up to kid, due on the 15th.

There are now photos up of all the new doelings for sale.  Visit the Sales page to view them, and let us know if you see any you are interested in purchasing.  They are American Dairy Goat Assocation and American Goat Society registered.  CAE, CL, and Johne's free herd.  Located in Western Montana.  Nationwide ground transport available.

Krebs QQ Faith x Gabhran Creek Raise The Bar *B Buckling

When I said a couple of days ago that Krebs QQ Strawberry looked like she's got a pile of kids in there, I didn't expect SEXTUPLETS.  Yup, Strawberry had 6 kids -- 2 girls and 4 boys.  Sire is Gabhran Creek Raise The Bar *B.  We've had several batches of quintuplets over the years, but this is our first batch of sextuplets.  They are itty-bitty (and adorable), but they are all healthy and doing well.  The girls are staying with mom for now, and the boys have been put on the bottle since they have homes lined out for them.

Photos: All taken when the kids were under 2 days old.  Kids in the basket are the boys (trying to climb out already, of course).  Kids on the hay are the girls (look at those pretty blue eyes).  Boys are reserved.  Girls are available for $ 450 each, ADGA/AGS registered.  (UPDATE: All Sold.)

Yes, I know the first phase of our kidding season ended over 7 weeks ago, and we haven't mentioned a thing about it yet.  Let just put it this way: there's no end to busy on a farm.  Better late than never, I suppose.

Anyway, we had 85 kids born out of 33 does in a 2-week time frame, including 8 sets of quadruplets!  You can imagine the controlled chaos.  Thankfully, the late-January weather was very mild, and the kids were born healthy (plug for the Fertrell goat minerals we feed and sell here at the farm).  All the births were easy, with no problematical malpositions, no "going inside," and no vet visits.  Of the 85, we only lost 1 kid that was born inside the water bag while we weren't present.  And despite several of our favorite does having triplet and quadruplet bucklings :(, we wrapped up with 43 doelings to 42 bucklings.  We're quite pleased with the quality of our doeling crop this year. 

We will be getting photos of the available doelings shortly.  Meanwhile, peruse their pedigrees, prices, and other info on the Sales page.   If you're able, feel free to schedule an appointment to come out and look at any you are interested in purchasing.

We are also offering some nice proven does and bucks for sale in order to stay within out self-imposed herd size limit.  We will be adding more doelings and does as we finalize who we are retaining and who we are selling, so make sure to check back! 

If you're looking for pets, we have a nice selection of wethers (neutered males) available now.  They will all be ready to go weaned on March 25.  Photos on the Sales page.

We will be offering 1-3 bucklings sired by Larkstone SP Grand Design *B Elite and out of Krebs QQ Ruth Quinn (one of our favorite CH Old Mountain Farm QuentinQuinn *B daughters) after we decide if we want to retain one of the triplets.  Let us know if you are interested in one of those.  Great shoulder assembly on the entire litter.  We retained these bucklings' full sister, Krebs LG Song of Songs, from last year, and she will be kidding in April.

On February 5, we conducted a 1-Day Milk Test on MT Rivendells HW Desert Dawn, Krebs QQ Tiddlywinks, Krebs QQ Hope, Krebs QQ My Fair Lady, Krebs QQ Caribou Quinn, Krebs QQ Avalon Quinn, Krebs QQ Budgie, Krebs QQ Tangerine, and Krebs DC Berenice.  They all did well and had excellent butterfat content, and all of them are expected to be awarded stars when ADGA gets their software problems sorted out.  Avalon and Hope are also on 305-Day Milk Test this year.

The 2021 305-Day Milk Tests are pretty much wrapped up, with Krebs SR Chantilly 3*M 3*D, MT Rivendells HW Dove 1*M 1*D, Krebs MD Bunny Tracks, Krebs QQ Liesl, Krebs QQ Peppermint, and Krebs QQ Brooke all expected to earn new Advanced Registry status.  Chantilly milked through to 387 days, producing 1029 lbs. in that time frame.  Krebs Farm OT Clairebelle 2*M 2*D AR produced 948 lbs. in 305 days, and it looks like she will produce over 1040 lbs. in her extended lactation.  All the "QQ" does starring also means that their father, CH Old Mountain Farm QuentinQuinn *B, is expected to posthumously receive GCH, +B+S AR designations.

Our next round of does has started kidding, with triplet bucklings out of Krebs QQ Lavender and 1 doe/3 buck quadruplets out of Krebs SR Clairify 3*M 3*D.  Krebs QQ Strawberry is in labor as I write this, and she sure looks like she's got a pile of kids in there.  This batch of does is relatively small -- just 6, Lavender, Clairify, Strawberry, Krebs QQ Faith, Krebs QQ Quinoa Quinn, and Krebs QQ Arabelle.  Once they have kidded, we will have a short break (maybe a week and half), after which we will have quite a few does kidding April through early-May, another break, and another smallish batch in late-May/mid-June.  That will finish up most of the kidding.  We are taking reservations for doelings, bucklings, and wether kids that will be born through that time frame, as well as milking does.

And finally, we can officially introduce MT Rivendells TQ Eureka now that she is out of her precautionary pre-herd-introduction quarantine.  We acquired her two-years-older full sister, MT Rivendells TQ Ygritte, in 2020, and were so pleased with her first-freshening udder that we decided to try out the same model in a different color scheme (Ygritte is chocolate chamoisee with moonspots; Eureka is gold).  Eureka and Ygritte's parents are Old Mountain Farm Toru Quinn (Old Mountain Farm InLikeQuinn *B x Old Mountain Farm Tsukiko) and Old Mountain Farm KTeeChipmunk (Old Mountain Farm Field Mouse x Old Mountain Farm Peris 2*M).  Eureka is currently in the breeding pen with Krebs QQ Quintus Quinn *B, our CH Old Mountain Farm QuentinQuinn *B son who pretty much looks like a clone of his father.  Ygritte is bred to Larkstone SP Grand Design *B Elite and due April 6.

That's a wrap for now.  Hopefully I'll be able to keep updates a little more current for the rest of the season.  Key word: hopefully. ;)

We have updated the 2022 goat Breeding Schedule with the expected due dates of the does due to kid in mid-May and June, 2022.  These does include Belle, Cookie, Willow, Bunny Tracks, Pumpkin, Belle's 2021 daughter, Whisper, and Kiko.