You may remember that we put the four baby goats in the chicken coop a couple weeks ago. The animals seem to get along just fine, most of the time. I have noticed the goats being a little bossy with the hens every now and then. Laverne, our baby calf, just minds her own business…well, she will occasionally try to nurse on the goats ears if they hang around her too long. But all in all everyone does well.
Goats have a mind of their own. They are real sweeties…but, from my experience, they are very determined animals. When I come to the gate…they are quick to greet me. Matter of fact they will announce my coming to the world LONG before I ever enter. They ALWAYS beat me to the gate and make it near impossible to get in without someone slipping out. We go through this same scenario each and every time. I have tried to feed them treats over the fence…away from the entrance..then run to the gate and slip in….but to no avail.
I’ve learned shower and put on clean clothes after I make my morning runs. All because these precious little angels jump up and leave pretty little dirt prints on my pants each and every morning. Goats with their love for climbing, have left those same cute prints on my back while I squat to talk to a hen. I am in the process of teaching them the word …NO.. But that isn’t going over very well. All that to say that I love them….but they can absolutely drive me insane some days. I suppose that is why parents called their offspring…kids. A new parent saw that their child climbing around like a goat, jumping on everything, screaming at the top of its lungs all the time. Kind of like the chicken or the egg….which came first?? Who knows….but kids are kids…if they are goat kids or human kids….they are very similar.
This morning once again, as I approached the gate, my arrival was announced with loud voices that sound as if they are saying MAAAAAH….MAAAAAAH. I noticed that I heard three at one time…then there was a slight delay of another MAAAAAH like a backup singer. I looked closely as they continued the serenade….and saw that there were only three goats greeting me. Laverne greets me too with her own little call which is a deep sounding MOOOOOOO. MOOOOOO. Usually two or three and she is done. That indeed lets me know that she is ready for breakfast. It is however, about the only time she makes any noise during the day.
I saw that the girls were not out either. The automatic door should have already let them out at this point. Once again….I hear the MAAAAAH sound in the distance…and she was repeating it OVER and OVER…..VERY LOUDLY!!!! I could hear clambering around inside the hen house. I knew right off where Mary Jane was. She must have gone in through the hen door last night after the hens went in. The door closed…and she was shut up in the hen house for the night.
I approached the hen house and opened the main door.
Yep….there she was….looking all innocent.
The hens….well…
They just wanted out of there!
I can only imagine how loud it was, inside the coop, while she was sounding her vocal alarm.
She had knocked the automatic door opener off the wall.
Needless to say….I was NOT happy with her this morning. Poor Billy…now he has to take time to fix this and make sure the timer is up and running at the proper time again. I proceeded to send her on her way, back into the great outdoors.
The girls scooted out the door as well….happy as larks. It was as if the were screaming “FREEEEEDDDDDOOOOOMMMMM!”
Except for these three girls…..they were being “the fly on the wall”. Two of them watching the craziness..while the other looked as if she was saying…I just can’t deal with this anymore.
They didn’t even work their way down…instead they quickly flew past me and out the door, once all the wild women had exited.
Since the main door was open…..the goats kept coming inside. I would tell them NO and make them go back out. I found myself getting mad. I was trying to survey all the damage. The more I thought about the turn of events…. the more aggravated I became. From fighting my way into the fence, having prints all over my jeans, finding the opener all messed up and now… goat pellets everywhere. ARGH…. I just cleaned the coop Saturday.
It dawned on me that I was just as the saying goes…..mad as an old wet hen. I have grown up hearing expressions like these all my life. I’ll have to say….I still haven’t seen a wet hen… mad…but I have seen mad hens…and it isn’t a pretty sight.
With that in mind I decided that I needed an attitude adjustment.
I closed the door and stayed inside the hen house by myself for a minute and gathered my thoughts. I can choose to stay mad and add more things to my list of aggravations, OR I can do as another saying goes. I can get glad in the same pants I got mad in!
So, as I proceeded to leave all the excitement….goats on my heels….announcing my departure….I chose to smile.
After all kids will be kids…..and animals will be animals…
Often, just like human kids, animals seem to know when to do something so bizarre that it makes you laugh.
Lavern….my quiet child (calf)….left her artwork hanging on the fence.
Now….how can you not laugh after that!
I hope you can find humor somewhere in your day today too.
Choose to smile….and pass it on.
I've Gone Country 