The second weekend, I was able to get out during a break in the weather and clear the goat yard of many of the young trees. Now, I would have liked to left them, and allowed the goats to munch away, but I couldn't move in the goat yard! I did leave some for their use, but many had to go. Additionally, I took the hatchet to a couple of cedar trees' limbs. I have an unwritten rule around my yard (or that part I use) that if I cannot walk under the branch, it comes down. I took out about a dozen branches. For anyone reading this who has never seen a cedar tree, the branches of this evergreen grow very close together and start very near the ground. They are beautiful trees, but very difficult to get near the trunk. So, I took a hatchet to them. It worked pretty well, with one problem. I'm not as young as I once was and pulled some muscles in my lower back.
I have been in various amounts of pain for the last week. About day four it started to subside. A combination of acetaminophen, Icy/Hot patches, and common sense resting has helped the healing process.
This Saturday, I was able to get out and try again on completing the fence. I thought that a few hours of good work, Nathaniel, my 11 yr old, and I could get the other two sides of the fence up and secure. The first two sides went up pretty easily, once we got a rhythm going.
The second two sides were not as cooperative. First, we needed to get around a corner tree. My original plan was to use the trees as corner posts. It worked well a couple of weeks ago. We nailed the pallet to the first tree, made the fence, worked the pallets around the second tree and pressed on. The third tree was not going to be so cooperative. The ground around the base of the tree was mounded, angled upward, not allowing the pallet to get a good fit on the tree. We had to create an inward 90ยบ corner, like a capital "L". After that, it was a fight to get things to fit properly. You can see, in the picture above, how well and even the pallets line up. Looking at the picture, below, of the third fenceline, you'll notice how uneven the top line looks. I had pallets of different sizes and never knew it. They looked about the same when I had them stacked up in a pile. The next project will be completed a bit slower, giving me time to measure the pallets individually, which should give a better fit during the construction process.
The goats are ready to come home, but the seller has graciously offered to hold them another three weeks, until they are 12 weeks old. She said it would be better for the young ones to stay on mom's milk for that period of time. She has another buyer who requested this, so is extending the same service to me. I thought that was very nice of her. Considering the second picture is of the current goat yard, and I still don't have a gate, I think I'll take her up on the offer. Hopefully, my back will allow me to do more work as the week progresses. I'd like to get the fencing complete by next Sunday, and start on a shelter.
I've seen some very simple shelters pictured online that I'm going to base my first shelter from. I've also thought of some "toys" that can be put in the yard. I've got a bunch of cinder blocks sitting near the back of the house that I'm going to haul to the goat yard... that'll make my back feel better (sarcasm). I've told Garret, our 9 yr old, he can use them as giant Legos and create something for the goats to climb on. He thought that was a great idea! I may have created a monster with that one. LoL
Kitt - April 14
Kitt - May 10
Vivian - April 14
Vivian - May 10
