People often ask what it’s like to run a small homestead. The answer? It’s a little bit like playing veterinary whack-a-mole. Just when you think you’ve solved one problem, three more appear.
This week has definitely been one of those weeks.
Buckling #1: Corneal Injury
One of our bucklings managed to scratch his cornea. We started treating it with Terramycin right away, but after a couple of days it just wasn’t improving the way we’d hoped.
We sent photos to our veterinarian, who had us pick up a stronger ophthalmic ointment. Thankfully, it seems to be helping, and his eye has already started looking much less angry.
It’s still a little early to know exactly how much vision he’ll have long-term. We think there’s a decent chance he’ll lose some vision in that eye, but we’re optimistic that he’ll at least get to keep the eye itself.
Of course… he’s already spoken for and isn’t scheduled to leave until October. So now our mission is simply to keep him from finding yet another creative way to injure himself for the next few months.
Buckling #2: A Lesson Learned
Another buckling may turn out to be our first cryptorchid.
We always check anatomy before kids leave, but somehow we missed that only one testicle had descended before he went to his new home as a registered breeding buck. There’s still a non-zero chance the second one will drop over the next few weeks, but it’s looking increasingly likely that he’s cryptorchid.
We asked his new owner to send us an update when he’s around eight weeks old. If he still only has one descended testicle at that point, we’ll either provide a replacement buckling or refund his purchase. It’s disappointing for everyone involved, but we stand behind the animals we sell – and we’ll definitely be checking male anatomy more thoroughly from now on!
A Very Lopsided Precocious Udder
One of our yearlings suddenly developed a dramatically uneven precocious udder. While uneven development can happen, the sudden change has us watching closely for mastitis. Hopefully it’s nothing more than hormones doing strange hormone things.
Foxtail Strikes Again
One of our does developed a small abscess outside her mouth. Any time we hear the word “abscess,” our minds immediately jump to the worst-case scenarios, so it definitely got our attention.
After finding foxtail mixed into one of our hay batches, we’re pretty confident that’s the culprit. Those little seed heads may look harmless, but they can work their way into soft tissue and cause surprisingly painful problems.
Broody Chickens Making Terrible Decisions
As if the goats weren’t keeping us busy enough, we also had two completely unrelated groups of broody hens decide that eating their own chicks as they hatched was somehow the right parenting strategy.
Sometimes chickens really make you question their life choices.
Our Hernia Girl Isn’t Done Yet
The biggest ongoing headache has been our little doeling recovering from her umbilical hernia surgery.
She’s bright, happy, bouncing around, eating normally, and acting like nothing is wrong. Unfortunately, her body has decided it doesn’t particularly like some of the internal sutures.
At least two of the internal stitches have started working their way to the surface, creating small drainage tracts with… let’s just say a lot of pus. Thankfully, the drainage is actually a good sign that the material is finding its way out instead of staying trapped under the skin.
It’s definitely not pleasant to deal with, but the hernia repair itself still appears to be holding, and we’re continuing to work closely with our veterinarian while everything heals.
Just Another Week on the Homestead
So, to recap, this week has included:
- A scratched cornea.
- A possible cryptorchid buckling.
- A suspicious precocious udder.
- A foxtail-related mouth abscess.
- Cannibalistic broody hens.
- Rejected internal sutures after hernia surgery.
People see the cute baby goat photos and the gorgeous sunsets. They don’t always see the constant problem-solving, late-night health checks, vet visits, medications, and moments where you’re researching things you never expected to know.
We wouldn’t trade this life for anything… but if the universe wants to give us just one boring week – and maybe even a vacation – we certainly wouldn’t complain!
