MacGregor Hollow

Kidding Part IV

2010-09-15T06:28:00.001-07:00

We help the does clean up their kids with old but clean towels. We weigh each kid so that we have a reference if we need to see if they are growing well. Then we clip the umbilical cord and dip it in iodine. If it is cold outside, the kids get a sweater for warmth. The kids are usually up in a few minutes looking for a drink.

Kidding Part III

2010-09-08T06:24:00.000-07:00

The kid's shoulders came out easily once the legs were pulled forward. The rest of the kid was delivered quickly. Roni turned around immediately to start cleaning her baby. The kid was born with a clean face and did not need any suctioning to clear her airway.

Kidding Part II

2010-06-16T19:30:00.000-07:00

Once the baby was visible, Roni was pushing hard and not making much progress, so I pulled one hoof forward to help her.

In the second picture, both legs are pulled forward to narrow the shoulders & make birth easier. The little white “booties” on the bottom of the hooves help to protect the doe's uterus from the hooves. It is very soft and will rub off as the kid begins to walk.

The grain bag provides a clean surface for the kid and helps to contain the birth fluids.

Kidding

2010-06-08T22:33:00.000-07:00

Here are photos of a very normal birth, in which a small amount of assistance was provided. We use clean, empty grain bags to catch the kids and as much of the birth fluids as possible to try to keep the stalls clean.

Roni was shorn a few weeks before this kidding. Shearing prior to kidding helps with visualizing the udder to try to gauge kidding time, and makes the teats more obvious to newborn kids. Mohair ringlets can easily be mistaken for teats by newborn kids who may look like they are drinking, but not be getting colostrum.

Roni in early labor showing a vaginal discharge string and the typical “pump handle” angle of her tail that signals readiness for labor.

This kid is presented in the classic, easiest to deliver position, nose and both hooves forward (sometimes called the “diving” position). One hoof and the nose are visible here; the other hoof is hidden by the nose. The amniotic sack had already popped, making it easy to visualize the presenting parts.

Roving

2010-03-14T15:22:00.001-07:00

I sent some of my hand dyed fiber to Zeilinger's Mill to be processed into roving. They did a fantastic job. The roving is just wonderful. I have 3 gorgeous colorways.

The first is called Autumn Splendor. It is a cormo and mohair blend. It is a 3 way blend of colors. First is a vibrant red, then a spicy pumpkin orange and a touch of green as well. It was inspired by the 100+ year old maples in my yard. They are an amazing blaze of color each fall.

The second is called Moonlit Garden. It is a 3 colorway inspired both by my gardens at night and by a wonderful fragrance that I use for one of my handmade soaps. It is mostly mohair with a small amount of wool added for memory. First is a rich violet/purple. Then a deep green that was overdyed on naturally colored gray mohair. Finally a soft periwinkle blue. I just love the brilliant color and luster that the high mohair content brings to this roving.

My third roving is called Toffee Temptation. This is made from fleeces that come naturally colored from the animals. The mohair is a soft yearling taupe fleece from my buck Rory. The alpaca is a chestnut red/brown. The wool is from a shetland and is a light brown fawn color. This roving is so soft, it is like a cloud. It has great shine.

These are all available from my Etsy store. They spin up nicely. I plyed a strand each of the Autumn Splendor and the Moonlit Garden and am really liking the resulting yarn.

The Dye Pot

2010-02-14T17:38:00.000-08:00

I've had the dye pot going a lot this month, doing lots of immersion dying. So many pretty colors to make roving, batts and yarn with.

If I am mixing different types of fiber that will all be the same color, I weigh and dye them all together. Place the lighter fibers into the pot first. Mohair usually weighs more than most fibers and also takes on color well, so I place that in last. I usually add some wool to my mohair to give some spring and memory. I like other fibers too like alpaca, angora and silk which provide softness. Mohair accepts dye wonderfully resulting in bright, vivid colors

Equipment:
Large Pot: Mine is an extra large water bath canner, the enamel coated variety.
Stirring Tool: I have a large wooden paddle.
Measuring spoons
Canning Jar: for dissolving the dye

Materials:
Clean Fleeces (I wash them except for angora bunny and alpaca)
Dye: I use Pro Chem Washfast Acid fast dyes, which require the following items:
Synthrapol: 1 tsp per pound of fiber (ppf). Used to help the fiber accept the dye
Salt: 1 Tbsp ppf. Must be non iodized, I use pickling salt.
Acid: Vinegar (2/3 cup ppf) or citric acid (1 Tbsp ppf).

Follow the instructions for the dye you are using to get the proper amount to add per pound of fiber (ppf). Experiment some with the amount if you like to see what shades you can get by using more or less dye per pound of fiber.

Weigh the dry fiber. Then soak the fiber in hot water with a 1/2 tsp of synthrapol per pound of fiber for 20 to 30 minutes.

While the fiber is soaking, I start the dye bath. In the large canning pot, I put in enough hot water to fully cover the amount fiber I will be dying. Then I add the proper amounts of synthrapol, salt, and the vinegar or citric acid. My canning jar fits over two of the burners on my stove, so I turn both of them on and heat the water to about 200 degrees.

I like to prepare the dye by pouring boiling water into a canning jar and adding the measured dye powder. Mix this very thoroughly. Add the dissolved dye to the large pot and mix the dye bath thoroughly.

The dye bath is now ready for the fiber. Squeeze water from the soaking fleece and place the fleece into the pot. I start with the lightest fiber first, placing the heaviest fiber in the pot last. Gently mix the fiber for a few minutes. I usually tend to push the fiber down into the pot with the wooden paddle, gently going from one area to another. Just don't agitate the fiber and cause felting. Keep the temperature around 200 degrees (unless you are using silk, then stay under 185 degrees) for approximately an hour. I tend to check the color of the dye bath along the way, if there is a lot of dye left in the water, more vinegar can be added, about 1/2 cup. Simmer for another 15 minutes or so.

Allow the dye bath to cool. Rinse the fiber in warm water. I like to use my washing machine (must be a top loader) to rinse and spin out the water. Then I spread the fleece out on a screen and dry it, enjoying the splendid colors.

Washing Fleeces

2010-01-06T05:43:00.000-08:00

January is a great time to get fleeces washed. It's a way to be productive inside, out of the cold weather we are having. I start with a thorough skirting. I do an initial skirting of the fleeces as they are shorn, so there is less to do at this point. I go through the fleeces, taking out any second cuts, large pieces of hay, any burrs, felted areas, and locks too contaminated with vegetable matter to use.

Once fully skirted, I prepare to wash the fleece. I feel fortunate to have a washing machine that is dedicated to washing fleeces. The only downside is that it is located in the basement. I turn my water heater up the night before I wash fleeces so that I have very hot water to work with. I find that really hot water is especially needed for wool fleeces. My mohair has much less grease and usually washes out with just one soap cycle. Never agitate the fleece in the washing machine, it will turn it into a felted mess. Always spin the water off while the water is still very warm/hot, if the water cools too much, the grease will resettle on the fleece and not be washed out properly.

Fill the empty washing machine with hot water. When it is finished filling, turn the machine off (very important you do not want the machine to agitate). I add just a small amount of soap for the first soak. Place the fleece into the washing machine and close the lid. I let the fleece soak for about 1.5 hours. A piece of 3/4 inch cpvc pipe left over from a plumbing project is perfect for me to use to gently gently push down on the fleece a few times during the soaks to make sure that all of it gets cleaned. Spin the water out of the fleece. This first soak gets rid of a large amount of the dirt in the fleece.

Next I remove the fleece from the machine to avoid any felting from water falling on to the fleece as the machine fills with hot water. Then the Soap. A few brands that I like are Orvus paste soap and Kookaburra wool scour. Orvus is available locally and is less expensive, Kookaburra is more and has to be shipped here. I use about 1oz per pound for my mohair. All but one of my goats have minimal grease to their fleeces. Maisie, one of my white angoras has heavier grease and I use more than an oz per pound on her fleece. For wool fleeces, I like to use 2oz per pound and will do 2 soap soaks as well to get rid of all of the lanolin. Make sure to turn the machine off before adding the fleece. When finished soaking (about 1.5 hrs per soak), spin the water out of the fleece.

For rinses, fill the machine empty, turn the machine off, then add the fleece. Soak for about 1.5 hours and spin out very thoroughly. It usually takes 2 rinses. For the final rinse, sometimes I add some vinegar. Spin the final rinse to get as much water out of the fleece as possible. This will help decrease the drying time.

I put my fleeces on aluminum window screens, spread out in a thin layer. I put the screens on top of large rubbermaid containers to allow for airflow. I have a friend that has an air hockey table that she uses. The positive airflow that it provides speeds up the drying time for her.

Finally, especially with wool fleeces, check the fleece a few weeks after they are dry. If there is still some residual lanolin, it will feel tacky to the touch. I recommend rewashing fleeces that are tacky. Most fiber mills will require another wash. I don't want to have to clean lanolin off of my picker and carder or have it transfer to other fleeces that I process.

Hooves

2009-12-20T01:28:00.000-08:00

I just finished the December round of hoof trimming. Twenty one sets of feet! I use the stanchion to hold the animals and do the trimming myself. I use both the Felco brand hoof trimmers (pictured first) and the orange handled hoof trimmers (pictured second). They each bring different, needed attributes to trimming.

The popular "orange handled" trimmers are great for smaller, thinner hooves, especially good for yearlings and kids. They are light-weight, small, and easy to manipulate to trim tight areas of the hoof. I also like to use these to do the final touches on thick walled hooves. These are reasonably affordable, priced at about $20. They can be resharpened quite a few times, but don't seem to last quite as long as a set of blades for the Felco.

I like the Felco hoof trimmers for larger, thicker walled hooves. They are much easier to get the leverage needed to cut through tough hoof walls. The model I have (Felco 50) has a rotating handle. The thumb handle rotates, reducing the amount of friction and the incidence of blisters on my hands. It does take a bit of getting used to working with the rotating handle, but once mastered, it's a great tool. Felco also makes a model with regular handles (Felco 51). These trimmers are a rather expensive initial investment, $60 to $70. The company makes replacement blades and other parts, so over time the price evens out some. I find that with resharpening, these blades last longer than the orange handled trimmers. (A little hint: Premier 1 Sheep Supplies has the best price that I have seen on these trimmers.)

This fall has been very wet and muddy in areas around the barns. I discovered that some of the goats have the beginnings of interdigital dermatitis. So, trimming took a bit longer than normal as I disinfected the trimmers between each goat. This is the first time in my time as a breeder that I have encountered this. I called a few of my goat breeder friends for advice. Zinc sulfate powder was the recommendation. So I'm off to find some of this to treat their feet with. I'm hoping that with the frozen ground of winter, their feet won't be wet anymore and that having drier feet will also help clear up this problem.

Breeding Season

2009-11-29T14:57:00.000-08:00

Breeding Season is complete here at the farm. I decided to only breed 5 of our does this year due to the economy. I only want to have as many kids as I can handle if I am unable to find buyers. So, while breeding is finished, the rest of the does (and the bucks for that matter) don't know that so we will probably have another month of does going into heat.

For breeding, I have a temporary pen set up using electric netting for the fence and a small shelter. When a doe goes into heat, we move her and the buck of choice to the breeding pen where they will stay for a day or so. Then they are moved back to their regular areas.

I also have to put up a line of electric netting between the buck and the doe pastures. Through out most of the year, there is one fence between the 2 pastures and that is sufficient. When breeding starts, I put up the netting as a temporary second fence about 12 ft in from the permanent fence-line. This completely eliminates the destructive rubbing on the fence and breaking of the fence with horns that goes on with a single fence. It also eliminates the chance of a "through the fence" breeding as well.

I bred my 2 AAGBA white does, Moonshine and Maisie, to our wonderful AAGBA buck from Fred Speck in Texas. These are the same breedings as last fall, I am very happy with all of the kids from these breedings this spring.

Sinead is bred to Hill4115, this is another repeat breeding. Sinead's doeling, Bronwyn from this spring is outstanding. She has wonderful coverage, a nice brownish red fleece, pretty, tight curls and great luster. I'm hoping for something similar next spring.

Nessie is also bred to Hill4115. This is her first breeding. I am hoping for great things from her kids. She has a very consistent fleece with great tight curls, a pretty gray color. I love her frosted nose and ears too.

Blackie is bred to my new buck, Kai Ranch Irving (pictured at the top). Blackie has a dense, soft, medium curled fleece. She is my heaviest shearing colored goat. She is from the black/patterned (recessive) line. Irving is mixed, his sire is red from the red/black/brown line and his dam is a reverse badger from the black/patterned line. I'm hoping for some wonderful color from this breeding next spring.

Roni, Mairead, Keely, and Bo-Peep will all get this this year off and will be teasing the bucks for the next month or so as they go through their heat cycles. When the days start to get longer again, that triggers the end of breeding season for angora goats.

Shearing!

2009-10-20T18:23:00.000-07:00

Shearing time has just finished here at MacGregor Hollow. It is much colder than usual this time of year and some of the goats are now sporting sweaters. It typically takes me about 40 minutes to shear, deworm and trim the feet on each goat. I also like to do an initial skirting at shearing and toss all of the felted or otherwise undesirable fleece as I go. Four goats are a typical shearing day for me, so shearing occurs over a few weeks.

When I started shearing years ago, I found that I didn't have good luck shearing the goats in the typical style with the goat on the ground. After a few ugly cuts on the goats and a big hit on my nose with the back of a goat's head (I actually saw stars!) I gave that up. So, I shear with the goats on a stanchion. My stanchion has a ramp to walk the goats up on and removable side rails. I like to place a side rail on the opposite side of where I am working to hold the goat on the stanchion. I use my Oster Showmaster shearer for the majority of each goat. I use 2 types of combs, mohair combs and 20 tooth goat combs. The Mohair combs come from Heininger. The teeth are lower in the center and flare out longer at both sides. I tend to use the Mohair combs on adults The 20 tooth goat combs are taller in the middle and taper shorter on both ends. I like these for the kids.

Starting at the middle of the topline, I make strokes down the sides of the goat from top to bottom, going under the belly as well. Then I shear down the outside of the legs. I try to be patient with the back legs, many of the goats kick out some or squat down as I try to shear the back end and I don't want to nick any of the animals. I shear the neck and chest area up to the head restraint.

For the tight areas, I like to use a set of hand-shears - old fashioned ones with red handles. This works well for inside the legs, the udder area and the head and neck around the head restraint. I like them better than scissors, I find that I'm less likely to cut the goat and they spring open automatically, saving alot of time and effort for me.

The pay-off of all this work is an amazing bounty of 23 gorgeous fleeces to have fun with. There are beautiful shades of grays, taupes and white fleeces from kid to adult. I'm so excited!!!!

Spinning

2009-09-28T08:01:00.000-07:00

I've been spinning up a storm. I'm using fibers that come naturally colored from the animal. I have a gorgeous collection of beautiful browns. First I spun up a mix of alpaca, angora and pollworth wool. This is soooo soft, like spinning a cloud. It is just wonderful, a light off-white with sprinklings of light and medium browns. Then I chose a lovely medium brown with white flecks roving that is a mix of alpaca, shetland and angora. I did spin up a mix of merino and border leicester that is a natural brown mixed with a lime green dyed wool, very pretty. Right now, I am spinning up a medium brown shetland roving. When I'm all done, I'll have to come up with projects to make, hopefully combining these beautiful yarns.