Uncle Phil Arrives

Yesterday, the Tennessee Fainting Goat named for Sarah Bernhardt (who was given to swooning in the moving pictures she made) gave us a sweet singleton buckling who we promptly named Uncle Phil. We're pleased to see that this kid has brown eyes, indicating that his sire was a fainter, too.This little guy is gentle and quiet (well, until I try to carry him away from his mother, at which point he demonstrates phenomenal lung power), like the man for whom he is named. We're a tad concerned about this little kid's Eeyore posture because when we've seen it before (in little April, and later in little Raymond toward the end of his life) the goats with that posture were unwell. However, Uncle Phil seems fit and healthy and we expect no problems with his health.


His dam is small in stature, and her kid from last year is exceptionally small, so I guess her offspring fall into the category of miniature fainters. They're very cute and much easier to wrangle as adults should they take it into their heads to resist my suggestions.

Uncle Phil's coat is lush; it practically gleams. Miss Sarah did us right this spring, I'll say. Her kid is a fine addition to our herd, buckling or not.

I do see a buckling sale in the offing. We had too many of the guys here on the farm last fall (which is rutting season--when male goats douse themselves in a special cologne made of their own urine). Unfortunately many of the bucklings here are named for friends or family, but everyone must grow up and move on sometime.