Heidi has always been the troublemaker of our crew.
She was the smallest kid we got, but quickly became the boss of the herd. So when we first introduced Studley, it wasn't that much of a shock that she seemed the most interested. So, Heidi kidded for the first time this past summer. She birthed a healthy, bouncing baby girl. She was a fantastic mom, and gave more than enough milk for both the baby and us.
A couple months ago, Justin and I noticed that Heidi appeared to be getting wider, but knew that if she was pregnant, it was still some time away. Then, after Christmas, she thinned right out, and we thought it was a fluke. Until Sunday night.
As you may have seen, we have a new puppy in the house, so I've been taking him out regularly. It's been brutal in the cold, especially Sunday night with the temps in the 10s. Shortly before midnight, Jameson needed out. I took him and sent him back to sleep, but he wouldn't settle down. Outside, eliminated, came back in. Still won't settle.
FINE. I got up, grabbed Jameson and headed out the back door. Only he didn't want to go down the steps this time. He just wanted to sit and listen. And stare towards the field. And that's when I heard it. Heidi was bleating loudly, (because I know her voice at this point.. I know, it's weird.) and then what sounded like a little "hello" from across the field. I rubbed out my ear and listened again. Heidi's bleat, silence, a new bleat. And I just knew. I woke Justin up and said, "Heidi's giving birth right now." He jumped up, bundled up and headed out the door.
When we got to the goat pasture, we shone our flashlights into the shed to see if we could spot anything. Sure enough... there she was. A newborn baby, shivering in the cold. Since it was only 15 degrees, Justin started working on setting up a heat lamp as I ran to get a towel to dry the new kid off.
Heidi stood back and watched, still panting from her labor. She knew her kid was in good hands.
