Given my usual propensity for small blue-eyed bucks this big brown-eyed hunk is a real departure from my norm.   However, when I saw everything this guy brings to the table I just couldn't say no.  

This is what his previous owner who owns his finished champion daughter has to say about him: "Evel Knievel, or "K" as we call him, has been an outstanding buck for us. He has one finished champion daughter, CH Sans Gene K Zydeco, also winner of Best Udder in Breed awards; another daughter Sans Gene K Cookies and Cream, who by age two earned 2 legs, several RCH wins and Best Udder awards, and a BDIS. Several other daughters have taken home RCH awards as milkers and juniors. Daughters milk very well; peaking at ½ gallon or more and holding their lactations very well. With several daughters on test, it is very likely K will get his +B this year.
Although K is a taller buck (23.5”), he consistently throws smaller kids, maturing same size or more often a bit smaller than their dams. He improves across all areas of the score card, particularly in leveling toplines, dairy strength, feet and legs, especially front legs. He does a lot for mammary capacity and foreudder attachment, and especially improves rear udder width and height. We get improved orifices, production and will to milk, too. His kids tend to be calm and friendly even if the dams are not. K himself is a gentle, sweet natured guy, gets along well with other bucks, and easy to handle and care for."

We are very excited to be adding this proven, outstanding sire to our herd and look forward to seeing kids on the ground!
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Shortly before midnight on June 9th, Bristol kidded with twins.  A black & white buck kid and a brown & black doe kid.  Both of them have their parents blue eyes.  The doe kid will probably be retained and the buck kid will be available as a wether.

This makes the 10th kids for Midnight  this year and marks the first buck kid.  Two more does are due to kid that were bred to him.   So we shall see if his 90% doe holds and his 100% blue-eyes.

As you can no doubt tell from the above pictures the last two days have been busy here at Wags Ranch.   First Hyacinth kidded Thursday evening.  An hour or so after she kidded her half-sister Sweet Pea started acting like she was in early labor.  After a very noisy night of the two of them vocalizing, Sweet Pea finally kidded with triplets this morning around 10:30 am.

We will be retaining Hyacinth's second born doe kid (the one with the "W" on her side.  The other two doe kids and the two wethers will be available after weaning.  Oh and did I mention ALL five of the kids have ​blue eyes!

This weekend involved driving, lots and lots of driving!   I had spotted Golden Era Made Me Blush for sale down in San Jose, CA and had arranged purchase and transport for her on Friday  Then I got an email from Castle Rock farms Thursday evening letting me know there was a blue-eyed buckling available out of Tsunamie x Cooper.   Tsunamie is a maternal half-sister to the 2015 ADGA National Champion doe Flood.  So sight unseen I agreed to purchase him and then canceled my transportation reservation for Blush.    Saturday we drove to San Jose and picked up Blush in the hills above the city and returned to Vacaville for the night.  We picked up High Tide  who is almost 6 weeks old, first thing Sunday morning and headed home.    Oddly, it rained the whole time we were in California and we only had sun for the Oregon portion of the trip. 

The above pictures were taken shortly after we got home from all that traveling.  Better pictures will be taken at a later date, when they have had a chance to acclimate to their new surroundings.

I will of course be making them pedigree pages, but in the meantime here are some of the does behind Tide.   The top row is his dam's side, the bottom row are on his sire's side.   Carina and Hot Tamale were 3rd and 4th place in the 4 yr old class at the 2013 ADGA Nationals.  
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                    (Click on the thumbnail of any picture to see a larger version.)

Levana kidded last night with triplets out of Mr. Incredible.  First born was a silver buckskin doeling we have named Violet, the second is a cream/white buckling named Janck-Jack and the third is a buckling named Dash.   All three appear to have blue eyes.   Mom and babies are doing well this morning.

With the death of my father-in-law right in the middle of breeding season and then hand foot and mouth disease visiting my son and hubby things didn't get written down as accurately as I thought they did.   Only about half of my does had their breeding written down and the rest, well they are educated guesses.  

Hopefully all the frustration on the breeding end of the season means that the kidding side will go smoothly and we will get the kids we have been praying for.    I wasn't planning on Alex not kidding until July, but then realized she is a great "over winter goat" as she was a very persistent milker as a first freshener.

In other news last week we added a 9 month old Blue Laced Red Wyandotte Rooster to our flock and are looking forward to chicks out of him.

This morning Elijah is off on his great adventure moving up to Canada to hang out with same Canadian girls.   He is such a gentleman and throws such pretty kids that I'm sure he will be a great addition to Wonderland Nigerians up in Kamloops.

Getting him prepped for the trip north was quite an experience.  Canada has very tight import rules on livestock that it can be quite daunting to get everything just right.

I had several requests this year for me to record a kidding for those that are anticipating their first kidding.   So here is an 8 1/2 minute video of Confetti kidding with twins.  It is obviously condensed, but give a pretty good idea of what a hands off kidding looks like.   The only intervention was to make sure the babies noses were cleared.

We were expecting Confetti to kid in late June or early July, however she apparently decided to pick the buck herself and she isn't planning on sharing who the daddy is of the twins she blessed us with this evening.   So we will be doing DNA testing to determine, which of our three bucks is the daddy. 

The first born is a mostly black girl with some white frosting and a few white spots.  Her younger brother is a very flashy white and black boy.  Too early to tell if either of them are polled,  but the hair patterns make us hopefull that they are.

The buckling is already spoken for and we haven't decided yet if we are going to retain the doeling.    Have to wait for DNA tests and for the babies to have time to recover from their cramped quarters.