Cria Update - They're Growing Like Weeds!

The crias are growing like weeds. Phoenix will be five months old on November 4th - that's only two weeks away! He has been showing interest in the females already and while he cannot get them pregnant, he is "practicing" on a regular basis and really irritating some of them. He can be weaned at five months so I will probably put him in with Spencer (who will be a year old on October 30th) until they have bonded and then I'll turn them out with the small group of younger/calmer males to see if I can integrate them safely into that group.

Here is a recent photo of Phoenix.

Rosie is growing fast, too. She is now four months old so I will be able to wean her in a month but her mother usually weans her babies on her own so I'm hoping Rosie can just stay in with the female herd and the transition will be a smooth one. I notice that her mother is allowing her to nurse less and less so she is probably already starting to dry up.

Here is a photo I took a couple of days ago. I just love Rosie's face! Look at those dark circles around her eyes. And her darker muzzle. And those fuzzy ears!

 

Autumn has grown a lot. She is four weeks old today and is looking awesome. Her fiber is very lustrous and silky and I hope it stays that way.

And look at her face! Is that not adorable?!

And then I got a really cute photo of Rosie and Autumn together. They were watching Courtney, one of our cats, on the other side of the fence.

And here is the newest little male who is eight days old today. I think we're going to call him Time Traveler because his grandsire is Tempis Fugit (latin for Time Flies) and his sire is Viajero (Spanish for Traveler).

 And we are still waiting for Dazzle to have her cria. And that should be the last one for this year. If Dazzle gets much bigger, she's going to explode!

Cria update

Our newest little cria is growing stronger every day. We're pretty sure she was born at least a week to 10 days early because she was so weak and her ligaments were so soft when she was born. However, she is running around the pastures now and making new friends. She and Rosie are quickly becoming BFF's.

Here are Rosie and Autumn Shadow - they are about three months apart.

And here is a photo of Phoenix taken today - he is now almost four months old.

We have two more females that are due any time now. Here is Dazzle, who is pretty much taking things in stride, just lounging around eating. It looks like she has swallowed a basketball (or two)

And then there is Dee - who is not the least bit happy about how she feels right now. Her ears are almost always back like this lately.

 

Dee doesn't look as big as Dazzle does but it is because Dee hasn't been sheared so her wool covers her baby bump. And, Dee is larger and has more capacity than Dazzle so she doesn't show quite as much as Dazzle. Which one will deliver first?

And, another photo of little Autumn

Thank you for visiting Split Rock Ranch!

Rosie is looking awesome!

Split Rock Champagne & Pearls, aka "Rosie" (I was going to name her Roses, Champagne & Pearls because she looked pink when she was born but that name is SO big, we just decided to call her Rosie and shortened the name to C&P) is now almost three months old and is growing up nicely. Her fiber is not as pencil locked as it was when she was born but we're hoping the lock structure tightens up as she ages. And, her fiber is this incredible champagne color now with silver and dark gray points.

Cria and Goat Update

Sorry its been awhile (again) since I posted but I've been super busy around the ranch and keeping up with the auction for my niece on Facebook.

I wanted to share some additional photos of the little Nigerian Dwarf goat kids I got recently. These little guys were both born in April so they are a little over three months old now.

This is Gladiator

And this is Darrel

They LOVE to climb and jump on things. I put this ramp up to the top of their house and they love to run up it and then jump off and run back to do it again and again and again.

Today when I went out to check on things, I found the two of them curled up sleeping in the shade on top of the chicken run. Darrel was asleep on the tarp at one end and Gladiator was curled up sleeping on board that I have sitting on top of the run to protect the opening into the chicken coop from rain. Unfortunately I didn't have my camera with me and as soon as they realized I was outside, they woke up and jumped off, running to me to say hello. They follow me everywhere like little puppies. They even wag their tails like a dog! They really are very cute. Sometimes annoying...but cute.

And here are some updated photos of Phoenix and Rosie. They are grazing while Rosie's momma, Minnie Pearl, is resting.

And here is Phoenix with his half sister Dazzle (they have the same dam) drinking out of a puddle after the rain.

And here is Rosie, posing for me. I finally managed to get several great photos of her standing still!! We are more and more impressed with Rosie every day. She has such incredible fiber and the color is awesome. Her personality is absolutely precious. We just love her!

We should have at least one more cria in late September/early October. Dazzle is bred to our silver ALSA Halter Champion, Tempis Fugit.

 

Sorry, she was very busy eating and drinking!

Rosie is growing up!

Here is a photo of little Rosie that I took yesterday. I just love the color of her fleece! And that face...she's such a cutie pie.

Another new cria at Split Rock Ranch

Last Wednesday we had another bundle of joy delivered at Split Rock Ranch! Minnie Pearl gave birth to a gorgeous rose gray/silver suri female cria at approximately 3:30 PM on June 22nd.

Here is how the baby looked immediately after birth (I knew Minnie was in labor so I was in and out all day long, checking on her and I knew when she was close so I brought out towels, the birthing/vet bag and my camera ahead of time). Crias (lama babies) are born with "toe caps" on their feet to prevent their toes from tearing their mother during the birthing process. You can see the white caps on the baby.

 

It doesn't take crias very long before they attempt to stand up. They are pretty wobbly at first and take a few tumbles before they master all four legs at the same time. Here is the baby after she wobbled about for a little while.

I had fed her mother a flake of alfalfa on the green mat and the cria rolled around in it so in this photo (above) she's full of alfalfa flakes.

And here she is (above) after she has mastered all four legs at the same time. Her mother is resting and awaiting the delivery of the placenta.

Many times, the cria uses their mother as a "crutch" to help keep them from falling over. They circle around and around and around their mother, leaning against her to help them balance.

The rest of the female herd is anxiously awaiting their opportunity to inspect the new arrival and greet her properly. We like to keep the new mother and her cria separated from the rest of the herd until the mother has passed the placenta and the cria is stable on all four legs. This also gives them the opportunity to bond and keeps the rest of the herd from crowding or knocking the cria down and stepping on it.

After the mother has passed the placenta and the new cria is walking about fairly well, we let them back in with the rest of the herd. Above, Phoenix (born 6/4/11) is greeting the newest cria, under the watchful eye of Minnie Pearl.

Phoenix got a little too excited about the new baby and tried to jump on her. Fortunately, Tina Fey (the red llama) stepped in just as Phoenix tried to jump on the new cria.

And here is how the new baby looked about 18 hours later. She is finally all dried out. And she sticks very close to her mother!

We are still contemplating what to name the new cria but are considering Roses, Champagne & Pearls (roses and champagne because she is rose/gray/silver in color and pearls because her mother is Minnie Pearl.) Some have said they think they name is too long and suggested Champagne & Pearls but I have been calling her Rosie so I think she will most like be named Split Rock Roses, Champagne & Pearls aka Rosie.

Here is a photo of the sire of this cria - his name is Shimmering Sands.