There are many things I do not understand. We are in the midst of what our weatherman calls "the coldest temperatures in ninety-six years" with single digit daytime highs and bitter wind chills, and last night on the news I saw a segment on how to recognize the signs that your newborn infant has frostbite. If your baby exhibits these symptoms, the reporter urged, whisk her inside and seek medical care. What I wondered is this - who on earth would take an infant outside in this weather?? I nearly froze just from walking to the mailbox; I truly hope nobody has their newborn out on a sled or helping to build a snowman!
Following the infant alert, of course, was the usual admonition to keep pets safely indoors during this frigid spell. Uh-oh. I asked my family for volunteers to host the goats overnight, but there were no takers, just lots of paltry excuses like "I don't want my new quilt all chewed up" or "Mom! They poop even in their sleep!!" I already share my bed with two large cats (seriously, they expand at night!), so last evening I took the goats a steaming bucket of hot water and locked them in their shed, relieved that they could at least have protection from the wind. From the loud thuds and crashing sounds coming from the shed as I walked away, I knew that they were not happy at being confined, but I just pulled my hat over my ears and ran for the warm house.
Next morning, I bundled up and trekked through the snowdrifts to let them out. This is what I saw in the shed - two sleeping goats snuggled up against each other and covered in frost. Except, when they stretched and stood upright, there was a line down the back of each goat separating the frosted fur (which had been facing out) from the unfrosted side (where they had shared body heat). They reminded me of Megan's favorite "black and white" cookies which are iced half chocolate, half vanilla down the middle.
Do I feel guilty, leaving my goats to sleep in such a frozen shed? Yes, terribly. Does it help to know that they would probably still choose to sleep outside, if I let them? Not really. I am only somewhat reassured that at least we don't live in chilly Chicago or, heaven forbid, Minnesota (minus 42!!), or on a frozen boat in Antarctica...Clearly, there is only one solution.
If two goats can generate enough shared heat to keep half of each goat frost-free, imagine how much warmer a whole heap of goats would be. My husband is on the other computer right now, searching for local breeders. So far he's found almost a dozen adorable Nigerian Dwarf kids for sale in our area. Be brave, goaties! Warmth is on its way!!
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