Tag: Goats

All Creatures

All Creatures Great and Small is a delightful PBS series featuring the true stories of a veterinarian, James Herriot, in Yorkshire England in the 1930’s and 40’s.

Abigail, Zacchaeus, Barnabas (hidden behind his brother) and Nanita.

The stories come from four books James Herriot wrote years ago. I enjoyed reading the books, and still owned them until recently I gave them to the Northfield Hospital Auxiliary fundraiser event. The books were filled with wonderful tales about the vast and interesting experiences James Wight (James Herriot is his pen name) had in the beautiful, rural area of Yorkshire, in northern England.

There have been several renditions of these stories in films and television series, but the latest series (began 2021) on public television is a favorite of mine. There have been three seasons to date, with plans for another season. YAY!

I thought of James Herriot when I arrived at the farm where I help out occasionally. The friendly, and hungry creatures (pictured above) were ready and waiting for me to feed them: 2 horses, 2 donkeys, 2 goats, 8 chickens, 4 cats and one dog.

I enjoy helping feed these fine animals, but do realize this is fun for me because I do it once in a while, while farmers do this daily – actually two times a day. This is the extent of my farm experience, while my husband, Gary, knows all about the daily work having grown up on a dairy farm in Pennsylvania.

I’m thankful for ALL creatures, great and small…and for farmers! 

Goats

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On a recent walk on Carleton College campus my friend and I came upon the unique smell of manure, and then we heard the sounds of bleating so we turned and walked towards the sound. We found several goats in a fenced-in area on campus. There was a sign that explained the goat’s presence. It said “Eco Friendly control of invasive brush and unwanted weeds.” It was a fun surprise on a routine walk – and the goats seem happy and are doing a good job!

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