There I was, wandering about the baggage collection carrousel area with my beautifully created CAMILLE sign looking for a lost and forlorn young French girl. Greg was incommunicado; he had very inconveniently dropped his phone into a very inconveniently full water trough,.. minutes before we left for the airport. Being perfectly capable of losing myself in a paper bag, in retrospect I probably wasn’t the one who should be trying to locate our most recent WOOFER but there I was. Inquiries with airport staff were mostly met with blank stares…I began to think I was talking in an alien language, I’m pretty certain they were seriously wishing they weren’t in my line of sight !!! I think I talk English…now I’m not so sure. So I was hunting for Camille and Camille was hunting for me, fortunately she is resourceful and didn’t find me but she did find the Gentle giant Meadows Ranch truck…and I was still lost..with my lovely Camille sign wandering forlornly around the airport! Fortunately we lucked out…(or lucked in if you are English) I never have understood why good luck is “lucked out” and I’ve never understood the reasoning when I raised the question, but on this occasion good luck was with us ( in or out !!) and Greg’s dead phone spluttered and blew bubbles back to life recalling me back to the awaiting truck and a relieved young French lady !
It’s all worked out well, and Camille hit the ground running, the calves and the goat kids were hungry enough to eat each other by the time we made our appearance with their bottles that evening. Cody and Song the goat kids are unconcerned who brings their bottle and even less concerned who feeds them just as long as it arrives, preferably on time. Cody and Song have developed a suction mechanism that puts my vacuum cleaner to shame, once they latch on to the teat those little goats wont let go until every drop has been inhaled. It takes some ingenuity to even get into the goat pen at feeding time....several hours late and two goats and two "starving" kids and a momma goat that needed milking made it mission impossible. We are very quickly learning to squeeze through spaces that almost don't exist while tiny goat kids make their escape through our legs and Alissia and Acorn hang accusingly over the gate.
The calves, minky coloured Goliath and black and white twins Samson and Delilah are thriving and, like the goat kids eagerly anticipate the arrival of their bottles. Fresh from the airport Camille courageously ventured into the calf pen and quickly learnt that, if it stands still long enough it can and will be sucked. Seemingly instantaneously the warm creamy milk drained from the bottles, warm wet noses and sticky searching tongues found our hands our coats and our jeans while their little heads bumped invisible udders. Camille survived the ordeal and safe on the other side of the gate took time to be amused by the ménage a trois as Goliath sucked Samsons ear, Samson sucked Delilah’s already wet ear and Delilah in turn chewed on Goliaths nearest extremity.
No experience of horse care hasn’t stopped Camille from quickly becoming acquainted with our equine charges and Mr. Beauty with attitude, Charm has become the ambassador for the horse population on the ranch. Our golden palomino would sell his soul for a carrot and it would appear that he has already trained Camille well…her pockets contain a ready supply and he is more than happy to conform to the “good horse guide” !!
Camille arrived with a smile and her smile has endured despite hard work, soaking rain, vociferous calves, voracious kids and a lamb with montezumas revenge. It is our hope that she will return to France with happy memories of her time on our ranch. Welcome Camille.
Well, time to move ,it’s still raining and if the forecast is anything like accurate, by the time this week is over we will need webbed feet and flotation vests. Take care, keep safe, M
It’s all worked out well, and Camille hit the ground running, the calves and the goat kids were hungry enough to eat each other by the time we made our appearance with their bottles that evening. Cody and Song the goat kids are unconcerned who brings their bottle and even less concerned who feeds them just as long as it arrives, preferably on time. Cody and Song have developed a suction mechanism that puts my vacuum cleaner to shame, once they latch on to the teat those little goats wont let go until every drop has been inhaled. It takes some ingenuity to even get into the goat pen at feeding time....several hours late and two goats and two "starving" kids and a momma goat that needed milking made it mission impossible. We are very quickly learning to squeeze through spaces that almost don't exist while tiny goat kids make their escape through our legs and Alissia and Acorn hang accusingly over the gate.
The calves, minky coloured Goliath and black and white twins Samson and Delilah are thriving and, like the goat kids eagerly anticipate the arrival of their bottles. Fresh from the airport Camille courageously ventured into the calf pen and quickly learnt that, if it stands still long enough it can and will be sucked. Seemingly instantaneously the warm creamy milk drained from the bottles, warm wet noses and sticky searching tongues found our hands our coats and our jeans while their little heads bumped invisible udders. Camille survived the ordeal and safe on the other side of the gate took time to be amused by the ménage a trois as Goliath sucked Samsons ear, Samson sucked Delilah’s already wet ear and Delilah in turn chewed on Goliaths nearest extremity.
No experience of horse care hasn’t stopped Camille from quickly becoming acquainted with our equine charges and Mr. Beauty with attitude, Charm has become the ambassador for the horse population on the ranch. Our golden palomino would sell his soul for a carrot and it would appear that he has already trained Camille well…her pockets contain a ready supply and he is more than happy to conform to the “good horse guide” !!
Camille arrived with a smile and her smile has endured despite hard work, soaking rain, vociferous calves, voracious kids and a lamb with montezumas revenge. It is our hope that she will return to France with happy memories of her time on our ranch. Welcome Camille.
Well, time to move ,it’s still raining and if the forecast is anything like accurate, by the time this week is over we will need webbed feet and flotation vests. Take care, keep safe, M
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