Missy makes a Pit Stop

It has been another wonderful and productive week at the Dancing Goat Farm. As always I feed and cleaned all the chickens and quails as well as gathered all their eggs. I also had some extra time to finish a few projects that we had started earlier in the week. This morning while Pam was going to the opening of the brand new Aldi's she asked if I could put Missy the farms eighteen year old quarter horse outside in her enclosure. Of course I was more than happy to help so I went into the barn to get Missy and as soon as she saw me she came right over to the door of her stall as if she knew it was time to go outside. I put on her lead and then opened the stall door and started to take her around the back of the barn but halfway to her enclosure she decided it was time for a pit stop. Missy stopped right in her tracks and started to snack on a patch of fresh grass she had discovered. I was patient and after a few minutes I was able to get her moving again and we continued to her enclosure where she enjoyed the rest of the afternoon. Well it is the beginning of another weekend so check back soon with the City Boy on the Farm for more pictures, stories and updates.

Another Great Farm Day

Twice a year at the Dancing Goat Farm we have a Farm Day so that Pam's friends, customers, and people she knows have a opportunity to see the farm first hand. The Dancing Goat Farm is a working farm and there is always a lot of activity going on which makes it hard to allow general visitors so Farm Day gives Pam the chance to share her farm with everyone. When we have a Farm Day all the farm workers and volunteers have to pull together to make sure the farm is safe and ready for a large group of quests. By Saturday afternoon the farm was prepared for the arrival of the quests the next morning at 10am. On Sunday morning everyone that has helping with Farm Day was there by 9am and all the animals were excited by all the people and activity. As the quests started arriving I greeted them at the front gate with Zumba who is one of the younger female goats. Zumba loves attention and was more than happy to pose for a picture with anyone who was interested. When all the quests had arrived they all gathered at the entrance to the farm were Pam met them and took them on a personal tour of the farm. When the tour was over everyone got the chance to meet some of the farm animals first hand as well as the people who work on the farm. When the day was done I could tell that everyone had a good time from the kids to the grown ups. We had all worked extra hard at the farm but it was worth it because we had another successful Farm Day. Well I will be back Tuesday morning so check back soon with the City Boy on the Farm for more stories and pictures.

Saying Hello to the Chicks

These are a few rescue chicks that now call the Dancing Goat Farm their home.

Cisco on the Loose

Cisco is the eighteen year old mini horse that has been living at the Dancing Goat Farm for about twelve years. Cisco has a very care free attitude and is very independent but quite loving all at the same time. Whenever I am at the farm I get the chance to walk Cisco out to the fenced in pasture at the front of the farm for the day so he can run around and get some exercise. After Cisco is out in the pasture I go and get Missy the eighteen year old quarter horse to join him but today when I returned with Missy our care free Cisco was no longer in the fenced area. Since this is not the first time that he has gotten out I was not that worried so I went ahead and settled Missy in first. After Missy was settled in I started to check to see if there were an breaks in the fencing and sure enough by the main road I could see a large piece of fencing was knocked down and on the other side of the fence was Cisco in a small ditch enjoying the wild vegetation. I calmly walked across the pasture and went over to Cisco and got him back on his lead and then brought him to the round pen that is next to the bunk house while I went to repair the fence. When I had finished the repairs to the broken fence I came back to the bunkhouse to find Cisco had gotten out of the round pen and was now helping himself to some chicken feed. I stood there and laughed and let him enjoy himself for a few minutes and then I took him to the smaller side pen were he happily spent the rest of his day...I hope. Well I will be back early tomorrow morning so check back soon with the City Boy on the Farm for more stories and pictures.

Time to Collect the Eggs

Every morning after I am done feeding and cleaning the chickens its then time to collect their eggs. There are four enclosures in the front of the farm and each one has a nesting box where the chickens nest in and lay their eggs. As I open the nesting box door you can hear the chattering from the nesting chickens who do not want to be disturbed. The chickens seem to know that my intentions are good and they allow me to collect the eggs and clean out the boxes. After collecting the eggs I reline the boxes with fresh hay and the hens jumped right back in ready to start the process over again. Next I collect the eggs from the row of separate cages in the front of the bunk house these are set up so that you can feed and clean the chickens from the front while collecting eggs from the nesting boxes in the back. After the eggs are removed from these cages I then go to the back of the farm where there are a few more large enclosures which are set up with the nesting boxes inside the cage so you have to enter into the cage to collect the eggs. When entering the enclosures I have to come in slowly because all the chickens come right over to see what I am doing but they eventually clear a path so I can get to the nesting boxes. After all the eggs have been collected I bring them to Pam and she prepares them to be sold at a few local markets. Well I will be back again Tuesday so check back soon with the City Boy on the Farm for more stories and pictures.

Fresh Hay Day

On Saturday's the chickens get fresh hay and they always let me know they appreciate it.

Saturday Morning Market

This weekend is the beginning of the market www.saturdaymorningmarket.com which takes place every Saturday Morning til the end of May in Downtown St. Petersburg. When the markets starts up again things really start getting busy here at the Dancing Goat Farm. Every Saturday morning during market season Pam is up early getting ready and she is on the road by 7:30am. I always make sure to get to the farm before she leaves on Saturday so we can discuss any current projects or any animal concerns. When Pam is ready to leave all the chickens and goats start getting very excited while she is pulling away in the van with the trailer it's like they are all wishing her good luck for the day. Once she has left the day begins at the farm and I start cleaning and feeding the chickens and quails as well as gather all their eggs. After all the cleaning and egg gathering is done I work on any projects we are doing and before I leave for the day I make sure to check on all the animals as well as share my snacks with a few of my special friends. Well I will be back early tomorrow morning so check back soon with the City Boy on the Farm for more interesting stories and pictures.