Baby Goats: Round 2!

Or, more accurately, baby GOAT, not baby GOATS. Because, defying all predictions, Dora just had one kid! 

Introducing...well. We don't know his name yet. I'll update this post with that once we figure it out. XD

UPDATE: His name is Samwise! I know it's a wee bit strange to be naming a goat Sam when I'm Sam, but guys, he looks like a Sam. I defy you to tell me he doesn't look like a Sam. I think it's the perfect name. But then, I'm probably a bit biased. XD

HIS STUPID ADORABLE FACE LOOK AT HIS FACE

As I type this, he's resting his head on my hand. He is the absolute sweetest, and I LOVE him so much.

Dora did great--she was in labor from 7 AM on the 7th to 12:30 AM on the 8th, when this little love was born! 

She needed some help getting him all the way out--he was positioned correctly, but he was FIVE POUNDS. According to the Nigerian Dwarf Goat Association, the average weight for a newborn Nigerian is TWO pounds. So. He's a behemoth. (He's only a pound and a quarter smaller than Caspian and Little Bear, and they are three weeks old.) So, I did help her by pulling a bit as she pushed, but overall she was patient and awesome, and she's an amazing mom! She loves licking him, but is a little dubious when he tries to nurse...that will pass, though, I imagine. 

We were expecting him to be black and white, since black is the recessive color gene in goats, and both his mom and dad are black...but apparently, gold (or the "red" gene) is even more recessive than black, and both Dora and the dad have it? Which is pretty cool. But I'm eating some crow, because I told everyone that Dora's babies would be black & white...and not only did she not have more than one baby, he's not black & white!

I slept outside in the goatshed with them Wednesday night/Thursday morning, so as I'm typing this, I had maybe...2.5 hours of sleep? So I'm going to sign off for now and try to find some more coffee. XD

Have you ever been shocked by a genetics outcome? Have you ever seen a goat who looked *less* like his mom? XD