Home is Spring City, Tennessee – it’s where we find our small piece of paradise. Married to Scott since ‘99 and ‘07 (love each other so much we did it twice!), we share our large home with Taz the Chihuahua, Angel a blind, diabetic wiener dog on steroids, Munky, a mixed Chihuahua, Sola the Siamese cat & our exterior “homeland” security is performed by Diesel & Beulah the Fila Brazilieros (Brazilian Mastiffs).
I was born and raised in French Quebec, established myself in the U.S., in 1998 & became a US citizen in August 2010. Scott originates from Michigan but has lived in many other areas.
We both have adult children. Scott has 2 boys and 2 girls and between the boys we have 5 grand-children.
My daughter & her husband live in Ottawa, Canada and are expecting their first child in April 2011. Do I have to tell you how excited I am? Very excited!
My passion for my critters pales in comparison to my husband’s for technology. He’s the tech guy! You can find him either at his tech blog “Big Bald Guy” or maybe hire him to create a site for you. You’ll find all you need to know about that on Parish Geeks. He specializes in Catholic new media but can build a site for anyone. Scott knows more about technology than anyone I know – he’s so on top of all of this stuff. He’s currently studying Pope John Paul II’s, “Theology of the Body” under Christopher West which we in turn teach to our high school seniors at our parish. More important about Scott is his love for God and his strive to always do His will. Scott’s most precious gift to me was bringing the Lord in my life.
As members of St Mary Church we strive to live as our Catholic faith teaches with acts of love and charity and we hope and pray to have many, many more years together and to be able to continue to share the blessings we have.
Scott & I are volunteer members of the SCAN program (Senior Citizens Awareness Network), organized by the Rhea County Sheriff’s department. Twice a month we visit our senior citizen friends and make sure everything’s all right.
It’s not how many blessings you have that counts, it’s what you do with them.
Christine,
I really love reading your articles. The last one on the heat in Tennessee just shut me up. I live in Palmer, Alaska and we (my daughter, Phoebe and wife, Lindsay and all of the Henry animals) were just now complaining about the weather. The temperature got up to about 49 today and the low was barely freezing. The sun was out all day and all of the livestock pens are dry and clean (an oddity in Alaska). We thought winter was coming a little fast. I just finished feeding our 7 goats, 4 horses, 23 chickens, 5 dogs, 4 cats, 3 ferrets and 2 cockatiels. When I fed and visited all of my animals this afternoon there was no snow, no ice, it was not raining, the wind was not blowing…it was actually perfect. After reading how hot is still is in other parts, we are very fortunate. Thanks for the reminder.
Mike
Mike, I’m not sure what the exact numbers were but I think we went for 30 days straight of 90+ days with humidity over 100%. I sweated from parts of my body I didn’t realize could! Things are cooling down nicely now… high 50’s at night and mid 70’s during the day – perfect weather but it only lasts a few weeks then we get our cold… of course I am not going to complain… I’m from Eastern Canada where there are 2 seasons – winter & construction.
Your menagerie sounds just as captivating as mine!
Take care & stay in touch (and get a Facebook account, you’ll love it!)
Christine
Your site is fantastic. You are so close to me since I live in Crossville. Can you guide me to someone who might have raw goat’s milkl for salel I’m expecting a litter of collie puppies the first week of Sept. and would like to have some on hand. One day I plan to have my own goats to supply me, but I’ve only been here in Tennessee two years and am just getting my place ready for other animals.
TO:ketzia (hannahs sister)
from: Cindy
You need to keep them seperated untill you teach the dog not to bite or it will happen again. I lived for one
year with a baby gate teaching my dog not to bite my cat, but it works, and now they lay, play and argue,
with each other, with no injury, but it was work. It can be done, but it is training, it does not just happen.
At least, not if their has already been a bite. Some dogs just would walk by and not care, others , well…
I stumbbled upon your site looking for my missing cat, then stayed because I am an animal lover,
and started reading about the zoo, lama etc then visiting the elderly at the homes, you really do
a great job!
Thanks Cindy! I am considering using my Ol Blue miniature horse to visit homebound sick children…
Hi Christine,i’m jody clark,and i have a 7 yr.old boy ,and we have been looking for a dwarf horse for a while now,we are really interested in buying your ponies you have listed.I am a big animal lover,and i know these ponies have special needs,My sister is a vet ,so they would be very well cared for.We know they are for pets only,and can’t pull carts,we want them just to love as our pets.My husband and my father do western stunt shows for fund raisers and my husband and son would love to have them as our little mascots.we would love them dearly and give them a very loving home.please call me at 760-951-4761 ask for jody clark,we would love them and you would have some one that would take good care of them.i have a vet doctor in the family,that would always make sure they were doing ok,and healthy.Please call me,we would like them very much.760-951-4761 jody clark
Jody, I’ve answered this request in a separate email. Keep an eye on websites like http://www.equine.com and http://www.horsetopia.com/ Also check this website.. http://www.littlemagicshoes.com/ Janell has a forum where they sometimes post about dwarfs looking for homes. Good luck!
hi i have a emergency our dog bit our 3 month old baby boy Nubian in the face. we just got him yesterday and the goat has not had his shots yet- but my dog is up to date on his shots. my dad is gone with the only car but as soon as he gets home we are getting the shots. (tentus) do we need to get any thing else?? The bleeding has stopped, his nose and mouth are cut- but no fresh blood in the mouth or out the nostrils . my mom put bag balm on it immediately and we gave him anti-biotic water. I’ve been dabbing his cuts with a clean rag that was soaked in the antibiotic water. other than that, he is doing well… the dog… well, he’s mom’s and mom is MAD! he never bit any of mom’s animals before, all she has to say it “MAMA’S!” and he protects them. we don’t know why he bit. any advice would be nice. thanks so much! Ketzia (age 9)
Hi,
I have a small herd of 16 differing beeds of goats. A couple of them have minor signs of pinkeye for which I have been treating with “nfz?” powder. It seems to be doing the trick. Anyway I was doctoring my little lamancha doe all up close and personal and she granted me with a big juicey sneeze… right in my eye. Is the pinkeye transmitted this way? What should I watch out for and what should I do?
Bonnie, Pinkeye can be contracted by humans however the course of the disease is different and not as serious. Please wash your hands after treating each goat as it is especially contagious among goats. Try to isolate the infected ones or you’ll soon have your entire herd affected. You can keep all the infected goats together.
As for treatment, I always use LA 200 directly in the eye (I treat both eyes, regardless). Use a syringe to pull the liquid from the bottle & leave the needle in the bottle. Then squirt the medicine directly in their eye. To be effective the treatment should last 5 days/twice daily. I use baby wipes to clean each eye at least twice daily & use a new wipe each time. Keep the goats isolated from the others for at least 10 days. Some use LA 200 sub-cutaneous but I really hate going that route. Pinkeye is a nasty thing to deal with but as long as you’re treating your goats, the disease will simply run it’s course. The hardest thing is preventing all your goats from getting it!
Good luck & keep me posted!
christine i had the goat with the rectum problem when she would have a bowel movement her rectum would come out and go back in. Called the vet they said if it stayed out they could put it back in and stitch it up. She had two kids on Feb 12 we were not there when she had them. They are fine she is fine and the rectum has returned to normal. Thank God Just wanted you to know things are great.
Christine, love your web site
I am e-mailing you for some information about my pigmy goat Nanette. My vet doesn’t seem to know a whole lot about goats so I figured who better to ask than the Crazy goat lady.
Four weeks ago Nanette gave birth to three little kids, all were fully developed however all were dead at birth. The first one was born in a sak but was dead and the other two were born dry no saks. Pryor to giving birth to the last two Nanette had been discharging what looked like the baby’s sak. This has been very upsetting for me, Nanette is my little girl and it was so terrible to see her go through this ordeal. After all was over she would not leave my side and she talked for day’s, I assumed she was looking for her baby’s and that was the hardest part. What can I do in the future to avoid this situation, I plan on breeding her again but not until the end of this year. Her feed is alphalfa, goat cookies and Omolene grain.
Could you give some advice?
Thank you for listening
Debbie
Aw Debbie, that is so sad… It reminds me of Blackie a few years ago that had triplets but they all rolled down the hill right after birth & I found them the next day, of course all had drowned. This was an accident & something I could have prevented if I had locked her up (as I did with the others). In your case, it’s different. This was not your fault. Nature has a way of taking care of its own… although totally formed, these little ones may have been premature. Maybe Nanette was too young to breed – I don’t breed them until they’re about 9 – 10 months old, that way they’re about 15 to 16 months (mature) by the time they kid. Depending on the breed, some people may wait until they’re 18 months old.
As for the discharge, that is totally normal. Unless Nanette shows other symptoms such as diarrhea, listlessness or lack of appetite, what she is going through is normal.
Sounds like your feeding her right – does the Omolene include Monensin for the prevention of Coccidiosis? Is she on a regular worming schedule? This is EXTREMELY important.
I’d give her at least 3 months rest before breeding again & if you live in a part of the country where winter is harsh, make sure her birthing date is way before the cold sets in. If she is an “only” goat, she will do better if she has company. You may want to get another nanny or a friendly little whether.
Hope this helps, stay in touch!
Christine
I adore your site a lot. Will bookmark. Keep up to great posting on it. ty
Thank you!
Hey–I just wanted to tell you how excited I am and my son that you will have your petting zoo at the park on July 3. I especially LOVE Dr. Suess. He is the cutest, lovable silkie ever! We are looking to buy one and I told my husband that if I could train that little sucker–I would keep it in the house! You do a great job and hope you cotinue to bring smiles to little and big folks faces!
Hi Morgan! Thank you for the words of encouragement! It makes it all worthwhile! The lady that I got Dr Seuss from has 3 white ones that she’s looking for homes for. She’s a ways away (Dandridge) – just thought I’d let you know. Please point yourself out to me today at the park!
Christine
Hi Christine. I was looking for health information on cocciditis and my search popped up your website. I have a couple of female Pygmy goats that have had a persistent dry cough with just a very small runny nose for about a month. I have wormed them with Ivomec and later with Valbazen. I also brought one of them to the vet and he gave her 2 injections. One an antibiotic and the other a steroid. He noted her coat was shiny and, judging by her objection to the shots, she was very strong. Appetites of both goats remains strong. He felt like she was just having allergy problems
I am concerned because the shots and worming treatments have had no effect on the coughing. I was thinking that you may have been through something similar with your goats. If nothing sounds familiar to you I will probably bring them to a highly regarded veterinarian about 70 miles from where I live. After reading your suggested article on coccidia I think that is not the problem.
BTW, Christine, I realized after reading on your website that you own a camel named Boris. I have a Bactrian named Samson and we have met on the CamelPhotos forum. It is nice to talk with you again. You’ve got a great website.
Doug
Hi Doug!
I thought many of my goats had lungworm & I treated them with Ivermectin but the problem persisted. Then I noticed it was worse when they were eating hay out of the trough that was above their heads. I now feed them their hay from the ground (a little messy but what can you do?)… and the coughing and sneezing has stopped.. almost. Note that goats also sneeze to warn their buddies to “get out my way” or “I’m the boss here” so a little of it is normal. How I look at it with my herd is that being on a regular worming schedule prevents heavy infestation and they’re all healthy, shinny coats, hefty appetite… all must be well! However, if you still feel there’s something more, here’s an excellent article on lungworms.
I do have one goat that has snotty clear discharge & has been for a while. Last week I gave her 3CC of PenC and she’s okay as of today. You have to go easy on the PenC because it messes up their rumen.
As for Boris, we sold him to the fellow at Camel Boot Camp (that’s just what I call it!). Scott Allen is a real Camel Whisperer! Boris is much happier there – he’s got a dozen Camel buddies & he works for a living now!
Thanks for the compliments & good luck with your goats!
Christine
PS Do you feed medicated goat pellets? That also helps prevent coccidiosis – I mix 50/50 sweet feed & medicated pellets once daily.
Hi Christine, This is Liz with the Spring City Parks and Recreation commission.. Forgive me but I have misplaced your Number and need you to give me a call about the July4th celebration. If you will email me at the email address given I will send you my Phone number.Thank you for your time. Liz
Hi Liz… I believe my husband sent you my number but here it is again.. 423 413 4088
hope I am posting correctly. I had a pygora kid that died from Coccidia. The breeder is going to replace him, but I am nervous that this will catch it too. How do I clean up the yard to be sure it is safe? I am very anal about my goats. They are pets only all bottle fed. The greenest hay they can get. I have never dealt with this before so any help appreciated.
Thanks so much.
email me directly at rottilover19691@yahoo.com
Christa, here’s an excellent article on Coccidia – I feed my goats medicated goat feed which helps to a certain degree. As you’ll read in the article, you can never eliminate this parasite totally – don’t be overwhelmed by all the information & details. Just keep a clean barn & feeding/drinking utensils & you’ll be fine.
Hi! i was at the Christmas Parade in Dayton today with my husband and daughter (who was dressed in a Santa Dress). I just wanted to let you know that I took several pictures and if you would like me to e-mail them to you or anything, just let me know and I’d be happy to send them to you =]
Dear Christine-
I found my way here by way of Twitter! Somebody I follow replied to something you posted…you know how it goes, right?!
Well, after reading a couple of your tweets (I retweeted your quote about Brain cells come and go. Fat cells stick around forever, I thought it was so funny) & then checking out your blog (LOVE the video of Gonzo!-our senses of humor are very similar), I just had to write to say thanks for putting a smile on my face today.
See, I lost my mom last spring. She was 88 and had Alzheimer’s and a wonderful life, but the grief catches me at the strangest times and in the strangest ways. Last night I was frickin’ asking for it when I decided to watch a totally sappy made for TV drama about a daughter healing her relationship with her mom, who, unbeknownst to the daughter, was experiencing early-stage Alzheimer’s. The whole story took place during the Thanksgiving holiday. Talk about Water Works! I don’t think I’ll be watching anything like that again any time soon. 😉
Anyways, as I’m coming up on my first Thanksgiving without mom OR dad (he passed in 2004), it was nice to get a chuckle from your regular, day-in-the-life stories. You and your husband and critters clearly share something very special. Thanks for sharing.
God bless,
Phoebe