Milking a Goat

II purchased a goat named primrose or (prim for short) I have milked prim twice a day everyday since I brought her home a few months ago. She is the first goat that I have milked that I have owned myself. It is such an incredible experience. To be this close to an animal is breathtaking. The mutual trust and respect that we share with each other is like no other relationship that I have had. You could try and compare it to owning and training a dog, but Prim isn’t a “companion” per say. She is livestock and provides me with a service and earns her keep around the farm by providing fresh milk. She trusts me to take her milk and be in an extremely vulnerable place with me. I trust her to stand still and be gentle and patient with me. The situation is much different than it would be if she were a part of a large factory farm. She would be a number and her milk would be extracted by a machine. I use my own two hands and talk and sing to her and give her the best organic grain I can buy to make sure that she is healthy and happy. I love this time that I get to spend with her and bond. She likes that she gets food and that her utters are relieved. I think she likes spending time with me too… Maybe…. We both have off days. Prim slows me down on my off days. If I feel rushed or try to move too quickly, Prim will get fidgety and kick over the milk pail and kicks my hand away. Therefore when it is time to milk no matter what is going on, I know that I need to calm down and approach her with nothing but love and respect for the process that I am about to be a partner in.

I am also learning to feel Prim’s needs. Sometimes she is hot and grumpy and flies are crawling on her and she just needs me to milk as fast as possible so that she can be free. Sometimes she leans into me and I press my forehead into her belly and hum her a tune. Sometimes She wants her milk fed back to her. When she asks persistently to drink her own milk, I trust that she is craving the nutrients in it and her body needs it, so I give her all of our hard work to slurp in one big frothy breath inward. We are getting to know each other and all of our quirks. The other two jealously blat and yell from outside the barn and I make sure to spend equal time scratching heads and being sniffed. Soon the other two will be in Prim’s position as they both have kids growing in their bellies.