Hope and Fear!
These two emotions are normally polar opposites. They don't tend to happen very close to each other in life's journey. Typically, if you are experiencing a lot of FEAR it is impossible to have HOPE. Generally, HOPE blocks out all FEAR. But lately, my life has been full of a tornado of both going on a roller coaster ride like best friends!
That is a hard way to feel! It's like I can't control the fear, I have very valid reasons to be absolutely terrified! The hope is equally as strong and I am very grateful for that, it means the fear can't drown me completely!
You see, I have a very difficult situation taking place in my life right now, one that I literally have no control over. We have had some very serious illnesses strike our beloved goat herd. The cause of which has not been identified. The results have ended the lives of two of my goats and three others that were sick that I struggled and fought to get better.
Every day since this began over a month ago I have had to walk down to the barn and check on the sick goats and give treatments and fluids. Every hour I walk down there with a fear in my heart that another goat will have died or that another goat has become sick. I am checking everyone for signs of diarrhea and see if anyone else needs to begin medication.
A week ago today we had a goat die after being sick for less than 24 hours. I wrote about how hard that was here on Steemit. https://steemit.com/homesteading/@wholesomeroots/another-tragic-loss-but-we-will-get-answers
We have some of the best Large Animal Vets and Pathologist studying this case closely. We are working hard to find the cause. ALL NORMAL reasons have been ruled out.
So last Wednesday I had another reason to do hourly Goat checks. This is where the hope comes in! My Fancy Too was due to have her kids! I am so ready for good news! I hope that we have healthy babies and an easy delivery! New Kids always make things better!
Some of the herd resting. The big fat black girl is Fancy Too who is supposed to be in labor...
Walking to the barn, every hour, my heart sinks with the Fear of death, then it swells with the Hope of life! Over and over and over again this happens... for days... Fancy didn't deliver when I expected her to be due... She is close I can tell because her udder is huge but she is holding out on us STILL! Must have been off on the dates somehow.
So, for now, my heart almost breaks from the sinking fear and nearly bursts with the swelling of hope. I have started to have chest pains from all of this up and down emotions. It is not easy. But I know in the end when all this is behind us we will move forward into the light of hope and leave the fear of darkness far behind us!
A video from Friday mornings barn check...
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https://steemit.com/homesteading/@wholesomeroots/our-gut-wrenching-journey-for-answers-for-our-goat-herd
Wow.... Sounds gut wrenching.... I hope you figure it out soon! Good Luck, wish I could help, but I don't know much about goats.......
It has been! Me too! Thank you!
https://steemit.com/homesteading/@wholesomeroots/our-gut-wrenching-journey-for-answers-for-our-goat-herd
I am delighted. Thank you for continuing to write.
I feel for you. You just a break and some better luck. Keep pushing the antibiotics for now. And take care of yourself. Everybody is counting on you, so you got to keep up your strength.
I keep pushing... Thanks!
https://steemit.com/homesteading/@wholesomeroots/our-gut-wrenching-journey-for-answers-for-our-goat-herd
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What a scary situation. Fingers crossed the vets can figure this out for you. On the up side maybe the kids will have a built in immunity if mom has been exposed to whatever is causing this. I'm sending loads of positive juju your way.
Thank you!
Brighter days are coming along with the full answers you need to keep everyone healthy so hope
Thank you friend
https://steemit.com/homesteading/@wholesomeroots/our-gut-wrenching-journey-for-answers-for-our-goat-herd
Wow that really tugs on the heartstrings! I hope all works out. <3
Following you, can't wait to see the kids!
thank you!
https://steemit.com/homesteading/@wholesomeroots/our-gut-wrenching-journey-for-answers-for-our-goat-herd
I think I would be having heart failure about now! Hope the kids arrive soon and are strong and healthy.
I seriously thought I was the other night... Me too!
https://steemit.com/homesteading/@wholesomeroots/our-gut-wrenching-journey-for-answers-for-our-goat-herd
Ugh! I'm not sure how I would cope with all those constant ups and downs. Here's to good new on both accounts soon.
I'm not really coping well...
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STOPso glad i saw your post...glad you should be having the kids soon and that no one else has gone down..
Blessings,
Melissa
Thanks!
Update:
https://steemit.com/homesteading/@wholesomeroots/our-gut-wrenching-journey-for-answers-for-our-goat-herd
New babies always do make things just a little better, I am praying for a safe delivery and that your goats are on the mend. Upvoted.
Thanks
Update:
https://steemit.com/homesteading/@wholesomeroots/our-gut-wrenching-journey-for-answers-for-our-goat-herd
Thank you will go and read it now.
Thanks. It sounds like along with the sadness, there is some hopeful news?
Wow, I'm sorry to hear of your troubles.
Do you give your animals colloidal silver? It is a natural, very broad-spectrum antibiotic that you can make with the right equipment and distilled water. Please respond if you have any questions...
I pray you'll find a good resolution to this issue!
😄😇😄
I would love to learn how to make it!
I have used and worked with colloidal silver for decades. Silver ions kill pathogenic bacteria, viruses, funguses, and single-cell parasites. I suspect they would be very effective against toxic mold. A quick internet search (only because I don't keep goats) turned up a few links where people discuss using it with their goats and other animals. You may have to search for "goat" on each page, as in some cases the reference to silver may be in the comments:
https://www.homesteadingtoday.com/threads/emily-ozark-jewels-colloidal-silver-question.329527/
http://www.csilverhl.com/14901.html
http://thesilveredge.com/fda-warns-against-the-use-of-colloidal-silver-for-farm-animals-and-pets.shtml
That last is from a competitor of ours, but I respect his research (though not so much his machine, which is really "low-tech").
These folk regularly add silver to the drinking water for their sheep:
https://anamericanhomestead.com/4-ways-to-raise-livestock-without-chemicals/
We fabricate and market a very high technology machine that makes very high quality colloidal silver fully automatically, starting with distilled water. Here's our website (presently undergoing renovation, but still quite useful):
We also offer that machine to Steemians at a very deep discount here:
However, are you a strong "do-it-yourselfer?" If so, I could hook you up with a fairly simple design that you could use to get started making colloidal silver for your goats... Let me know.
I pray you may have the best of success in restoring your herd to health...
So I was looking at it and with all the vet bills piling up we are seriously going to be struggling for quite some time so can't make such a big investment right now. Sorry! It really sounds awesome! I am s strong do-it-yourselfer though! I would be interested in finding out about that? I really don't want anyone else sick, ever again and have heard amazing things about silver! Just recently another steemit blogger wrote about their grandmothers silver keeping the family safe! https://steemit.com/advice/@joearnold/wow-i-had-no-idea-why-real-silverware-was-used-by-my-grandmother-to-keep-the-family-safe
Hi, Rose,
I understand completely, struggling myself! :) No apology necessary!
I will gladly teach you a little here, and will be glad to answer your questions. I admire and appreciate your homesteading lifestyle, and only wish that I had the resources to "change over" to such myself... If I kept animals, I would be sure they had silver water as part of their regular diet. We do have a puppy dog, and not long ago she had either a bad tooth or bad sore in her mouth. It was so bad, she wouldn't even eat, other than some soup my wife gave her. I put her on silver water, and within a few days she was eating and chewing again.
Please check this page and this illustration for the "basics."
That is the basic circuit - a power source, a resistor, and some silver. In place of the silver wires, you may want to just get two silver rounds or medallions from a local coin shop. You will also want to add an inexpensive aquarium bubbler pump to stir the water while this is operating, and a timer to shut it off after about three hours.
If you have any old car, truck, or tractor batteries around, and the ability to recharge them and monitor their voltage, two of them in series would be a much more economic replacement for the three 9V batteries in the illustration. You could also use any DC (direct current) power supply in the ~24 volt range.
Those things together will be the rough equivalent of what you would pay this website $250 plus shipping to get. If you are a frugal homesteader who repurposes things, you may already have much of what you need "around the house."
I was intrigued to read that the sheep farm regularly puts a gallon of silver water in with their flock's drinking water...
Please let me know if you have any questions, or if I can help in any way! :D
P.S.
Use a quart-sized mason jar...
Only the SILVER (.999 fine, not sterling) should touch the water.
You MUST use DISTILLED water! Steam distilled, no mineral or electrolyte content.
Also, with an aquarium pump, just run the vinyl tube into the water so that bubbles come out at the bottom of the jar. Ideally, wrap the pump in a cotton cloth to act as a dust filter so the air doesn't contain dust.
Wow, thank you! That's a lot of great info! I'll show my husband tonight
You're very welcome. If you try to put something together, I'll be more than happy to assist however I can...
Update:
https://steemit.com/homesteading/@wholesomeroots/our-gut-wrenching-journey-for-answers-for-our-goat-herd
Thanks; it sounds like, along with the sorrow, there is some hopeful news?
The latest update:
https://steemit.com/homesteading/@wholesomeroots/our-gut-wrenching-journey-for-answers-for-our-goat-herd