Saturday, April 9, 2016

Luna's Gift... Haute Goature...

(With a nod to niece Aimee for today's topic and title)

When I first bought Luna and brought her to FairWinds, she was wearing an old, hard, stiff, nylon dog collar.  This collar had probably been worn by many goats at the farm she came from. It was so tired from use and weather that it was impossible to guess what color it had started as.  The hardware was rusted and dirt encrusted.  It had been on Luna's elegant neck a long time. I could tell because all the hair was rubbed off in a wide spot where the collar chaffed. Under that bald spot was a thick, hard callus.  I asked the woman who was selling her if she thought that callus could be healed up.  She scoffed and shrugged.  "I doubt it."



 I took that ugly collar off as soon as I got my new goat settled safely in.
I began to massage the callus with special balm several times a day.  Luna seemed to enjoy this.

It wasn't long, however, before I realized that having a collar on my goat was a handy thing.  One can lead a goat from place to place with a collar,  or catch them if they try to dash out a gate to dine on the perennial flower bed. But I didn't want anything to irritate Luna's neck.  On a whim I tied a soft cotton bandanna around her.  It looked charming, and did the trick!
Within a few weeks Luna began to grow hair on her neck, and the callus softened.But the bandanas stayed...
The colors change with the seasons... blaze orange when hunters are about, pastels for spring, red and green at Christmas. Inexpensive bright swatches that make people smile, and never irritate tender necks. Comfy clothes can be stylish. Just check out the haute goature in my pasture!











3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I love it!!!! This needs to be published somewhere! Great job with one finger typing.

solarity said...

That made me laugh, because I can't count how many times I've tried to catch an escaping kennel dog by the bandana it came in wearing, only to have it come apart in my hand. But I'm sure you know as well as I do how to tie a bandana so that won't happen!

Mary Anne in Kentucky

Nilanjana Bose said...

Excellent take on the H-post! Thanks for the smile.

Nilanjana.
Ninja Minion, A-Z 2016
Madly-in-Verse