Tiny Colors Farm

Welcome and enjoy your visit.  As we grow, we'll be updating this webpage hopefully at least once a month with all of our new arrivals, new happenings and what shows we're planning to attend or have attended.  Please check our What's New and For Sale pages each time you visit as I hope to make several additions to those pages as our herd grows and changes.

It has been a very hot Summer so far, with our sold babies (and girls) going to shows up and down California and doing rather well in the ring and the pail as well as the backyards of their new families.  Most of our 2008 kids are sold and we're plotting out our breeding schedule for next year already.  Please check out our For Sale and Breeding Schedule pages for more details.  With the increased cost of hay and of course the gas prices adversely impacting how many shows folks can afford to get to, we're going to make sure we have a limited breeding schedule so we're not over-producing.  I want to make sure all our future kids get the homes they deserve to be in.  If there's a particular doe or buck you'd like more information on or to be put on the waiting list for babies, feel free to drop me an email with your contact information and questions. 

Also - for everyone who has signed my guestbook, I'm thrilled and welcome!  I would like to point out, though, that I cannot see your email address from what you leave on the guest book and so if you would like more information on anything you see here from goat care to babies for sale to milking and cheese-making instructions and help, please drop me an email so I can reply right back to you!

I'm also working closely with my dear friend Therese on reducing both her herd and mine for logistical reasons; last year we were faced with a sudden evacuation in the face of a fast-moving wildfire and had far too many animals to safely evacuate in the few minutes we had.  Fortunately she has a wise old Alpine buck that took ALL 48 of the goats left in his care and herded them up and away from the fires, then back into their pens within the next day or two, once the fires had skipped right over her house on the hill.  And very fortunately for us, our good friends Jeannie McIver (of Eagle's Crest) and Jena and Don Williams (of Urban Acres) came running to our rescue with trailers and trucks for as many horses, goats and birds as they could carry and gave us a safe place to roost for the night or the story might have been somewhat different.  But in light of the fact that there is already a very active fire season underway in California, we (Therese and I) want to make sure we only have as many animals as we can evacuate safely and to that end are also putting several adult does (and a couple bucks) up for sale.  We are going to be brutally honest about the positive and negative points on these animals and hope we have something you're looking for.

In the meantime, hopefully everyone is loving this show season and having a great summer with their goats!  Off to make cheese - check back in a day or two for updated pictures on most pages.  Yes, I'm an optimist but if I don't write it down I won't get to it (grin).

We don't generally attend too many shows as our main emphasis is on temperament and production in the milk pail but because I believe a goat's production in the pail is a reflection of correct conformation and adherence to the breed standard, we are confident that when we do show our goats should do rather well.  We also are looking forward to several of our babies being sold to show homes and doing well for their new owners.  UPDATE: as of 03/12/2008, several of our does have kidded and several more are due in the next few days, so be sure to check out our for sale page for pictures and details!

Our does are ALL very friendly and love to be milking does in our herd.  We milk each and every freshened doe twice a day (by hand!) and all are very happy to jump right up on the stand and behave for us.  This chore is shared by myself and two of my sons (ages 10 and 7) and usually includes between 8 and 14 does per day, including some of our larger-breed does.  We insist that our goats allow us to handle them with ease and in fact most are bred specifically for their temperament.

Lately I've been hearing a lot about 'Localvores' - people who choose to only consume products that are made or grown within a certain (100 miles??) radius of their home, both to support their communities and to cut down on the amount of toxic emissions from having to truck groceries and supplies several thousand miles to stores in distant towns and cities.  I like to think that the web has made the world local; we can get whatever we want no matter where it is grown and we find out about these products through their exposure on the internet.  That said I do also like to patronize my local farmers and craftspeople.  I will in the future be listing several links to people who sell what they make or grow and are looking for local buyers as a way to enhance their communities as well as provide for their families in a way that doesn't put a lot of pressure on the environment.  This is what Wikipedia has to say about Localvores and here is just ONE of the many informative links on this new old idea and while it may not seem practical for everyone, it is an interesting and fun way to get involved in your local community.  I myself prefer to do as much of my business as I can using local artisans, craftspersons and skilled professionals, preferring to give my money to my neighbors whenever possible.  I think being a producer (milk, eggs, livestock for food and brush-clearing, etc.) helps me meet many wonderful people that also prefer to look closer to home for their food.

One example of a locally-produced non-food item would be the wonderful 'Shawls From The Heart' produced at Take Heart Farm by Tina French.  These items are not only gorgeous and extremely well-made, Tina also grows the goats (and other fiber animals) that the fiber comes from and then processes and dyes it herself or has it done locally in conjunction with other local fiber producers.  The fiber then gets hand-spun and dyed by Tina herself (or Kathy or one of the other local ladies) and eventually becomes these lovely garments, craft and decorative items and other great things for the home.  I urge you to check out Tina's shop and to make an effort to seek out your own local producers and give them your support.

Marla

Please remember to sign our guestbook and let us know if you are looking for anything in particular, or you can email us for more information on anything you've seen on our site.  Thanks for visiting!