Tuesday Tool

(A bit late, but it was a busy day)

The tool of the day is definitely the Double K Model 401 Belt Mounted Variable Speed Clipper with 6 foot flex-shaft drive.

My project for the last few days has been to trim all of our goats, peeling off a year's worth of shaggy hair and leaving a nice, sleek-looking, cooler animal.  The does are not too bad--their hair isn't terribly long, despite having not had a haircut in over a year.  The bucks, on the other hand...well, they're awful.  They are furry like bears, hair three inches long all over, and a layer of cashmere underneath.  And, they smell like bucks. 

So, one by one, each goes up on the stand, into the stanchion, and starts complaining and fidgeting as I get the clippers going.  I've tried doing it with a hand-held clipper, but the extra power of the Mod. 401 is wonderful.  Mow up the back, then along the sides, up the legs, up the neck and around the head; wrestle and fuss and struggle while clipping the face and noggin; kick and complain while doing the legs and escutcheon and tail.  Trim, trim, trim, trim--and while I'm at it, trim their hooves, give the a copper bolus, and dose them with anti-louse.  The whole process, for one goat, takes just under an hour, leaving the goat upset and spick and span, and leaving me covered in itchy goat trimmings--the hair is stiff enough that it can penetrate my skin and act like a fiberglass splinter.  I can do three goats before running inside to change my shirt or take a shower.  (If I were more Orthodox about my Judaism, part of my morning ritual would be to thank the divine that I am not a woman; as it is, I am thankful that I don't wear a bra.)   

Clipping is nobody's favorite chore.  The goats don't recognize each other right away, so they are busy re-establishing their hierarchies.  There is much complaining, still, but at least they are cooler and easier to look at, and they won't be bothered until next summer.