I come to you all with a heavy heart this evening. Today, at evening feeding, we found Diva down in the Doe barn. She left us sometime today. We are unsure of the time as we both took a rare day off. It is rare for both of us to be away from the barn for more than a few hours. I was away from the farm today, Joe took some time to relax, before we head into kidding season. We are both sick at heart for not knowing when she went, or if she was scared.
Death comes to the farmer more often than we like to think. Its waiting at the door during kidding season, waiting for a difficult birth. Waiting for doe or kid. Death is there through each animals life, waiting for illness, or injury, or accident. We hate to think about each one of our charges having a limited time on this earth. We have Time. Time to enjoy them. Time to get frustrated at their antics. Time to agonize over illness and the why's and what-if's. Time to celebrate each new life as it first comes sneezing and wobbling into the world.
But for a farmer life has to keep moving forward, we weep over Diva's loss while we bring in the heavy pregnant does for their evening feed. We agonize over her death while we tend to milking her half sister. We must keep on, there are others to feed. Other illnesses or hurts to tend. Babies coming swiftly on their way that we must prepare for. The life of a farmer is not for the faint of heart. There is always one more chore to tend to while we carry such heavy hearts.
It tears my heart that Diva did not get to see the new years kid crop. I wanted so much for her to have this last joy in life. She loved the kids.
We have chosen not to do a Necropsy, we know she is G6S affected, We know her body failed her. We wish to bury her in a place of remembrance rather than see her disposed of as medical waste.
We will bury Her tomorrow, between the new fruit trees on the pasture fence, where she will always be close to her herd, she will be near each years new kids as they run in the field.
Diva was born on a late March day, such a healthy happy kid, with no signs of her disorder. Her first year of life was so happy and normal. I wish you all to remember her as the vibrant hopeful kid we knew her as, before we ever tested of G6S, before we knew the hurt that not testing could cause.
Diva was one of only a few Doe kids born that year. She was named Diversion because she was such a healthy happy kid she was fun to watch, and made you want to see what she would be as an adult Doe.
We have learned so much from her short life. We will never forget you Diva.