In honor of the upcoming Father's Day, we want to introduce you to our newest Stepladder buck, Lilikoi.
Well, technically he is not a father yet, but he will be the future father of many of Stepladder’s youth in the upcoming 2022 birthing season! As of now he is still just a kid himself, as he was born only a few months ago at Redwood Hill Farm on February 20th of 2021. However, by the time fall arrives, Lilikoi’s hormones will be in full swing and he will join the elite ranks as a dedicated member of the Stepladder breeding herd.
Lilikoi first arrived at Stepladder Ranch in April after being picked up from Redwood Hill Farms by Jack and Michelle (the owners of Stepladder Creamery). He comes from a line of Redwood Hill’s prized dairy goats and was specifically selected for our breeding program due to his exceptional pedigree. While many of our milking does are closely related to each other (sisters, aunts, mothers, cousins, etc.), we ensure genetic diversity in the herd by bringing in new bucks every 2 to 3 years. Lilikoi is this year’s new buckling!
(Lilikoi on his first day at Stepladder - tired from traveling but settling in quickly to his new home.)
When Lilikoi first arrived at Stepladder, he was unnamed and unsure of himself and his new surroundings. We helped him settle in with some warm bedding, lots of good eats, and a new name!
It was kismet because a fan on social media suggested the name Lilikoi in our naming competition! Because we love to name our kids within the same theme as their moms, we were looking for a name that would be reminiscent of Lilikoi’s mom, Lychee, who was named after the delicious Southeast Asian fruit. The name Lilikoi seemed especially appropriate because we have acres of delicious Lilikoi (aka Passion Fruit) vines in production at Stepladder ranch!
(Lilikoi/Passion Fruit in its flower and fruit form grown and picked on the ranch.)
Now that Lilikoi has had several months to grow and settle into his new digs, he has become quite a confident and gregarious little tyke. In fact, in the 2 months that we have had him at Stepladder, he has already grown to weigh a whopping 70 pounds and has taken over command of the small group of compatriot bucklings with whom he shares his pen. However, this new found confidence will be tested in the upcoming fall breeding season when he will find his match in our much older and not so easy to boss around herd of milking does. We will keep you posted on his progress as he grows into his new role as Stepladder Stud!
(Lilikoi in the pen with his two young buck pen mates.)