Liberty Hill, Texas
Carleton Ranch
2060 CR 201
Liberty Hill, TX 78642
ph: 512-496-5317
carleton
Carleton Ranch was founded by Robert Lee Carleton in 1970 north of Austin, Texas. The original pasture, which was out in the country then, is now a condominium complex in the heart of the Austin suburbs, a stone's throw from the Arboretum.
Though he was born and raised in Austin, Uncle Bob was a country boy at heart. He bought more land near Liberty Hill, where he spent his weekends restoring the old barn, repairing fences, and building a workshop in which he camped. In 1991, he retired from his career as a master electrician, sold the original site and moved out to Liberty Hill, taking his small herd of Spanish goats with him. Sadly, he passed away in 1995.
However, shortly before his death he had contracted to buy a half-Boer buck kid--a novelty at the time. The arrival of that buck, Nelson Mandela, was the beginning of the cross-bred herd that remains today, which is owned by Bob's niece Sue Carleton Fuller and her husband Alex.
under construction
add picture of Uncle Bob on scooter
This is Johnnie Llama, who is the original guard for our herd. In the many years Johnnie has been on duty, predation has dropped to almost zero. He's aging, though, so he has retired to the weanlings pasture, and 2 Pyrenees have taken over primary guard duty. Update: Johnnie passed away Mar. 13, 2013 at the age of 18. R.I.P.
d Smiley and Spook came to us from Hilltop Ranch as pups in Oct. 2009. The goats weren't too sure why we had put "monsters" in their pasture, but everyone has settled down to living together peacefully now, and we can't imagine being without them. Update: Smiley died suddenly of a pulmonary embolism in Sept. 2014. He is sorely missed.
Here is 10-month-old Clyde, who replaces Smiley. Clyde is a Pyrenees/Akbash cross, though I think there may be some kangaroo somewhere in his pedigree, as he can jump very impressively!
This is Rat, a large bottle-baby wether, whose job is to teach newly-arrived bucks who is boss, and to provide petting opportunities to anyone who is interested. Update: Rat died in 2013 at the age of 15. Not many wethers get to live such a long and happy life!
This is Evinrude, a former barn-cat, who serves no purpose except to purr like the outboard motor for which he is named. You can just see his pierced left ear--he'll probably come home with a tattoo next!
Copyright 2009 Carleton Ranch. All rights reserved.
Carleton Ranch
2060 CR 201
Liberty Hill, TX 78642
ph: 512-496-5317
carleton