TWISTED HORNS DIARY
Autumn days — time to sit, reflect and give thanks
I always look forward to this time of year and the first day of autumn when you can walk outside after the long summer and the air has finally changed. It is a subtle but familiar feeling as the warm sun rises and the smells of fresh cut grass and flowers have faded. It’s the first day that the air truly changes, and I love the crisp and earthy smell that can only be described as calming. As the autumn chill begins to blanket the hills and the sun takes its time rising above the Georgia pines, there is nothing I love more than to bundle up in my big, braided blanket and have a cup of coffee on the porch while watching my animals in their pastures wake for the day.
On days like these I am reminded of how lucky I am to have the life that I do, and I feel grateful that God has given me so much to be thankful for.
As we come into November, I find that I love to write about reflecting on the year and all the ups and downs that have brought me to these crisp autumn mornings. Those of you that have been with me through the last couple years as I have written my experi- ences each month and shared my journey with you, know that this is the time of year that I love the most!
It makes me want to write about hope and family and all the other feel-good mo- ments that the year has brought my way, and there are many. It also reminds me of the perseverance and the strength that it has taken to fight through our hardships and at the end of the long days on the farm, we can hold our family close and know that creating this life that we have is all worth it. This year has been a hard year. I have watched so many of our fellow producers be forced to move in different directions or give up goat farming all together. It has been a year full of worry for the future and instabil- ity in the market.
I have spoken with countless families that were new to goat farming last year and were so excited for their new chapter, yet within six months were closing the book. It is a sad revelation to see so many people and families move on and leave this ever-chang- ing industry behind.
8 Goat Rancher | November 2025
It makes me glad that I got to experi- ence their excitement and give them words of encouragement but it also makes me sad that the excitement faded and that all they were left with in the end was struggle. This life that we have chosen is not for the faint of heart. I will admit that there have been days that selling everything and buying a sailboat has crossed my mind but I am re- minded of why we made such a drastic life change — our children. We wanted to provide a life for them that was far from the hustle of the West Coast and the need to “keep up with the Jones.” We wanted to educate them in the importance of family values, hard work and living life with- out the constant need for electronics and in- stant gratification. I wanted them to grow things with their own hands and nurture our animals’ lives from the beginning to the end. I think that we have accomplished most of those things but we are always a work in progress. Having pre-teens and a six-year-old is “wrangling goats” on a whole other level! When goats entered my world I emersed myself into everything that I could that would teach me about them and how to be successful at raising them. No matter how much knowledge I have gained, I still get it wrong sometimes. It is not a get-rich quick business and the work is long, hard and ex- hausting. This is not meant as discourage-
ment — in fact, it is the quite the opposite. I want all of you out there that are new in this business and struggling to know you are doing awesome! You have made a choice to do something different, something hard and something so amazing. You are not alone and you have a HUGE support system through Goat Rancher and the goat industry. I hope that whatever you are going through on your farm or whatever you have chosen to do, that this article finds you and gives you the hope that you need. So often we do not want to let others know that we are struggling or that we are feeling frustrated. It is easier to put on a happy face and to act as if we have it handled. All of us in this indus- try know better. We have been there. If I can leave you with some comfort as we march our way into the holiday season, it is to cherish all that you have, all you will be- come and all the dreams and decisions that brought you to where you stand today (in your goat pasture).
Happy Thanksgiving!
(Tess Fetterly and her family raise 100% New Zealand and purebred Kikos on Twisted Horns Farm in Jefferson, Ga., with a focus on sustainable agriculture. Tess can be contacted at
twistedhornsfarm@gmail.com and find them on Facebook. Website:
www.twisted-
hornsfarm.com.)
BY TESS FETTERLY
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