We had three of our does due to kid on the first of December, we had been hoping that our barn would be done by then, and we would be able to have them in there for kidding. Well, as always with animals, things didn't go as planned. First the barn got delayed, so we were planning on having to put up some temporary stalls.
Then we went out this morning to check on our Kune sow who was due today and heard tiny "maa"s, Star had kidded two days early. She had three kids, two boys and a girl, the girl was dead when we found her, and we aren't sure why.
She had them behind their shelter which was odd, goats usually kid where they tend to sleep, and she tends to sleep in the shelter, so either she went back there to get away from
everyone, or she was chased out.
In this blog I will share some tips to help you have as stress free of a kidding as possible.
Two Months Before
Two months before your doe is due to kid you should start to give her grain. Start with a 1/4 cup a day and slowly increase the amount until she is getting two cups a day by the time she's due. Once you get to a cup, split the amount between the morning and evening.
Two Weeks Before
Two weeks before the due date, it is a good idea to start closing your doe up at night in the stall you want her to kid in, that way, even if she's a week early she will have had time to get used to being closed up.
Why Should Does be Confined When They Kid?
The main reasons to confine your doe are that it prevents other goats from bothering her, it prevents her from kidding in a not ideal location (such as out in the pasture or somewhere wet or dirty), and it keeps her and the kids in a safe place should anything happen to either of them.
What to Put in the Stall
In the stall you will need a water bucket taller than 12 inches (so the kids don't accidently fall in while their legs are wobbly), something to give hay in, and plenty of bedding, at least four inches, straw is the most insulating.
A Week Before
In case your doe is early, it's a good idea to hang a heat lamp in her stall now and turn it on if the temperature is going to be below freezing.
The Big Day
Hopefully all has gone well (it usually does) and you now have your very own cute little baby goats!!! As soon as you can, get the doe a gallon of warm water with a 1/4 cup of molasses in it, this will give her some much-needed energy, it also has vitamins and minerals in it that are good for her. You should leave her in the stall for two or three days to give her a chance to bond with her kids and rest before she has to deal with the rest of the herd again.
When Things Go Wrong
If the kids are crying over and over again and they have a heat lamp, they are probably hungry. Try putting them up to their mother, if they seem like they are hungry but can't get anything, your doe may not be making enough milk yet.
In this case, start bottle feeding them half the usual amount, but leave them with her, and don't feed them at night. The doe should be making enough milk within a day or two. If she has more than two kids, you may have to pull the extras and bottle feed them entirely.
If she kicks them away when they try to feed, and it has been more than 30 minutes since they were born, milk her (unless she has an infection) and start bottle feeding them. It's best to leave the kids with her unless she is going after them even if they aren't trying to feed. Sometimes once she has had a chance to settle down, she will start feeding them herself.
This happened with Star, a little bit after we came out it seemed like she was going to abandon her remaining kids. She wouldn't let them feed and just went away with the herd, ignoring their crying.
We got a temporary stall set up and put her in with her kids, within just a little bit she started taking care of them. Goats have a very strong maternal instinct, but sometimes they just get overwhelmed, or too stressed.
One other problem we have seen is where the kids only feed off one side of the doe's udder. You will be able to tell if this is happening if, after a day or two, one side looks larger than the other. The best thing to do if this happens is to milk the side the kids won't feed from twice a day, usually after a few days the problem will go away.
Weaning
If you are wanting to milk your doe you can start closing her kids away from her at night and milking her in the morning when they are two weeks old. When they are 6-8 weeks old, you can wean them completely. We usually just close the kids away at night until they are sold after about 6-8 weeks. If you aren't milking, you can just leave the kids with their mother until either you sell them, or they stop on their own.
You will have to separate bucklings from any females at three months, with Nigerians you will need to separate bucklings from doelings at 7 weeks (they can stay with their mother until three months).
Now, this blog has been mainly about preventing and dealing with behavioral issues related to kidding, if you have a medical issue, this is one time when it would be good to call a vet, unless you have experience or have someone with experience to help you.
Usually everything goes well, and you will be able to enjoy one of the most playful baby animals you can have on a farm! If something dose go wrong, hopefully this blog will help you!
Comments