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Post by barb84 on Jan 9, 2018 10:54:41 GMT -6
I haven't been on since Sunday night because I have been acting as a goat midwife. We keep a baby monitor in the barn when the goats are near their due date. Around midnight Sunday night (Monday morning) I heard labor sounds and went out. Sure enough, one of the two was pushing. Last year her first one (triplets) was turned wrong with hind feet first. I was concerned this might happen again. Well, not hind feet first this time, but a little white tail was sticking out. The proper position is front hooves with the nose between them. So I started praying! I was able to get a good enough hold on the butt to pull it out. It was alive and she then delivered two more . Three healthy doe kids. All the while I am hearing noises from the next pen from the one not due until Wednesday. I check her and she is pushing, but all that comes out is a bubble of water. She doesn't seem in any distress, so I leave her alone. Monday afternoon she is still pushing, so I glove up and go in. I can feel something in this birth canal. No progress by nighttime. So at 10:00 I glove up again and manage to figure out another breech! Well, not to keep dragging out this story, the baby came out hind feet first and it was alive! I could hardly believe it! She delivered two more with some position adjusting, but all healthy. I was praying the whole time for God to guide me in this. I praise Him for this blessing and His guidance.
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Post by Natalie on Jan 9, 2018 10:59:52 GMT -6
So 6 babies?! What an exciting time. Praise God for guidance, blessings, and babies!
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Post by barb84 on Jan 9, 2018 11:04:25 GMT -6
Yes, we went from 2 goats to 8! We have another due in about 2 weeks, then 3 more in April.
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Post by Natalie on Jan 9, 2018 11:15:08 GMT -6
How common are triplets? Will the mama take care of all three?
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Post by barb84 on Jan 9, 2018 12:48:53 GMT -6
Yes, triplets are very common. She can feed all three, but we just have to make sure that one doesn't get pushed out. Goats only have 2 teats.
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Post by grandpaskitzo on Jan 9, 2018 14:48:19 GMT -6
Praise God! I love animals, so this made me happy! If I could, I’d have a zoo full at home.
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Post by barbiosheepgirl on Jan 9, 2018 22:26:47 GMT -6
barb! What kind of goats? I have 2 nubians to feed out bum lambs. Mine arent due until end of March. Last year was my first time with baby goats being born here. What a hoot! Both of my does had triplets. I helped both of them too. We always joke that any one with the name of Barb is involved with sheep or goats. I have met at least 6 other Barbs in my life that were shepherds...you make the 7th I think.
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Post by barb84 on Jan 10, 2018 15:49:55 GMT -6
That is funny! We have 1 Boer, and one Boer/Nubian cross. These are the two that just kidded. We ended up with the vet here last night because one was still pushing. No kids inside, but the beginning of milk fever/ketosis. Treated her for that and today she is much improved. We have two Nubians and a Saanen due in April. And a Boer buck. My son is in 4H and shows In the local fair. We drink the milk and make cheese. We have one sheep, an Icelandic, that we breed for lamb. I take it you have a lot of sheep.
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Post by barbiosheepgirl on Jan 11, 2018 3:57:08 GMT -6
barb84, we raise Icelandics commercially for restaurants and farmers market. And, I do really love our goat milk, too.! Made soap with it too. We dont have kids, but our 4H community here is huge. Though no one shows Icelandics unless in showmanship..
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Post by barb84 on Jan 11, 2018 8:28:46 GMT -6
barbiosheepgirl , I have made soap before, but not with goat milk. We drink it up too fast! Do you use your Icelandic wool for knitting, etc? My husband shears ours twice a year and we have more than "three bags full" that he keeps saying he is going to have processed. I want to learn to knit but time is always an issue. I have knitted a scarf and a washcloth. Kids learn a lot in 4H, but I am not crazy over the way they want animals stuffed with grain. No one shows Icelandic here either.
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Post by barbiosheepgirl on Jan 11, 2018 14:21:23 GMT -6
yes, we have the wools made into yarns, roving, etc. We travel to the Oregon Flock and Fiber every September...lots of sales there. I canned the goats milk then used it to rebatch my tallow soaps. It seems to be a better way than risking burning the milk. Super conditioning!
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Post by disciple4life on Jan 21, 2018 17:13:27 GMT -6
barb! What kind of goats? I have 2 nubians to feed out bum lambs. Mine arent due until end of March. Last year was my first time with baby goats being born here. What a hoot! Both of my does had triplets. I helped both of them too. We always joke that any one with the name of Barb is involved with sheep or goats. I have met at least 6 other Barbs in my life that were shepherds...you make the 7th I think. Hello Barb84 and Barbiosheepgirl,
This is so fun. I knew you had goats, by the picture and the avatar, but then I saw this thread, and I had to check it out. ;-)
My family raised pure-bred Nubians for Milk, and we loved them. I so want to have them again. So fun, and the milk was so healthy - Tennessee has a crazy law that you can't sell Goat's milk unless you have a certified grade A dairy. But you can accept donations.
So great for clearing land, and ours were like puppies. We only kept does, and when a buck was born we sold it - usually for meat. The homemade ice cream made with Goat's milk is incredible - like frozen yogurt.
Cheers, Disciple4life - father, husband, homeschooler, fan of cooking, coffee, goats, squash the sport, woodworking and end times.
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Post by barb84 on Jan 21, 2018 21:57:55 GMT -6
Nubian goat milk is soooo good! I miss it during the winter when the goats are dry. We had another baby born this past week. Out of 7 babies only one was a buck! That has never happened before. These are all meat goats. The Nubians aren't due until April.
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