# A Whole MONTH Left to Go...



## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

I'm posting this for a friend because I'm concerned about this doe I sold her a couple of years ago. Nubbin was bred December 4th and is due May 2nd (friend is totally sure of the breeding date and marked it down at the time). She just sent me this video a few days ago and I'm worried about Nubbin being this huge with five weeks (at the time video was taken) still to go. She's already having difficulty walking and laying down (she lays on her elbows a lot). She can't walk up the stair into the milk house but has to hop her hind legs up. Any advice for my friend? Should we be worried? I've never had a doe get this big five weeks before her due date. A week or two maybe, but not five weeks! I'm concerned.


----------



## GoofyGoat (Sep 21, 2018)

Oh my, she's really a waddlin' along...poor baby.
I have no helpful suggestions except watch for ketosis ...maybe a big pile of straw to pad her somewhat while she's laying down.
Poor little lady, maybe using a ramp instead of stairs might help her get into the milkhouse better too.


----------



## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

Yes, there is concern there.

She seems to be limping a bit.
Are her ankles swollen?

I would check ketone levels and is she getting calcium in her diet?

Does she need trimming?
Check her hooves and in between toes. 

If she can get a vet to check her, I would highly recommend it.

That is not normal.


----------



## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

I told my friend Carole to sign up for a TGS account and apparently she's tried but still hasn't gotten the approval email even in her spam. I sent her this link so she can keep an eye on this thread even if she can't post. I already told her to buy ketone strips so she can test a couple times a week and stay on top of things if the ketones get high. 

What should she do if Nubbin's ketones go up? Nubbin is not currently getting grain and has not been during her pregnancy. I don't know about alfalfa. I believe Nubbin gets daily pasture time and I encouraged Carole to keep Nubbin out as much as she can so she moves around while eating. I figure that's better for her than sitting in a shed with food laying in front of her nose. 

Nubbin was not bred the last two years because she kept making milk. I have a feeling this is her way of getting everyone back--if we're not going to let her have babies every year, she's going to make up for it by having LOTS of them all at once! 
:devil: 

Lord, don't let her have five or six in there!


----------



## happybleats (Sep 12, 2010)

Wow. She has a bundle in there. If ketones are high..propolyn glycol is treatment..or 50/50 black strap molasses and water. Might support her calcium needs as well..safe way is carrot and celery juice 2 times a day.


----------



## Sfgwife (Feb 18, 2018)

Damfino said:


> I'm posting this for a friend because I'm concerned about this doe I sold her a couple of years ago. Nubbin was bred December 4th and is due May 2nd (friend is totally sure of the breeding date and marked it down at the time). She just sent me this video a few days ago and I'm worried about Nubbin being this huge with five weeks (at the time video was taken) still to go. She's already having difficulty walking and laying down (she lays on her elbows a lot). She can't walk up the stair into the milk house but has to hop her hind legs up. Any advice for my friend? Should we be worried? I've never had a doe get this big five weeks before her due date. A week or two maybe, but not five weeks! I'm concerned.


Oh goodness poor girl! @SandyNubians or @bisonviewfarm (i cannot remember which) had spice huge forever maybe she can help? I remember spice not havin so many kids but a huge amount of fluid in there.


----------



## MellonFriend (Aug 8, 2017)

Any word on how Nubbins is doing?


----------



## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

Funny you should ask... I was planning to call and ask about her today. I haven't heard anything so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that no news is good news.


----------



## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

Well I just heard from Carole and Nubbin is doing well. Her ketone tests are negative and she's getting around fine. This morning the little dummy wedged herself into a tight space between a dead tractor and a big water tank and her belly got stuck! Sounds like it took Carole half the morning to get Nubbin out, but she seems fine.


----------



## MellonFriend (Aug 8, 2017)

Well that's good to hear. Not the stuck part!


----------



## GoofyGoat (Sep 21, 2018)

Uh oh...She's needing an extra wide load sign with curb feelers so she doesn't get stuck again. 
Glad to know she's doing well though.... besides not being able to judge her own width.


----------



## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

Good to hear.


----------



## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

I went out to visit Nubbin this afternoon. She's due Saturday but I encouraged her owner to induce sooner. She gave Nubbin the shot this morning so we should have kids by tomorrow. Carole is spending the night in the barn on a cot. I'm on call for when labor starts. She at least has triplets and I'm thinking quads. She's been breathing hard the last few days. I'm thinking the kids are pushing on her lungs. Walking is difficult and laying down is uncomfortable in all positions. She's a large, roomy doe and this is her fourth kidding so my biggest concern is that she'll be so tired from heaving herself around for the last month that she won't have much push when the time comes.

Other than being horribly uncomfortable she looks good. Her ketones were negative until last week when they went halfway up the chart to "small". I told Carole to start giving more sugary treats and some grain. I know we don't want huge kids, but this late in the game the bigger concern is pregnancy toxemia, which I know can come on quickly in a doe this large. Her ketones went back down to negative for a few days and then up to "trace" yesterday. No worries there. I'm really glad Carole decided to induce. Smaller babies will be easier to deliver and Nubbin really needs to have them before her body can't take it any more. I know this poor gal is exhausted from hauling this bundle of kids all over the place and from not being able to sleep well!


----------



## MellonFriend (Aug 8, 2017)

Aww she looks like a cow, poor thing. I hope the delivery goes well. Lets see some cute babies with no ifs ands or buts.


----------



## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

Wow, she is huge. mg:


----------



## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

Yes she does look like a cow, and she STILL hasn't kidded! I expected her to go sometime this morning. She can't really walk because she can't balance on three legs even for a second. So she shuffles stiff-legged like a wide, heavy table that someone is trying to walk across a carpet by themselves.


----------



## Nigerian dwarf goat (Sep 25, 2017)

Wow. Shes HUGE! I hope all goes well! Poor girl!


----------



## GoofyGoat (Sep 21, 2018)

Oh my word that poor baby!
I hope she has an easy delivery !


----------



## LadySecret (Apr 20, 2013)

Any news?


----------



## daisysmaid (Jun 21, 2018)

Oh my she’s huge!!!! Poor girl, hope the delivery goes well and she can finally get some relief


----------



## Sfgwife (Feb 18, 2018)

Damfino said:


> Yes she does look like a cow, and she STILL hasn't kidded! I expected her to go sometime this morning. She can't really walk because she can't balance on three legs even for a second. So she shuffles stiff-legged like a wide, heavy table that someone is trying to walk across a carpet by themselves.


Anything yet from mrs. Nubbins?


----------



## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

The delivery was neither smooth nor easy. I went out yesterday afternoon because she looked eminent in the photos and the latest a doe usually goes after inducing is 36 hours, so I felt confident she'd have them by that evening at latest. I was totally wrong. She went on all night, pushing occasionally, pawing constantly, getting up and down with great difficulty. Carole and I ended up spending the night in the barn in sleeping bags. By morning Nubbin could hardly get up and down and was stumbling and falling but still not pushing. I went in and she wasn't dilated enough but I knew those kids had to come out before she was totally exhausted. I dilated her manually for a while which stimulated enough real contractions that she was finally able to start shoving a kid through. I ended up pulling all FOUR babies. And I couldn't believe Carole's luck... four GIRLS!!!

Two at 7 lbs., one at 7.5 lbs., and one at 8 lbs. Three are thriving. The little black one is weaker than the others and is not feeding well at all. I hope she perks up. Carole will be bottling them through the night since Nubbin is too exhausted to be interested in feeding them right now. Not only did she have all these big girls, but she was carrying around a LOT of water weight. The barn was completely flooded. Hopefully she'll perk up in the next day or two and take a couple of her kids back, but right now she wants nothing to do with them. She's always been such a wonderful mother so it's a pity to see her so uninterested.

Anyway, here are the "Nublets": Chestnut, bay, black belted, and bay. We were pleasantly surprised by the colors. The father tends to throw a lot of black kids.


----------



## GoofyGoat (Sep 21, 2018)

Poor Nubbins, she did have a rough go. Those babies were determined to stay in their warm cocoon weren't they.
Once she feels a bit better she'll probably be more interested in her sweet girls. They're gorgeous. 
Your friend hit the jackpot with four does though!
Great job helping with a happy ending! What an ordeal for y'all.


----------



## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

Well, one baby was certainly determined to stay in her warm cocoon! The second kid, a stunning sooty red bay with white strikes on each side, kept pulling her feet back every time I grabbed them. Nubbin is a very DEEP doe with a belly that was hanging halfway to the ground, and since she wasn't pushing properly those kids were way at the bottom. I felt like I was rummaging around in a giant gunny sack with a tight neck on it. When I grabbed kid #2's legs, she immediately pulled them back and I had to reach down and fetch them again. And again. And again... She did that 3-4 times before I was finally able to get her to the surface, the little stinker!

The hardest kid was definitely the first kid. I had to pull mighty hard on those front legs and I was afraid her head would deflect backwards at the edge of the birth canal because of the tight fit through the cervix. Once the first kid came through, the cervix dilated completely and the rest were not such a tight squeeze. But I sure had to reach far down to get them! The scariest thing was that when I first got my hand through and felt where we were at with kids, the first thing I felt was a jaw with teeth on TOP. I could feel legs in proper diving position but they were against my knuckles. In other words, we had an upside-down kid and there was no room at all to work with that first one. I was scared to death, but I knew I needed to work that cervix to get some more dilation, and I prayed that as I worked and Nubbin started contracting that the kid would either reposition itself or another one would come forward. I think that miraculously a different kid came when Nubbin started to push and it was in the proper position. Once the first kid was out of the way, there was room to work on the others. The second kid was still upside-down, but I pulled her legs forward in a rotating motion (over and over because she didn't want to come out!) and she twisted around on her own and came the right way. Phew! We didn't need a major malpresentation on top of everything else!


----------



## Goatzrule (Feb 7, 2013)

I would make sure momma gets some extra calcium. I had a doe recently with the exact same problem and supplemented her tums


----------



## GoofyGoat (Sep 21, 2018)

WOW, getting that tangle of kids sorted is amazing! Nubbins and your friend was so very fortunate to have you there!


----------



## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

How amazing, good work.

They are beautiful.


----------



## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

Goatzrule said:


> I would make sure momma gets some extra calcium. I had a doe recently with the exact same problem and supplemented her tums


I actually gave Nubbin a dose of CMPK that morning because just wasn't pushing. The contractions were few and far between and weak. I hate CMPK and the goats hate it more, but it definitely helps. Carole is giving her Nutri-Drench which also has a good deal of calcium in it, and she's feeding dolomite. Normally her goats all hate dolomite, but that night when Carole and I were sitting up, Nubbin was licking it out of Carole's hand.

I gave Nubbin banamine after she delivered and she spent the afternoon passing the first placenta. That evening she still hadn't passed any more afterbirths and was also still shaky on her legs and clearly exhausted. Carole's husband Charlie had brought a case of Guinness home with him and Carole was drinking one and it made me think maybe Nubbin needed a beer too. So Carole brought some out to her in a dish and she LOVED it! Slurped it right down! Carole gave her as much as she wanted (probably around 8-12 ounces). We figured the iron would be good for her and I hoped the alcohol would help her relax and feel better.

Nubbin passed the rest of the placentas during the night and was on her feet this morning and eating well. I left Carole with another dose of banamine in case Nubbin is still sore. She's not accepting her kids, but when Carole and Charlie held Nubbin against the wall, all the kids got to drink off their mama. Two of them will stay bottle babies, but we're hoping Nubbin will accept two kids back to nurse. The little black baby that wasn't eating yesterday finally started to eat during the night and perked up and nursed off her mama this morning and is now walking around and looking curious. I'm so relieved!


----------



## Moers kiko boars (Apr 23, 2018)

I hope this continues to get even better! Thats amazing to have 4 girls and so large! Glad you induced. The sizes of the kidds say they were ready! I hope Nubbins recovers quickly over her soreness & not wanting to feed. 
Thankyou for being their and taking care of businesz!


----------



## Goatzrule (Feb 7, 2013)

Dont give too much Nutridrench, it is helpful but as with everything too much of something isnt great. How about molasses?


----------



## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

Carole only gave the recommended dose of Nutri-Drench once yesterday and probably just once today (if at all). Nubbin has also had molasses water available at all times. She tends to prefer it.


----------



## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

Moers kiko boars said:


> I hope this continues to get even better! Thats amazing to have 4 girls and so large! Glad you induced. The sizes of the kidds say they were ready! I hope Nubbins recovers quickly over her soreness & not wanting to feed.
> Thankyou for being their and taking care of businesz!


Yeah, I'm glad we induced too. I can't imagine how exhausted Nubbin would have been if she'd gone on several more days and the kids were even bigger. Those babies were a perfect size. I really think Nubbin was starting on the brink of pregnancy toxemia. She's a big, fat girl and eats very well, but those kids were really draining her. And she was carrying way too much water weight. I'm not sure why some seem to carry more water than others, but Nubbin was carrying 30 lbs. of babies and at least the same amount in fluid. Dragging that weight around was getting very hard on her body and she couldn't really sleep at all because she couldn't get comfortable in any position. I'll bet she starts feeling better really fast now that she's shed all that weight and can actually lay down properly without having to stand on her elbows!


----------



## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

Great job! I hope they all do well.


----------



## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

Some funny stories from that night. First off, Carole brought in a measuring tape so we could get Nubbin's circumference. Sixty-four inches around!! And I'm not even sure we measured the widest spot.

The next funny was that we spent the night in sleeping bags on the barn floor, and sometime around 2:00 a.m. we were startled awake when Nubbin lumbered over and started pawing Carole's legs. She was trying to make a nest in on Carole's sleeping bag. I reached over to shoo Nubbin away and she shuffled off to an even better position-right on top of Carole's head! Carole was trapped on the floor with Nubbin's front feet tangled in her hair. I struggled out of my sleeping bag to rescue Carole before that enormous goat sat on her face!

And here are some adorable pictures of the cute little "Nublets". This is baby #1. She might be the sweetest and friendliest of them all.









Baby #2 is the most vocal and is also very adventuresome.









Baby #3 had us worried for a while. She was lethargic compared to the others and slow to stand. She refused to take a bottle or suckle or root. But thank goodness she perked up during the night. I love the one white foot.









Baby #4 is another bay, but unlike her sisters she has the frosted ears and nose of her mom but almost no other white. She is the liveliest and most assertive. She's going to be bossy like her mama!









And because she is my favorite, here's another of kid #2. That red bay color with the sooty black points is just stunning. I can't wait to see what she looks like when she's grown.


----------



## mariella (Feb 23, 2017)

When mothers day comes around you need to throw Nubbin a party!


----------



## Moers kiko boars (Apr 23, 2018)

Beautiful Kidds! Love :inlove:the colors. Im sooooo glad they all survived. And I had to laugh. I cant imagine being pinned down to a 64inch girthed preggo goat going to sit on my face at 2a.m.
mg: and your a GOOD FRIEND. Im afraid I would get so tickled, it would have been hard to shew Nubbins away. (rofl)ops2: sorry thats
The truth!:clapping:


----------

