# Rancho Draco's 2022 Kidding Thread



## Rancho Draco

Well it's about time I made one of these! My 3 girls are all due in February. Some of them cooperated more than others for pictures. I waited until right before feeding time so this is about as flat as they will get. Please excuse the deficient coats, we're working on it.

First up is Red. She should be due Feb. 13 but I am actually not too sure with her. She had just come to the farm and I think she was coming into heat when she got here but I'm not 100% sure. This will be her 4th freshening. I don't know her full kidding history but last year she had a single. I didn't realize until I went to put this picture in that Brownie's head is totally in the way. 🤦‍♀️ I'll have to try and get a better one of her.









Next up should be Brownie, my herd queen, with a due date of Feb. 16th. This will be her 7th kidding. Last year she had buck/doe twins.
















Finally we have Serenity. She should be due Feb. 17th. This will be her 5th kidding. She has had everything from singles to quads so it's really anyone guess with her. She is always a wide load but she looks pretty similar to how she did with her quads.









And Primrose was feeling left out so here she is showing off just how well she has this whole "eating on the stand" thing figured out. She is Brownie's doeling from this past kidding.


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## MellonFriend

Everyone's looking great so far! Wow, 7th freshening for Brownie! Do you know how old she is? Serenity is looking pretty darn wide especially with so much time left. Wishing you an easy and happy kidding season with surprise improvements in your kids' conformation that you never expected your buck capable of!! Speaking of him, where are the daddy pictures anyway?!😄


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## Goatastic43

Oh yay! Can't wait for all the airplane ears we will have on this forum!! Beautiful girls! Wow 7th go around for Brownie! She looks great!


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## Dandy Hill Farm

What a beautiful group of does you have!! Brownie seems to be holding up GREAT for her age! Hope all your girls have a smooth pregnancy and delivery to healthy, bouncy kids!! I'm looking forward to seeing your kids and have my fingers crossed that you will be pleasantly surprised with their conformation. I agree, where's the buck(s)! 😁


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## Rancho Draco

They are all bred to Elvis. We butchered him this fall for a number of reasons but for one, he was getting way too rough with any goat we tried to put him with and I wasn't going to sell him knowing that he carries a cullable defect in his genetics. These pictures are from this summer.


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## Rancho Draco

MellonFriend said:


> Everyone's looking great so far! Wow, 7th freshening for Brownie! Do you know how old she is? Serenity is looking pretty darn wide especially with so much time left. Wishing you an easy and happy kidding season with surprise improvements in your kids' conformation that you never expected your buck capable of!! Speaking of him, where are the daddy pictures anyway?!😄


Thank you! I don't know her exact age but she will be 8 this coming spring. I find Serenity hard to judge. She always looks pregnant, especially since she had her quads. She is pretty stretched out. I think I'll have a better guess with her in her final 4 weeks or so. I really wish I had good pictures of her when she was pregnant with her quads. She looked huge!

I totally forgot about Elvis! I posted some pictures of him.


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## Rancho Draco

Goatastic43 said:


> Oh yay! Can't wait for all the airplane ears we will have on this forum!! Beautiful girls! Wow 7th go around for Brownie! She looks great!





Dandy Hill Farm said:


> What a beautiful group of does you have!! Brownie seems to be holding up GREAT for her age! Hope all your girls have a smooth pregnancy and delivery to healthy, bouncy kids!! I'm looking forward to seeing your kids and have my fingers crossed that you will be pleasantly surprised with their conformation. I agree, where's the buck(s)! 😁


Thank you both!


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## MadHouse

They all look great! And Primrose is so cute!
I’ll be following along excitedly !
Elvis was a handsome buck. I can understand your decision to butcher rather than sell. My buck also does not get along with others.
Good luck with allyour girls!


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## Rancho Draco

MadHouse said:


> They all look great! And Primrose is so cute!
> I’ll be following along excitedly !
> Elvis was a handsome buck. I can understand your decision to butcher rather than sell. My buck also does not get along with others.
> Good luck with allyour girls!


Thank you! It was a bit sad to butcher him. We had tried letting him live alone and share a fence line with the others but he got really depressed being alone.


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## MadHouse

Rancho Draco said:


> Thank you! It was a bit sad to butcher him. We had tried letting him live alone and share a fence line with the others but he got really depressed being alone.


My buck lives next to the girls. He can see and hear them at all times, and so he is not alone, but does not have to share FOOD.


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## Moers kiko boars

Your girls look really good! Im sorry Elvis is gone. I can understand why though. Boys can get mean. 
It looks like you might get a chance for a nice buckling out of these girls. At least one nice one for you!😁 The rest a bunch of adorable doelings!


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## Rancho Draco

MadHouse said:


> My buck lives next to the girls. He can see and hear them at all times, and so he is not alone, but does not have to share FOOD.


We had thought maybe he just didn't like having the competition at meal time but he had developed a liking to hunting down anyone else in a pasture with him. I didn't matter which pasture he was in either.


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## Rancho Draco

Moers kiko boars said:


> Your girls look really good! Im sorry Elvis is gone. I can understand why though. Boys can get mean.
> It looks like you might get a chance for a nice buckling out of these girls. At least one nice one for you!😁 The rest a bunch of adorable doelings!


We are actually hoping to get a pair of bucklings from a breeder next year and to go from there so I'm pretty excited about that.


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## toth boer goats

All looking great.


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## Lil Boogie

Cant WAIT to see them babies!!! What is the black doe in the middles name?? In the last pic with all 3.


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## Rancho Draco

toth boer goats said:


> All looking great.


Thank you!


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## Rancho Draco

Lil Boogie said:


> Cant WAIT to see them babies!!! What is the black doe in the middles name?? In the last pic with all 3.


The black goat with orange eyebrows is Red. The black girl with the black face is Serenity.
I'm really excited for babies. I'm especially excited to see Red's kid(s) since I just got her this fall.


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## Rancho Draco

Well, it's still not great but here is a better picture of Red, pouty that I'm taking a picture of her while she's eating.


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## Jubillee

They looks great!! Can't wait to see what's in those bellies!! 7th freshening is awesome, she looks great! I have one on her 6th this year another was on her 7th too!


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## toth boer goats

Can’t wait, they will be beautiful.


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## Rancho Draco

toth boer goats said:


> Can’t wait, they will be beautiful.





Jubillee said:


> They looks great!! Can't wait to see what's in those bellies!! 7th freshening is awesome, she looks great! I have one on her 6th this year another was on her 7th too!


Thank you both!


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## GoofyGoat

Nice looking girls! It’ll be exciting to see the kids. 😃


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## Lil Boogie

Rancho Draco said:


> The black goat with orange eyebrows is Red. The black girl with the black face is Serenity.
> I'm really excited for babies. I'm especially excited to see Red's kid(s) since I just got her this fall.


I LOVE Serenity!!😍. She reminds me of Annie as a kinder!!!😆😆😆. Im EXTATIC about babies too! Next month is so close!!😍 Then I get to see Annie and Sparrow babies!!!!!😍😍😍😍😍😍. Cant wait to see your girls kids too!!!


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## MellonFriend

Naw, see Serenity and Annie are both versions of Adaline, Prim's doeling from last year. 😆


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## Rancho Draco

I love all the look a likes!


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## Goatastic43

My heart just actually melted at that photo!!!  She’s so stinking adorable!! 


Now I just need to figure out how I can talk my family into letting me get Kinders……


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## MellonFriend

Goatastic43 said:


> My heart just actually melted at that photo!!!  She’s so stinking adorable!!
> 
> 
> Now I just need to figure out how I can talk my family into letting me get Kinders……


Well if you win the argument, let me know! I'm in western NC and will be having some kids this spring! 😁😋😆


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## Lil Boogie

MellonFriend said:


> Naw, see Serenity and Annie are both versions of Adaline, Prim's doeling from last year. 😆
> View attachment 216955


Awwwwww!!! How cute!!!😍😍😍


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## Rancho Draco

Goatastic43 said:


> Now I just need to figure out how I can talk my family into letting me get Kinders……


I fully support this! And really the only argument you need is that they're the best. There's really no reason to go any further.


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## Rancho Draco

I went back and found these pictures of Serenity. These were taken 24 hours before she kidded with her quads. These pictures really don't do justice to just how large she was. She was pretty miserable for a month before she kidded.


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## Lil Boogie

Rancho Draco said:


> I went back and found these pictures of Serenity. These were taken 24 hours before she kidded with her quads. These pictures really don't do justice to just how large she was. She was pretty miserable for a month before she kidded.
> View attachment 216965
> View attachment 216964


Omg Im in LOVE!😍😍😍😍


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## MellonFriend

I hope you have large doorways! 🤣


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## Rancho Draco

She didn't really fit through the door to this stall for the last month or so of pregnancy. She would have to give a good heave or two to get her belly through the doorway.😂


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## Goatastic43

Bless her heart!


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## Lil Boogie

Goatastic43 said:


> Bless her heart!


Agreed 😂😂


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## Moers kiko boars

I dont have a Black Goat....geeez. Your pictures of her make me want one. Im going to have to go " have a Talk" with them. I have a black dapple.boer, & black & white myo...but no solid black....hmmmmmmm. I want one! 🤣😂👍🥰


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## Rancho Draco

Moers kiko boars said:


> I dont have a Black Goat....geeez. Your pictures of her make me want one. Im going to have to go " have a Talk" with them. I have a black dapple.boer, & black & white myo...but no solid black....hmmmmmmm. I want one! 🤣😂👍🥰


😂The all blacks really are beautiful. Im not sure what color pattern Brownie is but I really love it as well. It's like a buckskin without the cape.


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## toth boer goats




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## Rancho Draco

Just had to share this picture because Serenity looks HUGE! Her and Primrose both get fed in the barn at the same time (everyone gets breakfast to themselves here) and they finish the majority of their serving at the same time (this only works because Serenity is a pig and she can eat 4 cups of feed in the time it takes Primrose to eat 1). When they are done, they play keepaway with the bowl for the last couple alfalfa pellets. Well they knocked the bowl off the stand and, being goats, decided this was easier than just getting down.


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## MellonFriend

She does look huge! What a tummy!


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## toth boer goats

Wow.


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## Rancho Draco

Updates!

Here is Red. Due 2/13










Brownie, due 2/16










Serenity showing off her impressive belly. Poor girl needs a wide load sign when she's open, much less once she actually has kids in there. Due 2/17


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## Lil Boogie

Ohhh Lord thats a big ol belly!!!


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## Goatastic43

How exciting! 

Buttercup has a belly kinda like Serenity’s. Everyone says she’s fat and I feed her too much. It really just because she has a healthy rumen, but everyone just thinks I’m joking when I say that! 🤦‍♀️


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## Rancho Draco

Lil Boogie said:


> Ohhh Lord thats a big ol belly!!!


Yep!


Goatastic43 said:


> How exciting!
> 
> Buttercup has a belly kinda like Serenity’s. Everyone says she’s fat and I feed her too much. It really just because she has a healthy rumen, but everyone just thinks I’m joking when I say that! 🤦‍♀️


Yeah Serenity is actually a pretty hard keeper. She puts everything plus some into the milk bucket. I wish she wouldn't. During the early summer she melts down to skin and bones. Even then though her belly is quite large. Part of it is she's just that big but she also never really went back to normal after having quads.


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## MellonFriend

Wow, Red's coat looks super shiny! I am SO excited to see another member's kinder kids! 😃

I often wonder about that healthy rumen thing. My buck Phantom gets a HUGE rumen when not in rutt. He's not a hard keeper, but neither is his brother who has no where near the rumen size Phantom has. 🤔 I don't know, just makes me wonder if it's really a positive trait.


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## Goatastic43

I also think it does have something to do with when they have babies (of course that wouldn’t be in Phantom’s case lol). Her belly seemed to get a lil puffier after her 2nd freshening.


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## Rancho Draco

I really love the s


MellonFriend said:


> Wow, Red's coat looks super shiny! I am SO excited to see another member's kinder kids! 😃
> 
> I often wonder about that healthy rumen thing. My buck Phantom gets a HUGE rumen when not in rutt. He's not a hard keeper, but neither is his brother who has no where near the rumen size Phantom has. 🤔 I don't know, just makes me wonder if it's really a positive trait.


I love how shiny Red's coat is. The breeder free feeds some really nice alfalfa hay and the does do really well on that but they didn't have enough to sell this year with the drought we are in. Actually that's a large part of why I was able to get her. So she might not stay shiny. 

I really don't like how large Serenity is. Having a good rumen is one thing but she bulges out past her rib cage. She doesn't run very much because her belly flops around and it's painful for her. I figure it's a lot like having a poorly attached udder (which she also has). I would much prefer her to be like Brownie and Red. They have plump rumens without being bulbous.


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## Rancho Draco

Goatastic43 said:


> I also think it does have something to do with when they have babies (of course that wouldn’t be in Phantom’s case lol). Her belly seemed to get a lil puffier after her 2nd freshening.


I would agree that kidding changes the belly shape. Serenity has always had a large rumen but after her quads, she got really saggy. 

I had to dig back in the files for a pre-quads pic of Serenity. This was shortly after I got them. My little sister was having a blast dressing up the girls. You can see the large rumen but her belly is still tight and supported. 










This is a pic from this summer. She just never really picked back up after stretching so much to accommodate 4 kids.


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## GoofyGoat

Moers kiko boars said:


> I dont have a Black Goat....geeez. Your pictures of her make me want one. Im going to have to go " have a Talk" with them. I have a black dapple.boer, & black & white myo...but no solid black....hmmmmmmm. I want one! 🤣😂👍🥰


I got a whole herd of them...you want one lol😉


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## GoofyGoat

Rancho Draco said:


> I would agree that kidding changes the belly shape. Serenity has always had a large rumen but after her quads, she got really saggy.
> 
> I had to dig back in the files for a pre-quads pic of Serenity. This was shortly after I got them. My little sister was having a blast dressing up the girls. You can see the large rumen but her belly is still tight and supported.
> 
> View attachment 218351
> 
> 
> This is a pic from this summer. She just never really picked back up after stretching so much to accommodate 4 kids.
> 
> View attachment 218352


Pretty girl. My Sybil stretched out like that but we skipped a year breeding her and she built her muscles back up quite a bit. It takes awhile to recover from being huge. Maybe give her a year off and put her with dry yearlings to play and exercise. ....worked for me mostly.


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## toth boer goats

Love the pictures.


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## Rancho Draco

44 days to go for Red! Hopefully lol. I guess it would be more accurate to say 44 days until I know if I have her due date right. 
These are my notes from this summer on heats. I have a lot more certainty with the other two. 
Brownie:
7/28/21
8/17/21
9/2/21
9/19/21 Due 2/16/22

Serenity:
7/30/21??
8/17/21
9/2/21
9/20/21 Due 2/17/22

Red:
9/13/21 and mounted?
Possible 9/16/21??? Due 2/13/22


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## MellonFriend

Interesting to know that you see around seventeenish days between cycles too. Bella has an eighteen-day heat cycle on the button, and I didn't know how normal that was.

Well it sounds like Red's read the doe code and is already working up a doozy for you. 😜


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## Rancho Draco

Yes they definitely cycle on the short end of the range. I wonder if that is a kinder thing or if we just happen to both have weird does.

And yes, I basically have a due date range for her rather than a day. She was either in heat when she came to the farm (first date) or came into heat a couple days later ( the date that I've been using to calculate her due date). Yay for me, I also have 0 knowledge of her kidding history other than she had a single last year. So it should be an adventure! 😬


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## Rancho Draco

6 weeks to go! I got udder pictures today. There is the slightest of filling happening but I don't think it will really be noticable in pictures for another week or two. 

Red. She kept running away.









Brownie










Serenity


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## MellonFriend

Ah the amount of pictures of goat butts we goat people like looking at. 🤣

I can maybe see a little filling from Red, all that hair too makes it tough to see. 🙃 I can't wait to see your kids! Do you generally get a lot of the same colors or have you been surprised a lot? I was super surprised at Bella's kids' colors last year.


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## Rancho Draco

Red caught my eye this morning so I'm glad it came through in the picture! Yeah, I wish it wasn't so cold to shave them. 

I mostly get brown/buckskin kids. I usually get 50/50 frosted ears and nose. Sometimes I get some white polls too. I think Brownie's buckling from last year was a roan.


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## Jubillee

Looking good! Big big bellies!


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## Rancho Draco

This was her buckling from last year (brother to Primrose) his roaming filled out more as he got older but it doesn't show up well in a picture since his base coat is so light already.


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## toth boer goats

All looking great. 👍


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## MellonFriend

Rancho Draco said:


> This was her buckling from last year (brother to Primrose) his roaming filled out more as he got older but it doesn't show up well in a picture since his base coat is so light already.
> View attachment 218955


Awww! I'd love to have a roan someday.


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## Rancho Draco

Jubillee said:


> Looking good! Big big bellies!





toth boer goats said:


> All looking great. 👍


Thank you guys!


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## toth boer goats




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## Rancho Draco

I took this picture of Brownie this morning. I'm not sure how much it shows up in the picture but she has gotten really big just in the past couple days. It's was -20* this morning so I didn't stick around to take better pics. 🥶


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## Dandy Hill Farm

Brownie does look bigger! 🤩

I don't blame you! -20F is WAAAY too COLD! 🥶


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## MellonFriend

Holy moley -20*?! She is looking bigger and bigger! 😃 I can't remember if I asked this before, but do you have a guess for how many she's got in there?


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## Rancho Draco

I think 3. Last year she had twins. I'll see if I can find a pic.


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## Rancho Draco

Here is a screenshot from a video of her kidding. I think she looks bigger now than she did when in labor last year.


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## Lil Boogie

I say trips, too! What a cutie!!!!


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## Rancho Draco

Lil Boogie said:


> I say trips, too! What a cutie!!!!


I love her. She is an ornery old lady but I love her😆


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## MellonFriend

I'd say definitely three then based on that picture!


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## HoosierShadow

Such a pretty girl! I'd guess 3 as well!


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## Rancho Draco

Thank you!


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## toth boer goats

Love ❤


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## Rancho Draco

The girls got the Christmas tree today! They're pretty excited. Brownie was mostly just fighting the tree. Serenity loves the bark more than the needles so she was going to town on the truck.


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## MellonFriend

Goodness me! Those bellies! I can just picture how they must have to waddle. 😋


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## Rancho Draco

Yep they look like penguins! Lol

My mom saw the girls today. She thinks Brownie has quads 😳


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## MellonFriend

With all that time still left, it wouldn't surprise me! I know they are different goats, but she looks way bigger than Prim does with less time to go. 🐐🐐🐐🐐


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## toth boer goats

Yum 😋


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## Rancho Draco

toth boer goats said:


> Yum 😋


They sure thought so! The tree is half gone already.


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## Rancho Draco

4 1/2 weeks to go! We have had a couple days above freezing and everything is going to be a muddy disaster pretty soon. Then it's all going to freeze again. 🙄

The girls got their feet done yesterday and they'll get their copper tomorrow. My brother came out with me to see the goats and he went around patting their bellies and saying, "There's lots of babies in there!" (He's almost 5 yrs old) I'm thinking twins for Red and at this point my guess is quads for the other two. There's going to be a small army of babies here in another month.


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## MadHouse

I love your goats! They are so pretty, especially Brownie!
Quads would be quite something!!
(Too bad about the muddy mess.)


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## Rancho Draco

MadHouse said:


> I love your goats! They are so pretty, especially Brownie!
> Quads would be quite something!!
> (Too bad about the muddy mess.)


Aw thank you. Don't tell the others but I think Brownie is prettiest!


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## MellonFriend

That last picture makes it look like they don't know how wide they are. 😄 All those bellies rebounding off each other. 😋 Primrose is like, "move it you fat ladies!" 

Four and a half weeks isn't too long to wait. I can't wait to review the army troops. 🙃


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## Goatastic43

Time for the wide load signs! They’re looking great and big!


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## Rancho Draco

MellonFriend said:


> That last picture makes it look like they don't know how wide they are. 😄 All those bellies rebounding off each other. 😋 Primrose is like, "move it you fat ladies!"
> 
> Four and a half weeks isn't too long to wait. I can't wait to review the army troops. 🙃


Poor Primrose always looks like a ball in a match of table tennis right now. She is constantly being bounced off of the giant bellies around here. Her approach to the situation has just been to get her front feet up on everyone's back and push down until they move out of her way. Clever girl 😆



Goatastic43 said:


> Time for the wide load signs! They’re looking great and big!


Thank you!


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## toth boer goats

Looking great.


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## Rancho Draco

With all the hair I'm not sure that it comes through very well but Red has definitely started to fill!


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## MellonFriend

Yeah, I can see it there! Yay. 😁 Super cute.


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## toth boer goats




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## Jubillee

Looking good! I think we have about 4 weeks on our last girls...this weekend is 120 days so...yea. It seems so far but goes pretty fast. 

Wow -20 degrees...phew. I feel for y'all...and so much snow around.


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## Rancho Draco

Jubillee said:


> Looking good! I think we have about 4 weeks on our last girls...this weekend is 120 days so...yea. It seems so far but goes pretty fast.
> 
> Wow -20 degrees...phew. I feel for y'all...and so much snow around.


Thank you! Seeing all the babies on here has really destroyed my patience. I'm horrible about waiting already so when the kid fever kicks in seeing new baby pictures...

Yeah it's been pretty cold this winter. It doesn't help that last year was super mild so it feels extra cold to be that low in December. 🥶


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## Rancho Draco

Three weeks to go! Red kept slipping in the fresh powder so she's really toed out in the picture.








I can't wait for the weather to warm up a bit so I can fix this hay feeder. They've pretty thoroughly destroyed it.


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## Goatastic43

Wowsie! They are looking very plump! Only about 3 weeks to go!


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## MadHouse

Very plump indeed! Careful on the fresh snow, Red!


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## toth boer goats

So big.


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## Jubillee

That's some big bellies!!!!


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## KY Goat Girl

Wow! Such big bellies! I can’t wait to see how many they’ve got in there!


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## MellonFriend

I like your rigged hay rack. 😄 Three weeks still seems like forever to have to wait! 🙃


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## Rancho Draco

MellonFriend said:


> I like your rigged hay rack. 😄 Three weeks still seems like forever to have to wait! 🙃


Thanks! It's made out of an old milk stand that I bought and some branches. I hadn't realized it was so small when I bought it so it's pretty useless. 

Three weeks will go by pretty fast. I of course just got sick so hopefully that clears up before kidding. I got really sick last year at kidding time too. I swear I'm cursed.


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## MadHouse

Sorry to hear you are sick. Get better soon! 🤗


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## Jessica84

Gosh I hope you get better before kidding! That sure won’t be fun kidding while sick  lots of zinc and vitamin c


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## HoosierShadow

They are coming along so well! Hopefully you get to feeling better soon! I know that frustration, I'm still trying to get over it here and have so much to do before our girls kid in a few weeks as well.


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## Rancho Draco

Thank you everyone! Definitely taking vitamins and drinking lots of water.


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## Goatastic43

I’m sorry you haven’t been feeling well. I hope your all better in time for the kidding!


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## MellonFriend

Oh man being sick for kidding has got to be rough! I hope you feel better by then! 🎈💐


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## Rancho Draco

Thank you both ❤


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## toth boer goats

Get well soon.


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## Nani

Rancho Draco said:


> Well it's about time I made one of these! My 3 girls are all due in February. Some of them cooperated more than others for pictures. I waited until right before feeding time so this is about as flat as they will get. Please excuse the deficient coats, we're working on it.
> 
> First up is Red. She should be due Feb. 13 but I am actually not too sure with her. She had just come to the farm and I think she was coming into heat when she got here but I'm not 100% sure. This will be her 4th freshening. I don't know her full kidding history but last year she had a single. I didn't realize until I went to put this picture in that Brownie's head is totally in the way. 🤦‍♀️ I'll have to try and get a better one of her.
> View attachment 216800
> 
> 
> Next up should be Brownie, my herd queen, with a due date of Feb. 16th. This will be her 7th kidding. Last year she had buck/doe twins.
> View attachment 216801
> View attachment 216802
> 
> 
> Finally we have Serenity. She should be due Feb. 17th. This will be her 5th kidding. She has had everything from singles to quads so it's really anyone guess with her. She is always a wide load but she looks pretty similar to how she did with her quads.
> View attachment 216803
> 
> 
> And Primrose was feeling left out so here she is showing off just how well she has this whole "eating on the stand" thing figured out. She is Brownie's doeling from this past kidding.
> View attachment 216805
> View attachment 216804


Aww such beautiful girls


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## Rancho Draco

Thank you


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## Rancho Draco

Some more filling from Red. 17 days to go.








Brownie has started to fill a bit. The camera angle is a little funky here. She's not actually lopsided. 








Serenity is starting to fill as well.


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## Jubillee

Oh yay!! Come on girls! We're in the homestretch!

Hope you are feeling better somewhat!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Thank you! I'm feeling a little better. We are having a heat wave today (26 degrees this morning!) so I was able to stay out with the girls to get pictures. I'm not sleeping very well but I think I'm on the mend.


----------



## toth boer goats




----------



## MellonFriend

Rancho Draco said:


> Thank you! I'm feeling a little better. We are having a heat wave today (26 degrees this morning!) so I was able to stay out with the girls to get pictures. I'm not sleeping very well but I think I'm on the mend.


A 26* heatwave! 🥶 How cold _has _it been? Glad you are feeling a little better.


----------



## Rancho Draco

MellonFriend said:


> A 26* heatwave! 🥶 How cold _has _it been? Glad you are feeling a little better.


It's been anywhere from -5 to -15 degrees when I go out in the mornings. The wind usually makes it feel colder than that. I'm so ready for spring.


----------



## Goatastic43

Good to hear your starting to feel better! Their udders are really starting to look good!


----------



## MadHouse

So exciting, your girls are getting closer!!
I am so curious what they will have!
Good to hear you are feeling a bit better. I hope you will have a great sleep tonight.
I hear ya about the heat wave. We had ours a couple of days ago, one day only it got to 30*F 😂.


----------



## toth boer goats

Glad you are feeling better.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Goatastic43 said:


> Good to hear your starting to feel better! Their udders are really starting to look good!


Thank you!



MadHouse said:


> So exciting, your girls are getting closer!!
> I am so curious what they will have!
> Good to hear you are feeling a bit better. I hope you will have a great sleep tonight.
> I hear ya about the heat wave. We had ours a couple of days ago, one day only it got to 30*F 😂.


Thank you! I did sleep a little better last night. It's back down to the cold for us today but then this cold spell is supposed to finally break and we should get back up to the 20 degree range. 



toth boer goats said:


> Glad you are feeling better.


Thank you!


----------



## toth boer goats

You bet.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Getting close!

14 days to go for Red. Not much to see with all the hair. Everyone is starting to shed winter coats though! I'm so excited to see this girls udder a week or two after freshening. She milks down to absolutely nothing.















17 days to go for Brownie.















18 days to go for Serenity.


----------



## MellonFriend

They are shedding their winter coats already? I wouldn't thank that would be happening yet where you are! I do think they look slicker! My girls don't start shedding until more like March. 🤔 

Yay only two weeks until you get babies! I cannot wait! My word those bellies on Serenity and Brownie!  They've got to both have four, don't you think?


----------



## Rancho Draco

Yep! They just started this week. They won't get real serious with the shedding until another week or two. Sure sign of spring! 

I definitely think Brownie has 4. Or at least big triplets. I'm not sure on Serenity. I would think she would have done a lot more filling by now if she had 4. I'm thinking 3 for her. She also just doesn't quite seem miserable enough to have 4 in there. I'm thinking twins for Red. I'm so excited. Im driving everyone in the house nuts though. I think they can't wait just so that I stop talking about how excited I am. 😆


----------



## Goatastic43

Wouldn’t the be amazing if they both had four?! As long as they are healthy that’s what matters! 

I’ve noticed Boots has started shedding too. It really surprised me with how cold it’s been. When he shed it’s like a storm of fur all over!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Goatastic43 said:


> Wouldn’t the be amazing if they both had four?! As long as they are healthy that’s what matters!
> 
> I’ve noticed Boots has started shedding too. It really surprised me with how cold it’s been. When he shed it’s like a storm of fur all over!


It sure would be something! I wouldn't mind them both having 4 as long as they could nurse them all. I really have too many other life things going on right now to have bottle babies. I've been able to supplementally feed bottles before though so if it does come to that I'll definitely be trying that first. As it is if everyone has what I'm guessing they will, there will be 9 babies running around in a couple weeks! So excited!


----------



## KY Goat Girl

Triplets for Red. 2 girls, 1 boy
Quads for Brownie. 2 of each
Quads for Serenity. 3 boys, 1 girl


----------



## Moers kiko boars

Hey,,whats wrong with Valentines Day? Your girls have jumped all around it? No little cupids?


----------



## GoofyGoat

Wow, they’re looking great! Getting close...so exciting😁


----------



## Rancho Draco

KY Goat Girl said:


> Triplets for Red. 2 girls, 1 boy
> Quads for Brownie. 2 of each
> Quads for Serenity. 3 boys, 1 girl


That would be a lot of babies!  



Moers kiko boars said:


> Hey,,whats wrong with Valentines Day? Your girls have jumped all around it? No little cupids?


Well they tried but they didn't quite hit the date. Red is hoping to cross her legs and make it another day. I told her she doesn't get any animal crackers if she pulls that stunt!



GoofyGoat said:


> Wow, they’re looking great! Getting close...so exciting😁


Thank you! I'm very excited


----------



## MadHouse

I am so excited for Red to kid! She is my favourite of your does.
I love her colouring.


----------



## KY Goat Girl

Rancho Draco said:


> That would be a lot of babies!  [QUOTE/]


----------



## KY Goat Girl

Well maybe I’m wrong and they will have one giant doeling each! 🤣


----------



## Rancho Draco

MadHouse said:


> I am so excited for Red to kid! She is my favourite of your does.
> I love her colouring.


Aw thank you. She is very pretty. Don't tell her but I think she looks a bit odd. Her ears are stubby 🤭



KY Goat Girl said:


> Well maybe I’m wrong and they will have one giant doeling each! 🤣


Well I know that can't be true! Brownie had twins last year and she is already much larger than she was at the end of pregnancy. Either she has 3 or I'm just in super denial and she has 4 again.


----------



## KY Goat Girl

I’m sticking with my guesses for each of them. Mellonfriend’s Kinder had quads which is why I’m guessing quads for 2 of yours since they looks at least as big as hers. I also feel like this has been a year for quads so far. I know of 3 goats already who’ve had quads for 2022.


----------



## Rancho Draco

KY Goat Girl said:


> I’m sticking with my guesses for each of them. Mellonfriend’s Kinder had quads which is why I’m guessing quads for 2 of yours since they looks at least as big as hers. I also feel like this has been a year for quads so far. I know of 3 goats already who’ve had quads for 2022.


Serenity has had quads before. If you go back to the beginning of the thread there is a picture there somewhere


----------



## Jubillee

Need some wide load signs for those girls!!!! They are looking great! Cant wait to see how many for each!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Jubillee said:


> Need some wide load signs for those girls!!!! They are looking great! Cant wait to see how many for each!


Ha! Thank you! I'm bouncing off the walls waiting for them. Stuff like this makes me want to get them ultrasounded but that would really take all the fun out of guessing how many they have.


----------



## Jessica84

Ugh you are at at the worse stage of the waiting game! So close just not close enough! Can’t wait to see what your girls have!
The kids and I play a game every year of guessing how many each goat has. We kept track of everyone’s guess and had a little competition over it to see who was better at guessing. This was the first year I ultrasounded all of them for a count, mainly I just wanted to confirm pregnancy because with the price increase on feed this was not the year to miss. Anyways not having that this year kinda sucked. I mean on one hand it was nice having a idea but on the other not so much.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Jessica84 said:


> Ugh you are at at the worse stage of the waiting game! So close just not close enough! Can’t wait to see what your girls have!
> The kids and I play a game every year of guessing how many each goat has. We kept track of everyone’s guess and had a little competition over it to see who was better at guessing. This was the first year I ultrasounded all of them for a count, mainly I just wanted to confirm pregnancy because with the price increase on feed this was not the year to miss. Anyways not having that this year kinda sucked. I mean on one hand it was nice having a idea but on the other not so much.


Definitely the worst stage! 

My mother has really found her calling in guessing how many the girls will have. It's a bit of a family joke that whenever someone was having a baby, whichever gender she guessed it would be the opposite. She has been spot on with guessing how many kids for the goats though!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Well I didn't get any pictures but I spent some time with the girls this afternoon. We had a cold snap come in last night so we are back into cold temps. The girls are absolutely miserable and are getting really cranky with each other. Brownie was even fighting with Primrose yesterday which never happens. Udders are continuing to fill and bellies just get wider and wider. Poor Brownie is so big that she looks bloated (she's not I checked). Red is starting to get a little loose in the vulva. Nothing major, just looking like kids within the next 2 weeks. Primrose continues to mess around with the ladies. They're cranky enough to fight with her now when she wants to play so she thinks that's really exciting. Winter coats are continuing to shed which I think the girls were regretting today. 11 days left for Red! ❤


----------



## MellonFriend

Yay, yay, yay! I am so excited! Primrose has no idea the tide of babies that is headed for her! 🌊


----------



## Rancho Draco

She's going to be so overwhelmed! 😆


----------



## toth boer goats

☝ Yep.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Got some more pictures today! And before anyone gets all excited, no they aren't labor posty it was just cold this morning again.

Red. 9 days to go

















Brownie. 12 days to go. Her hair is thinning out on her udder so she looks very oddly shaped with the snow in the background. She'll be back to looking normal once a bit more hair sheds.

















Serenity. 13 days to go. I take back my earlier comments about her not being miserable. Going for quads again I guess 😳 I forget which kidding it was but at some point she had a single buckling and ended up with a lopsided udder.


----------



## KY Goat Girl

Those are some big bellies!


----------



## Rancho Draco

And the weather for kidding week.


----------



## MellonFriend

Oh boy, that weather. If they go during the daytime, that won't be so horrible, but jeepers those lows. 😬 What time of day have your girls historically gone?


----------



## Rancho Draco

I'm knocking on wood as I type this but I have never had a doe kid after dark. Let's keep it up girls!


----------



## KY Goat Girl

Wow! It seems to me we’ve only had a handful kid during the day. We’ve probably had AT LEAST 200 goats on and off our farm since we first go into goats back in 2011 and most all of them would kid after dark.


----------



## Rancho Draco

It's really weird isn't it? Not that I'm complaining or anything but most seem to always kid at night.


----------



## MellonFriend

I wish my girls would kid in the daytime. That would be so much easier. 😌


----------



## KY Goat Girl

I’ve watched a YouTube channel about a sheep farmer up in Canada. Sandi Brock. She talks quite a bit about how her feeding schedule for pregnant ewes has something to do when they deliver. So the later in the day she feeds them the less apt they are to lamb during the night when she’s not in the barn. It helps her a lot because she has probably like 4-500 sheep.  It sounds interesting but I’m not sure how much it worked because I slowed down watching her channel so I don’t remember if I got to the lambing group she had experimented with yet.


----------



## MellonFriend

KY Goat Girl said:


> I’ve watched a YouTube channel about a sheep farmer up in Canada. Sandi Brock. She talks quite a bit about how her feeding schedule for pregnant ewes has something to do when they deliver. So the later in the day she feeds them the less apt they are to lamb during the night when she’s not in the barn. It helps her a lot because she has probably like 4-500 sheep.  It sounds interesting but I’m not sure how much it worked because I slowed down watching her channel so I don’t remember if I got to the lambing group she had experimented with yet.


I actually heard something similar and tried feeding my girls only in the daytime for long time now, but nope! Just around dusk for Bella and ten o'clock for Prim. 😒 I actually had a thread about this a while ago, I'll see if I can find it...


----------



## Jubillee

Ours, until this last year kidded between 10am-2pm usually. This year we had a 3:30am and a 6am (though she was about that time last year too). I feed 8am and in the winter about 5:30pm. As it gets darker later, I stretch that out to about 7pm.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Jubillee said:


> Ours, until this last year kidded between 10am-2pm usually. This year we had a 3:30am and a 6am (though she was about that time last year too). I feed 8am and in the winter about 5:30pm. As it gets darker later, I stretch that out to about 7pm.


I do the same thing. I feed fairly early in the morning and then at dark.


----------



## KY Goat Girl

I only feed my goats in the evening around 4-5. Should I be feeding them in the morning too? Or is this just another thing “do what works for you”?


----------



## KY Goat Girl

I do feed in the morning for does who are late in their pregnancies and for a few weeks after kidding.


----------



## Rancho Draco

It's really just a do what works for you thing


----------



## Rancho Draco

I don't think I shared this photo yet but I meant to! This is from Monday morning. Large girls!


----------



## MellonFriend

I totally forgot to tell you. Before I came up with the name Luthien for my little Prim-looking doeling, we were calling her Brownie as a placeholder name.😄


----------



## Goatastic43

Ugg that weather is awful! Bundle up!

That picture of them laying together is so cute!


----------



## Rancho Draco

MellonFriend said:


> I totally forgot to tell you. Before I came up with the name Luthien for my little Prim-looking doeling, we were calling her Brownie as a placeholder name.😄


Aw 🥰. She would love to have someone named after her.



Goatastic43 said:


> Ugg that weather is awful! Bundle up!
> 
> That picture of them laying together is so cute!


I will!

Isn't it just the cutest?!


----------



## MadHouse

The large ladies are so cute! 💜 ♥ ❤


----------



## Moers kiko boars

My does usually kidd from 12 noon to 4o p.m. I had 1 kid at 630 a.m. In the winter I feed at 730 a m. Then @5 or as late as I can before dark. In the summer I feed 1 time a day. Usually around 8 p.m. since its still light. They are in pasture all day, and not near the boys..lol


----------



## Rancho Draco

I don't remember if I've said it or not but official final guesses are trips for Red and quads for the other two.


----------



## Rancho Draco

I don't remember if I've said it or not but official final guesses are trips for Red and quads for the other two.


----------



## Jubillee

Whoooo so we're goin' with quads eh?? Come on girls, lets quadruple that herd size!!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Not sure why it posted twice


----------



## Rancho Draco

Jubillee said:


> Whoooo so we're goin' with quads eh?? Come on girls, lets quadruple that herd size!!


Yep. They are just giant. And still a week and a half to go!


----------



## Jubillee

I can't wait to see!!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Me either! The girls are all ready to be done being pregnant as well 😆


----------



## Feira426

Ooh! Just found your thread! Even though my babies are here already I can’t get enough of everyone else’s! Lol

Those are some big bellies!! Goodness. Looks like you’ll be having lots of babies very soon!


----------



## Rancho Draco

I hope you've enjoyed reading through it! Sometimes it's really nice to stumble into a waiting game at the very end. You get to skip the months of anticipation! 

Yes I think I will be drowning in little baby goats here pretty soon.


----------



## KY Goat Girl

That’s what I sorta did with Suki’s.


----------



## Feira426

Rancho Draco said:


> I hope you've enjoyed reading through it! Sometimes it's really nice to stumble into a waiting game at the very end. You get to skip the months of anticipation!
> 
> Yes I think I will be drowning in little baby goats here pretty soon.


Oh I have!! I had a busy day so I spent a lot of the evening winding down reading threads on here lol. Your goats are beautiful!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Thank you!


----------



## toth boer goats

Those does are smart cuddling up together, how precious, team work.


----------



## Rancho Draco

No pictures today but I figured I would give an update since we are in the go zone for babies here! And the super exciting update is...drumroll please...nothing! Nothing is happening. Ligs are hard. Udders are soft. Minimal filling. No discharge. No one is laying around moaning any more than usual or looking like they are going to be pushing out babies anytime soon. Darn it. I want babies.


----------



## Feira426

Dang, my notifications are really broken - I'm not getting any for a lot of my followed threads anymore. Can anyone advise? I don't want to miss Draco's kiddings!!

I tried unfollowing and refollowing on one thread but that didn't seem to work.


----------



## Jubillee

Ugh, you are in the zone, not it's gonna be worse lol. I have 2 weeks now...2 weeks...the kidding bug is hitting hardcore now!!!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Load up a bus and come visit! We can sleep in the barn together and wait for Red to go 5 days past her due date Lol


Feira426 said:


> Dang, my notifications are really broken - I'm not getting any for a lot of my followed threads anymore. Can anyone advise? I don't want to miss Draco's kiddings!!
> 
> I tried unfollowing and refollowing on one thread but that didn't seem to work.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Jubillee said:


> Ugh, you are in the zone, not it's gonna be worse lol. I have 2 weeks now...2 weeks...the kidding bug is hitting hardcore now!!!


The final two weeks are longer than the whole 4 1/2 months before!


----------



## KY Goat Girl

Rancho Draco said:


> Load up a bus and come visit! We can sleep in the barn together and wait for Red to go 5 days past her due date Lol


“Sleep in the barn together and wait for Red to go 5 days past her due date” killed me!!!! 🤣🤣🤣


----------



## Rancho Draco

KY Goat Girl said:


> “Sleep in the barn together and wait for Red to go 5 days past her due date” killed me!!!! 🤣🤣🤣


I just hope it's not actually true 😂


----------



## KY Goat Girl

You might have just jinxed yourself. She probably stalks TGS to see what you post about her. 🤪 So now she’s gonna go 5 days past.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Alright. I went and got some pictures. They were all covered in hay when I went out there. Lots of big bellies!


----------



## MadHouse

Oh my gosh, they are size XXL!


----------



## Goatastic43

Wowsie! It sure is the year of big bellies! The last picture makes it look like you photoshopped a picture of their younger self and older pregnant self together!


----------



## Rancho Draco

KY Goat Girl said:


> You might have just jinxed yourself. She probably stalks TGS to see what you post about her. 🤪 So now she’s gonna go 5 days past.


Maybe but I think at this point she is so over being pregnant that she really doesn't care what I think. Lol


----------



## MellonFriend

I stopped getting notifications too for this thread! 😠GRRR... Well at least there hasn't been any more action. 

My word how do they even walk! Those are some of the biggest bellies I think we've all seen on the forum this year. 😮


----------



## Rancho Draco

MadHouse said:


> Oh my gosh, they are size XXL!


I know! 😱



Goatastic43 said:


> Wowsie! It sure is the year of big bellies! The last picture makes it look like you photoshopped a picture of their younger self and older pregnant self together!


Haha! It does! That's funny I didn't even see that. 



MellonFriend said:


> I stopped getting notifications too for this thread! 😠GRRR... Well at least there hasn't been any more action.
> 
> My word how do they even walk! Those are some of the biggest bellies I think we've all seen on the forum this year. 😮


Weird that people aren't getting notifications. I wonder what that's all about? 

Like this!


----------



## Moers kiko boars

I stopped getting notifications months ago. Ive asked, and some days it does...others, nothing. So I understand. Sorry.


----------



## Jubillee

Wowza!!!!


----------



## Lil Boogie

Them some big ol bellies!!!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Well we have progress on Red! Her kids dropped today and she got really loose in the vulva. Her ligs are still hard and she still has some filling to do but kids should be on the way soon! I'll be checking her before I go to bed tonight so I'll give an update if there's anything happening but I don't think she'll go tonight.


----------



## MadHouse

I am so excited for Red’s kids!


----------



## Lilgoatgal

KY Goat Girl said:


> I’ve watched a YouTube channel about a sheep farmer up in Canada. Sandi Brock. She talks quite a bit about how her feeding schedule for pregnant ewes has something to do when they deliver. So the later in the day she feeds them the less apt they are to lamb during the night when she’s not in the barn. It helps her a lot because she has probably like 4-500 sheep.  It sounds interesting but I’m not sure how much it worked because I slowed down watching her channel so I don’t remember if I got to the lambing group she had experimented with yet.


We were told something like this from the folks we got our goats from. They start feeding the dams a handful of grain at bedtime a week before due dates & said they had been told years before that the rumen activity staves off kidding & buys you some of those wee morning hours. I don't have enough experience to tell if it's helpful but we did have daytime births last year & they were breeding ~20 dams a year and swore by it


----------



## Jubillee

Come on Red!!


----------



## MellonFriend

Oh boy! So close! I can't wait! 

I showed my mom the last picture on the first picture post on this page and she said "Aww, they look like little pears!". 😆🍐


----------



## Goatastic43

Yay! Getting close!


----------



## Moers kiko boars

We are on the countdown now!😁


----------



## Rancho Draco

Yes they definitely look like pears lol. 

I just went out to check Red. No progress since this afternoon so I'll be updating again in the morning. Everyone was very disappointed that I wasn't out there to give them a late night snack.


----------



## Rancho Draco

We have more progress this morning! Ligs are softening up and she had a little discharge. Her udder hasn't gotten tight yet but at this point I'm not sure if it will before she kids. She is super loose in the vulva but it doesn't really come through in the picture.










In other news, Brownie and Serenity are both losing their mucus plugs!


----------



## MadHouse

You go, girls!!!!
Thanks for the update! I am trying to wait patiently.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Me too!! I can't get back outside until lunch time so I'm just hoping she is alright without me out there. Definitely having a hard time getting done the things that need doing around the house.


----------



## toth boer goats

😁


----------



## Rancho Draco

Well my disappointing update is that she hasn't gone into labor yet and is looking like she isn't going to have them today. She's probably waiting for our temperature drop Friday night.


----------



## Goatastic43

Did you give her any extra medicine this year? Sounds like she’s getting a little doe code revenge!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Well we have had an ongoing battle over her corrective hoof trims since I got her in September so she's probably mad about that. Or she just knows that she is going to get another once she kids so she's holding out for that Or she's still mad about me wrestling with her to give her selenium paste. Or her copper bolus. Or my attempts at halter training her. Or...etc.


----------



## Goatastic43

You have a long criminal record on that girl!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Yep. 😂 The poor girl is really friendly but was basically unhandled in terms of hands on maitantaince so it's been a big adjustment for her.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Here's my beached whale who refuses to have her babies. 









Serenity is so over it.


----------



## KY Goat Girl

Any progress with Red? Or is she still the same as the last update?


----------



## Rancho Draco

The same. 😒 I just got back from locking up for the night. No filling today, ligs are still there. We're supposed to get down to 10 degrees tonight so maybe she'll decide to have them. She probably won't though. Here's the forecast for the next few days. I bet I can tell you when she'll kid. 🙄


----------



## KY Goat Girl

Probably Saturday. 🤦‍♀️Goats…..


----------



## Goatastic43

🥶 That’s brutal!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Well my update is that there is no update. She's holding steady.


----------



## MadHouse

Thanks for updating about the non update!
I checked twice already 😬 !!
Good luck for when she goes!


----------



## toth boer goats

Those temps are concerning, hope things go well.


----------



## Rancho Draco

MadHouse said:


> Thanks for updating about the non update!
> I checked twice already 😬 !!
> Good luck for when she goes!


Thank you! It's taking a lot of self-control to not go check her every hour. I know she's not going to go today but I want to go check anyways. 



toth boer goats said:


> Those temps are concerning, hope things go well.


Thank you! Definitely going to have heat lamps going in this cold.


----------



## Lilgoatgal

It's getting exciting! They're so big & adorable


----------



## MellonFriend

Oh boy super-duper close! You sure to have some steaming babies at those temps. My goodness, stay warm yourself!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Just got back in from checking Red. Still the same. I thought for sure she would go tonight because at about 4:00 this afternoon we got hit with a blizzard out of nowhere. The temperature was in the teens all day but otherwise the weather was mild until then. I'm not sure how much snow we actually got because the wind stripped some places down to the dirt and put another 6 inches of snow on the drifts. I was dreading stepping out tonight as I figured we would be down below zero but there was no wind and the temperature was high enough that the snow was melting off the roof. The barn thermometer said 33 degrees. Crazy weather...


----------



## KY Goat Girl

Wow!  That is crazy!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Another non-update update! Our blizzard started up again though and now the wind is coming from the north so the temperature should drop pretty fast today.


----------



## Rancho Draco

The current forecast. Last time Serenity had quads she went 2 days late. Brownie went right on her due date last year. Either way there should be better weather for their kidding.


----------



## MellonFriend

It looks like you are out of the woods for precipitation after today, what about wind? Funny how Tuesday's low is supposed to be 28 and not in the single digits like the days around it.


----------



## Rancho Draco

We should be clear on the wind for Saturday and Sunday but we will be a bit windy the rest of the week as the warmer weather blows in. Not like today though. The wind is up to 30 mph today and it stings with the snow whipping around like that.

We've had a lot of days recently where the high for the day is during the middle of the night. It's really weird. Isn't brain fog supposed to be a long covid symptom? I think the weather got covid. 🤪


----------



## Feira426

Wow, your weather!! 😳

My grandparents grew up in North Dakota so I grew up hearing all kinds of stories about the incredible winters up north. Do you ever get the “tunnel out of your house” snows where you are? My gosh, I really feel for you, kidding in weather like that.

I feel like a pansy now - I gave up and brought Suki into the bathroom at like... 31 degrees I think? I had SO many layers of clothes on and I was shivering my butt off! 🤣
And here you are in the negatives, my lord!! How do you manage to even step outside?? Mad respect to you!!


----------



## Rancho Draco

I don't where I am now. I'm on the eastern boarder of Minnesota so there is a bit more terrain to catch the snow and reduce the drifting. I'm actually from North Dakota though and most of my family is still there. There are pictures of both my parents and grandparents houses with drifts that run right over the roof of their single story houses. It's probably the only place I've lived where you have to consider which way the wind blows when you put doors in your house. I think our winters here are pretty mild compared to out in the open prairie.

My grandfather's favorite thing to tell people is there's no such thing as too cold, you're just underdressed. When you grow up in the super cold you learn the art of dressing warm. The only thing I really struggle with is keeping my feet warm. I have bad circulation in my feet so sometimes I have to cheat and put hand warmers in my boots.


----------



## MadHouse

I find when it get super cold, I have to wear bigger boots with room for extra thick socks and a little wiggle room for the toes. Tight boot make cold toes.


----------



## Rancho Draco

I've been known to steal my dad's boots when it gets really cold 😆


----------



## toth boer goats




----------



## MellonFriend

I have trouble keeping my feet warm too. This year we bought hot hands packets that actually stick onto the bottom of your sock. My feet were nice and toasty all through Bella's kidding when it was low twenties.


----------



## Rancho Draco

I've seen those before but I usually just use a hand packet that has been going for a while. I'm too cheap to buy another thing since I can get the hand ones free from a relative of mine.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Still no change tonight. Maybe if I keep telling her to go into labor she'll wait until the cold weather goes away.


----------



## MadHouse

Rancho Draco said:


> Still no change tonight. Maybe if I keep telling her to go into labor she'll wait until the cold weather goes away.


Good thinking! 😉


----------



## Rancho Draco

Well my plan is still working!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Red is very uncomfortable. She didn't get up for breakfast so she is in a stall. Still has her ligs


----------



## MellonFriend

Ooooo, I hope today is really the day!


----------



## toth boer goats

Sounds close. 😁


----------



## Rancho Draco

Not much happening. Her babies dropped lower and she is much more comfortable now. I think the were pressing on some nerves this morning. She wanted out so she is back with the rest of the girls for the day. If she holds out until tomorrow we will be past the worst of the cold.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Some major filling from Red this afternoon. Still has her ligs. I'm hoping she'll hold out till morning.


----------



## Jubillee

Oooohhhhh baby time soon!!


----------



## MadHouse

Ooooh, so exciting!!!


----------



## Goatastic43

Getting close!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Well crap. Ligs are mushy. I'm going to take a nap and head back out in an hour or so. She filled a bunch more. She's filling lopsided so looks like we'll have some work to do with her udder. When I got her she had a little bit of milk left in her left side (the big side now) but I was hoping she wasn't going to be lopsided.


----------



## Goatastic43

I hope all goes well! Get some sleep while you can. Keep us posted!


----------



## KY Goat Girl

Yippeeeeeeee! More babies soon!


----------



## MellonFriend

Wishing you an easy kidding! I hope you aren't up all night waiting for her. I'll look forward to seeing babies in the morning!


----------



## Rancho Draco

No babies yet. Both ligs were pretty mushy when I went out around midnight. Her right lig was harder to find than the left. Udder had gotten tight. No mucus, no contractions. I sat with her for a half hour and she was mad that I got her out of bed. 

Went out at 3. Didn't stick around as it's really cold outside. Ligs are gone. No mucus, didn't see any contractions. Still mad that I'm getting her out of bed. I'll be going out again at 6


----------



## Rancho Draco

No babies yet. I went out at 5:30 to check her. She was up when I went out. She didn't want me anywhere near her back end and freaked out a little when I checked her ligs. Her whole back end is mushy but no discharge yet. I think small contractions were starting when I was out with her.


----------



## Lil Boogie

How is she now?


----------



## MellonFriend

Oh man I thought for sure there would be babies by now! Can't wait for the next update!🤞


----------



## Rancho Draco

Still no babies...she's outside this morning. We have some really nice sunshine and she was going stir crazy. Hopefully moving around will get things going. Brownie is softening up in the ligs a bit and babies are dropping. Serenity is holding onto those babies tight. I bet she'll go late again this year.


----------



## MellonFriend

Argh! Doe code strikes again! 🙄


----------



## toth boer goats

Yep☝


----------



## MadHouse

How nice to have the sun shine on them! 😊 
Their udders are so nice and fuzzy.
But the girls sure know how to drive us crazy with anticipation.


----------



## Feira426

Oh wow! I thought for sure you’d have babies by now! At least the weather is getting nicer for you.


----------



## Jubillee

Come on Red! Ligs are gone, it should be anytime now! I hope you are out there snuggling new babies now!!


----------



## Rancho Draco

No babies!! She's driving me nuts!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Here's my naughty girl. I can feel her ligs again. 🤦🏼‍♀️


----------



## KY Goat Girl

Ugh! Red, you got us all excited! Why are you doing this to us!


----------



## Rancho Draco

All right you guys. She's finally having some serious contractions. A little bit of discharge starting now.


----------



## Jubillee

Ugh...dang doe code!! Peachy's are very soft and low and wide. Hard to feel but there. What is Red's due date?


----------



## Jubillee

Ohhh hooray!!!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Today, the 13th


----------



## Goatastic43

Yay! Keep us posted!


----------



## Feira426

Oooh! How exciting!!


----------



## MellonFriend

Yippee! This better be the real thing! 😆


----------



## KY Goat Girl

Yay! I’ll be checking in as soon as church is over!


----------



## HoosierShadow

How frustrating when the ligs reappear, makes you want to wish you hadn't felt them lol! Hopefully she gives up her hostages soon!


----------



## Rancho Draco

She has passed her mucus plug. Poor girl is absolutely miserable. Up and down, up and down. Hopefully I have a more exciting update soon!


----------



## Jubillee

Awwww getting close! Can't wait to hear!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Babies coming!


----------



## Rancho Draco

3! 2 boys 1 girl. The boys have white polls. Working on pics


----------



## Rancho Draco




----------



## Goatastic43

Yay! They are so cute and little! Congratulations! ️


----------



## Feira426

Yay!!! Triplets - wow! Congrats!


----------



## MadHouse

Yay!!! Congratulations on the triplets! Cute little fuzzballs!
I’m so glad she finally had them! How is Red?


----------



## Moers kiko boars

Weelllll arent they just adorable!💖💝💗 Hows mama? She doing good? They really are cute, and now you can get some rest!


----------



## KY Goat Girl

Wow! What little cuties!


----------



## KY Goat Girl

Went back to look at my guess for her. I had guessed trips, but I got the genders wrong. I had guessed 2 girls 1 boy.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Red is fine health wise but she won't let anyone nurse. Really hoping I don't end up with three bottle babies. Going to milk her now


----------



## MellonFriend

Hooray! They look beautiful from what I can tell. Do you have two brown and one black? It's hard to tell in the red light. Hopefully Red will come around and let them nurse. Bella did that last year at first, but she warmed up to the fact that she was a mom. Was the delivery easy for her, did she require any assistance?


----------



## Rancho Draco

Okay the two brown kids are nursing. She wouldn't let anyone near her udder until she had passed and eaten placenta (she ate one, I counted three total). Then she calmed down. The black boy is lanky so he's having a hard time finding the teat. I syringe fed 10 ml of colostrum. Will do more if he doesn't nurse soon.


----------



## Rancho Draco

MellonFriend said:


> Hooray! They look beautiful from what I can tell. Do you have two brown and one black? It's hard to tell in the red light. Hopefully Red will come around and let them nurse. Bella did that last year at first, but she warmed up to the fact that she was a mom. Was the delivery easy for her, did she require any assistance?


Yes. My first black kid!
Super easy. They came out in perfect position. I just helped dry them off.


----------



## MellonFriend

Yay, yay, yay! So glad it was easy and she gave you a black kid! 😍


----------



## Rancho Draco

Me too! I was a bit stunned to see black. I've never gotten black from Serenity. Watch her have black quads now that I said that.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Well I have the black buckling and the doeling in the house. The boy just could not for the life of him find the teat on his own. He's a great sport though. I syringed him a few mL of colostrum a couple of times and be would just keep on going after Red's udder. He's tall and only wants to nurse standing up so it just wasn't working out. Red doesn't really like the doeling and it's too cold to chance her getting rejected in the night. The first buckling is doing good out with Red. The black boy took a little bit from a bottle but mostly took the syringe feeding like a champ. Both babies are passed out on the bathroom floor.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Wish me luck! Going to see if Red will take these two back this morning


----------



## MadHouse

Good luck! They sure are cute!


----------



## HoosierShadow

Awww they are so cute! Congrats!! I'm sorry Red isn't fond of the doe and the black buckling is what I call a nursing dufus lol The stubborn ones when you try to get them to nurse drive me crazy! They are such stinkers! I was so relieved that our doe that had quads on Wed had babies that would let me help them without an issue. My husband is the pro at getting any baby to nurse, it amazes me how he can put them under mom and they just go to town, has that magic touch (but he's worked with horses = foals/foaling over the years so I know that helps, raised goats in Mexico as a kid  ). 
I can't wait to see pics of them up and bouncing around, they are just so precious. With raising Boer, I love our long ears, but I love the erect ears especially on the ND and Pygmy babies, so precious!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Brownie had quads! 3 brown girls and 1 BLACK boy! I was hearing Brownie pacing all night when I was out with Red and told myself "I have to check her before I go to bed" of course I went out to check on the boy I left with Red around 12:30 and to milk some more colostrum for her other two and forgot to check Brownie. Came back in, fed the kids, took a LONG overdue shower and passed out from 1:30-5:30 when the kids got up. I fed then the last of the colostrum I had from Red and figured I'd see if they would nurse. I got to the barn and the yelling baby was coming from the wrong stall. Went over and Brownie had 2 kids on the ground already. Threw Red's kids in with her and helped Brownie dry off a third kid. Moved them all in with Red since I can't mount a heat lamp in the other stall. Had to help Brownie with the last kid but otherwise went pretty good. It wasn't stuck or anything she was just getting tired. I have two of them in the house warming right now. Red took her kids back, boy figured out how to nurse, and the does are fighting over who gets to steal who's kids.


----------



## Rancho Draco




----------



## Goatastic43

Wow! So much action in one night! I’m sorry Red doesn’t like two of them. Hopefully she takes them back. 

Yay for Brownie! Looking forward to pictures!


----------



## Feira426

Wow!!! You sure have a lot going on all of a sudden! 😆🤣

They’re adorable. And yay for more bathroom babies, haha! So fun that you got two blacks as well!!

How is Brownie doing?


----------



## Rancho Draco

Brownie is doing good. She's a bit overwhelmed 😂


----------



## Lilgoatgal

Such cuties! What a busy night you had. So much goat drama  in a good way! Hope you get some sleep and all the goats get fed by whichever mom is willing


----------



## MellonFriend

I was not expecting Brownie to kid too! Goodness me, what a night you must have had!  It's good to hear that Red took her kids back!


----------



## Hounddog23

Wow those wide girls!


----------



## Hounddog23

Congratulations on those beautiful babies!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Red babies
















Brownie babies(minus the doeling that's in the house)


----------



## Rancho Draco

I'm so exhausted. Serenity's belly hasn't even dropped yet so I should have a few days to get these guys sorted. The 17th (her due date) is supposed to be cold again so I'm sure she'll have them then.


----------



## Jubillee

Wow! I was so excited to see Red kidded then oh my Brownie too!! What a night! And all those adorable babies!!! Congrats!


----------



## MadHouse

Wow, so much going on all at the same time!!!
I admire you, it sounds like you have a good handle on the juggling of babies/mamas.
Amazing, Brownie had 4!!!!
I would love to come down and give you a break, so you can sleep!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Thank you everyone! 

I'm still playing musical chairs cycling babies through the house but hopefully they will all be nursing soon and good to go. Red's kids have been out since 5:30 and are doing good. I'm going to milk out Brownie some as her udder is gigantic and a bit low for the babies to find. I'm hoping to get some good milk production out of these girls this year with all the multiples. I still can't believe a black buckling from each of these girls. I thought for sure Brownie's boy was just dark brown but sure enough he's black. I feel like there was something else I was going to tell you guys but I don't remember. 🙃


----------



## Rancho Draco

@Moers kiko boars we have Valentine's babies after all!


----------



## toth boer goats

They are adorable.


----------



## TripleShareNubians

Congratulations! I am so glad she took them back. 
So what type are they?


----------



## KY Goat Girl

TripleShareNubians said:


> Congratulations! I am so glad she took them back.
> So what type are they?


They are Kinders.


----------



## Moers kiko boars

Congrats! Love the pictures! 💞💖💗💝 on Valentines Day...
And Quads!😉


----------



## Rancho Draco

TripleShareNubians said:


> Congratulations! I am so glad she took them back.
> So what type are they?


They are Kinders. 

Me too! She got jealous hearing Brownie's babies so she took hers back and then tried to steal one of Brownie's girls. I think we finally have all the babies on the right mamas.


----------



## Feira426

Yay! That’s wonderful!!


----------



## Rancho Draco

I remembered what I forgot earlier! Brownie passed her placenta(s). I was inside with her two kids so I didn't get a count on how many she had. There was one big one left which looked like it was made up of two different ones.


----------



## MellonFriend

Oh boy I hope you find some time to rest today. I have my whole family involved when a doe kids, so I can't imagine how you must get it all done by yourself.

That one kid of Red's looks really light brown!


----------



## Dandy Hill Farm

Congratulations on all the adorable and healthy kids!! 😍🥳


----------



## Goatastic43

They are beautiful!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Thank you everyone!

Red's kids are doing great. Everyone is up and nursing on their own. Brownie's army is getting there. They're still wobbly and one of the doelings isn't nursing super well but she'll nurse if I put her under mom. Two of Brownie's kids are having issues with the back legs bending backwards. I'm giving them the night to sort themselves out and if they are still wonky I'll brace them tomorrow. I have 12 ounces of colostrum in the freezer courtesy of Brownie and her udder is still huge. I milked out just enough so the babies could find the teats easier.

Here's the cuddle puddle. There's 6 there. 









Red's other boy was out for a stroll.


----------



## Feira426

I love the cuddle puddle!! 😍😍😍


----------



## MellonFriend

I want to get in on that cuddle action. 😙


----------



## Rancho Draco

Feira426 said:


> I love the cuddle puddle!! 😍😍😍





MellonFriend said:


> I want to get in on that cuddle action. 😙


Aren't cuddle puddles just the best? I'm going to go check on everyone in a little bit. I might lay down with the babies for a while if the mamas aren't already.


----------



## MadHouse

That’s a lot of babies on your cuddle puddle! 💜


----------



## Jubillee

So cute 😍


----------



## Rancho Draco

All the babies are nursing well. No house goats tonight! 

Serenity had a huge udder tonight. Ligs are starting to soften up. She was restless when I was out there to check on the babies. I'm going to get some sleep and then check on her around 2am.


----------



## MadHouse

Great to hear, no house kids!
How is Serenity this morning?


----------



## Cedarwinds Farm

Look at all those precious kids! They'll be so warm and cozy, cuddled up like that. You're doing a great job with them! 
I hope all goes well with Serenity! Sounds like you won't have too long to wait.


----------



## Rancho Draco

I was outside at 5 this morning. Everyone nursed. Brownie has rejected her buckling but I was able to sneak him in if I held one of the doelings so Brownie couldn't smell him. Everyone's legs are in working order now so no braces needed! 

Serenity still had her ligs then but they are steadily disappearing. I haven't been out yet but will be going out soon.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Serenity is in labor!


----------



## KY Goat Girl

Yay!


----------



## MellonFriend

Wishing you and Serenity a smooth kidding! Fingers crossed for all black kids.🤞😜


----------



## Goatastic43

OMGOODNESS! This went from 0 to 60 fast! Hope she does well!


----------



## Jubillee

Yeah!!! Blessings for a smooth kidding for Serenity!


----------



## toth boer goats

Adorable and I am so glad they are doing well.


----------



## Moers kiko boars

Go Serenity! Woohoo is a kidding Rodeo! Lets see if @Rancho Draco can hold on for Another Round! 😂😁
Just a reminder...please put ALL of your puddles on the 2022 Kidding Tally and add to our #s. Please?


----------



## Lil Boogie

Congrats!!!! Babies🤩🤩


----------



## Lilgoatgal

Beside being completely adorable and so great to share in your joy of babies, I feel like there's so much good information here for breeders that might face a rejection or kids who needs a night inside. I haven't had either happen before so am eating up your stories for future use. You seem so cool and collected with the ups and downs and all things happening at once. Praying all goes smoothly for Serenity and you can finally get some rest


----------



## Rancho Draco

Serenity had GIANT twin boys. Black of course. Working on pics


----------



## K.B.

Yay congratulations


----------



## Rancho Draco

Cuddle puddle +2


----------



## Goatastic43




----------



## KY Goat Girl

What!!!!!! No way! Only 2 huge boys! I thought for sure she had to have quads in there! Have you named any of the babies yet?


----------



## Rancho Draco

I was surprised too but those boys are double size. It was a tough delivery.

I don't usually name babies right away. I wait a while and see how they grow and name them as I can see their personalities come through.


----------



## Feira426

Are the two standing up Serenity’s? Holy moly!! They do look really big! How is Serenity doing?


----------



## Rancho Draco

Yes, those are hers. She is doing good. She passed one placenta but still has one hanging. I had to pull pretty hard to get the kids out but there wasn't a lot of bleeding so I think we avoided any damage. She'll probably be really sore though.


----------



## TripleShareNubians

MellonFriend said:


> I want to get in on that cuddle action. 😙


Well, I don't get to participate when they're that little, but with all my bottle girls when they grow up sometimes in the late late summer or fall after across the chiggers are gone on a weekend evening if I get a chance to take a few minutes to just enjoy my goats in that brief time between having raised all the kids and winter. I'll go out in the evening and be petting after chores, and occasionally if someone lays down I have been known to lay down with them and end up in the middle of a bunch of my girls they all lay down around me. It's a nice way to view the stars and relax for half an hour or so.


----------



## MadHouse

Oh, wow, you did so well assisting Serenity. Congratulations! The boys do look huge!
What an amazing pile of cuteness!!! ♥ 

Resting time is coming closer for you.


----------



## Moers kiko boars

Oh my goodness...look at those fluffy babies! So cute! Love all the colors!💝💗💖💞


----------



## MellonFriend

I knew they'd be black! 😄 They look gigantic! I'm so surprised there where only two! That's insane! I wonder why they got so big? Great job assisting, I'm sure that was a bit nerve wracking. Are you able to weigh them? I would love to know how big they are.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Thank you everyone! I was really nervous about Serenity. She's a narrow doe and likes to have big bucklings so my heart sunk when she was having such a hard time getting a kid out. She seems to be feeling fine though.

All the does are acting like fools. There's a full on brawl going on right now. Lots of scores to settle now that they're able to move a bit faster than a waddle. Red is feeling entitled to Serenity's herd rank and Serenity is not someone you mess with. They've been at it all afternoon. They better figure things out because they're going to spend the night together.

@MellonFriend I just weighed everyone now. It's the closest I got to birth weights with everything going on. The weights are in pounds and tenths of pounds.


----------



## Goatastic43

Wow! They were huge!! Glad she is ok!


----------



## Jubillee

Wow those are some good size weights, but Serenity...phew! Congrats on all your babies!!!


----------



## MellonFriend

Jeepers that nine pounder! Goodness gracious. I always like seeing data to compare what I see to other kinder owners. Your kids are overall a little bigger than mine it seems. 5.8 is more around my average. 🙂

I hope the girls can work out their differences without too much drama. Congratulations again for a whirlwind of a kidding season!


----------



## KY Goat Girl

Prim better watch our now that the mamas are back in shape!


----------



## Rancho Draco

My kids tend to range from 5.5-7 lbs. Brownie's buckling is small for my herd. Brownie and Red each had one kid that I consider big for my herd (over 7 lbs). Before these boys from Serenity, the biggest kid I had was 7.7 lbs (was also a Serenity buckling I had to pull and was actually one of her quads).


----------



## Rancho Draco

Moers kiko boars said:


> Go Serenity! Woohoo is a kidding Rodeo! Lets see if @Rancho Draco can hold on for Another Round! 😂😁
> Just a reminder...please put ALL of your puddles on the 2022 Kidding Tally and add to our #s. Please?


We made it through the rodeo! I even remembered to put them on the tally!



Lilgoatgal said:


> Beside being completely adorable and so great to share in your joy of babies, I feel like there's so much good information here for breeders that might face a rejection or kids who needs a night inside. I haven't had either happen before so am eating up your stories for future use. You seem so cool and collected with the ups and downs and all things happening at once. Praying all goes smoothly for Serenity and you can finally get some rest


I try my best to just take it as it comes. With things like rejection, I find that there really isn't much that can be done to remedy the situation so there isn't much use in being worried about fixing it. I've read many stories of people having success either coating the kid in the doe's birthing juices or rubbing the kid on her back end to get her scent on it but I've never been successful. I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong in that sense. I think it may just be that by the time any of my does reject a kid, the kids are all up and moving and functional when she decides she doesn't want one so she is actively deciding to reject that kid in particular. The couple rejections I have had, the doe will care for the baby for the initial (clean them and let them nurse initially) and after she has gotten used to all the kids will reject one, in my experience always the runt. 

As far as bringing kids in the house, I must admit that an overnight inside wasn't something I had done before. I wasn't sure that Red would take them back after being separated for 7 hours. I have never had issues with bringing kids in for an hour or even two but I think I was really stretching my luck with an overnight. Honestly I don't think Red would have taken them back had she not been trying to steal kids from Brownie. 

In the end I'm just glad that sharing my experience is useful for someone. I'm feel like I'm not the best teacher so if it works to just hear about the situations, that's great!


----------



## Elbee

Rancho Draco said:


> All the does are acting like fools. There's a full on brawl going on right now. Lots of scores to settle now that they're able to move a bit faster than a waddle. Red is feeling entitled to Serenity's herd rank and Serenity is not someone you mess with. They've been at it all afternoon. They better figure things out because they're going to spend the night together.


Too funny!! I'm picturing their waddles in turf wars.....yeah, I'm giving you stink eye... someday I'll get over there and knock heads with you...ugh, my cankles are killing me.


----------



## Rancho Draco

@MellonFriend yes Red's doeling is a nice light color. She has a light cape as well. Here's some pictures in natural light. She wanted to go outside today. I think I may have to keep her. Is the pattern still buckskin if the cape is lighter than the body? I feel like @Dandy Hill Farm might know.

















Here's Red's black buckling already getting into all kinds of trouble.









And here's my blubbering, brawling fools.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Elbee said:


> Too funny!! I'm picturing their waddles in turf wars.....yeah, I'm giving you stink eye... someday I'll get over there and knock heads with you...ugh, my cankles are killing me.


They spent the last month or so of pregnancy just halfheartedly bumping heads. They just didn't have it in them to even give a proper head butt. They certainly made up for it today. I was surprised they hadn't busted open their polls by the end of the day. It was hours of the worst fighting I've ever seen from this bunch. They were nowhere near as bad when I got Red in the fall.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Oh and Serenity passed the rest of her afterbirth.


----------



## Moers kiko boars

AWESOME GOAT MAMA! Helping with all the birthing, kidds, cleanup, and post pictures and kidding tally!


----------



## MellonFriend

Awww Red's doeling is SO CUTE! 😍 I've never seen a color like that!



Rancho Draco said:


> I find that there really isn't much that can be done to remedy the situation so there isn't much use in being worried about fixing it.


What and awesome outlook on things beyond your control! 👏 I am definitely one to worry about things that I have no impact on.🙃


----------



## MellonFriend

Oh and I forgot to say, thank you so much for more pictures! I'm sure you are super tired and busy still!


----------



## KY Goat Girl

Rancho Draco said:


> @MellonFriend yes Red's doeling is a nice light color. She has a light cape as well. Here's some pictures in natural light. She wanted to go outside today. I think I may have to keep her. Is the pattern still buckskin if the cape is lighter than the body? I feel like @Dandy Hill Farm might know.
> View attachment 222852
> 
> View attachment 222855
> 
> 
> Here's Red's black buckling already getting into all kinds of trouble.
> View attachment 222854
> 
> 
> And here's my blubbering, brawling fools.
> View attachment 222853


Whoever is closest to the camera still looks pregnant.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Moers kiko boars said:


> AWESOME GOAT MAMA! Helping with all the birthing, kidds, cleanup, and post pictures and kidding tally!


Thank you! ❤



MellonFriend said:


> Oh and I forgot to say, thank you so much for more pictures! I'm sure you are super tired and busy still!


You're welcome! I spent most of my down time just sitting with the kids so I already have nice pictures of a couple of them. It stayed above 20 degrees all night so I didn't go out to the barn at all and slept for 9 hours. It felt amazing! 😴



KY Goat Girl said:


> Whoever is closest to the camera still looks pregnant.


Yeah, that's Serenity. When she kids the top of her belly hollows out but she really doesn't get any less wide. 🙄


----------



## Rancho Draco

Two of the boys are roans!

Brownie's boy (he's already too wiggly to get clear pictures of)
















And Serenity's 9lb boy


----------



## Rancho Draco

This morning's cuddle puddle


----------



## ksalvagno

What a pile of cutie pies!


----------



## Goatastic43

They’re are adorable! ️


----------



## Jubillee

Love the cuddle puddle pics! 💙


----------



## MellonFriend

Yay, roans! It's always fun to see what colors they really are when they're all dry. 🙂 Big cuddle puddles are a bonus to having all the kids born close together. My two groups of kids hate each other too much to do that. 😛


----------



## MadHouse

So cute!!! 
Thanks for all the stories, pictures and reports. I am learning so much.
I admire you! That’s a lot of action over a sort period of time.
Who is winning in the battle of moms?


----------



## Rancho Draco

MellonFriend said:


> It's always fun to see what colors they really are when they're all dry.


I can't believe the colors I got this year. The roaning doesn't really surprise me as I've had roan before but the black and whatever Red's doeling is called is new. I've never had either. I've had plenty of buckskin babies but they are always born brown/tan and grow in a dark cape. I've been looking closer at Primrose and Brownie and I think that they both have capes but they are really only visible on the chest and it's just a few scattered hairs. Elvis of course had a visible cape but it was rather small. I'm sure the colors will continue to change as they grow.



MadHouse said:


> So cute!!!
> Thanks for all the stories, pictures and reports. I am learning so much.
> I admire you! That’s a lot of action over a sort period of time.
> Who is winning in the battle of moms?


Aw thank you! 💗 
There was some minor bickering this morning but I think we will be keeping the herd order of Brownie, Serenity, Red. Red has resumed her beating of Primrose so nothing has changed there. Primrose reared up at Brownie's buckling this morning but didn't go after him when he didn't react to her. She has been chased away from the other babies by the moms but since Brownie rejected her boy Primrose has had unrestricted interaction with him.


I got the moms on the stand this morning. Brownie needed a collar to get on the stand but she got up after a little tug of war. Serenity jumped right up on the stand like usual. Red laid down when I tried to get her on the stand so I quite literally dragged her up there. She was not happy with her hoof trim yesterday but she is walking so much better on her back feet now. Her front feet are less worrying but have been harder to correct. On each foot one of the toes is much larger and has much more toe than the other. I've got them somewhat back to the same size but it has been a slower process than the back feet. Brownie is on the stand so her buckling can nurse, Serenity is on the stand so that I can get her boys nursing out of both sides, and Red is up so that she doesn't feel left out. Tomorrow I'll start working on evening out Red's udder but I wanted her to have a day on the stand without me messing with her. I'm not sure if I will be able to even her out at all since I'm thinking she was lopsided from last freshening.


----------



## Moers kiko boars

I have doe with bad hooves. I could trim her every week and it wasnt helping. So I started.useing a coarse metal file. Smaller than a horse rasp, but about as coarse. It has improved her bad hooves. I trim about every other month, and they arent near as bad as they were. Ive been told it opens up the hoof fibers and helps straighten/ balances the thickness.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Moers kiko boars said:


> I have doe with bad hooves. I could trim her every week and it wasnt helping. So I started.useing a coarse metal file. Smaller than a horse rasp, but about as coarse. It has improved her bad hooves. I trim about every other month, and they arent near as bad as they were. Ive been told it opens up the hoof fibers and helps straighten/ balances the thickness.


I'll have to try that. I've been able to trim her back feet to a good shape but the front feet are an odd shape to work with. Thanks!


----------



## Moers kiko boars

I hope it works for you as well as it did for me! I just filed them a little every day.,Then checked to see how long to trim. I like my longer time span between trims!😉


----------



## Dandy Hill Farm

Rancho Draco said:


> @MellonFriend yes Red's doeling is a nice light color. She has a light cape as well. Here's some pictures in natural light. She wanted to go outside today. I think I may have to keep her. Is the pattern still buckskin if the cape is lighter than the body? I feel like @Dandy Hill Farm might know.


She's beautiful!! 😍 I'm pretty positive that in order for a goat to be considered a buckskin, the cape color must be darker than the body color. To me, the lighter spot on her shoulder looks like it could be a moonspot.... She's so uniquely colored that I'm guessing she's a combination of multiple patterns....I just not sure which ones though. 😅

@CountyLineAcres, do you have any idea(s) on what color/pattern(s) this pretty lil girl is?


----------



## KY Goat Girl

Dandy Hill Farm said:


> She's beautiful!! 😍 I'm pretty positive that in order for a goat to be considered a buckskin, the cape color must be darker than the body color. To me, the lighter spot on her shoulder looks like it could be a moonspot.... She's so uniquely colored that I'm guessing she's a combination of multiple patterns....I just not sure which ones though. 😅
> 
> @CountyLineAcres, do you have any idea(s) on what color/pattern(s) this pretty lil girl is?


I think the cape does have to be darker than the rest of the body to be considered buckskin. Isn’t there a discussion about buckskins in K.B.’s thread “Molly, Cookie, and Sapphire”?


----------



## Dandy Hill Farm

KY Goat Girl said:


> I think the cape does have to be darker than the rest of the body to be considered buckskin. Isn’t there a discussion about buckskins in K.B.’s thread “Molly, Cookie, and Sapphire”?


Yep, there is. I was the one posting all the info and pictures. K.B. was wondering what color Cookie and June were. 🙂


----------



## TripleShareNubians

Dandy Hill Farm said:


> Yep, there is. I was the one posting all the info and pictures. K.B. was wondering what color Cookie and June were. 🙂


Is there a link to that or can you tell me roughly where it is in the thread?


----------



## TripleShareNubians

.


----------



## Moers kiko boars

Take it to Color Genetics whats my goat thread.


----------



## TripleShareNubians

I was just curious cuz you said something about buckskins I thought I would ask. I tried to delete it but I don't know how to make it go away.


----------



## Moers kiko boars

@TripleShareNubians ..just take.thaT picture and question to the Color Genetics whats my goat. And CountyLine Acres will help you. I didnt mean to delete it. Sorry, i was just giving directions to help you get your answers..😬👍


----------



## toth boer goats




----------



## Rancho Draco

For anyone that's interested in the color side of everything here, I drowned poor CountyLineAcres in pictures of everyone and got some actual color names for the whole crew here.









Color Genetics - What’s My Goat?


Do you have a goat that has you stumped on what to call their color? Curious what patterns your goat will throw? Maybe you just want a second opinion? This is the thread for all color genetic questions pertaining to a specific goat you want to know more about.  Anyone can ask or answer...




www.thegoatspot.net





@Dandy Hill Farm Here is the official opinion


----------



## CountyLineAcres

@Rancho Draco I am always happy to oblige!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Some more pictures:

One of Brownie's girls. Her legs may work but the ears are a work in progress.









Another of Brownie's girls. These kids are already practicing giving me heart attacks. This one was the first to find a corner to disappear into. Serenity's roan boy has disappeared twice on me now and I've found him tucked behind some feed bins by the milk stand. You would think it would be easy to keep track of a 9 lb kid!









Red's boy and Serenity's boy playing


----------



## Moers kiko boars

Awww they are all so cute!


----------



## MellonFriend

Aww I love how fluffed up they are. They are so super cute. That black boy with the light belly is so gorgeous. I love his look.


----------



## Goatastic43

They are so stinking cute!!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Moers kiko boars said:


> Awww they are all so cute!


I wish that it was a little lighter in the barn so I could get better pictures for everyone. They are too cute!



MellonFriend said:


> Aww I love how fluffed up they are. They are so super cute. That black boy with the light belly is so gorgeous. I love his look.


They're so adorable when they puff up like that 😍 

I really love his coloring too. He is so clean cut. He looks ready to go to some important gala. It's a shame he's out of Serenity. I might have had to keep him otherwise.


----------



## MadHouse

Beautiful!! 🥰 times 9


----------



## Rancho Draco

Here's the biggest and smallest kids.


----------



## Feira426

Wow!! What a difference.


----------



## Jubillee

Those are some big babies!!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Serenity's Boy







youtube.com


----------



## Rancho Draco




----------



## Rancho Draco

Sorry about the background noise. It's super windy today and the sliding door was really loud.


----------



## Goatastic43

Their little ears are precious!


----------



## MadHouse

So cute!!!


----------



## toth boer goats

All are precious.


----------



## GoofyGoat

Great videos! They’re gorgeous!


----------



## MellonFriend

Look at those chunky little sweeties. 😊


----------



## Rancho Draco




----------



## Moers kiko boars

Awww💖💞💗 look at those cute Chunky monkeys! So adorable. Snuggle material!💖💞💗


----------



## Rancho Draco

Thank you everyone! I certainly have some chunky kids this year


----------



## toth boer goats

Aww.


----------



## GoofyGoat

Gorgeous! Such chunky little ones...adorable🐐🐐🐐😁🥰


----------



## Rancho Draco

Thank you!

I got everyone disbudded today. I didn't have my helper due to some health issues they are having so I got to do them all myself. Hurray! I'm hoping I did a half decent job. I really hate disbudding but it's a lot more difficult without a second pair of hands. I really should build a box. The girls all hate my guts but the boys were all still trying to eat my pants and climb my leg afterwards. I've always wondered if it's really that boys are more friendly or if they're just idiots and don't know that you're the one that just burned them.

Okay now I'm just rambling. Here's a picture as payment. Serenity's boy fast asleep yesterday.


----------



## FizzyGoats

You are brave! I’m am so scared of disbudding when the time comes here. I am always amazed by people who can do it by themselves. And thanks for the cute pic. I love all the adorable pictures!


----------



## Rancho Draco

FizzyGoats said:


> You are brave! I’m am so scared of disbudding when the time comes here. I am always amazed by people who can do it by themselves. And thanks for the cute pic. I love all the adorable pictures!


I'd be lying if I said I wasn't nervous. I've never actually done the burning before. I've always restrained the kids and had a helper to burn the buds. I think it went about as well as it could have all things considered. And it wasn't really that I was brave, I just had a panic moment this afternoon when I realized how old the kids were and that my helper wasn't in any shape to help out. 😆


----------



## MellonFriend

Way to go disbudding by yourself! It is the worst job in the business.
I don't have a box and I do It myself. I only have my sister there as moral support. What I found to really help is if you sort of swaddle or burrito the kids in a towel and then "sit" on them. They are much better restrained that way.


----------



## Rancho Draco

I don't wrap them up but I do sit on them. Well, not actually sitting on them but you know what I mean. I used one hand to press their head against my leg and the other to handle the burner. I very quickly figured out that I needed to use my opposite hand to restrain them so that I was pressing on the back of their head instead of pulling on the front to keep them still.


----------



## Lilgoatgal

Such cutie pies! Looking forward to seeing your littlest buckling grow to see if he catches up or stays smaller 
So brave of you to do the disbudding. Am sure it will turn out great!! 
I've decided next year to do them myself since we'll be breeding a lot more does. Figure it'll be time to stop paying someone else by then - already super nervous!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Lilgoatgal said:


> Such cutie pies! Looking forward to seeing your littlest buckling grow to see if he catches up or stays smaller
> So brave of you to do the disbudding. Am sure it will turn out great!!
> I've decided next year to do them myself since we'll be breeding a lot more does. Figure it'll be time to stop paying someone else by then - already super nervous!


You can do it! It's a really awful chore but it's not really that hard. Have you been watching the disbuddings so far so that you know how to do them?


----------



## Lilgoatgal

Rancho Draco said:


> You can do it! It's a really awful chore but it's not really that hard. Have you been watching the disbuddings so far so that you know how to do them?


I have watched and cringed - not sure how much I've learned though. Am on foot holding duty usually. The thought of causing my babes pain is quite a struggle. We only bred one doe this year and she has a few weeks yet to go, so will be paying much more attention this time.
Somehow I don't have a problem with banding though  By the time the boys are of age for that I'm ready for them to calm the heck down already.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Lilgoatgal said:


> I have watched and cringed - not sure how much I've learned though. Am on foot holding duty usually. The thought of causing my babes pain is quite a struggle. We only bred one doe this year and she has a few weeks yet to go, so will be paying much more attention this time.
> Somehow I don't have a problem with banding though  By the time the boys are of age for that I'm ready for them to calm the heck down already.


Yeah it's hard to be so mean when they're so little still


----------



## MellonFriend

Lilgoatgal said:


> I have watched and cringed - not sure how much I've learned though.


If you are able to have someone actually show you how to do it, I would highly recommend it. I wish there was someone to show me in person. I've done as much research and watched as many videos as I can, but still if I had someone to reassure me that I was doing it right, that would bring a lot better peace of mind.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Primrose has decided that she is most definitely a baby and no one else can sleep in her dog crate.


----------



## MellonFriend

I'll bet she isn't letting anyone on the top of it either. 😆 How's she adjusting to her knew playmates?


----------



## Rancho Draco

MellonFriend said:


> I'll bet she isn't letting anyone on the top of it either. 😆 How's she adjusting to her knew playmates?


She's mostly ignoring them still. She'll run with them a little (first day out in the pasture for the babies today) but with them all being freshly disbudded they aren't doing a whole lot of playing.


----------



## Rancho Draco

The forecast. The babies have ignored the heat lamp all day and have been outside romping around in the mud. I think they'll be back to snuggling in the barn for the coming week.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Cuddle puddle!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Goliath has an old man face










David is a lap goat


----------



## KY Goat Girl

Rancho Draco said:


> Thank you!
> 
> I got everyone disbudded today. I didn't have my helper due to some health issues they are having so I got to do them all myself. Hurray! I'm hoping I did a half decent job. I really hate disbudding but it's a lot more difficult without a second pair of hands. I really should build a box. The girls all hate my guts but the boys were all still trying to eat my pants and climb my leg afterwards. I've always wondered if it's really that boys are more friendly or if they're just idiots and don't know that you're the one that just burned them.
> 
> Okay now I'm just rambling. Here's a picture as payment. Serenity's boy fast asleep yesterday.
> View attachment 223214


In my experience I’ve noticed that males are more relaxed and easy going. Whether it’s cows, goats, sheep, dogs, or cats (and I’m sure a few more), the males are almost always more laid back. They are easier to tame than females. Males are very forgiving. 

But like you said, maybe they are just too dumb to realize your the one who just caused them pain.  I’ve never thought of that before.


----------



## KY Goat Girl

I love the names David and Goliath!  Are those the biggest and smallest boys?


----------



## Rancho Draco

KY Goat Girl said:


> I love the names David and Goliath!  Are those the biggest and smallest boys?


Yes. I was looking at them the other day and the names just popped into my head because the one boy is so small and the other so big. It's crazy how much of a difference 4 1/2 lbs makes. I should weigh them again and see what they are at now.


----------



## Lilgoatgal

MellonFriend said:


> If you are able to have someone actually show you how to do it, I would highly recommend it. I wish there was someone to show me in person. I've done as much research and watched as many videos as I can, but still if I had someone to reassure me that I was doing it right, that would bring a lot better peace of mind.


That's a great idea! I take them to a vet who does it at her house & owns her own goats so is experienced. I'll ask her if she's comfortable giving me a lesson.


----------



## toth boer goats

I agree with the others.

They are super cute.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Red with her boys this morning.


----------



## MellonFriend

At least it's not Primrose! 🤣


----------



## FizzyGoats

Rancho Draco said:


> Red with her boys this morning.
> View attachment 223402


That is so funny! How cute.


----------



## Rancho Draco

MellonFriend said:


> At least it's not Primrose! 🤣


True! Karma is coming back to get Primrose. Her brother has taken to vaulting into flying kicks off of her back


----------



## MadHouse

Rancho Draco said:


> True! Karma is coming back to get Primrose. Her brother has taken to vaulting into flying kicks off of her back


For a moment I thought you had named a kid Karma!


----------



## Rancho Draco

MadHouse said:


> For a moment I thought you had named a kid Karma!


No but perhaps that should be her brother's name instead of David 😂


----------



## Jessica84

MadHouse said:


> For a moment I thought you had named a kid Karma!


I did too lol


----------



## toth boer goats

Play station, too cute.


----------



## Lilgoatgal

Omigoodness, how cute! What a good momma


----------



## NigerianNewbie

Karma would be a cool name for a goat. Oh my goodness, even newborns seem to like climbing to the top of anything they can jump up onto. All of the kids are mighty cute.


----------



## Cedarwinds Farm

Just catching up here, and oh my goodness! What darling kids! I love their little ears! And your funny photos of Primrose and the kids on their mom's back made me chuckle. Everyone looks so good!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Thank you everyone!

The kids are doing good. It was only 5 degrees this morning but they all came running out of the stall to go play in the fresh snow. I'm trying to get a video uploaded but my internet is a bit slow today.


----------



## Rancho Draco




----------



## MadHouse

So cute!!! 🥰


----------



## toth boer goats

Aww.


----------



## MellonFriend

I love it!😆


----------



## Dandy Hill Farm

So cute!! 😍 I'm dying over here with baby goat fever now... 🤒😭


----------



## Goatastic43

Oh they’re just so precious!!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Aw @Dandy Hill Farm tell those girls to hurry it up! I want to see their babies too!

I couldn't believe everyone came out this morning. They all rushed the gate when I opened it and I was sure they would come running back in just as quick but they loved running around outside. If it wasn't so cold it would be a beautiful day. No clouds, no wind, but its only in the teens today.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Red's girl this morning. She was cold (-8* this morning!) but didn't want to miss out on the fun


----------



## Goatastic43

She’s so cute! They’re always so fluffy when they’re born in the winter. I just love it! I hope it warms up soon for you!


----------



## Rancho Draco

I'm really loving how these two girls are turning out. The first girl is Brownie's big girl. The second is Red's doeling.


----------



## MellonFriend

I love those chunky monkeys! I just can't get over how pretty Red's doeling's color is.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Goatastic43 said:


> She’s so cute! They’re always so fluffy when they’re born in the winter. I just love it! I hope it warms up soon for you!


I love the fluffy babies. I'm amazed every year at how hardy these kids are. When I went out this morning no one was under the heat lamp even though it was almost -10 degrees. They were all cuddled up with Serenity.



MellonFriend said:


> I love those chunky monkeys! I just can't get over how pretty Red's doeling's color is.


Isn't she just gorgeous? I have no idea where that came from. We'll see if it lightens up any.


----------



## FizzyGoats

They are all looking so good and I love the little videos. So cute. And those doelings look really nice! You definitely have some nice looking goats.


----------



## Rancho Draco

FizzyGoats said:


> They are all looking so good and I love the little videos. So cute. And those doelings look really nice! You definitely have some nice looking goats.


Thank you!


----------



## Dandy Hill Farm

Such purdy girls!! I'm in _love_ with Red's doeling's color!! Never seen anything like it before! 😍


----------



## MellonFriend

It's like she has a little shirt on. 😊


----------



## Rancho Draco

It does look like a shirt!


----------



## toth boer goats

All are very cute.


----------



## Feira426

Dandy Hill Farm said:


> Such purdy girls!! I'm in _love_ with Red's doeling's color!! Never seen anything like it before! 😍


One of my bucklings looks a lot like her - I also haven't seen it before and don't know what it's called or how it's made, but it's pretty cool!


----------



## Feira426

You can kind of see it here.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Very cool!


----------



## toth boer goats

👍


----------



## Rancho Draco




----------



## MellonFriend

Happy bouncy babies!

I think you mentioned one of your does didn't come into milk on one side right away? I looked as hard as I could to try and find which one it was but I couldn't find it. How did that work out? Did you get her into come into milk?


----------



## MadHouse

They are soooo cute!!!


----------



## Rancho Draco

MellonFriend said:


> Happy bouncy babies!
> 
> I think you mentioned one of your does didn't come into milk on one side right away? I looked as hard as I could to try and find which one it was but I couldn't find it. How did that work out? Did you get her into come into milk?


It was Red. She came into milk on both sides but she filled one side larger than the other. It wasn't horrible but it was noticable. The breeder said she had a single last year so I'm sure that's why she's uneven. Since the babies have been keeping her pretty empty you can't really tell. I'm separating everyone tonight so we'll see how her udder looks in the morning.


----------



## Rancho Draco

MadHouse said:


> They are soooo cute!!!


I sure think so! They were very active today. It was 35 degrees today so everyone spent the day outside.


----------



## Dandy Hill Farm

Looks like they all thoroughly enjoyed the warmer weather today. 😊 I would be interested in seeing what Red's udder looks like tomorrow if you are able to share pictures. 🙂


----------



## Rancho Draco

Dandy Hill Farm said:


> Looks like they all thoroughly enjoyed the warmer weather today. 😊 I would be interested in seeing what Red's udder looks like tomorrow if you are able to share pictures. 🙂


I will be taking pictures of everyone's udder in the morning! Red is looking pretty decent. Her foreudder isn't as nice as I was hoping but overall she has nice shape. Her teats are a bit small but I'm still able to milk her (I milked her for colostrum when I had her babies in the house). Brownie's udder isn't very nice and Serenity has no attachment to be found so don't get too excited. 😉


----------



## Rancho Draco

Well I had to do some gymnastics to get the pictures to upload but here they are! These were about 13 1/2 hour fills by the time I got around to milking.

First up is Brownie. She's still a bit messy here and not much can be seen through all that hair. I might have to take some scissors to her udder to trim it up some if she doesn't shed out soon. She is very good at holding back milk so I milk her out until I would normally massage her udder to encourage let down and leave the rest for the kids. I got about 3 1/2 cups from her this morning.
















Next up is Serenity. Poor girl has a very loose udder. She had a single the year that I got her and her udder had gotten lopsided then. I milked out 6 cups from her this morning and she still had plenty left.
















Finally we have Red. I'm realizing now that her pictures are really blurry. Her udder is also lopsided from a past single kid. This girl has tiny teats. I milked her for probably 8 minutes and between her teats being so small and her throwing a fit on the stand I only got about a cup and a half out of her. She had quite a bit left but my hands were cramping so I just let her go.


----------



## Rancho Draco

A green blade of grass!!!!!!


----------



## Rancho Draco

Well I checked everyone's udders tonight when I separated. Brownie and Red were empty but Serenity had some milk left so I got another cup from her for a grand total of 3 quarts for the day. I'm going to be drowning in milk this year and I'm so excited! I might actually get to make cheese this year. I still have 12 gallons of milk in the freezer so I have some left to play around with.


----------



## ksalvagno

Cheese and soap!


----------



## MellonFriend

😀☝☝👍


----------



## Dandy Hill Farm

Wow! You really will be drowning in milk!! Yes! You need to start making soap - it can be intimidating at first, but (usually) addicting once you get started! 😀 I want to try making cheese this year too. Let me (us) know when you make some! 🧀


----------



## Rancho Draco

I would love to make soap! I've never made soap but my mom did when I was a toddler but that was a LONG time ago so not sure if she really remembers how.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Dandy Hill Farm said:


> Wow! You really will be drowning in milk!! Yes! You need to start making soap - it can be intimidating at first, but (usually) addicting once you get started! 😀 I want to try making cheese this year too. Let me (us) know when you make some! 🧀


I've made a couple different soft cheeses before but never any hard cheeses. I'll keep everyone updated!


----------



## toth boer goats

😁


----------



## Rancho Draco

The girls are doing really good! This morning I got 4 cups from Brownie, 9 cups from Serenity, and 3 cups from Red. I'm still not milking everyone out completely since the kids are still a bit young. Red I could milk out more but I'm still getting used to milking her and she is getting used to being milked so we're taking it slow. I have a batch of yogurt straining on the counter right now!


----------



## MadHouse

Wow, that’s fantastic!!


----------



## Rancho Draco

The yogurt after straining for a few hours


----------



## MellonFriend

That looks pretty thick! Did you add anything special to achieve that?


----------



## GoofyGoat

Rancho Draco said:


> The yogurt after straining for a few hours
> View attachment 224165


Yum!


----------



## Rancho Draco

MellonFriend said:


> That looks pretty thick! Did you add anything special to achieve that?


Lots of patience! It's not all that thick yet. Every couple hours I go scrape the sides with a spoon and stir it around. That's the stuff that comes off the cloth since most of the whey has drained out. Eventually it will all be nice and thick. I'm due to stir it again but I'm having too much fun with the babies in the barn to go in.


----------



## Dandy Hill Farm

That does look nice and thick! Thicker than we've ever made....I'll have to look into straining ours this year. Enjoy all your fresh goat milk! I can't wait to start milking again this summer!


----------



## MellonFriend

I've tried to strain mine, but it doesn't seem to help all that much. Maybe I didn't stir it enough. I'll have to try that next time.


----------



## Rancho Draco

Dandy Hill Farm said:


> That does look nice and thick! Thicker than we've ever made....I'll have to look into straining ours this year. Enjoy all your fresh goat milk! I can't wait to start milking again this summer!


I love straining the yogurt! It gets so thick and creamy. I miss milking every day of the off season. 



MellonFriend said:


> I've tried to strain mine, but it doesn't seem to help all that much. Maybe I didn't stir it enough. I'll have to try that next time.


How long did you strain it? How did you strain it? I let this batch strain for 8 hours before I was happy with the thickness. I put a flour sack cloth inside a 1 gallon pitcher and let the yogurt hang in that for the straining process. If I don't scrape the sides a few times during the process the yogurt next to the cloth gets like cement and it can't continue to strain.


----------



## Rancho Draco

The final product


----------



## Goatastic43

Mmmm! I bet that is delicious with some berries!


----------



## Rancho Draco

GoofyGoat said:


> Yum!


It's done now and it did turn out yummy!



Goatastic43 said:


> Mmmm! I bet that is delicious with some berries!


My favorite way to have it is with either fresh blueberries or blueberry preserves.


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## MellonFriend

I'm not sure how long I strained it. Eight hours sounds familiar. I'll have to see if my notes say. I did a few layers of fine cotton cheese cloth. It would get very gunked up and it sounds like I maybe need to scrape it off the cloth more frequently than I did.


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## KY Goat Girl

That yogurt looks amazing! Better than store bought.


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## ksalvagno

Looks delicious!


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## Rancho Draco

Thank you everyone!


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## Rancho Draco

I went out to the barn earlier today with a list of things I wanted to get done but I sat down with the babies instead. Brownie's little boy hopped up into my lap and fell asleep so I sat with him for half an hour and got nothing accomplished.


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## MellonFriend

That's how it goes! Might as well put "sit with babies" on the top of all to-do lists. 😅


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## Rancho Draco

I meant to put this up yesterday but forgot. He's making this a habit I guess.


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## MellonFriend

Aww... Once they know where a good snuggle is, they become repeat customers!


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## MadHouse

So sweet! Did you write “snuggle kids” on your to-do list?


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## Rancho Draco

No I just didn't write one. I figured it was a waste of time I could have spent snuggling babies.


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## Moers kiko boars

Arent those little guys the BEST? 💖💞


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## Rancho Draco

Sure are! Bottle babies drive me up a wall but they do have their moments


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## FizzyGoats

Those pictures are so sweet. I want to come cuddle your babies. Lol.


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## toth boer goats

Adorable.


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## Rancho Draco

Goliath. He's still a giant. I'm going to weigh everyone again this weekend. Anyone want to take guesses at how big he is?


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## Goatastic43

Sheesh! He is a hunk! I’ll guess he’s 21lbs


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## Rancho Draco




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## Rancho Draco

.


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## KY Goat Girl

I’ll guess 22 lbs for Goliath.


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## Feira426

They are all so cute!! Your yogurt looks awesome - I’ll have to try making some again one day soon!


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## MellonFriend

How old are they now? I want to take my best shot at guessing and compare what he looks like to what my kids look like at that age.


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## Rancho Draco

Feira426 said:


> They are all so cute!! Your yogurt looks awesome - I’ll have to try making some again one day soon!


Thank you! Definitely make some! Its so easy. 



MellonFriend said:


> How old are they now? I want to take my best shot at guessing and compare what he looks like to what my kids look like at that age.


I feel like that's cheating. 😆 They're 3 1/2 weeks old now.


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## MellonFriend

Hey, I'm still guessing too! 😄 I'm the kind of person that counts all the visible jellybeans in the jar instead of just estimating. 😋

In that case, I'm thinking he's.... 18 pounds. But I'm prepared to be way off! 😙


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## Rancho Draco

He's just comically huge to me. He is also very heavy but he has stilts for legs (which he gets from his mama) so he dwarfs the rest of the kids.


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## MadHouse

All the kids are so cute!
I won’t guess at Goliath’s weight, but he sure looks huge!
Is that a chicken coop on stilts? How high is it off the ground?


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## Rancho Draco

Yes. It's my broody coop. It's probably 2 1/2-3 ft off the ground.


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## Rancho Draco

Some more pictures. That little girl's not actually hunched up it's just odd timing with the picture.


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## MadHouse

Rancho Draco said:


> Yes. It's my broody coop. It's probably 2 1/2-3 ft off the ground.


It looks so cool!


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## toth boer goats

All looking great.


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## Rancho Draco

MadHouse said:


> It looks so cool!


Thank you but I can't take any credit for it. I bought it a couple years ago. The thing weighs a ton! I don't think I'm ever going to move it again 😆


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## Rancho Draco

toth boer goats said:


> All looking great.


Thank you!


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## Rancho Draco

Red with one of her boys


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## Dandy Hill Farm

Their ears are killing me!! Too cute! 😍

Goliath is a tank on stilts - lol! I'll guess that he weighs 20lbs.


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## MellonFriend

Haha! Goat stack. 😋


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## Rancho Draco

Well I went ahead and weighed Serenity's boys but I didn't have time to weigh everyone. Anyone want to guess how big her other boy is? Also no one has guessed Goliath's weight yet so feel free to guess again.


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## MadHouse

Rancho Draco said:


> Red with one of her boys
> View attachment 224828


I love this picture!!!


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## toth boer goats

Aww.


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## Rancho Draco

I weighed everyone tonight and figured out that my weight yesterday wasn't accurate so we have a correct guess on Goliath's weight! Congratulations Goatastic you get nothing but bragging rights lol. Other notable weights were Serenity's other boy at 18 1/2 lbs and Red's black boy at just over 16 lbs. Everyone else is around 12-13 lbs with my little runty boy being just over 10 lbs. I can't believe these three giant boys. I've never seen kids grow this fast. My lines tend to be somewhat slow to mature so I'm not sure what's making these boys grow like weeds. 




Goatastic43 said:


> Sheesh! He is a hunk! I’ll guess he’s 21lbs


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## Goatastic43

I’m on a guessing streak lol


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## MellonFriend

Wowzah yowzah that's a big kid!  All of the big boys are! My biggest boy was 16lbs at three weeks.


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## toth boer goats




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## Rancho Draco

This little girl got herself into quite the predicament today. Not sure what she thought she would find in there or how she managed to get the door closed but she was quite mad that she couldn't get out. Pardon the mess, this is the corner of my barn where all the junk collects.


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## Rancho Draco

We had some major flooding today. It has been in the 50s the past two days and only went down to 40 last night so the snow is melting way too fast. Some spots are 6" deep, some are 18". The barn is dry still but the chicken coop has a foot of water in it. The goats are less than pleased. There are 2 acres of lake now.


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## MellonFriend

Woah man that's a lot of water! How are the temps coming up? I would hate for all that to turn into ice! 😧

Poor little doeling! 🤭 She must have been really regretting that decision.


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## Rancho Draco

Here's the forecast. It's way too much water to freeze in one night. I'm hoping the little bit lower temp tomorrow and Friday will give it some time to run off and soak in.


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## MadHouse

Oh no!
The chickens have to move to the stilt coop!


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## Rancho Draco

There's no way I could fit all 33 of them in that thing! 😆 I considered trying to get them all to roost in the barn but I was able to put down some milk crates and shovel in some old bedding to make little islands and they all got to the roosts for the night.


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## toth boer goats

Wow, that is a lot of water.


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## Rancho Draco

Well the trenches did their job. Only 3 inches of water left and there was heavy frost last night so it glazed over. This picture was this morning. It's all filling back up now but I'm hoping it will continue to drain fast enough to keep the water below 6".


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## Goatastic43

Yay! Glad they worked!


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## Rancho Draco




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## MellonFriend

That is SO MUCH water! 😱


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## Rancho Draco

Red's doeling. She needs a name. 

















David


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## MellonFriend

What kind of name are you looking for? Maybe another color name? Off the top of my head Amber came to mind.


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## Rancho Draco

I don't really have anything specific in mind. I suppose a color name would make sense. My only requirement is that it's not a mouthful to say.


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## Dandy Hill Farm

Ember 
Auburn
Caramel
Crimson
Hazel
Jade
Fawn
Ebony
Saffron
Scarlet
Sienna
Ruby
Rogue


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## Rancho Draco

Water's going down. It sure makes for a pretty picture. You can see the milk crates in the second photo. The water was up to the top of them when it was at it's highest.


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## Rancho Draco

Well I forgot to ask the doeling if she liked any of the names. I'll ask in the morning. Really excited to watch her grow. Red is really a beautiful girl and I'm hoping she passes on her traits.


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## Rancho Draco

The babies are finding creative ways to stay dry


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## toth boer goats

Oh my goodness.


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## Rancho Draco

The doeling has a name! We talked about it this morning. She was really liking the red theme and wanted to stick with it. She wanted to go with Rose but I told her she couldn't copy Primrose so she settled for another flower name. She is officially named Poppy.


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## MellonFriend

Yay! I love the name Poppy! 🥰 Tell her she picked a beautiful name. 

Is Poppy going to become a permanent resident at your farm?


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## Rancho Draco

Yes, I will be retaining Poppy. The plan is to get two boys and a girl from Pricker Patch this spring but if I'm only able to get one boy I will be retaining Red's black buckling as well.


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## KY Goat Girl

Yay! I love the name Poppy! Are you retaining any other doelings?


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## Rancho Draco

I will not. I don't think I'm going to be retaining any more until I have registered kids on the ground.


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## MellonFriend

Yay! Darling Poppy gets to stay! 🥳

Do you have an estimate on the month that the Pricker Patch kids will be ready?


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## Rancho Draco

MellonFriend said:


> Yay! Darling Poppy gets to stay! 🥳
> 
> Do you have an estimate on the month that the Pricker Patch kids will be ready?


It should be sometime in June I think. I haven't heard from Sue yet but when I talked to her in December she said she would be kidding in March and I think she weans at 10 weeks or so.


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## Goatastic43

Aww I love her name!!


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## Rancho Draco

Well I heard from Sue this morning! Her does started kidding on Tuesday. Still waiting on her doe Maggie to kid.


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## Cedarwinds Farm

I'm just getting caught up here on your thread. I love all the photos of your cute, fluffy kids! They all look great!


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## Rancho Draco

Thank you!


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## MellonFriend

Rancho Draco said:


> Well I heard from Sue this morning! Her does started kidding on Tuesday. Still waiting on her doe Maggie to kid.


So exciting! 😃


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## toth boer goats




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## MadHouse

How is Primrose doing with all the kids around? Was she jealous at all? Is she bossing them around or playing with them?


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## Rancho Draco

She's doing really well with all the kids! She is taking her role as big sister very seriously. She is super patient with the kids and let's them climb all over her. She actually stays in the kid stall overnight because Red beats up on her a bit. I think she'll be a great mama once she kids. She doesn't really play with them much but I think she will once they are older and more up to some rougher play. Brownie has mellowed back out now so they are spending a lot of time together again. This picture is from this afternoon.


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## MellonFriend

Aww what a good big sister. 🥰 

I wonder if our girls that grew up with babies will be good first-time moms because they experienced kids before they had their own. I'm hopeful Murphy will skip the "what the heck are these things" stage that Bella experienced with her first kids.😆


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## Rancho Draco

We can always hope! 😆


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## toth boer goats

👍😊


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## Rancho Draco




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## MellonFriend

Primrose looks so mature with her baby friends. 😙


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## MadHouse

That is so great!! What a wonderful big sister! 💜


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## Goatastic43

Aww that’s such a cute picture!


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## toth boer goats

How cute.


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## Rancho Draco

He's pretty sure I haven't noticed.


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## Rancho Draco

Some more pictures


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## MellonFriend

Happy chunky little fluffers. 😊


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## Goatastic43

Rancho Draco said:


> He's pretty sure I haven't noticed.
> View attachment 226856


He’s become one with the flock


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## MadHouse

So cute, the little goat and his chickens! 🥰 
All you kids and mamas looks great! So healthy and happy!

Are you happy with the milk you are getting?


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## Rancho Draco

MadHouse said:


> So cute, the little goat and his chickens! 🥰
> All you kids and mamas looks great! So healthy and happy!
> 
> Are you happy with the milk you are getting?


Yes! I've been getting approximately 5 cups from Brownie, 6.5 cups from Red, and 7.5 cups from Serenity. I'm still letting David nurse from Red on the stand in the morning so she's giving a bit more than what I'm getting. I've been making lots of cheese and yogurt and drinking lots of milk.


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## MadHouse

That’s great!! Sounds like Red’s production went up!


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## Jubillee

They're so big and fluffy!!! So adrorable. 

Do ears ever become pendulous in the kinder breed like Nubians or do they stay airplane-ish? Is there a breed standard on their breed character? Just curious as most I have seen all have the sinilar ears.


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## MellonFriend

Jubillee said:


> Do ears ever become pendulous in the kinder breed like Nubians or do they stay airplane-ish? Is there a breed standard on their breed character? Just curious as most I have seen all have the sinilar ears.


Sorry to butt in. 😏 

This is what the breed standard says about ears: _Ears are long and wide, resting below horizontal. _ I have a few different ear types in my herd. Some of them are flat and others are more tubular. I have also seen kinders with ears that sort of bend at half way, but I don't have any like that. I personally prefer the tubular ear most.


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## Jubillee

Gotcha. I was just curious since they have Nubian in them, but it seems the Nubian influences only that first cross yes? Because from then on it's only kinder to kinder?

Like with mini-Nubian, we can breed back to Nubian or Nigerian if we want to bring in certain traits.Of course it affects percentages and generations but it's allowed.


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## MellonFriend

Yep, that's right. 👍


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## Jubillee

That's very interesting because then you REALLY want to bring in the best milk genetics in the Nubian as that's the only influence for the most part. Though I guess while they are more dual purpose, they are geared a little more towards meat. Like Nubian is considered dual but geared towards milk.


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## Rancho Draco

Jubillee said:


> That's very interesting because then you REALLY want to bring in the best milk genetics in the Nubian as that's the only influence for the most part. Though I guess while they are more dual purpose, they are geared a little more towards meat. Like Nubian is considered dual but geared towards milk.


Yep Mellon got is covered. I also have both the flat airplane ears and the tubular airplane ears.

Yes, that's the very difficult part about Kinders. You have one shot at introducing a good balance of milk/meat characteristics from outside the breed before you have to work within the breed.


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## KY Goat Girl

All your kids are just so thick boned!


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## Rancho Draco

KY Goat Girl said:


> All your kids are just so thick boned!


Ive been very impressed with this year's kids. They came out little chunks!


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## Rancho Draco

@Jubillee I cropped out Serenity from a picture here. She has really long ears for a kinder and her's do bend at the half way point. They hang down a bit more than this photo shows.


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## Jubillee

Thanks!


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## MadHouse

How are the Kinder kids doing?


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## Rancho Draco

They're doing great! The boys are weaned. The girls will be staying with their dams for a while longer. I'm still getting 5 quarts a day from the three girls so we are drowning in milk!


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## MadHouse

Aww! They all look healthy and happy!
Thanks for the update and pictures!


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## toth boer goats

Aww they are cute.


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## Rancho Draco

Thanks you two!


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## Boer Mama

They look very healthy and happy 😊


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## Dandy Hill Farm

They all look so content. 😍😊

You need to step-up your game and make some soap with all the milk you're getting (😉😉). 😄


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## Moers kiko boars

Beautiful goats! So healthy! Good Job!

I 2nd...on the soap making!🤣😂


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## Rancho Draco

Gosh you guys. So much pressure! 😂

I do want to make soap but I've been so insanely busy lately that I don't even have what I need to make it yet. I have been making lots of dairy products. I've made lots of mozzarella, ricotta, yogurt, quark, cottage cheese, and chevre. We skipped right past spring into summer temperatures so I suppose it's time to start making ice cream as well. I want to make some cheddar but haven't had the time yet.


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## MadHouse

To me it makes so much more sense to make edible products! I mean, you can’t eat soap!


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## Rancho Draco

MadHouse said:


> To me it makes so much more sense to make edible products! I mean, you can’t eat soap!


I do like making the edible products but we don't go through them fast enough! It would be nice to be able to use the milk in soap just to get some of it out of the fridge. I think my family is sick of cheese 🧀


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## Moers kiko boars

Wellll...soap does help you Smell better (since we are from a farm) Lol but eating is good too! 😂🤣😁


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## MadHouse

Rancho Draco said:


> I do like making the edible products but we don't go through them fast enough! It would be nice to be able to use the milk in soap just to get some of it out of the fridge. I think my family is sick of cheese 🧀


This is pure envy speaking, but I don’t think your family realizes how lucky they are! 😛


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## MadHouse

Moers kiko boars said:


> Wellll...soap does help you Smell better (since we are from a farm) Lol but eating is good too! 😂🤣😁


What? You don’t like smelling like a barn? 🙃


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## Rancho Draco

Moers kiko boars said:


> Wellll...soap does help you Smell better (since we are from a farm) Lol but eating is good too! 😂🤣😁


I think my family would very much appreciate me not smelling like a goat all the time. Who knew you could do just that thing with yet another goat product. That seems like a dangerous loop to be trapped in. Get more goats to make more soap, goat smell is stronger, need more soap...



MadHouse said:


> This is pure envy speaking, but I don’t think your family realizes how lucky they are! 😛


Oh they love the cheeses and milk and such but I can only fit so much into three meals and two snacks a day. Maybe I need to wake everyone up for a midnight snack 🤔


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