# Coming soon...



## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

Well, Petunia is on kidding watch! Her ligaments went from firm to mushy in just a few hours tonight and her udder is suddenly growing very quickly. She was separating herself from the other goats when I went in to check on her. I don't *think* she'll kid until tomorrow, but I'm locking her in the shed with the camera tonight just in case. Fingers crossed she holds out till tomorrow because the forecast is warm and sunny.

https://www.ipcamlive.com/5cb9f57b71a34


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

Good luck!


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

Good luck.


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## SalteyLove (Jun 18, 2011)

Is your kidding shed a circular thing? Quonset hut?? Trying to determine what I'm looking at, it looks cozy!


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

It's a PolyDome calf hutch about 7' in diameter. And guess what folks, she's revving! I went out there with the kidding box all ready to catch and Petunia didn't appreciate the interruption and decided she wasn't quite ready. So I'm leaving her alone for now and just keeping an eye on the camera.


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## groovyoldlady (Jul 21, 2011)

Come on, Petunia!!


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

Well, she's doing the baby dance. She goes into the shed. She gets up. She gets down. She stirs up the bedding. She talks to her belly. She goes out of the shed. Rinse. Repeat. This could go on all day of course... 

My dogs are circling the goat pen. They know whats up and are very excited and a little over-protective today. Pluto usually makes the rounds of our 40 acres in the morning, but today he hasn't gone further than about 30 feet from the doe pen. Daisy usually never steps foot inside the goat pen (that dog hates enclosures) but today I had to send her out because she was hovering over Petunia with a motherly look on her face. My goats don't particularly appreciate having large dogs breathing down their necks while kidding.


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## cristina-sorina (May 4, 2018)

How exciting!! Good luck!


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## SalteyLove (Jun 18, 2011)

I see your hands feeding her cookies :haha:


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

Even better... Fresh dandelions!


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## SalteyLove (Jun 18, 2011)

Is she a FF? What type of buck is she bred to?


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## Sfgwife (Feb 18, 2018)

Damfino said:


> Even better... Fresh dandelions!


Awwwww i see cutie patooties in there now!


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

:kid2::kid3:
A couple of strong, healthy little kidlets! A striking brown boy came first. He looks like a little Oberhasli! Second one is a beautiful, colorful girl. They weighed in at 9 and 8 lbs. respectively. They had a good long drink before bed and now it looks like mama is out having some "me" time.


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

SalteyLove said:


> Is she a FF? What type of buck is she bred to?


No, this is her 4th kidding. She's an Alpine/Nubian cross and so was the buck I bred her to.


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## groovyoldlady (Jul 21, 2011)

Yippee! Congratulations!!!


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## GoofyGoat (Sep 21, 2018)

Yay! Congratulations to y'all and the new momma. Can't wait to see baby pics


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## Dwarf Dad (Aug 27, 2017)

Congratulations! To Petunia, too.
I wondered when someone would share their baby cam. Thank you!


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

Congrats.


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## IHEARTGOATS (Jun 14, 2016)

Congratulations


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

Thanks everyone. Babies are strong and healthy this morning, but poor mama is down and out. I noticed on the goat cam that Petunia wasn't going in to check on her babies through the night. I wondered if maybe I was just missing her while I was asleep, but when I went out this morning she was outside lying by herself in the damp grass and could hardly get up. She has a terrible rattle in her chest and her temperature is slightly sub-normal. I dragged her to her feet and put her in the shed where it's dry and a little warmer. She can't even stand up to feed her babies right now. Luckily I did milk Petunia down last night because her udder was too full, so the kids got mama's milk from a bottle. They were hungry enough they took to it right away. 

Poor mama! She needed help to kid yesterday, which is unusual for Petunia. She's normally such a strong, healthy goat. But she wasn't getting on with the job yesterday. She had goo starting at around 11:30, then came the amber string at 2:30, and by 3:30 she still wasn't really pushing. I felt around just inside the passage with my fingertips and there was the bubble. As soon as I took a feel she started to get down and push, but I had to help deliver the first kid even though he was positioned correctly. There was a long delay before she started delivering the second kid. That one had a leg back and we had to help pull her too. Now that Petunia is sick this morning I wonder if she was already feeling poorly yesterday and that's why she wasn't getting on with the job.

Anyway, I gave her a shot of LA-300, vitamin B complex, some Nutri-Drench, and Pro-Biotic paste. I covered her in a warm blanket and she's resting with her kids. She looked so bad this morning we took down the public camera "just in case". I don't want a goat dying on live tv. Hopefully she pulls through. Her kids are nestled up against her but she's not really interested in them right now. She has been getting up and down a little bit. She had enough energy to get up and hang her head out the door when our dogs came back from teasing a skunk an hour ago. It was definitely a stink to wake the dead! Keeping my fingers crossed the antibiotic kicks in over the next few hours and she recovers. Thankfully she's not dehydrated. She drank very well yesterday and she was eating hay when I left her last night, so hopefully she has the energy to feel better soon, poor gal.


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

Petunia is such a good mama and a fantastic herd queen. She was the first goat born here. We just can't have our "Pretty Pet" feeling so sick!


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

How cute.


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

Ugh... poor Petunia looks like death warmed over. Her temperature did climb a little from 100.1 to 100.8, but her breathing sounds terrible and there is gunk leaking from her nose and mouth. At least she doesn't seem to be suffering... just fading away. I'd love to call a vet but the only one around here who makes farm calls doesn't work Thursdays. I can't drag her to the clinic in this condition. If we even got her into the truck I think the trip would kill her. The only thing I haven't done is give her Dex. I don't have that on hand. I have a friend up the road who might have some, but she won't be home from work until dinnertime. Not sure what else I can do at this point. If anyone has some suggestions I'd welcome them! 

Things I've done so far: 
- 1 shot LA-300 (Biomycin) 
- 1 shot Vitamin B complex
- 1 dose Nutri-Drench
- Pro-Biotic Plus paste 
- Put her in a dry shed with plenty of bedding and blanketed her
- Letting her rest (I'm trying not to disturb her too often since she seems so wiped)

The kids at least are doing well. We have them in the house and they're taking the bottle like champs. I'm thankful I have a doe in milk so I can feed them goat milk for a while at least. They got plenty of colostrum last night and this morning.


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

I'm so sorry she is doing so poorly but glad the kids are doing well. I can't think of anything else that you haven't already done.


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## goatblessings (Jan 6, 2015)

No help, just praying she pulls through for you..... poor sweetie


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

Called a vet and they suggested Banamine. I wasn't sure about that one because her temp. was so low, but the vet said that while it reduces fever, it won't make a sub-normal temp. go lower. So I gave her Banamine around 1:30. Her temp. was up to 101.6 at 1:00 (yay!). I just got back from a trip to town and Petunia looks and sounds just a little better. Her breathing is no longer rattling and there is not so much gunk coming from her mouth and nose. She picked her head up and is resting it on the doorsill instead of slumped in the straw, which _looks_ perkier at any rate. Her eyes are still completely dull though.

I'd take her temp. now except that she's laying IN the shed doorway and I really don't want to move her if I don't have to. She has no energy to spare, so I'll just leave her be until she feels like moving on her own. Fingers crossed she's over the worst of it! BUT, I bought milk and diapers in case we have a couple of bottle baby house goats. There's a good chance that even if Petunia bounces back in the next day or two, it might take her a good week to ramp up her milk production again. I have one doe in milk, but she's only producing 2 qts./day, which is not enough for bottle babies _and_ people, so I purchased store milk for the first time in who-knows-how-long. Feels so weird to have to buy _milk_ of all things!


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## wifeof1 (Mar 18, 2016)

Oh. I sure hope she perks up.


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## cristina-sorina (May 4, 2018)

Poor mama! I'm happy she's starting to get a little better, hopefully she pulls through for you. I love the pictures, she's beautiful and her babies are so cute!


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

So, it turned out to be milk fever. The jury is still out whether it was caused by too much or too little calcium in her diet. Apparently both can cause hypocalcemia. I wasn't able to call a vet today because the only mobil vet in the area takes Thursdays off, and Petunia was way too weak for me to haul her to the vet in Pueblo. I had to wait until my vet friend who lives down the road got off work at the zoo. She came over this evening and said the rattly breathing was pulmonary edema caused by Petunia's extremely low heart rate. We spent a couple of hours administering IV fluids and calcium. Petunia didn't exactly bounce back, but she can hold her head up now and she can swallow her saliva which is a marked improvement. I'm going out in a couple of hours to administer more calcium SQ. Hopefully she'll be ok by morning, but my friend said she'd come back and give more IV calcium before work if Petunia is still down. She left the catheter in just in case. 

The kids, on the other hand, are thriving. They're taking their bottles like champs and have excellent appetites and lots of energy. Let's hope they stay that way! We set up a makeshift pen for them in our basement until Petunia improves enough to take care of them. Right now I'm afraid if she tries to get up she might fall on them and be unable to get off.


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

And she's up! She just stood up all by herself!:coolmoves:


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## cristina-sorina (May 4, 2018)

Thank goodness!! So happy to hear she's doing better! You are so lucky to have your vet friend down the road, what a lifesaver!


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## Trollmor (Aug 19, 2011)

Good for Petunia ta have you and the vet, and good for you to have Petunia and the vet! Cuties! I am glad they did not become motherless. And I am sad I came too late for the live broadcast - for that's what it was, right?


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## groovyoldlady (Jul 21, 2011)

Whew! Glad she's doing better! I wondered about milk fever when you said she had trouble delivering the kids. I knew that hypocalcemia caused loss of muscle tone and strength because our Annika went through that last Spring. But I wasn't sure because I did NOT know that it could cause pulmonary edema!

Thanks for educating us - I'm just sorry poor Petunia had to go through all that for us to learn about this!!!


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## Dwarf Dad (Aug 27, 2017)

I am happy for you that Petunia is getting back her health. The Queen has to be able to reign!


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

That is great news! I hope she continues her recovery.


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## 21goaties (Mar 13, 2018)

(pray)


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

She's up and taking care of her kids this morning! She's still weak and a little shaky, but she's a whole lot better. She's doing a lot of gulping and swallowing as that fluid from her lungs comes up. Petunia is a pretty decent producer but not nearly as high-volume as other goats we've had. I'm torn whether she had too little or too much calcium in her diet. I usually feed a little alfalfa toward the end of pregnancy, but this year I didn't have any. The drought last summer meant I had to buy non-local hay and I'm not sure how good it was nutrition-wise. On the other hand, I've been feeding alfalfa pellets and I recently started giving them calcium supplements in the form of gummy candies. It's possible the calcium gummies were not well-absorbed or that they were too well-absorbed. Either way, I think I'll leave those out of their diets from now on and just try to find a little alfalfa. Something else Phil observed was that we are having a very lush spring this year, much like the spring two years ago when we had all those kidding problems. Two years ago I fed too much alfalfa and every one of our does had kidding problems related to selenium, copper, and calcium deficiency. The difference this time is that Petunia looks really good. She's in excellent weight and her coat is sleek and well-colored. I couldn't say that about our girls two years ago. So it makes me lean toward possibly feeding too much calcium. Hmm... goats are hard sometimes.


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## Dwarf Dad (Aug 27, 2017)

I hope you get it figured out.


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

groovyoldlady said:


> Whew! Glad she's doing better! I wondered about milk fever when you said she had trouble delivering the kids. I knew that hypocalcemia caused loss of muscle tone and strength because our Annika went through that last Spring. But I wasn't sure because I did NOT know that it could cause pulmonary edema!


Yes, I knew this too, and two years ago when all of our does had kidding problems and weak contractions, every one of them got a dose of CMPK. But we had no problems of that sort last year, and stupid me got distracted by something else that happened to Petunia about three days before she kidded. Our wethers are usually pretty good with the girls except at the feeding trough which is why I separate the boys into their own pen at night. But during the day I turn everyone out into the pasture where there's no reason for them to jostle one another.

Well a few days ago I heard a crash on one of our metal patio gates and I went outside to see poor, fat Petunia lying on her back with all four legs in the air with Finn standing over her. He had bowled her completely over. I couldn't tell if he had knocked her down by main force or if he had reached under and flipped her with one of his horns. Either way I was super mad! Poor Petunia was so round she couldn't roll over to get back on her legs and was just lying there flailing. I chased Finn off and since then both boys have been locked up or tethered away from the girls. But I was so worried about possible injuries that I attributed Petunia's weak contractions to bruising or a malpresented dead kid. Thank goodness both kids were fine! And in hindsight, bad as it looked, Petunia was not injured in that accident. The weakness was calcium deficiency, but I was too distracted to remember. Funny how those big, flashy incidents like to take our mind off the more common, mundane, and obvious problems staring us right in the face!


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

Babies! We're not sure on the names yet, but we're thinking "Buster Brown" and "Cupcake"


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## healthyishappy (Mar 6, 2019)

Great names!!!!!!!!!!


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## 21goaties (Mar 13, 2018)

The babies are so cute! Congrats!



Damfino said:


> Funny how those big, flashy incidents like to take our mind off the more common, mundane, and obvious problems staring us right in the face!


This is so true! Has happened to us so many times :bonk:


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## xjking (Mar 15, 2019)

Congrats on your babies. I am new here and was wondering what camera you are using?


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## wifeof1 (Mar 18, 2016)

Wonderful!! I hope her health continue to progress .


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

xjking said:


> Congrats on your babies. I am new here and was wondering what camera you are using?


I'm not sure which camera you're referring to so I'll answer both.

The "Goat-O-Scope" video camera is a Louwice WiFi security camera with the fisheye lens: 
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07KRSWVXZ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I'm not sure it's the most user-friendly but that's my husband's department. 

My still shot camera is a little Canon Powershot we got a few years back.


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## xjking (Mar 15, 2019)

Damfino said:


> I'm not sure which camera you're referring to so I'll answer both.
> 
> The "Goat-O-Scope" video camera is a Louwice WiFi security camera with the fisheye lens:
> https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07KRSWVXZ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
> ...


Thank you, yes I was referring to the video camera. I will be getting my first NDG's in about 4 weeks and I will add this camera to my list. What an excellent idea to keep an eye on them.


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## goatblessings (Jan 6, 2015)

Sweet babies - and so glad Petunia is up and on the mend. Congrats with all!


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## Goats Rock (Jun 20, 2011)

I hope she continues to improve. The babies are cute!


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

So cute, glad mama is doing OK.


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

TinCup kidded this morning at 6:30! I wanted two bucklings and she gave us two beautiful, colorful bucklings. They were about 10 lbs. each and strong. I couldn't be more pleased!

But wait! There's more! 
I bounced her belly and something bounced back. A bonus! Third kid was a gorgeous 8 lb. doeling!

The first one is light tan and white with frosted ears and frosting around his eyes who we named "Yeti." The second is a rich brown and white we're calling "Thor." 








And here are the three of them. The doeling is a gorgeous dusky brown with a fun white marking on her left side. We're calling her Mocha. We'll see if it sticks. 








Everyone is healthy and happy. Their mama spent the morning recovering then she left the pen and started picking fights with everyone in the herd. She lost both scurs and her head looks horrible right now, but I think she had a good time.

Unfortunately she also had very weak contractions like Petunia. I saw her in in labor through the camera around 5:45. She only pushed a few times and then stopped. She didn't seem like she was going start again. I put my fingertips in and felt feet right there near the entrance. At that point in labor, a doe should be actively pushing with strong contractions. Stalling out is not a good sign. I felt a little further back and the kid was in the perfect diving position. There was not one reason for her to not be pushing. She was getting up and down a lot, but actual contractions were almost non-existent. I ended up pulling the first kid out with almost no help from mama. The second kid wooshed out minutes later on his own.

But kid #3 didn't want to make an appearance. I could feel a hard lump way down in the bottom of TinCup's belly, but she wasn't pushing at all even with the new kids actively nursing. I decided I could probably wait there forever and she wasn't going to push that kid out, so I had to go fishing for it. TinCup is a big girl with a very deep belly, and since the uterus was not contracting properly it was like putting my hand into a cavern. I had to reach down halfway to my elbow before I could grab a foot. This kid was also presented correctly, but she couldn't climb up to the exit by herself! She needed a little push from mama, and mama just wasn't pushing.

So the takeaway here is that I'm pretty sure I messed up by not feeding alfalfa at all this winter, especially since we didn't have the good quality local brome hay I usually buy. We had terrible drought last summer and I had to buy hay sight-unseen from the western slope. It was pure timothy grass with no alfalfa in it whatsoever and although it was heavy hay and the goats liked it, it wasn't very green or rich looking. Most of the local brome I usually buy has at least some alfalfa mixed in, plus I will also buy some straight alfalfa as well and feed some to the girls during the second half of their pregnancy. This year, with the locally sourced hay so scarce, expensive, and low-quality, I decided to skip the alfalfa and just supplement with alfalfa pellets. I also started giving the girls calcium supplements a couple of weeks ago. Apparently that wasn't enough and I really did need to feed some alfalfa over the winter. Lesson learned.

Two years ago I fed too much alfalfa and ended up with copper and selenium deficiencies. With no alfalfa in their diets, the girls seem to be maintaining good copper and selenium levels. All kids have been properly positioned, legs are straight, and afterbirths are dropping without much delay, so at least we fixed that problem! Now I just need to make sure they get enough calcium to have proper contractions!

To make sure TinCup doesn't crash tomorrow like Petunia, I got some injectable calcium from my friend the vet. I'm going to give her a round of shots tonight and another round in the morning. Hopefully that should stave off milk fever. I also got ahold of a couple bales of good, green alfalfa from a friend and I'm feeding that to everyone as well. I'm happy to report that Petunia is doing very well. Her milk is coming in nicely and she has plenty for her kids and her energy seems to be back. She was up on her hind legs defending her queenly crown this afternoon and ran with the herd most of the day.

Quote of the day: "Good judgement comes from experience and experience comes from bad judgement." Now I know better than to totally skip the alfalfa!


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## Trollmor (Aug 19, 2011)

Thank you for sharing!


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## 15WildTurkey (Apr 13, 2015)

This thread has been filled with so much great info. Thank you for taking the time while dealing with the reality of it, to post such informative posts. 
I’m so glad your girls are doing good. And those babies!!fab.


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

Glad my posts are helpful! Typing stuff out helps me process and remember it as well. I tend to be verbose, so it's a good thing I'm a pretty fast typer!


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## MadCatX (Jan 16, 2018)

Awesome lil geughts!


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

(thumbup)


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## Trollmor (Aug 19, 2011)

Having better time now to read your entry, I only say What a fishing story!  Good it ended well. Thanks for sharing, especially the reflections afterwards!


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

Well, TinCup's kidlets are all doing very well. Everyone is perky and they all have fat little bellies and are starting to hop around. Petunia's kids really came into their own today and were running all over the place like little maniacs. Tigerlily is currently in the kidding shed awaiting her turn but is thoroughly taking her time. I went to sit with her for a while this afternoon and Petunia's kids kept trying to climb into the shelter with me despite my attempts to block them. Tigerlily was not too happy about that! 

I induced Tigerlily yesterday morning and I was told it would be 24-36 hours. Well, it's been almost 39 hours and she's in there resting. Her ligs were not quite gone when I last checked her three hours ago. She's been making some goo but she's not yet dilated and hasn't pushed at all so we just have to wait. I'm sure she's holding out till some ungodly hour, the little stinker! She was licking Phil and I this afternoon and she's been chuckling to herself and to us. When we went for a walk she was glued to me like a shadow. She is suddenly super-duper friendly which is a stark contrast to her pregnant "stay away from me!" personality. Her official due date was Friday but she looked like holding out for another week so I induced. 

Tigerlily is my "problem child". She's lost two out of two pregnancies. If she weren't Finn's daughter, and if she weren't so darned pretty and strongly-built I'd have given up on her already. She lost last year's kid from fighting too much. No one bullied her--she bullied and picked fights with everyone and lost one time too many. She aborted about a month before her due date, which I kind of expected after watching her insane behavior. She's been smarter this year. 

Two years ago she went 7-8 days past due and when she finally kidded the head was back and we couldn't get the kid positioned in time. She was extremely strong and tight so it was danged near impossible to get an arm far enough in. Add to that a kid that was a week overdue with a neck like a giraffe and you have a recipe for heartbreak. We simply could not get that head to come round in time. When baby finally came out he was not overly huge, but he was loooong. 

So I'm very much hoping for a happy ending this time! I'm pretty sure she's got a single kid there (another reason to induce--those single babies can get too big to come out easily if they're allowed to cook too long!). Here she is, three days past her due date and now three hours past the induced due time--troublemaker!
:waiting:
If she weren't Finn's baby...


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

Good luck! Glad everyone else is doing well.


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

I spoke too soon... she's kidding right now!!


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

And it's a :kid3:! I was really hoping for a boy, BUT, considering Tigerlily's past I'm just happy it's alive. She's a very tall, big-boned girl and she's extremely strong for a newborn. No good photos tonight (and it's far too late!), but she's mostly white like her mama and since she was born during a snowstorm I think I'll call her "Snowball".


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## PetLover (Apr 26, 2019)

Good Luck!!!!!


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## GoofyGoat (Sep 21, 2018)

That was quite a read! Thank you for sharing. I'm so glad all your kids are strong and healthy and your sweet doe recovered so well. Have you tried red raspberry leaves along with the alfalfa? I'm not positive they were the reason Drom had such an easy Kidding but she's had problems in the past but this time she popped the kids out like a rocket this time and her afterbirth followed really quickly too.
I was interested when you said the calcium gummies might not of been absorbed well, did they have vitamin d in them too? The Vitamin d helps with absorption. Just curious.
Anyhow...CONGRATULATIONS on your babies


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## Trollmor (Aug 19, 2011)

So Finn has a daughter, that is good!


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## MadCatX (Jan 16, 2018)

awesome finn is a grandpa geught


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## Dwarf Dad (Aug 27, 2017)

Great Tigerlilly succesfully kidded! Congratulations to both of you and Grandpa Finn.


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## Trollmor (Aug 19, 2011)

"geught" -? Yes, I know, I am not so good at English!


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

Introducing little Snowball! Born at 10:00 last night in the middle of a snowstorm.


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## Dwarf Dad (Aug 27, 2017)

Snowball is a cutie for sure! Love the first picture.


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## Trollmor (Aug 19, 2011)

First time I saw a snowball with aeroplane wings ...  Congratulations!


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## groovyoldlady (Jul 21, 2011)

Trollmor said:


> "geught" -? Yes, I know, I am not so good at English!


No worries here, because "geught" is not English. It's just the silly way @MadCatX spells "goat".

@Damfino Congrats on all the adorable babies!!!!!!! So glad you are getting all the mineral craziness sorted out. Goat nutrition can be a real puzzle sometimes!


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## MadCatX (Jan 16, 2018)

@groovyoldlady - Thats right! GEUGHTS! and that is an adorable lil GEUGHT!


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## Dwarf Dad (Aug 27, 2017)

MadCatX said:


> @groovyoldlady - Thats right! GEUGHTS! and that is an adorable lil GEUGHT!


Been meaning to tell you, add an a. Like GEAUX TIGERS!. 10-4


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## MadCatX (Jan 16, 2018)

Oh Lord - You guys at LSU just got a great receiver..but my GEUGHTS wear Black and Red Geauuuuuxxxxx DAWGS SIC EM! 

Funny fact my wife is a die hard Gator fan...so its quiet for the Cocktail Party around our trailer lol.


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## Trollmor (Aug 19, 2011)

Aha, thanks. So, geit and Ziege then?


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## Noahsoak (Sep 16, 2013)

Curious if you gave her calcium drench? I use the stuff for goats. I hate i mix it with molasses and syringe, it taste horrible. They agree.


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

Adorable.


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## Trollmor (Aug 19, 2011)

It really does.  Probably a protection against intoxication.


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

Thanks everyone! All the goats are doing well. Moms and babies are thriving. After delivering dead kids two years in a row, Tigerlily had a hard time understanding what to do with a live one. She's the first mama I've had to lock up with her kid so they could bond. I had to lock them up together for a record three nights! Tigerlily was under the mistaken impression that I was her baby and kept following me to the house and leaving little Snowball behind, not caring if her baby was crying. She also wouldn't let the kid nurse and I had to hold her for a few days. But it looks like they've turned a corner and now Tigerlily won't be separated from Snowball and is starting to nurse her. Yay!



GoofyGoat said:


> Have you tried red raspberry leaves along with the alfalfa? I'm not positive they were the reason Drom had such an easy Kidding but she's had problems in the past but this time she popped the kids out like a rocket this time and her afterbirth followed really quickly too.
> I was interested when you said the calcium gummies might not of been absorbed well, did they have vitamin d in them too? The Vitamin d helps with absorption. Just curious.


I have not tried red raspberry leaves. Where does one acquire such a thing this time of year?

Yes, the calcium gummies do contain vitamin D. Maybe they were absorbed well but I fed too little too late or something. Who knows. Next year I'm just going to make sure I have some alfalfa even if I have to pay through the nose. Usually alfalfa is cheaper than grass and easy to find around here, but the drought changed all that last summer so I hoped I could get away with skipping it this time. Nope!


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

Noahsoak said:


> Curious if you gave her calcium drench? I use the stuff for goats. I hate i mix it with molasses and syringe, it taste horrible. They agree.


Yes, I actually did give a CMPK calcium gel to Tigerlily about 6 hours before she kidded. I wasn't sure at that point whether she needed it, but I just assumed she did. She was mad about it, but what do you do? I drenched her with water to help flush her mouth and throat afterwards and then gave her some yummy selenium/vitamin E paste and probiotics paste to help wash it down.


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## GoofyGoat (Sep 21, 2018)

Damfino said:


> I have not tried red raspberry leaves. Where does one acquire such a thing this time of year?
> 
> Yes, the calcium gummies do contain vitamin D. Maybe they were absorbed well but I fed too little too late or something. Who knows. Next year I'm just going to make sure I have some alfalfa even if I have to pay through the nose. Usually alfalfa is cheaper than grass and easy to find around here, but the drought changed all that last summer so I hoped I could get away with skipping it this time. Nope!


I got my raspberry leaves on Amazon, they also make a great tea for us so there's no waste. I just gave a small handful every day with Drom's grain and she chowed down on them. With the calcium gummies I was giving 1 twice a day for a month before she kidded. Since I give alfalfa hay and pellets free choice I think it might of been overkill but she's still doing ok so I haven't changed he routine yet.

Btw, your little kid is beautiful it's great news momma came around thanks in no small part to your intervention.
Here's a pic of the red raspberry leaves I used.


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## Trollmor (Aug 19, 2011)

Damfino said:


> After delivering dead kids two years in a row, Tigerlily had a hard time understanding what to do with a live one.


Poor thing! Good she found out, and can have joy from that wonderful kid!


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

I've been too busy to post photos of our growing kidlets. They're so much fun right now! Small enough to hold and cuddle but big enough to jump and play and climb. They're so cute and soft!! 

Petunia was adorable last night... Phil and I took her kids into the house with us for the evening (we watch movies on the couch with a couple of the baby goats every night), but when we took them Petunia was too busy eating to notice even though I shoved Cupcake into her face and said, "Bye, we're leaving. We're taking your kids with us!" 

Well, she finished eating and then she couldn't find her kids anywhere. She started wandering around the pen looking for them and calling. I thought maybe if we ignored her for a while she would settle down, but instead she became more frantic. Soon she was screaming and her kids were bawling back because we could all hear her from inside the house. So Phil and I took Buster Brown and Cupcake back outside and showed them to Petunia from across the fence. Then we picked them up and took them back in with us and mama calmed down and everyone was quiet after that. 

Petunia is such a good mama, but I love that she totally trusts us to babysit for her and will settle right down and finish her dinner or take a nap the minute she knows her kids are in the house with us.

And today I saw the sweetest example of livestock guardianship. I let all the goats out to graze for a couple of hours even though the weather was threatening. Then at noon the rain moved in quite suddenly and it started pouring down. I could see from the window that none of the goats were in their houses. I ran downstairs to find all the little kidlets huddled under the eaves next to our house. It was dry for the moment but I knew it would not be for long! I scooped up Petunia's kids and ran them to the pen just in time for Petunia to come bolting from the woods to meet them. I set them down and their mom called them and they all ran to shelter. 

Next I grabbed little Snowball. Tigerlily is kind of an on-again, off-again mama who isn't quite sure how to care for a baby so I had to bring that one all the way out to the pen and plunk her in a shelter. The pelting rain suddenly turned to hail as I turned back toward the house to fetch TinCup's triplets. TinCup had run in from the storm and was calling them, but they were scared to leave their spot. Mocha and Yeti were in a more sheltered area behind the gates to our patio, but poor little Thor was on the other side of the gate where he was exposed. That's when our Anatolian Shepherd, Pluto, appeared out of nowhere and curled up around the shivering wet baby, using his body to shield Thor from the wind and hail. As soon as I scooped up Thor and ran him to the pen, Pluto high-tailed it to the doghouse. It was so sweet to see him protecting that little cold baby until I could get him under shelter.


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## NigerianNewbie (Jun 6, 2018)

Pluto for the win! Fantastic dog, understands how to effectively work independently. :great:


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## GoofyGoat (Sep 21, 2018)

What a wonderful LGD! Yay Pluto! Good boy!
Great story thanks for sharing.


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

That is great!


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

Awesome.


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## Trollmor (Aug 19, 2011)

Wonderful stories! Thanks for sharing! I understand your animals do trust you, and cooperate for everybody's best. YESS!!


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

I started this thread last year, but I guess I'll continue it this year rather than start a new one. Skeeter had a strong healthy girl and boy yesterday afternoon. It was a perfect textbook kidding. It went very fast and she needed no help at all. Kids were up and nursing on their own in no time.

If anyone wants to watch babies on the Goat-O-Scope, here ya go!
https://ipcamlive.com/5cb9f57b71a34

Ugh... and it looks like I need to wipe the goat slobber off the Goat-O-Scope! Skeeter has been caught licking it from time to time.


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

First Goat-O-Rama girl and boy of 2020 with their proud mama! Skeeter is a first-time mom and is the daughter of Petunia, my beloved herd queen who we lost in January to an unknown illness.









Skeeter looks a LOT like her mom and inherited all of Petunia's wonderful mothering skills. She's attentive but not overprotective, and when people come to see her babies she shows them off proudly instead of hiding them away or abandoning them in favor of human attention for herself. She also did something that I've not seen many of my mother goats do--while she was in labor she reached back and suckled on herself to make sure her milk was flowing. Her kids weren't going to encounter plugged teats!

My only complaint is that she tried to have these kids in a dense thicket of scrub oak behind our house. It was the perfect safe, hidden, sheltered spot for having kids unassisted with plans of spending the night there. But it was terrible for human access and I had to drag her out just as the first kid was on its way. I had no intention of crawling out of there with a wet kid under each arm! Labor stalled for a few minutes while Phil pulled and I pushed all the way across the driveway to the goat pen. We shut her in the pen, much to the frustration of Skeeter, who thought she had found the perfect birthing spot, and to the dogs, who had appointed themselves unwanted midwives. Just as I slipped in through the gate with the kidding box, the first little hooves made their appearance!

We have a little cou clair girl (8.5#) and a black sundgau boy (10#). Classic Alpine colors. Skeeter is 5/8 Nubian, 3/8 Alpine and I bred her to a pure Alpine buck.

Emma takes riding lessons from me and I called her mom just as the kids were being born. I was hoping they could be there in time for the birth, but Skeeter was too quick for them. She was almost too quick for me! But Emma was able to help dry the kids off.









Skeeter did not seem to mind letting a stranger handle her babies. In fact, she seemed rather proud.



























I love the butterfly on the little doe's face. We're thinking of calling her Butterfly or Firebird. We'll try a few names out over the next few days and see what sticks.









I have no idea why, but I named this little guy George almost right away.









"Welcome to the family!"


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

Oh my goodness, so adorable.


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## Goats Rock (Jun 20, 2011)

All the kids (human and goat!) are cute! Congratulations! (clap)(woot)(thumbup)


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

In the trauma of having Butterfly break her pelvis three days after she was born, I forgot to update this thread with the two who were born just 12 hours or so before the accident. Rita kidded at around 2-2:30 a.m. with a beautiful tri-colored girl (Zelda) and a handsome two-tone chamoisee boy (Sonic). I was late to the party as at least two other people saw these kids before I checked the goat-o-scope around 3:30 a.m. One lady even got to see Sonic come into the world! 















So we currently have four lovely kids bouncing around. This photo is already more than a week out of date. They're all three weeks old now and as wonderful as can be. Left to right are Zelda, Sonic, George, and Butterfly. 









Now get ready because we have three does due any time. Coral (a.k.a. "Fuzzy") is in the kidding stall and appears to be revving up. I think she'll kid in the next hour or less and I'm guessing from the size of her this past month that it will be triplets.

If you care to watch: https://www.ipcamlive.com/5cb9f57b71a34


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

Nevermind... the sun came out and the temperature rose so we've taken this operation outside to the clean grass and sunshine. 

And while we were all watching Fuzzy, Sadie went into labor and popped out a beautiful Sundgau doeling just 15 minutes ago! I caught the birth just in time. No I've got to go back out and see how Fuzzy is progressing. Wish us luck!


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## SalteyLove (Jun 18, 2011)

Best wishes for Fuzzy and co!


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

Sadie and her doeling are doing very well. It's a STRONG doe kid and the most beautiful sundgau I've ever seen. Jet black with snow white legs, etc. She's going to be a live wire I can tell and I'm going to have to keep a close watch on this one so she doesn't end up getting in trouble like Butterfly. She was 10#! 

Coral (Fuzzy) delivered two big bucklings. The first was 8.5# and is a striking buckskin-colored cou clair. The second was 9# and another sundgau but with darker tan markings. Both are strong and healthy. 

Mamas are doing great and love their kids. Now it's time for me to get some grub!


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## Tanya (Mar 31, 2020)

Co gratulations.


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