# New mom goat with NO milk + a disformed(?) baby HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!



## Alesha (Mar 10, 2019)

Saturday night one of my goats had twins. One girl one boy. It was COMPLETELY unexpected because at the time she had at most a couple cups of milk in her udder. We though shed produce more as the babies continued nursing but its been more than 24 hours and now shes bone dry. We tried to get the babies to take a bottle but they have no interest in it even though they, im sure, are extremely hungry. Should we let them contiune to nurse? Keep trying to bottle feed? How can i get them to want the bottle??

Aside from the milk situation the doelings back legs arnt working right. He hocks are like jelly and instead of bending normally they bend forward!!! The first time I seen it I was speechless and I still am. She can stand (unnaturally) but walking is next to impossible it seems and we are worried with the lack of milk its just making the problem worse. We gave her some vitumen e and selenium yesterday night and will give her some more tonight. Is there a chance shell pull through or should i call the vet to end her suffering? What are the long term effects of this? Is the mother going to contiue to have babies like this?

This is the 6th goat ive had kid this year and its by far the most heart wrenching and terrifying, especially with this birthing season being my first. Any information for a new time farmer with baby goats is greatly apprieciated even if not related with my listed problems. Thanks a bunch!


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## dzt66 (Apr 9, 2018)

How sad. I am so interested to hear the responses. I’m a newbie too and this is my first kidding season too.


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

Her tendons and ligaments just need to tighten up. It is going to take time. What type of nipple are you using for the bottle? Is the milk warm enough?


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## mariarose (Oct 23, 2014)

Selenium for the joints and ligaments.


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## Goats Rock (Jun 20, 2011)

If they have not eaten, you will need to get them to eat. Try the Pritchard nipples. (Red ones with the yellow collar.). Make sure the little hole (vent) is straight up. You do have to cut the little top part off to make a hole. Tractor supply sells them.


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## Alesha (Mar 10, 2019)

ksalvagno said:


> Her tendons and ligaments just need to tighten up. It is going to take time. What type of nipple are you using for the bottle? Is the milk warm enough?


Is there anything I can do to kinda speed up the process? Is she in pain? And right now I own three types of nipples, a regular human nipple and bottle, a red and yellow one and a black on that is thicher than the other two. But ive only tied to get the babies to nurse of the human one so far. I think the milk is warm enough, it feels like body temp to me, whats the best way to tell without access to a food thermometer?


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## Alesha (Mar 10, 2019)

Goats Rock said:


> If they have not eaten, you will need to get them to eat. Try the Pritchard nipples. (Red ones with the yellow collar.). Make sure the little hole (vent) is straight up. You do have to cut the little top part off to make a hole. Tractor supply sells them.


They have eaten some but i deffinetly do not believe it is a well amount. The mother has some milk from what I am able to get out of her milking her myself (shes not used for milking shes a boer goat). The babies are also occasioanlly given the oportunity to nurse off one of our other moms who had twins thursday, but now that shes gained the understanding that the babies nursing arnt hers, she wont let them for long. And we have a nipple like that I will have to try. Is there any tricks to get the babies to want to take the bottle or at least not fight us when we put it in their mouth? Will they finally understand the action when they are almost startving or are they going to always be this bad?


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## Sfgwife (Feb 18, 2018)

Alesha said:


> They have eaten some but i deffinetly do not believe it is a well amount. The mother has some milk from what I am able to get out of her milking her myself (shes not used for milking shes a boer goat). The babies are also occasioanlly given the oportunity to nurse off one of our other moms who had twins thursday, but now that shes gained the understanding that the babies nursing arnt hers, she wont let them for long. And we have a nipple like that I will have to try. Is there any tricks to get the babies to want to take the bottle or at least not fight us when we put it in their mouth? Will they finally understand the action when they are almost startving or are they going to always be this bad?


You can put a small dab of molasses on the nipple. And just keep tryin it may take a few days for them to want to do it themselves. You can also see if the kid will suck your finger a d as they are sucking put the nipple into the side of their mouth and pull out your finger. Straighten the nipple to the front after you get yours out.


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## singinggoatgirl (Apr 13, 2016)

You don't need to end her suffering. She really will be okay if you get some selenium into her system. I don't think you can't really speed up the ligament tightening process other than giving the 2nd dose of selenium and vitamin e, but maybe someone else knows of a way to help. 

The milk should feel a little warm on your wrist, not body temp, but not hot. They run 101F, which is a fever for us. That should be your milk temp. Not nearly an exact science without a thermometer.

You can cover their eyes so it is dark like under mom, tickle their tail, and touch the nipple of the bottle to their nose (I like the red and yellow kind best). This simulates being under mom while she's licking them, and stimulates their instinct to root around and suckle. 

Will mom let them nurse? If yes, and she doesn't have much when you try to milk her, they might just be drinking it all. My good does always look empty when the babies are nursing well.


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## singinggoatgirl (Apr 13, 2016)

I reread your post. If mom is willing to feed them, let them take all they can get from her. If it isn't enough, supplement with a bottle if you can get them to take it. If they are not hypothermic and aren't desperate for a bottle, they might actually be getting enough. Hungry kids cry constantly, never pee, poo doesn't turn yellow. If they are energetic and content, it's fine.

The long-term effects of infant selenium deficiency are negligible, I believe, so long as you give her selenium now. If you can correct the deficiency, it'll be fine, and it sounds like you are off to a good start. Give her time.

Mom will only give birth to selenium deficient kids if she is deficient. If you get enough selenium into her before her next kidding, they won't have this problem. No need to overdose, but give her enough to correct her issues.


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## SalteyLove (Jun 18, 2011)

Selenium deficiency can also contribute to the low milk production. Are the kids wandering around hollering hungry or do you sometimes find them sleeping peacefully? I bet they are getting more than you think in numerous small feedings through the day. Be sure the doe stays well hydrated and has very good nutrition. Get a dose of selenium into all three of them.


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## goatblessings (Jan 6, 2015)

All good suggestions above - also weigh your kids and get a temp. Kids who are thriving and getting enough to eat will steadily gain weigh DAILY. You can use a hanging fish scale and put them in a bag to weigh them - this will give you pounds and ounces. A digital human thermometer is fine for the temps. These two things will tell you if they are gaining ok,, and if they are having trouble. Let us know how they are doing.


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## Nigerian dwarf goat (Sep 25, 2017)

milk needs to be 100-101 degrees Fahrenheit 

How are the goats doing?


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## Alesha (Mar 10, 2019)

Sfgwife said:


> You can put a small dab of molasses on the nipple. And just keep tryin it may take a few days for them to want to do it themselves. You can also see if the kid will suck your finger a d as they are sucking put the nipple into the side of their mouth and pull out your finger. Straighten the nipple to the front after you get yours out.


I will definetly try this thanks for the idea!!


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## Alesha (Mar 10, 2019)

singinggoatgirl said:


> You don't need to end her suffering. She really will be okay if you get some selenium into her system. I don't think you can't really speed up the ligament tightening process other than giving the 2nd dose of selenium and vitamin e, but maybe someone else knows of a way to help.
> 
> The milk should feel a little warm on your wrist, not body temp, but not hot. They run 101F, which is a fever for us. That should be your milk temp. Not nearly an exact science without a thermometer.
> 
> ...


Ok im glad theres hope for the little doeling! Ive never seen or heard of anything like this and was EXTREMELLY worried when I came home to her acting that way! The milk ive been trying to give them probably isnt the warmes compared to what your telling me.. whoops.. and thanks so much for the idea of ticking them and covering their eyes! I will try it! Mom will let them nurse, just compared to our other does she has almost no milk and with only one baby able to nurse without assistance, I am worried shes not producing like the other does.


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## Alesha (Mar 10, 2019)

singinggoatgirl said:


> I reread your post. If mom is willing to feed them, let them take all they can get from her. If it isn't enough, supplement with a bottle if you can get them to take it. If they are not hypothermic and aren't desperate for a bottle, they might actually be getting enough. Hungry kids cry constantly, never pee, poo doesn't turn yellow. If they are energetic and content, it's fine.
> 
> The long-term effects of infant selenium deficiency are negligible, I believe, so long as you give her selenium now. If you can correct the deficiency, it'll be fine, and it sounds like you are off to a good start. Give her time.
> 
> Mom will only give birth to selenium deficient kids if she is deficient. If you get enough selenium into her before her next kidding, they won't have this problem. No need to overdose, but give her enough to correct her issues.


The buckling seems to be energetic when you make him get up but I have yet to see him up and walking around without someone there to make him get up (even while watching them on the barn cameras) and the female just doesnt seem very lively. How do I give the mom more selenium before kidding? What should I be feeding more of? and stupid question.. why is she the only doe out of all of ours to have these problems, like the lack of milk and abnormal baby? Is there something I did wrong?


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## Alesha (Mar 10, 2019)

SalteyLove said:


> Selenium deficiency can also contribute to the low milk production. Are the kids wandering around hollering hungry or do you sometimes find them sleeping peacefully? I bet they are getting more than you think in numerous small feedings through the day. Be sure the doe stays well hydrated and has very good nutrition. Get a dose of selenium into all three of them.


Whats the best way to get selenium into them? I have the selenium/vitamin e oral paste. Is there something better? And I would think the male is able to eat multiple times a day but the female worries me since she cant get up and move around without someone there to keep her back legs from capsizing.


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## Alesha (Mar 10, 2019)

goatblessings said:


> All good suggestions above - also weigh your kids and get a temp. Kids who are thriving and getting enough to eat will steadily gain weigh DAILY. You can use a hanging fish scale and put them in a bag to weigh them - this will give you pounds and ounces. A digital human thermometer is fine for the temps. These two things will tell you if they are gaining ok,, and if they are having trouble. Let us know how they are doing.


I definetly will as of this morning they both weighed 8.8lbs (assuming my scale is right) I will weigh them again tomorrow and take their temps. Thanks for your reply!!


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## Alesha (Mar 10, 2019)

Nigerian dwarf goat said:


> milk needs to be 100-101 degrees Fahrenheit
> 
> How are the goats doing?


They are surviving but not thriving yet in my opinion. They seem to still be strong as the male fights you when you pick him up but the female has still got me worried. I wish I knew she was getting enough food in her system being she cant nurse without help.


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

For the collapsing legs, you can take a paper towel or toilet paper tube, cut it down to size, then slit it open the long way. Wrap a tube around each of baby's legs squeeze it down to the right diameter, making sure it's tight enough to support the joints but not so tight it is cuts circulation. For hind legs you can bend the tubes in the middle. Keep the tubes in place with vetwrap, ace bandage, or gauze. You could even tape them in place if you don't stick the tape to the hair, but you'll have to watch that the tubes don't slip down. I've had a few kids with crooked joints, and splinting seems to work within a few hours. Just make sure baby can rest because they often have trouble laying back down after they get up with splints on. Best of luck to you!


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## SalteyLove (Jun 18, 2011)

Yes the oral gel is fine, give it to all of them per tube instructions . Have you been giving that to the dam monthly?


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## singinggoatgirl (Apr 13, 2016)

Alesha said:


> the female just doesnt seem very lively. How do I give the mom more selenium before kidding? What should I be feeding more of? and stupid question.. why is she the only doe out of all of ours to have these problems, like the lack of milk and abnormal baby? Is there something I did wrong?


The only dumb question is one you don't ask that later hurts your goat. We were all beginners once, and I still am in many aspects of goatherding.

Is the doeling smaller than the buckling? I've recently been reminded that runts happen and sometimes they just need a little extra care. Sometimes one is just born stronger than the other. Keep holding her up to mom if you want mom to raise her.

Since you have it, use the Se+Vit.E gel on momma and babies.

I don't know why this momma is worse off, there are several reasons I can think of, so a few questions to start: how long have you had her? What salt or minerals do they have (product label will help) and what do you feed them currently? Where does she fall in the hierarchy of your herd?


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## Alesha (Mar 10, 2019)

Damfino said:


> For the collapsing legs, you can take a paper towel or toilet paper tube, cut it down to size, then slit it open the long way. Wrap a tube around each of baby's legs squeeze it down to the right diameter, making sure it's tight enough to support the joints but not so tight it is cuts circulation. For hind legs you can bend the tubes in the middle. Keep the tubes in place with vetwrap, ace bandage, or gauze. You could even tape them in place if you don't stick the tape to the hair, but you'll have to watch that the tubes don't slip down. I've had a few kids with crooked joints, and splinting seems to work within a few hours. Just make sure baby can rest because they often have trouble laying back down after they get up with splints on. Best of luck to you!


We tried to splint her when we first noticed it but it seemed like it did more harm then good. It seemed like putting them on made her legs to heavy. Is this true or am I just over exaggerating? Do I need to put splints on her to make her get better or is there a chance shell get through it on her own? Im not against putting splints on im just not the best at it lol. Thanks for your reply!!


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## Alesha (Mar 10, 2019)

SalteyLove said:


> Yes the oral gel is fine, give it to all of them per tube instructions . Have you been giving that to the dam monthly?


No I have not been I didnt know I was supposed to.. whoops..


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## Alesha (Mar 10, 2019)

singinggoatgirl said:


> The only dumb question is one you don't ask that later hurts your goat. We were all beginners once, and I still am in many aspects of goatherding.
> 
> Is the doeling smaller than the buckling? I've recently been reminded that runts happen and sometimes they just need a little extra care. Sometimes one is just born stronger than the other. Keep holding her up to mom if you want mom to raise her.
> 
> ...


As of sunday morning both babies weighted the same (8.8lbs assuming my scale is right) I will weigh them again tonight when I get home. And for the momma, Ive had her for about a year. Shes younger than my other does and was kept seperate from the buck while he was on my property but I came home after a weekend trip to find her in the pen with the older does and the buck.. I was hoping she wasnt bred, but I guess my hopes didnt come true this time. They all have free choice over a few brown mineral blocks and their feed is a costom made recipe I recieved from the man we got her and a few other does off of. I can look at the specifics on it when I get home if that would help? As far as the hierarchy shes not at the top by any means, shes in the middle, maybe towards the bottom but I hardely ever seen any other goats go after her or her go after them. The last few mounths shes been seperated from the heard and stalled with another female (who had twin boys thursday morning) in a heated barn because they were close to kidding. Thank you for your reply it is greatly appreciated!!


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## jodane (Apr 18, 2017)

If they aren't gaining weigh and mama seems to not have enough milk then you should supplement them. We recently had similar situation where mama just doesn't seem to have enough milk. after 24 hours the babies looked sluggish and one was doing what I call "the death lay" Curled up in a ball and head cranked in an awkward position. We started supplementing them that night and they are big and thriving now 5 weeks later. If they won't drink from a nipple, get a large syringe (no needle) and slowly feed them with it, if they start sucking they can get the milk out, if they won't suck then you can control input so they don't choke. 

my Recipe modified from some posted here:
1 gallon of whole milk
1 can of evaporated milk
1 cup of whole plain yogurt (or buttermilk but read ingredients on buttermilk as some brands aren't real buttermilk but full of fillers etc) this is for the live enzymes to get the rumen started
1 cup cream (some people don't do this claiming it's too rich, I think they need the extra fat) use your own judgement- my kids are thriving

as mentioned in other posts make sure kids temps are over 100 degrees before feeding
make sure milk is nice and warm
you need to feed 4-6 oz every 3-4 hours (since ours seemed to be nursing some from moma we only got up in middle of night for the first 4-5 days but then left her to take care of them overnight and we took supplemental feeding during the day. 
as they get older, then you can adjust feeding. leave them with moma if she isn't rejecting them, as she will teach them how to be a goat and integrate into the herd as well as protect them.

feeding schedule should be something like this. 
weeks 1-3 5-6 oz every 3-4 hours or as much as you schedule allows
Weeks 4-5 6-8 oz 4 times per day
week 6-7 6-10 oz 3 times per day
week 8-11 10-15 oz 2 times per day
week 12 10-15 oz 1 time per day


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## singinggoatgirl (Apr 13, 2016)

These are my guesses. I don’t feel like an expert yet in this area, but I can give you some ideas. 

For most people, mineral blocks won’t give enough. Goat tongues aren’t rough or as strong as a cow’s, so they don’t get as much off of it. I use a loose mineral salt mix. It is the consistency of coarse sand.

She might just be a little extra drained because she kidded so young.

Some does just need a little more of certain minerals than others. 

I’m guessing if she is deficient, then your others are too, just maybe not showing as much.

Do you have the feed recipe and block info? Do they get hay or other greenery?


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## Critter015 (Feb 19, 2017)

I had a little doeling whose legs did that. I helped her stand to eat a few times a day and her legs were functioning normally by the time she was a week old. She was super active and would basically drag her hind legs behind her and she was starting to get sores on the inside of the joint. I would put the legs in the right position whenever I went out. I found directions somewhere online to make a sort of sling using rubber bands that kept the hind legs from going too far back and helped keep them in the right position, and that seemed to help her a lot.


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

All really good advice.


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## Alesha (Mar 10, 2019)

jodane said:


> If they aren't gaining weigh and mama seems to not have enough milk then you should supplement them. We recently had similar situation where mama just doesn't seem to have enough milk. after 24 hours the babies looked sluggish and one was doing what I call "the death lay" Curled up in a ball and head cranked in an awkward position. We started supplementing them that night and they are big and thriving now 5 weeks later. If they won't drink from a nipple, get a large syringe (no needle) and slowly feed them with it, if they start sucking they can get the milk out, if they won't suck then you can control input so they don't choke.
> 
> my Recipe modified from some posted here:
> 1 gallon of whole milk
> ...


I tried your recipie and to me it tasted very good (my friend and I were having problems with the nipples so we sucked on them to make sure they were working good) but neither of the babies wanted anything to do with them


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## Alesha (Mar 10, 2019)

Critter015 said:


> I had a little doeling whose legs did that. I helped her stand to eat a few times a day and her legs were functioning normally by the time she was a week old. She was super active and would basically drag her hind legs behind her and she was starting to get sores on the inside of the joint. I would put the legs in the right position whenever I went out. I found directions somewhere online to make a sort of sling using rubber bands that kept the hind legs from going too far back and helped keep them in the right position, and that seemed to help her a lot.


Is there any chance you still have those directions?


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## Alesha (Mar 10, 2019)

UPDATE!!! Momma goat has rejected the doeling completly. She wont let her anywhere close to her and isnt letting her eat... and I still cant get her to take a bottle. Me and another lady had to pin another doe against a gate so I knew she got something in her little belly. Im between a rock and a hard place I dont know what to do and I have to leave for a day and a half this weekend. The lady whos watching my animals isnt the most educated and i dont want to have to stick her with a baby who wont bottle feed. But by no means am i ready to give up on this little one. Any suggestions????


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## dzt66 (Apr 9, 2018)

Heartbreaking. I’m so sorry  

I had a similar situation a couple weeks ago and I had to leave a one week old baby who didn’t have a great mom for two weeks while I was out of the country. Fortunately the mom is persuaded to be still if she has feed to distract her while baby nursed. Have you tried that? 

When I left my mom took over making sure mom was distracted with treats/grain while baby ate.


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## singinggoatgirl (Apr 13, 2016)

I’m sorry momma rejected her. I have no ideas there.

If I were leaving soon, I personally would pull the kid immediately and offer a bottle every 2-4 hours to acclimate her as fast as possible to the idea that a bottle is her only option.

I had 4 different stubborn babies that were without mommas at 4 weeks old. Each of them took a bottle eventually. 2 of them took a full week before they willingly sucked on a bottle. All of mine were strong and healthy, though, when I was forced to put them on bottles. Your baby probably doesn’t have the luxury of burning through some baby fat while she figures it out. Use the red Pritchard nipple, make sure it has a fast-ish flow (how low you cut it increases flow rate). Make sure the bottle is at a comfortable temperature range. Force it into her mouth if simulating mom doesn’t work. Pull it out if she starts to choke. My most stubborn ones still chose to swallow whatever happened to fall into their mouths while they fought with me. Something in her belly is a lot better than nothing so long as she is warm enough to digest it.


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## mariarose (Oct 23, 2014)

I completely agree with @singinggoatgirl 
The sooner you pull her and get her on the bottle the better.

That way you are letting your friend help you with a bottle baby, not a baby who still thinks she's on the dam.

I use medium flow silicone baby bottle nipples to start out with. They rarely choke on those and are easy to find at my local dollar store.

Whatever bottle/nipple you choose, it WILL take several tries before the kid understands and "gets" it. It doesn't taste/feel like mom and it might be poisonous.

This is normal. Keep trying every couple of hours and keep her warm in the meantime.


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## Sfgwife (Feb 18, 2018)

dzt66 said:


> Heartbreaking. I'm so sorry
> 
> I had a similar situation a couple weeks ago and I had to leave a one week old baby who didn't have a great mom for two weeks while I was out of the country. Fortunately the mom is persuaded to be still if she has feed to distract her while baby nursed. Have you tried that?
> 
> When I left my mom took over making sure mom was distracted with treats/grain while baby ate.


When you get the nipple in her mouth are you kinda squeezin her mouth together so she might uderstand to try suck it? Squeeze and let go rinse and repeat. Or maybe rub a hand towel on mama and then the nipple and cover her noggin with it. I agree with takin her completely away from mama and not puttin her on another doe. So she realizes this is your only way of the milks. It is less confusing to her most likely that way.


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## Alesha (Mar 10, 2019)

dzt66 said:


> Heartbreaking. I'm so sorry
> 
> I had a similar situation a couple weeks ago and I had to leave a one week old baby who didn't have a great mom for two weeks while I was out of the country. Fortunately the mom is persuaded to be still if she has feed to distract her while baby nursed. Have you tried that?
> 
> When I left my mom took over making sure mom was distracted with treats/grain while baby ate.


Yeah weve tried but as soon as a baby starts to nurse she stops whatever shes doing and makes sure its the male feeding. Weve tried to let them nurse together thinking shed maybe accept it but she wont have anything to do with the female anymore


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## Alesha (Mar 10, 2019)

singinggoatgirl said:


> I'm sorry momma rejected her. I have no ideas there.
> 
> If I were leaving soon, I personally would pull the kid immediately and offer a bottle every 2-4 hours to acclimate her as fast as possible to the idea that a bottle is her only option.
> 
> I had 4 different stubborn babies that were without mommas at 4 weeks old. Each of them took a bottle eventually. 2 of them took a full week before they willingly sucked on a bottle. All of mine were strong and healthy, though, when I was forced to put them on bottles. Your baby probably doesn't have the luxury of burning through some baby fat while she figures it out. Use the red Pritchard nipple, make sure it has a fast-ish flow (how low you cut it increases flow rate). Make sure the bottle is at a comfortable temperature range. Force it into her mouth if simulating mom doesn't work. Pull it out if she starts to choke. My most stubborn ones still chose to swallow whatever happened to fall into their mouths while they fought with me. Something in her belly is a lot better than nothing so long as she is warm enough to digest it.


Yes it is! We are going to have to pull her if she doesnt get it tonight but we thought the company of the other babies were good for her.


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## Alesha (Mar 10, 2019)

mariarose said:


> I completely agree with @singinggoatgirl
> The sooner you pull her and get her on the bottle the better.
> 
> That way you are letting your friend help you with a bottle baby, not a baby who still thinks she's on the dam.
> ...


Ok. We will try every type of nipple I come across until she finds one she likes lol. Thanks for your reply!


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## Alesha (Mar 10, 2019)

Sfgwife said:


> When you get the nipple in her mouth are you kinda squeezin her mouth together so she might uderstand to try suck it? Squeeze and let go rinse and repeat. Or maybe rub a hand towel on mama and then the nipple and cover her noggin with it. I agree with takin her completely away from mama and not puttin her on another doe. So she realizes this is your only way of the milks. It is less confusing to her most likely that way.


Ok I will probably pull her tonight. I really hope she can become a healthy goat in the future.


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## mariarose (Oct 23, 2014)

Alesha said:


> Ok. We will try every type of nipple I come across until she finds one she likes lol. Thanks for your reply!


That my point, though. You WON'T find one she likes. Don't try to wait for that, because you need to get her on a bottle and strongly on a bottle before you leave.


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## Dwarf Dad (Aug 27, 2017)

@Alesha , another member who had problems getting a baby to latch, @mariella , had to put baby in armpit to get it going.


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## Alesha (Mar 10, 2019)

mariarose said:


> That my point, though. You WON'T find one she likes. Don't try to wait for that, because you need to get her on a bottle and strongly on a bottle before you leave.


Yes I know I didnt mean to make it sound like thats what we are waiting on. We have been feeding her with syringes to make sure shes eating.


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## singinggoatgirl (Apr 13, 2016)

At this point, pick the nipple YOU think will do best for her/ is easiest for your friend to handle, and only use that one. You are teaching her that this bottle is her only option now, so changing anything, including what nipple she uses, is counter productive. It might feel like tough love because she hates it so badly, but that’s part of goat parenting.


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## SalteyLove (Jun 18, 2011)

Are the female goat kid's back legs improving? She is standing on her own now and occasionally taking steps? You should be seeing rapid improvement in her mobility. 

I didn't go back to read every post this time, but just to reiterate - you are offering the bottle at 100*F right? 

For me, the best way to get them on the bottle is this:
Kneel on the floor with the goat kid, bottle, and a dish towel within reach. Turn off all lights. Put the goat kid's butt between your knees so she cannot back away and leaving you two hands free to manage the mouth a bottle. Throw the dish towel over her head and eyes, place one hand under her chin to control and open the mouth, and hold your bottle nearly vertical in the other hand and get the nipple in her mouth. At this point you will be somewhat hunched over the goat kid providing the feel of a large warm body nearby. Keep the chin steady as she begins to nurse by cupping with your non-bottle hand.


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## mariarose (Oct 23, 2014)

Alesha said:


> We have been feeding her with syringes to make sure shes eating.


Then she has no incentive to eat from a bottle, has she?

Choose a nipple, and make that her only option, and do it now.


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

All very good advice.


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## alicejane (Jan 15, 2014)

Damfino said:


> For the collapsing legs, you can take a paper towel or toilet paper tube, cut it down to size, then slit it open the long way. Wrap a tube around each of baby's legs squeeze it down to the right diameter, making sure it's tight enough to support the joints but not so tight it is cuts circulation. For hind legs you can bend the tubes in the middle. Keep the tubes in place with vetwrap, ace bandage, or gauze. You could even tape them in place if you don't stick the tape to the hair, but you'll have to watch that the tubes don't slip down. I've had a few kids with crooked joints, and splinting seems to work within a few hours. Just make sure baby can rest because they often have trouble laying back down after they get up with splints on. Best of luck to you!


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## alicejane (Jan 15, 2014)

Have you been massaging her bags felt for lumps is her bag red hot etc , do you milk correctly. If she is sore the vet can give something to cause her to let her milk down. Not sure what that is. Pain med for sure.
Do you know if she gave the colostrum? Isn't copper also givrn for weak legs? Others may speak on this.


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## alicejane (Jan 15, 2014)

Wow you must be running on adrenulin! So fun taking care of babies?


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## alicejane (Jan 15, 2014)

alicejane said:


> Wow you must be running on adrenulin! So fun taking care of babies?


Sorry this is on wrong post.


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## Sophie123 (Feb 18, 2019)

It's probably a little late for commenting on this, but just in case you haven't resolved the issues. For the legs, a few of ours had this happen before and I was told by someone to give some a Bo-Se shot and a shot of vitamine B, and they were just fine the very next day. For the nipples: I use regular cheap walmart baby bottles with rubber nipples and cut the hole bigger. If she won't eat at all, tube her ( put a clean stomach tube in her, have someone that knows how to do that show you first time, attach a large 60cc syringe with tip and feed her some milk, not too much at one time, only fill it up once). That should give her some energy and maybe then she will eventually drink the bottle. We have had this problem a few times, and that is what we did and they all survived.

Forgot to add this: if you feed her with a syringe, you can end up putting fluid in her lunges and she will get pneumonia, so the tube might sound terrible but it doesn't hurt them and it's the easiest way to get food into them


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

Feeding with syringe is safe, if you go slowly at the back corner of the mouth.
Just a very small amount of milk is plunged at a time. 
Remove the syringe from the corner of the mouth after a Small plunge of milk or whatever is being given orally, to allow the kid to swallow.

Do not plunge too much at a time, maybe a 1cc at a time. Plunging too much, will get you in trouble, the key is, slow and patience.

Don't allow the kids head to be too high.

If the kid coughs, stop immediately and allow the kid to cough. Then proceed, only when the kid stops.

If a person doesn't know how to tube feed, this is a good alternative, if they do it slowly.


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## Dwarf Dad (Aug 27, 2017)

SalteyLove said:


> Are the female goat kid's back legs improving? She is standing on her own now and occasionally taking steps? You should be seeing rapid improvement in her mobility.
> 
> I didn't go back to read every post this time, but just to reiterate - you are offering the bottle at 100*F right?
> 
> ...


That is a very detailed explanation! Thank you for teaching the maneuver to all of us.


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## Sfgwife (Feb 18, 2018)

How is the kid doin with the bottle now?


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