Important Tips ~ After Goat Kids are Born

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After your goats have their kids.  Here are some tips on what needs to be done.

Important tips for after the goat kids are born

At this time I don’t have a really large herd of goats, therefore kidding is pretty easy this year.  We had a set of twins on Sunday and another set of twins on Wednesday.

I am always so glad to get them here safely for my does sake and for the babies.  Although we did have a bit of a problem with the last doe.  One of the kids was pretty big and had one front leg back.  I had to gently help her work it out until that second shoulder appeared and then he came right out.

I love it when I see both of those front feet poking out and a nose then I know they are coming the right way.  The second baby came out without a problem although she was a little smaller.

Get them up to eat

After the babies are born I make sure they are up and eat as soon as possible.  Luckily all 4 of these were born with a very healthy appetite.  I try to let mom clean them off by herself as much as possible, so she can build a bond with them.  If it is cold out, I take a clean towel or shop paper towels and help her out.  It is important that it is clean and not a towel you have used on another does babies, without washing.  You don’t want it to smell like the other doe if so you risk her not taking it.  If that happens you have a bottle baby to feed.

After the babies are dried off and have gotten up to eat for the first time I step back and let mom handle it.  I check on her every half hour or so to make sure everything is still ok.

The next important thing is to make sure everyone is getting enough milk.  If your doe has more than 2 babies you may have to pull the extra kids off and feed them by a bottle, especially if she doesn’t have enough milk for more than 2.

Watch for mastitis

It is important to watch your doe closely to make sure she doesn’t get mastitis.  If the does bag is getting too full and tight I milk some out (I have Nubian does with plenty of milk).  I do this to prevent mastitis, especially if there is only one kid or if they are only eating out of one side.  If I only have one kid I end up milking every day twice a day.  If you do things the right way, the milk is wonderful to drink.  (More about this in another post.)

How to tell if your doe is getting mastitis.  If the bag is hot and tight, clumps of milk or blood come out of the teat when you milk, you have got a problem.  If you don’t take care of this quick you can lose your doe as a milker or worse yet she could die.  This is a serious infection and needs quick action.

Sit back and enjoy the fun

Now that you have everyone delivered, eating and doing well now comes my favorite. Pull up a lawn chair and sit back, enjoy watching these babies as they grow and play.  They are so fun to watch as they bounce around the barnyard sideways with twists and turns trying out their new legs.  They love logs, old water troughs and anything else you add to their obstacle course to play on.

Watching the grandkids enjoy them is one of the best parts.

I hope you enjoyed my blog post.  I would love to hear your comments and experiences, just leave them below.