Nubian cross too young to kid?

My new nubian cross goat seems to be pregnant. I am only speculating at this point but if she is I'm worried that she won't be big enough at birthing time. She's about 40 lbs now and about 6 months old, I think. If the sire was a pygmy then she might be okay but if it was a full size goat I'm worried the kid or kids will be too big. It was a mixed herd that I got her from.

Wow, that's kind of a problem, considering she hasn't finished growing. I just read an article on Dairy Goat Journal that states how you can evaluate if a young goat has good structure for birthing and milking that might be helpful to judge her bone structure for birthing. This is what is says: "One of the first things I look at in a doe kid whom I’m considering keeping is to see if she has a wide rump. That width will give her the structure to kid with ease, giving lots of room for kids to pass. If the rump is narrow, the chances rapidly increase that a kid could get stuck, requiring assistance either manually or thru surgery, to prevent damage to the internal birth passage which could occur due to trauma of passing a kid that is wider than the opening for it to pass through. A wide rump also allows for the width of the udder to hold more milk. The width of the thurls help the legs be wide enough to walk comfortably around a full capacious udder." You might want to read the article on the website yourself to glean anything else of use in helping you evaluate her situation for what you can expect at kidding. The link is: http://www.dairygoatjournal.com/89-2/understanding_good_rump_structure_in_a_dairy_goat/ Keep in mind to read the article you have to answer the question they have in the highlighted box. It took me a while to figure that out. If you don't answer the question the biggest portion of the article is blocked out.

I would also think that feeding her to help her continue to grow to her full potential as her pregnancy progresses would be extremely important, but then overfeeding her, especially during her last month of pregnancy would not be good for her, as it could cause the kid(s) to be oversized. If it were me I would probably take her to my large animal vet to get specific advice concerning her diet and/or possibly get an idea of how far along she might be with an ultrasound. Hope that helps!

I don't even breed my Nubian does until 70#, so no this is not ideal. But since you are unsure if she truly is prego I would try testing either sending in blood or by ultrasound if you have that available. Then you can decide how nervous to get!
I have heard of does getting bred by their own brothers at less than 6 months...but Nubians in general are slower to mature. It's also not really rut season so we'll all pray she's open and just eating well!

TheNewMrsEvans said:

I don't even breed my Nubian does until 70#, so no this is not ideal. But since you are unsure if she truly is prego I would try testing either sending in blood or by ultrasound if you have that available. Then you can decide how nervous to get!
I have heard of does getting bred by their own brothers at less than 6 months...but Nubians in general are slower to mature. It's also not really rut season so we'll all pray she's open and just eating well!

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Hey thanks for your response! I have relaxed a little and am thinking she is just a good Eater. I'll keep you posted!

take a little feel of her udder, is it tight on her belly or is it a little loose and or wiggly. depending on how far along she is could help tell. most of my doelings have tight skin until a couple of months after they are bred then it starts to loosen up.