Sweetened
Herd Master
I havent read all responses, but their all right. I, however, have a doe that, up until she started throwing milk in her bag and coughed out a kid less than 24 hours later, i swore she wasnt pregnant.
Oh I know that all too well!Not always reliable - I have wasted more time watching a goat I thought was in labor before deciding she was just bringing up her cud LOL
Thanks Glenmar! I should look into that!For pregnancy checks, I draw blood at 35 days and send it to Biotracking.
When do you get to know the results?We just sent a blood sample in to have Maggie checked since we had to have Melanie checked for CAE, CL and Johne's.
Oh, I was just referring to them both being first fresheners.Glenmar: I am surprised people haven't aked you to teach them how to draw blood. A breeder taught my son how to draw so we could do our CAE testing on our own time. He was about 14 and did all the blood draws after that. We usually sent in about 25 samples or more a year. You can get the sample tubes from Jeffers.
Blessed: I don't know what FF goats are. We had dairy goats and Boers but I am assuming they are the same. You don't need the "baby bounce" except for fun. You know they are both PG and when they are due. Gestation is 5 months and 5 days. In another month you will see and feel the babies moving through the goats' sides. (When I saw that the first time I realized why my husband was so excited to feel the babies kicking when I was pregnant LOL) Don't rely on water breaking to know that they are in labor. The goat will do several things. Her "goat berries" will get stickier and softer. She will suddenly start pigging out on food since the babies will drop and now she has room for food in her rumen. When she is in labor she will get up, lay down, change position, etc. She might also look like she stops breathing for a minute - this will be the contractions. (Not always reliable - I have wasted more time watching a goat I thought was in labor before deciding she was just bringing up her cud LOL) The water often doesn't break until the baby is almost born. So fun, so messy! Have newspapers available to put the newborn kids on and towels if you need them. Remember to put iodine on the navel. I put iodine in a pill container then put the container over the cord and stump and turn the kid over to get the iodine on it really good. It is easier than trying to pour or swab it on. MOST IMPORTANT! WEAR OLD CLOTHES - BIRTH IS A MESSY PROCESS AND IODINE STAINS. BUT SOOOO MUCH FUN!!!
Good luck - can't wait to see pix of the kids.