# Nervously awaiting first babies



## Pearce Pastures (Jun 8, 2011)

Well our two ladies are due in 5 days and boy are they miserable in this 100 degree heat.  I'm getting nervous!  We have the kidding pens set, equipment gathered, and baby monitors readied.

I'm curious-is i normal for them to have a SUPER appetite just before they kid and should I just let them chow down?  I am worried that the babies will get too fat for them to have an easy birth but they cry for food and woof it down.


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## 20kidsonhill (Jun 8, 2011)

grass and hay, all they can eat.

But limit the grain. Yes, the babies can get too big.


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## Pearce Pastures (Jun 8, 2011)

Thanks-will do.

I am kind of wondering if one might go early.  She has some discharge and has quite an udder.  Does anyone know if pygmies tend towards earlier than the 150 day mark?  I tried to "check ligaments" but seriously can't tell what I am feeling for at this point.


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## mdoerge (Jun 8, 2011)

Not sure about pygmies, but my Nigerians kid between days 145-148.  Good luck!


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## 20kidsonhill (Jun 9, 2011)

I think from reading on here the smaller breeds tend to go a lilttle sooner than the bigger breeds,  

Triplets and quads seem to go 3 to 5 days sooner, also.  In my opinion. 

but it is normal for them to have a creamy discharge for up to a month before kidding.  

Not saying she wont go sooner than the others, just saying some does develop differently than others. I use belly dropping and loosness of the vulva as my main two tools for detecting when they will kid. As the belly drops, the hips start to stick out more, giving the doe an appearance of being thinner/ bonier  across the top.  When the babies drop, the doe gets this different kind of walk to her, her back legs become stiffer looking and she doesn't walk as smoothly.  

Many times the last 12 to 24 hours they are less likely to run to the buffet, and you can almost predict were they will choose to kid, because they start spending more time, under their favortie tree, or in their favorite corner.


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## terrilhb (Jun 9, 2011)

Good luck and don't forget to post pictures when they are born. Sending hugs.


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## Pearce Pastures (Jun 12, 2011)

Well, I am not sure yet-I keep checking in on the girls-they are miserable but not much change yet.  The are officially "due" on Wednesday.  Sunny has some reddish/yellow/white stuff going on, but only a little.  She seems kind of opened up down there but her ligaments aren't sunk in like I saw in some people's pictures.  Daisy-not completely sure on her due date so we'll just have to wait and see-can't be too much behind Sunny though.  My sons are already working on names (more flowers of course


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## elevan (Jun 12, 2011)

My last pygmy to give birth went at day 149.

I go on "watch" day 143...but project due dates for day 150.


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## Roll farms (Jun 13, 2011)

Good luck, hoping for an uneventful / easy time for your does.


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## Pearce Pastures (Jun 13, 2011)

Well I think we might be starting-only with our less friendly doe instead of the one I thought would kid first.  She is all lovey and letting us handle her-she is usually standoffish.  She looks really open in the back (not sure if that means anything) and feels really mushy around the tail (I am still no expert on reading the ligaments but having been checking for the last week, I think I get what everyone means now).  Guess we will see.  This is her/ our first time so not expecting anything tonight but I am setting up the baby monitor just in case.


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## Cadillac Jill (Jun 14, 2011)

20kidsonhill said:
			
		

> As the belly drops, the hips start to stick out more, giving the doe an appearance of being thinner/ bonnier  across the top.  When the babies drop, the doe gets this different kind of walk to her, her back legs become stiffer looking and she doesn't walk as smoothly.


Well, this is some handy info! One of our FF does is due in 12 days, and over the weekend her bones really started protruding. A week before she'd gotten so big around the middle that we were concerned about the possibility of very large kids, and rationed her grain more strictly than we'd been advised by the breeder. When we saw those bones, we changed our minds and started giving her more. (I didn't want to starve a pregnant goat!)

I'll take a fresh look at her physique in the morning to determine whether we should continue with the increased grain ration or scale things back down.

Thanks for sharing!


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## willowbreezefarm (Jun 14, 2011)

Good luck! 
We are still waiting on my doe! She is showing all signs but no baby yet!!


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## 20kidsonhill (Jun 14, 2011)

Cadillac Jill said:
			
		

> 20kidsonhill said:
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If you have one of the thinner dairy breeds, you probably don't need to be as worried about cutting back on feed, if you have one of the meatier breeds or your blood-line carries flesh easily then you should be careful about over feeding your doe during pregnancy.   

My theory is, a smaller kid will grow and survive, where as a big single may not survive birth and mom may not survive either. but I have a meat breed, the babies can and will get too big, if the doe is over fed during the last 1/3 of her gestation.


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## 20kidsonhill (Jun 14, 2011)




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## Pearce Pastures (Jun 14, 2011)

Nothing yet-Daisy is acting off, wanting to be scratched and keeps stamping her back legs, but no babies yet.  Gosh is this nerve-wracking!  Probably for her too

They are pygmy goats-they don't neatly fit into dairy or meat but I think they are more on the meat side because of their stocky build-I went ahead and upped their hay and alfalfa and cut their grains because they looked very healthy and I don't want to risk it.

Going to go check in-I hear pawing on the baby monitor.


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## doxiemoxie (Jun 14, 2011)

Thanks for keeping us posted.  Don't forget pictures!   I hope and pray everything goes well and that you get lots of pink.


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## elevan (Jun 14, 2011)

Pygmies are notoriously easy kidders...but despite that mine still make a mess out of _ME_ at kidding time (mentally)


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## willowbreezefarm (Jun 14, 2011)

my binky is a pygmy. she kidded early this morning and had her mess cleaned up. i was really impressed just because it was her first time kidding! Vet said she had eatten her placenta and everything else so i went up to clean dry babys this morning.


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## Pearce Pastures (Jun 15, 2011)

Thank you all for the support-it is nice to know that they kid easy (I have been a little freaked looking at them-they are HUGE!).


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## willowbreezefarm (Jun 15, 2011)

I cant wait to see your little ones!! Im now waiting on one more doe to kid. Should be close but who knows
Good luck and I look forward to seeing your babys!!


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## Pearce Pastures (Jun 17, 2011)

AHHH!  Here we are, a few days past when I thought we'd have babies.  they keep psyching me out-discharge, grunting, pawing, acting strangely, udders getting full.  Last night I was sure the one was having contractions, flexing her back weirdly and freezing up.  This morning, she is playing out in the yard, waddling around still hugely preggers.  Soon enough I suppose


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## MissDanni (Jun 18, 2011)

Melissa,

I feel for you right now.

We are in the same situation, I'm waiting anxiously for my very first kid and I can't tell who is more tired, her or I.

It is so great that we have a place like this where people can offer and receive support especially at times like this when a person really needs it.

Wishing you the best of luck and hope you are blessed with health happy babies/baby.

Big hugs to you!


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## elevan (Jun 18, 2011)

Haha!  My Daisy drove me crazy for well over a month.  I was SURE about the due date but she must have bred (sneaky fashion) the heat after I witnessed.  At least you're dealing with this in warm weather...I was sitting in the barn at night in January!  brrr!


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