# Nigerian Dwarf Doeling producing milk - pregnant?



## Humblebeginningshomestead (Nov 8, 2018)

Hello! New here. One week ago we purchased a Nigerian dwarf doeling that was born in May, (making her almost six months old) and a Nigerian dwarf buck that is 1 year old. Previous owners did not have them separated, for whatever reason but they are separated now. 

Last evening I was examine our doelings as I usually do and noted that our little Nigerian dwarf doeling has milk. She is not bagged up, so the udder does not feel full but I was able to squirt milk from her teats.

I imagine that since she has been with this buck all her life that she is definitely pregnant, I think she is probably about 35lbs right now. Given that I am able to essentially milk her, is there any way to predict how pregnant she is? Our other doe is expecting her first in late February and cannot be milked. Any insight? Could it be too late for lute and in the opinion of the more experienced, is lute necessary?


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## Goat Whisperer (Nov 8, 2018)

Sounds like she is pregnant. Every goat is different so who knows how far along she is.
Start talking to your vets now. Maybe have an ultrasound done, and talk about the possibility of doing a C-section. 
Talk to your vet about the lute.

Very sorry you are dealing with this  No breeder should ever let a buck run with their Nigerian dwarf doelings. Just irresponsible and people like you (as well as the goat) have to pay the price.


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## B&B Happy goats (Nov 8, 2018)

Plese take goat wisperers  advice, same just happened to me last month, we found a vet too late and lost ND doe and kid.....the sister was also bred, and she delivered three weeks later...their picture is on my avatar.  Best of luck to you, please let us know how it works out.    BTW welcome to BYH...great people here, lot's  knowledgeable  people.


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## Humblebeginningshomestead (Nov 8, 2018)

B&B Happy goats said:


> Plese take goat wisperers  advice, same just happened to me last month, we found a vet too late and lost ND doe and kid.....the sister was also bred, and she delivered three weeks later...their picture is on my avatar.  Best of luck to you, please let us know how it works out.    BTW welcome to BYH...great people here, lot's  knowledgeable  people.


How old was your Doeling?


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## B&B Happy goats (Nov 8, 2018)

The does were born feb. 7th, i got them in august, samanth died at eight months old and kid still had two more weeks of growing to be able to live. The other sister made it full term three weeks later and gave birth to one. .....yours is three months younger than mine were....a vet that deals with goats may be able to help you, . Calll the people you got them from and ask if they have a vet.....i really am concerned for your goat....the experience  with mine was three days of agony, if i had known what the outcome would of been i would of put her down myself.....these little goats can get pregnant at three, sometimes two months of age. And if that happens, the growing kid takes all the nutrition  from the doe, ....doe fails....she dies,.... we cry...please let me know how its going , wishing you luck, barb


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## Humblebeginningshomestead (Nov 8, 2018)

I added some photos of her for anyone with more opinions


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## B&B Happy goats (Nov 8, 2018)

Have you been able to talk with a vet yet ?  I really hate to see you go thru what we did, and at six month....ugh that is worse than our situation.....


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## Goat Whisperer (Nov 8, 2018)

Do you have udder pics?


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## Wehner Homestead (Nov 8, 2018)

I hate that you are dealing with this. Unfortunately, it’s very common! Our experience was someone breeding a female that was old enough but too small. It ended in an emergency cesarean and spay. The kid didn’t survive and the doe had to be a pet. (We were getting into dairy goats.) The advice mentioned above is correct. Contact a vet first and foremost. 

Also, something to keep in mind...don’t try to express milk. Doing so removes the plug that the body has in place as a protective barrier. Without this plug, the teat now has an open pathway for bacteria to enter the udder and increase the risk of mastitis. 

She’s a pretty girl! Most of our 20 are some combination of black and/or white.


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## Wehner Homestead (Nov 8, 2018)

Is that the male with pendulous ears next to her??


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## Humblebeginningshomestead (Nov 8, 2018)

Wehner Homestead said:


> Is that the male with pendulous ears next to her??


No, that is one of our three month old mini nubian doelings. Our bucks have a different pen, never run with the does . The male is a Nigerian dwarf.


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## Humblebeginningshomestead (Nov 8, 2018)

B&B Happy goats said:


> Have you been able to talk with a vet yet ?  I really hate to see you go thru what we did, and at six month....ugh that is worse than our situation.....


We did get ahold of a local farm vet, she will be coming out to do an exam and ultrasound if needed to confirm pregnancy and we will go from there.


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## B&B Happy goats (Nov 8, 2018)

Humblebeginningshomestead said:


> We did get ahold of a local farm vet, she will be coming out to do an exam and ultrasound if needed to confirm pregnancy and we will go from there.


Oh thank goodness, I feel so relieved for you, please keep me posted, either on this post or @B&BHappy Goats journal....


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## Wehner Homestead (Nov 8, 2018)

I feel a little bit better about the kid(s) not being from a huge buck!


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## B&B Happy goats (Nov 12, 2018)

Hi what did the vet have to say ?


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## PattyNH (Nov 14, 2018)

@Humblebeginningshomestead Did the vet make it out yet?  Been wondering how your girl is holding up...


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## Humblebeginningshomestead (Nov 21, 2018)

Hi all! Sorry for the late reply. We had a snow storm here and our vet had to reschedule but came today. Kids are not able to be felt within Gouda but that’s not to say she isn’t pregnant. The vet feels she was most likely bred as she spent the first 5 months of her life with a buck. Nov 9th we noticed vaginal mucus but none since. I’ve seen no signs of heat, and I have noticed additional swelling of her vulva. Vet drew blood and we will know for certain within a few days if she is surely pregnant. The vet feels that given the size of the buck not being huge that she will likely be okay to kid, and that we can just hope for multiples as well.


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## Wehner Homestead (Nov 22, 2018)

Thanks for the update. Please keep us posted.


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## Humblebeginningshomestead (Nov 30, 2018)

Goudas blood test did come back positive, as we knew it would. She seems like she’s rapidly growing so I suspect we are within the last two months of her pregnancy. She had discharge on 11/8 and just out of pure precaution that “what if” she got pregnant prior to being three months old, I’m going to keep close watch from Christmas on. Fingers crossed for small but strong healthy kids!


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## Wehner Homestead (Dec 7, 2018)

Get your kit ready. Pray and hope for the best but be ready for the worst so you can handle whatever comes along!!


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## Humblebeginningshomestead (Dec 22, 2018)

Our kit is ready, and Gouda continues to expand. I haven’t seen any drastic udder development but I’m definitely on kid watch. This morning I was able to feel slight movement on her right side and in front of her Udder. So I imagine we are in our last few weeks. Her backside continues to swell. Fingers crossed for delivery on a day that’s not bitter cold here!


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## Humblebeginningshomestead (Jan 1, 2019)

For all following: I have a kidding pen made for Gouda. The pen is In our garage that is attached to the house, so she will be much closer by than if left down with our others. The question is - when do I move her? I can easily feel kids moving within her for the past week. She turned 7 months old on the 21st of December. I don’t want to stress her by removing her from the herd too early but I want to make sure I’m there for her and not assisting a birth in the dead cold down across the property. Thoughts?


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## Goat Whisperer (Jan 1, 2019)

Does she have any friends you could bring up with her? We usually bring ours up when they start to look like they are nearing kidding, but of course we know when our girls are due. We do tend to bring our young does up earlier, because we've had them kid early. 

You could try to bring her up now and see how she adjusts.


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## Humblebeginningshomestead (Jan 10, 2019)

Hi all, I brought Gouda and another doe up on the 1st to the kidding pen. Her udder is filling and I’ve been watching her like a hawk. This morning I noticed I can’t feel baby movement the way I have previous days. She has started with clear “drippy” mucus discharge. Not a lot, just notable to me because I’m always checking her out. I’ve noticed a change in her tail posture, looking more “hook like”. Today is my birthday and I was hoping for birthday babies, but I feel we will be waiting forever!


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## Wehner Homestead (Jan 16, 2019)

Happy Birthday!


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## Humblebeginningshomestead (Jan 16, 2019)

No babies yet! December 22nd is when I started feeling movement and this weekend we are expecting substantial snow. Hoping for Snow babies!


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## Jesusfreak101 (Jan 19, 2019)

Any babies?


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## Humblebeginningshomestead (Jan 19, 2019)

No babies. Hoping soon!


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## Humblebeginningshomestead (Jan 23, 2019)

Today Gouda is losing her mucus plug, we have lessened kid movement, and her ligaments are softening.


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## Jesusfreak101 (Jan 23, 2019)

So exciting!! My Nubian is trying to drive me crazy she about go just waiting for the popping I can wait to see pictures of the your kids!!


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## Humblebeginningshomestead (Feb 7, 2019)

For all following : nothing. Ligaments continue to come and go. Her udder is full but not tight and shiny as I’ve heard they sometimes get. I have a mini Nubian doe that is due in two weeks with a very small udder, and then we have Gouda who seems to be full of milk but just will not drop those babies! Lord only knows when she was bred. She was at least 30 days pregnant the second week in November when her blood was drawn. It’s anyones guess. The saga continues!


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## Humblebeginningshomestead (Feb 11, 2019)

Today Gouda went into labor and started pushing at 8pm. By 9pm she had passed two fluid bubbles but there was no progression and no kid could be seen. I wasn’t home and my husband called the vet to come out. One buckling was born alive, and the other kid is stuck and can’t be maneuvered. C section has been suggested by the vet. I’m so discouraged that this was our first experience with kidding, but I’m grateful that our current baby is nursing and mom is taking care of him.


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## SonRise Acres (Feb 11, 2019)

How did it go?


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## Humblebeginningshomestead (Feb 11, 2019)

Oxytocin was given in hopes that she may kid on her own overnight. This wasn’t the case. C section this morning. I hate it but this isn’t her fault that someone else was careless


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## SonRise Acres (Feb 11, 2019)

Humblebeginningshomestead said:


> Oxytocin was given in hopes that she may kid on her own overnight. This wasn’t the case. C section this morning. I hate it but this isn’t her fault that someone else was careless



2018 was our hard year. We bought a herd from a friend knowing her does were all pregnant the very first time they were able to get pregnant. I went to visit her and looked at the pasture and noticed it immediately. I was in shock because I knew the ages of those baby does. And they were Pygmy. So even smaller girls.

I get it. It was a hard few weeks when they delivered. One ended up with a prolapsed uterus and a c-section, the rest delivered traditionally. All Moms survived. I cannot say the same for the babies. Some did and some didn’t. Most of the deliveries were very hard and touch and go. (One girl had hers and cleaned them up when I ran in to get lunch for me and my kids. We came back out and noticed something amiss in the pasture and it was 2 babies nursing - lol) That’s what irresponsible breeding brings (hardship, sickness, and death). We bought the herd knowing they had somewhat of a chance with us and none with their current (at the time) owner. So I get it.


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## Jesusfreak101 (Feb 11, 2019)

How momma doing?


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