Baby Goat Born 9 days early, Help Please

[Stacy Griffin]

Goat had a doeling. Mama isn't good with letting her nurse, only got a little colostrum before mom (who I think is going to have another baby in a moment) pushed her away. How long do I wait before I take her away, and bottle feed her?

 

[Pioneer Chicken]

You can take her away right now (or when your doe has finished kidding) to make bottle feeding much easier if that is the route you want to go. Bring her in, dry her off, and make sure she's warm. Then go out to milk mama and put the colostrum in the bottle to feed your new kid (s).

 

[OneFineAcre]

If you are planning on bottle feeding you can take her away.

But, if she was just born a few minutes ago to the point you think mom is going to have another baby, it's premature to think it's a problem.

We try to observe ours for an hour or two to make sure they latch onto a teat. At first they may have a hard time finding it. If she was just born, and you have already seen her get it into her mouth, that's pretty good. At first, they only nurse for a few seconds at a time. Really for the first couple of days they nurse often, but not very long. She will make colostrum for a couple of days.

 

[OneFineAcre]

How is it going? Are you sure the kids are 9 days early?

 

[HoneyDreameMomma]

I actually asked my sister to post this for me, because I was out in the goat yard assisting. We're sure the doeling is 9 days early - her mama was bred the day we got the buck and put him in the pen.

Mom didn't have another. She just passed a lot of afterbirth after the placenta. We ended up bringing the baby in, because after more than 3 hours of trying to get Mom to let her nurse (and only having very minor success; mom still wanted to pull away), the weather turned cold and she was shaking - even in her little goat sweater. We gave her nutri-drench and have been bottle feeding her every 2-3 hours. I know some people say 3-4 hours, but so far, she seems to be doing better with smaller, more frequent meals.

She gets up and walks a little when she eats, and she has peed and pooped, but she's mostly been eating and sleeping. Her legs are still a bit wobbly, and she definitely isn't as active as a normal kid. Any advice?

I've never had a kid that came this early, so I want to be sure I'm doing all I can.

Thanks!

 

[OneFineAcre]

I hope she is OK. I think you are doing the right thing.

 

[jodief100]

If you can get some Bo-Se from your vet this may help with the wobbly legs. Keep her warm, keep her fed and slowly transition her to meals further apart. Too frequent meals from a bottle can cause tummy issues. Ideal you want three times a day. Go slow with any changes, she is fragile. Make sure she can get up and walk around easily, food, exercise and love is all she needs and lots of it.

Did she get any colostrum? Are you milking her momma to feed her. My experience with premmies has been hit or miss but if they don't get colostrum they have very little hope.

 

[elevan]

How is your little one doing @HoneyDreameMomma ?