Should I be concerned

[Angeliki Manouselis]

That a set of twins born 2/26 from a doe with really low hanging udders that they have a really hard time latching on aren't getting enough milk? The doe won't let me try to milk her to see, she has really weird udders too... I rescued her and wasn't going to breed her because i think she's kind of old, but accidents happen... One kid was trying to eat hay today. Is he just copying mom? Should I try to give them a bottle and see if they're hungry? I'm not sure if they look skinny or not. Here are some photos.

 

[MiniSilkys]

Their bellies don't quite look filled out. They are cute though. Have you weighed them? That is the best way I think to know if they are getting enough. They need to be steadily gaining. Sometimes they gain weight everyday. I will tag some more experienced goat owners for you. I have pygmys and yours look to be a larger breed. @frustratedearthmother @Goat Whisperer @Sweet horizon Nigerians @OneFineAcre @Devonviolet @newton the goat @Southern by choice @babsbag I can't think of who else could help right now but that is a start.

 

[Devonviolet]

Awww, what cute little doelings!!!

I don’t consider myself an expert. But, I would take my clues from the fact that they are trying and not succeeding, and their bodies are so slender, with no full belly. The fact that they are starting to eat hay is normal after the first week or so - nibble here, nibble there. However, that should not be their sole source of nourishment.

@MiniSilkys is right that they should be gaining a little each day. I weigh my kids when they are first born, so I have a benchmark to work from. With kids that small, it would be easy enough to put a box on a kitchen scale, tare it to “zero” and put the kid in the box. A bathroom scale doesn’t usually give weights under 5-10 pounds.

How is their energy level? At a week, I would think they would still be napping quite a bit, but would be up and moving around, playing with each other a little more each day. Are they pooping and peeing. What does their poop look like? Is it normal goat berries?

Do you put your goats on a milk stand? One thought, to allow the kids to get some milk from mom’s teats, you might put her up on the milk stand, with her feet on boxes, allowing more room under her belly, so the kids can get under her to nurse. If not, you might just have to dry her off and find another source for milk - ideally by milking another doe and bottle feeding them, so the kids are getting fresh goat’s milk.

 

[babsbag]

I have a doe with an udder that is low like that and it does take the kids a bit to figure out how to nurse off of them. They will need to be nursing or getting a bottle until they are at least 8 weeks but they will nibble on hay long before that but they still need the milk. I agree with weighing the kids, that is a good way to know if they are getting enough. If you want to try them on a bottle, the sooner the better as it is hard to get an older kid to take a bottle. I just use cow's milk from the grocery store when supplementing a kid.

 

[OneFineAcre]

I agree with what the others said about weighing and monitoring weight gain.
If you've seen them nursing, then they are probably getting enough. If they were hungry they would be crying all the time.
That one's face looks pretty content.

 

[Goat Whisperer]

It is normal for kids to nibble on hay and pellets. The kid looks like it could be a little thin in the first two pics, but it is hard to tell.

I’d offer them a bottle. If they take it then they definitely aren’t getting enough to eat.
But at five days old, they are obviously eating enough to keep them alive.

Are they bouncing around acting like happy little kids, or are they sluggish and laying around?

Many does don’t really want to be milked at first… sometimes you just need to do it anyway. My first experience milking was needing to relieve huge, engorged udders on nearly feral meat goat brood does. It took several people to hold their horns and at the end of the day my arms were black and blue, but the does were milked! Sometimes you just need to get it done.

Kids (and lambs) can over time learn to go down on their knees and nurse.

I really, really DON’T like replacers.
I made that mistake in the past and never will again. If I can’t use goats milk I’ll use whole cows milk from the grocery. I’ve literally raise hundreds of bottle kids, and I won’t even sell a bottle kid if the buyer intends to use a replacer.

 

[newton the goat]

That a set of twins born 2/26 from a doe with really low hanging udders that they have a really hard time latching on aren't getting enough milk? The doe won't let me try to milk her to see, she has really weird udders too... I rescued her and wasn't going to breed her because i think she's kind of old, but accidents happen... One kid was trying to eat hay today. Is he just copying mom? Should I try to give them a bottle and see if they're hungry? I'm not sure if they look skinny or not. Here are some photos.

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They are adorable but they do look a little thin though they would be crying out if they werent getting enough. You may want to offer them a bottle and see if they will take it. If yiu do I suggest milking mom as that will be best for them. I know it probably wont be the best experience for you and mom but its the best thing in my opinion to do. When one of my lambs couldnt figure out how to latch onto mom for the first week of his life,i ended up tying his moms head and pining her against the pen wall and milked her for a week till i saw him physically latch onto her and nurse successfully. Sometimes even helping the babies find her teat works as well. But since they are that old and havent starved yet it tells me they are at least getting a bit of milk out of mom. Do you mind taking a picture of her udder and teat placement? Just so we can get a better idea of what your qorking with? And definitely try weighing them daily if you have a scale and a tub (to hold them in) as @MiniSilkys said earlier. Sometimes even if they do feed off mom,if she isnt giving them enough i would suggest offering them a bottle. It is quite common for then to start experimenting at that age with different feeds like hay.

 

[Angeliki Manouselis]

Thank you all, I did witness them finally nursing for a decent amount of time after I posted this. I will definitely start weighing them. They don’t cry much at all and they do all play together, with another set of twins from my other doe. They nap a lot too. I did see that they did start getting on their knees to nurse. I offered a bottle and they refused and went right over to mom to nurse as if to say “why would we want that, when we have the real thing?!” Lol

 

[MiniSilkys]

I use a fish weighing scale and a homemade sling to weigh my kids. It weighs in lbs, kg, and ozs and goes up to 50 lbs. Like @newton the goat said, I would like to see a picture of your doe's udder placement. I newborns are lying on their knees and turning their heads to the side. I even saw one laying down completely to nurse.

 

[Angeliki Manouselis]

I use a fish weighing scale and a homemade sling to weigh my kids. It weighs in lbs, kg, and ozs and goes up to 50 lbs. Like @newton the goat said, I would like to see a picture of your doe's udder placement. I newborns are lying on their knees and turning their heads to the side. I even saw one laying down completely to nurse.