Which kid was it? The first (well, because it's first one out), the last (because the doe is worn out), or the biggest? Please post your kidding stories here.

-- gita (gita@directcon.net), February 13, 2002

Answers

The only problem we had this year was a breech delivery with triplet bucks. It took almost 45 minutes to get the first kids out. He survived 2 days but died of internal injuries from the birth. We have never lost any other kid or doe from kidding problems in the 4 years we have kidded. We have had to assist two other does as in one instance we had 2 heads coming together and in the other 4 legs coming together - no kids were lost in either case. There was one time the doe had 3 huge triplet bucks and we probably would have lost the last if someone hadn't been there to clean it off as the doe was exhausted. I try to be at every birth, and have only missed one due to the seller giving me a due date of a month later. I bottle feed the kids raw milk.

-- leslie in Western WA (sundaycreek@gnrac.net), February 13, 2002.

What a great topic! My does haven't started to kid yet this year.

In the past, some of my worst births have been to the same doe, Delilah. She did fine her first time with twins. The next time she had triplets, and those got tangle up, but they all lived. After that she had a big, single doe. I couldn't figure out why this doe wasn't coming out, because there was a head and two feet. I pulled and pulled, but made no progress. The kid was huge, but I was able to inch a finger or two in alongside her to try and find out what was wrong. Well, there were two feet alright, two REAR feet!! I pushed them both back in, and could only pull one front foot forward, and then we had to work for a long time to get that kid out. I was afraid I'd either pull the kid in two or turn the doe inside out, but eventually the kid came out and grew to be a good large doe. The next time was another single kid, our first A.I. kid! He was upside down, on his back with only his front feet coming out. Turned him over and pulled for a long time, he was very big and a hard birth. Then last year, Delilah had triplets. She didn't dilate at first, I had to manually dilate her cervix. Two kids were jammed in together but after they were sorted out they came out fine. A day later Delilah was depressed, wouldn't eat, wouldn't mother her kids. I went in and checked her- there was a dead kid, that had been dead for days. I won't even tell all the nasty details. I don't ever want to see a birth like that again!! She managed to live through that, and is due to kid again this year. I don't know why she always has trouble, she is a large doe with an ample pelvis. Seems her kids just have a way of getting in weird presentations.

-- Rebekah (daniel1@itss.net), February 13, 2002.

After 3 phone calls from this guy, and me giving all the directions I could think of over the phone, he was still have no luck pulling this kid. He could feel the head, but not get it to come down from the hipbones, he had the front feet.......................yeah right! I drove the 25 mintues to the barn, the doe had quit pushing and was exhausted. The front legs he had pulled and pulled on belonged to the 3rd baby behind and it was rear legs, baby number 2 who's head was stuck up in the hips, was upside down. Baby number one who had wanted to come first was coming with its rear also. I pushed the 3rd kids legs back into the doe, delivered the first kid head first, he had pulled so much I could have delivered it sideways :), delivered the 2nd and a 3rd, 2 bucks and a doe. They all are fine, the doe is fine after some aftercare. Gave him a quick lesson in anatomy :) And charged him through the nose. I actually do most vetting for my friends and customers for bread, jam, all sorts of homemade stuff, and in some cases a thanks. My best was the husband bringing me a sandwhich while I was cleaning an abscess out of their doe! :) Barnone, its the first kid that starts the train wreck, and folks taking way to long to think maybe they should do something. Vicki

-- Vicki McGaugh TX (vickilonesomedoe@hotmail.com), February 13, 2002.

I think that of all the kiddings the worst is the single LARGE kid. I usually get called up in the middle of the night for those. They just seem to get so big having all that room to themselves and then the poor doe has a hard time. It's usually a first freshner. Half of my goats usually have tripplets and quite a bit of the time contractions slow or stop after the first few. I keep oxytocin in the fridge now and if the baby is in the right position then I will use that to get them going again.

-- shari (smillers@snowcrest.net), February 14, 2002.