Whew, well, I am so tired right now. Just doing a quick post since I probably won't be able to do one till next week.
This morning Mom and most of the kidos went to pick up some goats - Boers.
Around lunch I noticed that Lizzie (reg'd Nubian/Alpine doe) was in labor, on day 149 today. So I just kept checking on her and finally the first kid came out - easy birth. A buckling. Me and Lizzie cleaned him off for a little while and then another kid was coming. Another buckling, and he was so BIG! I helped pop his head out and then pulled pretty hard and he came out - and it seemed like he just "kept coming" because he's so big! She cleaned him just for a minute and then a third bubble... another buckling. His birth was kind of strange, as his head and shoulders came out, and since Lizzie was standing up I was holding him, helping him out. His hips would not come very easily though, and he was trying to breath. So I held him there, while he was half-in and half-out, cleaned his face, and then pulled the rest of the way. Not too hard, but that was a new one for me.
Their sire is Lando, a Mini Nubian, so they are 3 unregisterable bucklings, that eat a TON! They are all kids with big appetites! Some photos... they all have big eyes ;).
I don't know if you would call today and yesterday a "usual day", but for around here, it's not that unusual.
Late yesterday morning we got a call from our friend who lives next door, saying that her ewe was in labor. Now, she (our friend) has never birthed sheep before (or much of any livestock, she is used to dog births though). I didn't go right away but my mom did, and when they got there, the lamb's head and two front feet were out, and the its tongue was purple, cold and just hanging there! Oh no! So she (Mom) went in and pulled really hard on that lamb, and he did not budge. It eventually took her and 2 others to pull the lamb out - a very big ram. Thankfully after some swinging and smacking, he is doing completely fine :)!
When that ewe was done, another ewe that was due was in labor. I was there for the first lamb, then went riding horses, so missed the second. But she had an uneventful birth and had 2 baby ewes - yay! There was only a small bit of placenta that came out though.
Today we got a call and the last ewe due was in labor and pushing. So we went over and with a little help, a GIANT ram lamb came out. I have never seen such a huge baby - he is probably 12-15 lbs! After we left, she pushed out an ewe. Good deal!
But, the other ewe that had the twin baby girls was not acting right and was acting like she was pushing - no good. After we talked some, I scrubbed up, clipped fingernails, and went in to see what the deal was. All I could feel was like a bunch of placenta-type stuff. I did NOT want to pull any of it, and when I pulled my hand out some placenta-type yuck was on it. So, I gave her some injectable Vitamin C, Penicillin and Oxytocin to flush it out. Hopefully it works. I have not talked to her in a couple hours so don't know if it has come out yet.
Pretty eventful, huh?! Just more experience!
Our ranch has been pretty uneventful. Last night the 3 llamas did not come back home as they normally do, so me and mom went jogging around the edge of the property (1 mile square) and did not find them. We checked a few hours later and they were all sleeping in their shelter... weird llamas!
Here's some pictures of a couple kids.
We have 3 doelings for sale. Here's a little info about them. If you are interested and would like pictures, email me and I can get some updated ones for you and more info - sf@goodgoats.net - 918-598-4004.
Doeling #1 out of PawPawNin LaWanda & PawPawNin Quiet Wyatt - DOB: Jan, 5th, 2010 - $150
This doeling is black with white ears. Very pretty little girl. She is a very well structured doe and has long legs. Her ears are pretty good - they come to the end of her nose. Her dam is milking about 6-7 lbs of milk (a little less than a gallon) a day at a little over 2 weeks fresh, and her udder is high and tight. Her sire also comes from great milk lines.
Doeling #2 out of PawPawNin LaWanda & PawPawNin Quiet Wyatt - DOB: Jan, 5th, 2010 - $150
Sister to the doeling above. This girl is a lot more colorful - grey and white swirl with a little brown. She is smaller than her sister. Her ears are long also. As said above, her dam is a great milker and her sire comes from nice milk and udder lines.
Doeling out of PawPawNin Maglio Tartuffini & Dreamy-Hollow's Parker - DOB: Dec 30th, 2009 - $75
This doeling is a very cute, little girl. She is very small and "compact." She looks like a "little-big goat" :)! Her ears are airplane. She is black with gold tipping and trimming, and has white ears. Her dam is a second freshener and has a nice udder and is milking very well. Her sire also comes from nice lines.
I wanted to say congratulations to Michelle and her family for being able to get Hug's buckling, and Thank You for giving him and so many other goats (that used to be ours) a great home! He is SUCH a nice buckling. . . thin, wide and long ears, very colorful, and had a nice body. Beautiful buckling! I took a few pictures of him before he left. . . they are not too great as he was trying to follow me ;).
Well, this morning we disbudded 7 kids. Not the most enjoyable job, but it has to be done. Everyone smells like burnt hair when we are done. . . yuck! But, my sister took pictures of when we did one of the kids, and I thought it might be educational for some of you.
Early yesterday morning, about 1:30 AM, Vibe had 2 kids, a buck and a doe. Both were already out, but still wet. I was out there for a little over half an hour. We blow-dried them, warmed them up, and made sure they were nursing. Back to bed.
Well, it was suggested that I give a little more detail on Rhia's kidding. We were hoping that she would have them when we were home (though all of us are rarely all gone) because I just had this feeling that she was going to need help. Thankfully, she did.
She was having contractions and pushing some, then this bubble popped and TON of fluid/mucus/gunk came bursting out. Not that weird. Every contraction after that, a lot more mucus would come out. I began to wonder if she was having a cloud burst pregnancy (where, I believe, they just "give birth" to a bunch of mucus). It was not, praise the Lord ;)!
The first kid, the doeling, needed a small amount of pulling. Nothing too bad.
The second kid, the buckling, was huge and needed some help. All we saw were 2 front feet, not good! My mom went in and said she could not find the head, then could just barely feel it. So, I went in and his head was there. I think when she pulled her hand out, that his head came with her. So I grabbed behind his ears, and PULLED really hard a couple of times. He just barely moved, but it was enough and I pulled him out. It was a hard one!! But they are all doing great.
I wanted to thank a family that bought 4 of our bucklings, and are going to keep them in their house! Brave, or is that crazy :)!?! Until MoReen, who is on DAY 153 (!) today kids, and Vibe the Boer, we only have 1 buckling left who is already accounted for, a few doelings we are going to keep, and 2 doelings that are available (will post about them later, Lord willing).
For now, I have to go. Have a great day.
Suriyah
Well, this morning around 10 o'clock or so, someone checked on Rhia and yelled in the house, "Rhia is pushing!". So out we went. She had 1 buckling and 1 doeling. Both kids are big, and she needed help with the buckling especially - I went in and pulled on him really hard, and he came out, thankfully! Their sire is PawPawNin Quiet Wyatt.
