Kidding Supplies Checklists

Be sure you know the condition of your flocks, give careful attention to your herds - Proverbs 27:23

With kidding season here I find it helpful to have a list of all the things I'll need. Even if you know, and have, all the needed supplies it is helpful to have a list handy as a reference, just to make sure you aren't forgetting something.
Or, if this is your first time breeding, it can give you confidence to  know that you are prepared.
 I've done the work for you and put this list together.

If you have anything to add or that you do differently, please leave a comment.

Kidding Supplies:

• Baby monitor (You will want to keep a monitor near the mother for the days approaching her due date. Get so you are familiar with the usual 'barn sounds' and if there's any difference, check on her. The kidding can be very quick, Keep the receiving end near you if you want to be there for it.)
• Kidding Stall/Pen/Crate (the doe should not be with the herd when she is kidding. She needs to be isolated in a separate, quiet space where she wont be bothered by nosy aunts) 
• Flashlight (for those "fun" Nighttime births)
• Lots of clean towels.
• Scissors (to cut the umbilical cord if it doesn't break or if it's too long)
• Iodine (to clean the cord)
• Unscented Floss (to tie off bleeding umbilical cords)
• Rubber gloves (I don't use gloves personally, but they could be helpful if you are squeamish at all. I know for a lot of people gloves are a must) 
• Infant Nasal Aspirator (to clear the kid's nose of womb slime)

These are just the basics. Many things can go wrong during a birth, in case of difficulty you will want to contact your vet.
Make sure that all your supplies are clean, don't use anything that's unsanitary.

Post Kidding Supplies - Mother:

• Molasses (I give the mother a mixture of hot water, molasses, and grain after the birth to give her extra energy - they love it!)
• Hot water and Hay (make sure she can get all that she wants.)

As important as it is that she gets her energy back, it is also important that the mother doesn't neglect her child. If the food is a distraction from her baby take it away till the kid is cleaned and well cared for. You can help her by wiping the kid/s off with a towel. Don't be afraid to wipe the baby down kind of roughly, it's actually good to and gets their blood flowing.

I have had does who want nothing to do with their kid (I have one doe who tried to stomp her kids) in that case take them away from her and don't let her be alone with them. You will have to take the roll of mamma goat.

Post Kidding Supplies - Kid:

• Goat Coat (or tiny dog coats. If you live in a warmer climate than I do this may not be necessary, but New England is cold! I keep coats on my baby goats almost 24/7 for the first couple weeks)
• Syringe (Colostrum is the first milk that the mother produces after birth and is packed full of vitamins, minerals, and proteins that will make sure the kid has a healthy start to life. That said, it is important the baby gets the colostrum. If it is too weak to nurse or stand you will have to milk out the mother and feed the kid with a syringe or tiny bottle.)
• Pritchard nipples and clean, empty soda bottles (You can either bottle feed your kids or you can let the mother raise them. If the mother refuses to raise them you will have to bottle feed. Bottle feeding also makes the kids much more friendly.)
• Kid Milk Replacer (if the mother doesn't produce enough milk, or if something has happened to the mother, you can use milk replacer. Just make sure the kid gets the colostrum after birth and make sure you get Kid Milk Replacer. Cow or Sheep milk would be bad for the kid and definitely avoid the bags that say they are "multi species". That's not good for kids at all. I use Manna pro Kid milk which you can get HERE) 

As I said, this is just the basics. There are any number of instances where you will need special equipment or veterinary assistance. 

I have also put together a simple milking list. You can milk with a machine or by hand. I milk by hand, so the list I have here is just for hand-milkers.

Hand Milking Supplies:

• Milking Stand
• Grain (the goat will most likely not stand for the milking if she doesn't have food)
• Iodine or udder wash (in a spray bottle to clean udder before and after milking. I have a gallon size jug of concentrated iodine which I bought 4 years ago and it's about half  empty. You can buy it at any feed store. There's also an udder wash concentrate HERE which in non-iodine)
• Paper Towels (to clean udder and any messes) 
• Stainless Steel Pan (you'll want one with a wide, flat bottom that the doe can't easily spill. I actually use a bread pan)
• Canning Jars (or other clean, sanitary container to store the milk in the fridge)
• Stainless Steel Funnel (you can buy funnels that are made to hold the filters and sit on the canning jars. That's the way to go.)
• Milk Filters (make sure you get the right size filters to fit in your funnel)

I hope this is helpful, let me know if I have left anything out or if you have anything to add. 

If you have any questions please leave a comment.

Free Printable Kidding Checklist 

THIS IS NOT INTENDED TO REPLACE ANY PROFESSIONAL VETERINARY ADVICE. IN CASE OF DIFFICULTY OR CONCERN CONTACT YOUR VETERINARY IMMEDIATELY.

Baby Goats

I had seven goats born this spring!

Pippi was my first to kid. She had twins, a girl and a boy. Apollo and Pixie.  Pixie came out one leg first then Apollo decided to come out backwards! Silly boy, he was just fine though. I have been wanting a girl from Pippi for about two years now, but sadly pixie was a bit of a disappointment in the fact that she actually had four teets, thats pretty rare, I've seen goats born with three, but never four, teets. oh well though, not much you can do. Pippi not only didn't want her babies...she wanted them dead. I am convinced if left alone with them she would have killed them. She immediately started to stomp them so we took them away from her and they were fine.

Pixie

Apollo

Azariah 

London

The next to kid was Tilly, she also had a boy and a girl, London, and Azariah. I loved London and planned on keeping her but ended up selling her. When they were borne Tilly (the great mom that she is) accepted them very well but London set herself aside in the corner and wouldn't go near her mom or brother. I took her inside because it was too cold for her without the shared body heat of her family. She wouldn't settle down in the crate or box so I actually slept with her on the couch wrapped in a towel for three nights in a row. she got very attached to me and couldn't just sleep on the couch, she had to be on me! Then when she was disbudded one of her horn scab things started to bleed, so she was really babied then too. she got so she was very attached to people...too attached. she didn't think she was a goat and she HATED being with the herd. at first it was cute, she'd follow me every where, help me with chores, follow me inside and back out again but then when she got bigger and she was mad at "mom" (me) for leaving her in the pen with all the goats, she'd break my fences to come and see me. That was not cute. So I sold her. She was getting out far too often.

The next was Annika, a boy I named him Robin but sold him right away I also sold Annika, sorry to say this is the best picture I have of him:

Robin

Then Faye kidded, like her mother, one boy. I named him Guy of Gisborne, to go with Robin. He was really cute and SO SO friendly, wished he was a girl actually. He was boring in color but so cute. And my Friend Brittany was up from NY when he was born so she got to see that, so that was cool too. Sold him too though...sadly. And for some reason I don't have any pictures of him. 

Then! Leibchen Surprised us all with a baby girl! I didn't even know she was pregnant till just a couple weeks before she kidded! She had Laura. And I'm so glad she had her because she made the decision to sell Londen so much easier. Laura's a sweet heart. I had her mom raise her because by the time she was born there were no other babies herr size to put her with, so unlike most other babies I've had she thinks she's a goat, and I'm another member of her herd, not her mom. She's quite silly and so much fun to watch. and she's HUGE because she was nursing forever she got big FAST. Shes eight weeks younger than Ellesmera (who I will discuss in a moment) and she's the same size if not bigger than her!  

Laura and my new chick "helping" me milk Leibchen

 Ok, Ellesmera (El es MEAR a) I bought from Larissa when I discovered I couldn't keep Pixie. I was feeling awful about Pixie and I met her and she lifted my spirits the second I saw her. So when I heard that Larissa wasn't keeping her I was quick to claim. Then Larissa told me (about a week or two later) that she was also selling her mom, Varla (who is also Tilly's mom. so Tilly and Ellesmera are sisters.) so I traded Annika for Varla. So I have seven goats now (one more than I had planned) but it works nicely.

Ellesmera 

Ellesmera

Pixie, about ten minutes old

Apollo

Pixie

London, Pixie, and Ellesmera

So I ended up selling all the babies but Mera and Laura, but my friend Eliana (who has Tilly's sister Ally) bought Apollo and Azariah. So I get to see them all the time. I'm going to take some more pictures tomorrow of the four babies so I can post some more recent pictures.




P.S. I also sold Leipchen's sister Leia. 

Evening in the Barn

 I was Milking Matilda and I turned my head and  something about the way my new couple bales of hay looked caught my eye...I hollered to Mary who was playing with her chick and asked her if she'd get me the camera. I took the picture using a lot of different settings. I think they came out nicely but they are dark (it was late in the evening as I was milking).

 I did some with flashes because of how dark the others were but I really don't like the look the flash gives to pictures

 The babies were watching me through their stall door (you can see one of them in the middle dark one) and wanted attention so I messed around with my camera some more and took some pictures of them through the wire.