worried about my older alpine/nubianX doe

[myrandaandkids]

Sylvia was my first milking goat, i think she is about 7 years old, she has always givin birth to healthy trips and quads, no problems with pregnancy or delivery. she is queen bee around here and is very good about letting everyone else in the pasture know it, she eats first, beds down in the barn first, orders everyone elses kids around and comes down hard on anyone who gets in her way, all the other goats follow her lead. This year i figured her to be due the first or second week in april,this last two weeks she has really gone through some changes though, she moves slowly, lets the other goats push her around, if she doesnt get to the feed before they do i have to hand feed her alone or she'll just lay down and go without, she isnt interested in coming to the gate for me anymore or being pet, her ears are drooped down and yet pulled back a little all the time, almost like she is "pouting", the last 3 days she has been leaning against the walls of the barn and the pasture fences when she walks as if she just has no energy, although she can stand upright and walk when the need arises(or i force her to make sure she is ok)her vulva has been open about the size of a dime for a week now, the first day i noticed it she had some discharge, yellowy and thick, but hasnt shown anymore since, i can feel the baby or babies clearly kicking, so they are ok, but she is sleeping so much and is seeming so weak and has lost interest in everything, im really afraid something is wrong, her fur looks healthy as do her eyes, her weight looks fine, i havent seen any sign of injury anywhere, what could be going on, if it is just fatigue from pregnancy, is there something i can do or something i can give her to get her moving normally again? please help

[myrandaandkids]

i also forgot she is making a strange noise deep in her throat, almost a growling sound, something i have never heard before,but it is almost constant when she is awake

[goatkid]

Sounds like she may have hypocalcemia with the lethargy or possibly a uterine infection with the yellow discharge. I'dhave your vet check her out. Is she eating OK when away from the other goats? Treatment for hypocalcemia is 30cc of either injectable CMPK or Norcalciphos twice daily subQ. If she's not eating, then propylene glycol 40cc orally twice a day. If it's a uterine infection, I'd consult your vet about the right anitbiotic to give a doe this close to kidding. Some of my older does wait until the others have eaten their hay to eat when they are near term, but still come running for the grain.

[Sher]

Could it be that she is simply an older doe..close to kidding..and uncomfortable? I noticed two of my does this year..about the age of yours..really slowed down two to three weeks before kidding. But they were very big and when they laid down..I know it was kind of hard for them to breath..they were just both plum full of big kids.

As long as she is eating and drinking and able to get up and is running no temp..maybe she is just tired like women get when they are big and close.

That she is not being herd boss right now..I believe she is just being smart. She is not going to put her babies in jeopardy from fighting .. or at least that has usually been the case here. Look out once they get on the ground and she has the freedom to take her spot back!

Good luck!

[fishhead]

What's her temp? Are her eye lids pink?

[myrandaandkids]

maybe it is just being an uncomfortable older doe, temp is fine, eye lids fine, is eating when alone, what is hypocalcimia?

[devdragon33]

we had a first year kidder last year that did a lot of those same things (except the yellow discharge). She would lay on her side and make strange noises, and with the help of my 15 year old daughter we would have to pick her up onto her feet so that she would get up to eat. I swear she did it just for attention cause we would run out there everytime she was laying funny thinking she might be having them. This carried on for 3 weeks till she had two smaller babies. Could have swore by how she was aking she was going to have two 25 pound kids

[fishhead]

http://fiascofarm.com/goats/milkfever.htm

Originally Posted by myrandaandkids

maybe it is just being an uncomfortable older doe, temp is fine, eye lids fine, is eating when alone, what is hypocalcimia?

[Freeholder]

My guess is she's just uncomfortable and tired. If she usually has trips and quads, she's probably carrying a lot of weight. I've noticed that my does behave similarly the last couple of weeks before they kid, especially the older does. I had a big Oberhasli X Boer doe who had triplets last year, who, when she walked the last few days before she kidded, would stop, hitch one back leg forward, then the other. She was carrying two 8 1/2 pounders and a 9 1/2 pounder, so a total of almost 27 lbs of kids, not to mention birth fluids and etc. (and she weighed almost 200 lbs. herself). She was boss around here, too (by far the biggest doe I had, since the others are all Kinders), but gave it up for a bit there at the end of her pregnancy.

If your doe doesn't have a fever, and you've felt the kids moving around in there, I would just wait -- she'll be kidding soon and should pick up then.

Kathleen