What the heck???

doulanobles · #1 05/11/08, 12:06 PM

Day 153 with my nubian. Still no udder full of milk but this morning there was a thin string of amber color goo hanging from her. That was at 7:30am and there hasn't been any since. She won't eat today, either.

Could that goo be anything else? Or should i expect kids today?

Her swelling seems to have settled lower. Also, not sure if it's relevant, but our other doe's baby, who is almost 2 weeks old now, was trying to nurse from her this morning and she was letting her.

I just hope she's not sick or something, we're quite attached to her!

RiverPines · #2 05/11/08, 12:08 PM

Sounds like kids very soon!!!
Yellow goo is the beginning.

You may not see it, but inside her body is starting its birth prep.

Minelson · #3 05/11/08, 12:11 PM

I would say kids today...My Gretta didn't really have much of a bag until right before going into labor (or maybe even after! I wasn't really noticing at that point lol) Good luck! Amber goo is a sign that's it's going to happen quick now

doulanobles · #4 05/11/08, 01:48 PM

No more goo since this morning. Should it be within a certain time frame? Also, our goat 4-H leader said we may want to pull her kids so she doesn't have to work so hard. She said that beacuse of all her swelling, she's at a risk for heart attack, etc. I don't want to do maore harm than good, though. What do y'all think?

Minelson · #5 05/11/08, 02:33 PM

I would help her get them out....gently pull, one leg at a time only when she pushes. Read this....http://fiascofarm.com/goats/kidding.htm#assisting

doulanobles · #6 05/11/08, 08:43 PM

Ugh!!!!Still nothing! I was really hoping it would be during the day! No more goo since this morning.

Could it not be preggo related at all?? Am I over thinking it? Tomorrow will be day 154 (I'm pretty sure) and I'm not sure if i should get up throughout the night to check on her. She sure has a hard time laying down and getting up.

Thanks for listening to my neurotic chatter!

Freeholder · #7 05/11/08, 09:50 PM

I'd be checking on her frequently during the night. It COULD still be a couple of days, but probably not -- and if this doe is having other issues, you'll have to watch her more closely than most.

Kathleen

Genevieve M. · #8 05/11/08, 10:04 PM

We had a doe that did this.

She went over 24 hours with no progression.

It turned out that her twins were trying to come out at the same time, and they were stuck.

It moved very quickly from, no changes to in trouble.

I thought she was hours away from kidding, but my daughter was checking on her every 10 minutes. She was able to untangle the twins, and deliver them.

They were no worse for the wear, but that momma, would have been in trouble if no one had been checking on her.

Minelson · #9 05/11/08, 10:25 PM

I would keep a close eye on her...you can catch up on sleep later. Keep us posted!

RiverPines · #10 05/11/08, 10:36 PM

Are her ligs gone yet?

doulanobles · #11 05/11/08, 10:57 PM

Ligs are soft but don't feel like my other doe did the day she kidded. I was just out there and no change. I'll go out again in about an hour.

She seems really uncomfortable but did eat this evening. Sigh!

goatkid · #12 05/11/08, 11:49 PM

If this were my doe, I'd do a pelvic on her to see if she's dilated. Could be that she has a breech kid that has stopped her contractions. I had a doe this year that did something similar. I saw a string of amber goo and then nothing more. After a few hours of her not eating and hanging by herself, I went in and pulled a breech kid followed by a second kid.

Horse Fork Farm · #13 05/12/08, 08:39 AM

I see she hasn't posted since midnight..... I hope she didn't have one of those nights we all dread. Hope she posts soon.

doulanobles · #14 05/12/08, 10:08 AM

Good morning all. Still nothing from my doe. She ate a bit this morning and is just wandering around, sweet as you please. I had our goat leader come over and check her last night, not a cervical exam, but just generally. She said she looked fine, very preggo, but fine, maybe my date was off?? Stiil no major bag, no more goo. By my claculations, today is day 154. I'm home all day so I'll keep a close eye on her and keep you all upodated.

She's really gonna make me sweat, I see.

southerngurl · #15 05/12/08, 11:40 AM

I think you should go in and check, no one can tell just by looking. She could have a problem. Once mine had the amber goo, she went in like 8 hours.

doulanobles · #16 05/12/08, 11:52 AM

So, how do I go in and check?? Should I glove up?

**mygoat** · #17 05/12/08, 12:26 PM

The goo is a very very good sign of beginning labor.

My major sign is loss of ligaments. Once they're GONE, kids will arrive within 12 hrs or I go in and check to see what's wrong. I say GONE because they are there but soft she's not ready yet. Keep in mind that the days and weeks before kidding, a doe's ligaments will slowly shift and change with the later stages of pregnancy. One of my good goat friends accurately described them as 'bent' or 'concave' in a couple of my does the day before they kidded.

I've heard several times from people that say their doe lost ligaments 'weeks' before kidding. I believe this to be structurally impossible - without those ligs for more than a couple days, the goats wouldn't be able to move. So, my theory is that poorly/differently conformed or overweight goats' ligaments become difficult to find when the ligaments shift during the final stages of pregnancy. I have also heard, though that some does can lose ligaments then regain them if they decide it is not the 'right' time to kid, so that may be it - though weeks before I doubt. All in all I find it to be an excellent indicator of impending labor and will check my does at least 2x per day if not more. My dairy does get checked several times per day so I'm there to catch the kids.

After 12 hrs after loss of ligaments and no progression, I lube up my arm and reach in. If she is dilated you will feel no barrier. If she isn't, you won't be able to get your hand in very far at all (the cervix) and she isn't ready. My last doe that this occurred with had a single ENORMOUS doeling literally STUCK on her hips. I put her in the stand and pulled as hard as I could and BARELY got that kid out. This could be the problem, or multiples all coming at once, or butt-first, or head back...

If it is mispresentation, take your time and sort out body parts. Feel for the cleft hooves and also feel for the sharp baby teeth and count parts. Follow hooves back to the body. Keep in mind that rear legs first is normal as well. Go to fiasco farm's website and study the mispresentation corrections. With proper preparation, stuck kids can at LEAST be manipulated enough to save the dam, and likely the kids if you act fast enough.

tailwagging · #18 05/12/08, 02:26 PM

Ok what is "loss of ligaments"?
With cows (at the dairy) and puppies if there is a need to pull, we pull with contractions and ALWAYS down toward the ground between the rear legs NEVER straight out. Is this the same with goats?

CountryHaven · #19 05/12/08, 03:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tailwagging

With cows (at the dairy) and puppies if there is a need to pull, we pull with contractions and ALWAYS down toward the ground between the rear legs NEVER straight out. Is this the same with goats?

Yes absolutely, always pull WITH the contraction, and ease up when she does, although I will usually keep a 'tension' (not a pull) when she's not pushing just to keep the kid from sliding back in. And always pull 'down' toward the ground (if she's standing), or in the direction of her feet (as in toward where the ground would be if she were standing if she's laying down).

Quote:

Ok what is "loss of ligaments"?

If you run your thumb and forefinger down your does back from the top point of her hip toward her tail with thumb and finger on opposite sides of her spine, you will feel two pencil shaped ligaments that run about midway down the spine from the backbone on a slant toward the point below her tail (in that angle). In a non-pregnant doe, or a doe far enough away from kidding, those ligaments will be VERY hard, and also, the muscles surrounding that area will be very tight and it will feel like there isn't much room to grasp and feel that area... but as late prenancy progresses that area becomes 'mushier' and it feels almost as if the bones are seperating giving you more room to feel as you run your fingers down there. The ligaments will still feel quite hard though. As labor starts those ligaments will soften, get really really mushy, then seem to completely disappear.

tailwagging · #20 05/12/08, 03:23 PM

Ok that is what I thought (I think LOL if I am understand what you posted).

Many years ago (about 16) we spent a lot of time with an old timer who most people called "goat man" he had a milking herd for 42 that he hand milked. He called it "hollowing of the tail". Could this be the same?