Kidding Question/Meat goat ?? and more!

[BlessedMom]

My boer/nubian was bred to a nubian. We know that she has at least 2 in there. Possibly 3. She is due today. But not one sign other than she's got a nice udder. No string stuff, nothing. Any way to tell if she is close to kidding?
I've read the books, they weren't much help. I was a work for the other doe when she kidded. I arrived after the 3rd was born. We really want to be there for this one. She's a first time mom and my kids really want to see a goat have a baby!! These will be our first meat goats born here on our farm.
Someone told me the other day that because she is a 50% and was bred to a nubian that they won't make good meat goats. Is that right? Should I just try to wean them and sell them off?
The other thing I'm worried about is if she has a doeling that has extra teats, what do I do? Can I tie them off with fishing line?

Thanks!
Lori

[Goat Freak]

Hiya, whoever told you about them not being meat goats was right. Seeing as how the mother is 50% Nubian already and you bred her to a Nubian, bad move if you wanted meat goats, her kids will be 75% Nubian, and Nubians are dairy goats so the kids will be considered Dairy. If she has a doeling with extra teats just let them be unless you want to milk her, and Boers are not very good milkers, it won't affect her anyway. As for determining when she'll drop there's really no 100% way of knowing, but you could test her ligmants and that should tell you if she's going to have them withen the next 12 hours. Now to test the ligmants you just use your forefinger and your thumb and pinch the area where the spine meets the tail, make sure you pinch the spine/tail are not just the skin, when your fingers touch eachother that means that there should only be 12 more hours left; for more about the ligmants go to FiasCo Farm.com, try google to get it and go to the part about pregnacy. Hope this helps, Bye.

[BlessedMom]

Well we will see what she kicks out.
She's a beautiful girl.
We probably should have eaten her but she's a sweetie and we couldn't.
I have a boer buck and a nubian buck now, none are related to her or her babies.
She's leaking a white mucus now. Her ligaments are very loose. I'm hoping it won't be too much longer. I have my kit all ready to go!! We'll check every 1/2 hour or so.

[Laura Workman]

Howdy. First time mothers frequently don't know squat about keeping their kids alive. They won't lick them and the kids will die. Or they will lick them but not clear their faces and the kids will die. Do make an effort to be with the doe. I was checking every half hour and missed the birth. Got out to a dead, single doeling. I swore that wouldn't happen again. The next doe kidded during the day. I sat in the shed, except for short breaks, for about 8 hours. Good thing I was there. This first timer failed to lick her kids enough, and one of them kept trying to stop breathing. I'd reach down and rub it with a towel and it would perk up for a couple minutes, then slow down again. It was fine once it got up and ate, but if I hadn't been there, it never would have gotten up. The next doe held out until 5:00 a.m. I slept in the stall (freshly bedded, thankfully!). She did fine with her single doeling, but this is her third or fourth freshening.

Incidentally, Nubians and Lamanchas are actually dual-purpose goats. They will produce a pretty decent carcasse even without any boer influence. If you get a doeling with an extra teat, I would probably raise her for meat, since does with extra teats can often have problems when they try to produce milk (and yes, this goes for boers, too). Plus, they're not much good for breeding stock because nobody wants kids from a doe with extra teats unless she's something really special in all other aspects, including bloodlines. Even then, it's dicey. And your doe isn't a purebred. Does she have extra teats? If she doesn't and you bred her to a proper Nubian buck without extra teats in his lineage, it's relatively unlikely that you'll have a problem. This is only my opinion, of course.

[BlessedMom]

I'm a bit concerned because this momma has 2 extra teats. Her bag is so full and ready. No babies yet.
She doesn't really look swollen that much, but she is leaking fluid, white.
I can't feel her ligaments at all, her back is arched.
I breed my Nubian/Sannen goat to the same sire. She had triplets and they were gorgeous. I sold them when they were 3 days old (I kept them until they were weaned). I kept the one doeling and she is just beautiful. I'll be excited to see how she freshens next year. She was born in March so I don't think she will be bred until next fall.

[westbrook]

Blessed Mom,

did you know that the Nubian is considered a Multi-purpose goat? meaning, Nubians are Milk goats, meat goats and used for their skins/hides!!!

Did you also know that the boer is cross bread, but the Nubian is a major genetic contributor?

Here in America... the nubian was taken and a very dairy type was created!

Can I ask what you are trying to acheive with your cross to a cross back to a pure-bred? are you working for a specific genetic purpose?

[BlessedMom]

I really wanted to have a dual purpose kidding. If they were bucklings, we could do meat. If they were doelings, we could keep them for milking.
This Boer X has great lines. She was given to us from a breeder in Oregon whose children had become very attatched and they gave her to us so that she would have a good life. LOL!
The only buck that was close by and available was a purebred nubian.
So that's pretty much it in a nutshell...conveinence and dual purpose.

[havenberryfarm]

It was actually a pretty good move to breed her with a Nubian the first time out. Her first kidding helps determine her milking ability, and a Nubian sire actually can improve her ability to produce milk. No joke. Next time, try a Boer sire for a better carcass. Nubians are a great dual-purpose breed. That is why people used them to create the Kinder breed. Not to mention those adorable ears!!! Don't worry. You did good.

[BlessedMom]

Well I'm glad to hear positive things!
I will be breeding her to a 100% boer next time. By that time our own buck will be ready.
Still no babies here....I don't know what she is waiting for!!!!gggrrrrr!!!!!