New kids

My doe gave birth to two bucklings yesterday afternoon. They all seem to be doing well. Both boys are eating and walking around. One seems more vigorous than the other. How often should they be sleeping? How active should they be day 2? What signs should I watch for that could indicate a problem? When should they have their first vet visit? Thanks so much!

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  • Some of them take a couple of days to get their land legs. Sometimes they were bent funny while inside mom, but within a few days, they should be looking and acting normal.

  • Thanks! I'm still looking for a good mentor but my vet is coming out to disbud next week so I'll see how it's done. The less stable kid seems to have trouble straightening his front legs and walks funny. Is it just taking him longer to straighten out or is this a problem?
  • Congratulations on the kids! If they weren't nursing, peeing, and pooping, they'd have died already. If they've survived 24 hours, that's an excellent sign that all systems are working properly. They sleep quite a bit the first few days, but when they're awake, they're pretty active and bouncing around. I don't know that anyone has ever quantified exactly how much they sleep.

    There are no well kid visits like they have for dogs and cats. If you're going to have the vet disbud and castrate them, you should call and get the disbudding scheduled. Disbudding bucklings should be done within the first week, but castration can wait a couple of months. If you have a goat mentor in your area, they might be able to help you learn to do those things. Whenever someone buys goats from us, I tell them I'm willing to disbud and castrate their first kids so they can learn.

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