Can my doe feed 5 kids without help?

One of our does gave birth to 5 babies on Saturday.  They all seem healthy and strong but Mamma is struggling today.  I noticed she didn't eat her scoop of grain, something that is unheard of for her.  She has plenty of alfalfa mix and she shares her feed with the doe who has triplets in the next stale so I'm not sure if she's off hay as well but it concerns me.  She has no fever and is an excellent mamma, making sure all her babies eat before she rests.  Is there anything more I should be doing to help her gain her strength, I'm extremely worried about her not eating her grain.  We've never had a doe deliver 5 babies before so I'm not sure if I'm over reacting but it stands to reason that she'd be hungrier with having to feed so many adorable babies, not eating less?  What am I missing here?

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Replies

  • So glad to get this happy update!!!

    tammy

  • Thank you again Tammy,  all are gaining weight and growing strong.  It is comforting to have so much wisdom so close! 

    - Susan

  • I’m so glad to hear that all is well!!! 
    You may want to weigh the kids daily at roughly 24 hour intervals to be sure that all are gaining weight. Nigerian kids should gain ~4oz per day. Sometimes it is short one day but averages out the next. This is a good way to check that all are getting plenty to eat :)
    tammy

  • Thank you so much for the advice, I will start bottle feeding the 2 youngest today.  Momma, our Maggie, had a large mucus discharch this morning, I noticed no smell but called the vet.  He asked if I had any Bio Mycin 200, which I did, and he asked me to give her 4.5 cc, which I also did.  A few hours later I let Maggie out in the pasture and she started munching away.  After about an hour she gladdly went back in to babies and seemed so much better. I will read up on the attached articles and watch the video suggested.  Thank you!

     - Susan

    Tammy Gallagher said:

    Hi Susan. There are a couple of different situations here :)

    First- it is not likely that your doe can adequately feed 5 kids, no matter what ‘extra’ things you give her. Considering she has had quints, I am assuming she is a Nigerian. How many times has this doe kidded? Her babies will need ~32oz of milk each per day to thrive and gain weight appropriately. It is highly unlikely that she will produce that amount. Not getting enough milk will decrease their weight gain and decrease their ability to fight off coccidia and worm loads, so I would recommend that you pull the 2 smallest to bottle feed. 
    Second- if mom is off grain this could be a sign that something is going on with her health. You mentioned that she does not have a fever, but is her temperature low? Is she still standing and moving about with strength or does she seem weak? If so, this could be early sign of hypocalcemia. If she is acting completely normal and tending to her kids actively and appropriately, the only other thing I can think of is that she may have a belly of placenta. I know that my does will sometimes not show much interest in grain around day 2 if they have eaten the full placenta, but it quickly reverts back to normal appetite and they do continue to act normal in all other ways. 
    I have attached an article here that Deborah wrote about why does should not raise quints on their own. There is also a FB live video at the bottom of the article where she talks more about her experiences with does raising multiples over a 17 year span.

    https://thriftyhomesteader.com/how-many-kids-can-doe-feed/
    Tammy

  • Hi Susan. There are a couple of different situations here :)

    First- it is not likely that your doe can adequately feed 5 kids, no matter what ‘extra’ things you give her. Considering she has had quints, I am assuming she is a Nigerian. How many times has this doe kidded? Her babies will need ~32oz of milk each per day to thrive and gain weight appropriately. It is highly unlikely that she will produce that amount. Not getting enough milk will decrease their weight gain and decrease their ability to fight off coccidia and worm loads, so I would recommend that you pull the 2 smallest to bottle feed. 
    Second- if mom is off grain this could be a sign that something is going on with her health. You mentioned that she does not have a fever, but is her temperature low? Is she still standing and moving about with strength or does she seem weak? If so, this could be early sign of hypocalcemia. If she is acting completely normal and tending to her kids actively and appropriately, the only other thing I can think of is that she may have a belly of placenta. I know that my does will sometimes not show much interest in grain around day 2 if they have eaten the full placenta, but it quickly reverts back to normal appetite and they do continue to act normal in all other ways. 
    I have attached an article here that Deborah wrote about why does should not raise quints on their own. There is also a FB live video at the bottom of the article where she talks more about her experiences with does raising multiples over a 17 year span.

    https://thriftyhomesteader.com/how-many-kids-can-doe-feed/
    Tammy

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