I had my first birth on my farm on Saturday. It was amazing. First timer had four male kids. The first two came out the correct way and the last two that were bigger came out with rear legs first. She passed all the kids without any problems. The first one is pretty small it weighed about a pound and a half, I tried to put clothing on him but he is so small it falls off him and he can't get around with it on. I have a heat lamp above them in a stall. It was a little cold in the morning but once he fell asleep with his brothers he was find. The second goat came out and was about one pound and it did not make it, the third and fourth are approx 2 lbs each. The mother took to the kids pretty good, she is constantly talking to them. I never expected a first timer to have that many kids, every was telling me that they usually have one or two. I was a little disappointed that they were all males but hopefully the three that are left will be healthy.
I'm not sure how much time they should be spending nursing on the mother. I did not want to bottle feed but I may need to with the smaller one. They seem content and are not crying alot.
I also wanted to milk the goat later once I know that she is producing enough for the babies. When is a good time to start?? I wanted that babies to get the colostrum they need.
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Congrats on the babies!!
Congratulations on your first babies! Sorry you lost one. I had a first freshener have quads once, and two of them were also quite small. I wound up bottlefeeding those two and letting the dam raise the two big ones. Not many first fresheners can make enough milk for three, and if one is smaller and weaker, you have to keep an eye on him to make sure the bigger ones aren't hogging those two teats.
With a first freshener nursing three, I wouldn't even think about separating her overnight until 6 weeks if the three kids are big and fat. If she's nursing two, you could try separating her for 8 or 10 hours overnight around two weeks. You probably won't be able to do it more than 2-3 times per week for the first couple weeks. You want to make sure the babies are getting everything they need to grow well.