Hello! I have a goat, who in the past, has had difficult kiddings. The first kidding happened two weeks before her due date (Bred: 11\12\18? Due Date: 4\11\19 Kidded on: 3\30\19) . The kid was born with its head touching its spine, thankfully it was small enough that we could pull it out like that. The baby was stillborn but appeared to be alive and healthy before the birth. The second kidding happened another two weeks before her due date (Bred: 8\11\19 Due Date: 1\8\20 Kidded on: 12\21\19). This time she had twins. The first was born with its head touching its spine, similar to the first kidding. We ended up calling our vet and she pulled out both kids. The babies were stillborn. I planned on never breeding her again because of these issues, but unfortunately, we went on vacation this year and she got bred again. I'm not sure when her due date is exactly, but we were gone from September 20th-October 7th. I can feel the babies kicking and moving around so I assume she'll kid in the middle of February. My question is how early can a goat give birth to live kids before her due date? Is there any advice you can give me to help make sure she kids on time?
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Thank you! And thanks again for all your help!
CONGRATULATIONS!!!!
Just wanted to update you all that Madeline (goat with the kidding issues) delivered 2 adorable doelings! Thank you so much for all your advice and help!!!
I'll post photos in the birth announcements forum
There is not that much calcium in the calcium drench to do any harm. The label on most of them says to give it to goats at the first sign of labor, which I do not recommend, but that's what's on the label, so they wouldn't have that if it was hurting goats.
The people who say that too much calcium causes hypocalcemia are quoting cow research. There has been no research on goats. Sheep get hypocalcemia because they don't have enough calcium, and I really think that goats probably fall into that category too. I've been feeding my pregnant does 100% alfalfa forever and never had a case of hypocalcemia.
Hello! So today I thought my goat with the kidding issues was in labor. She was restless, appeared to be having contractions, she was breathing fast\panting, getting up and down, and would occasionally stretch her leg out when she was laying down. The weird thing was that her ligaments weren't gone and she looked bloated. I reached in and felt what I thought was a breech baby. I gave her a little less than an ounce of calcium drench, thinking that she was stuck in the first stage of labor.
It turns out she was bloated, so I gave her a mixture of olive oil and baking soda. After I drenched the oil, I massaged her stomach and she started burping. After an hour or so, she was up and acting normally.
My question is will she be okay since I gave her the calcium drench? I just don't want her to get hypocalcemia. Also will her babies survive through this (bloating and calcium drench). Because I read that calcium can cause abnormal bone growth.
Looks like you and I posted at about the same time so I didn't see all of your questions.
The BoSe bottle says it should not be used in pregnant ewes. It's labeled for sheep, but it's used in goats all the time because there isn't a goat-specific brand, and lots of people use it at the end of pregnancy, but since that contradicts the label, that's why I said to talk to your vet about it. I have never seen any super clear guidance on using it in pregnant goats.
I'm glad you asked about the calcium drench options. The amount of calcium varies a lot from one brand to another. The two with the highest level of calcium that I have found are Goats Prefer Calcium Drench, which has 3.75 grams per ounce and Durvet CMPK D3, which has about 4 grams per ounce. The others (including other Durvet calciums) have a lot less. These are the two I've always used.
Alfalfa pellets are just plain alfalfa hay in pellet form. It will give mama an extra calcium source to help her babies bones grow strong and give her a boost for milk production. You can start off with a small amount and gradually increase. Since it is just hay, there is not the same worry like you have of eating too much grain :) Switching minerals will be fine.
Ill let Deborah answer the question on brand of Calcium and BoSe injections. I’ve never had to use a drench (I have what they had in stock at my local farm supply on hand) and I have only given BoSe prior to breeding ;)
Tammy
So my plan is that I'll go ahead and get some good minerals this week, I'll contact my vet to try and get BoSe, and I'll also look into getting alfalfa pellets. If I'm able to get BoSe, should I give it in about a week? Also, what oral calcium drench would you recommend me buying to keep on hand if my goats aren't progressing when they go into labor?
And I just wanted to make sure that switching her minerals, giving her BoSe, and possibly adding alfalfa pellets won't harm my pregnant goats or their unborn kids.
Thank you so much for all your help!
That does look like a doe that would be due in about a month, but she's not very wide, so probably only one or two again, especially since her belly isn't hanging down at all.
Purina and Sweetlix both have 50 ppm selenium, so either one would work. Purina is usually available at farm supply stores, but you have to get Sweetlix from a distributor or online. I'm lucky that my local farm co-op has it available.
You might ask your vet about getting BoSe for your does, which Tammy mentioned in her original post. It's an injectable selenium, which is not ideal because they pee out about 40% of it within 24 hours, but it definitely gets the level up there and is a good option when you know a goat has a deficiency problem. It's available only by prescription, and attitudes of vets varies tremendously ... from no questions asked and just telling when you can come by the office and pick it up ... to just plain no. I've had both varieties of vets in my area. If you call on the phone to ask for a prescription, BoSe is pronounced like "rosie" but with a B. An injection of BoSe prior to breeding really increased the number of kids my does were carrying. A lot of people do it prior to breeding and then a couple of weeks prior to kidding. In your case, you might even do it sooner than that since your does has aborted two weeks early twice already.
It's okay then to give alfalfa pellets? I wasn't sure if they can have them during pregnancy. How much should I give her and my other pregnant goat? I just don't want to overwhelm their stomachs by immediately switching over to a different mineral and adding alfalfa pellets. Also what oral calcium drench would you suggest to give them if they are not progressing when they go into labor?
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