Buying a pregnant goat

[Eckielady]

We're thinking of going to look at a bred nanny goat tomorrow but she's due in 2 months. We're in NE Tennessee so winters are too bad but I'd love some input on what we would need to know. What would she need? We have 4 goats now.​

 

[sannabelle]

Hello!! I bought two pregnant nanny goats in March, and they kidded two and four weeks after we got them home. March is very very cold for us here in Missouri.

I had a separate kidding area set up with lots of clean fresh straw. Alfalfa for the new mommies. And most importantly- my kidding kit! Iodine for the umbilical cords, plain dental floss for tying them off, rubber gloves, scissors, molasses (to mix with warm water for mama after delivery), lots of extra buckets for grain and water for mom. I also ran a barn heater out to the kidding pen. If you live in an area that's poor in selenium you will want to have selenium supplement- I believe it comes in a paste form? We actually have good levels here so we do not use it. I also had a mineral and baking soda feeder in the kidding pen so mama could have access to it. I kept the mama and babies separate from the rest of the crew for the first two weeks after she kidded. Lots of bonding time. I'm sure I'm forgetting something and someone will come along and add something!!

Best of luck! And if you do buy her post pictures of the babies, pleeeeeeeaseeeeee

 

[sannabelle]

Oh, and your supply list will of course vary based on if you are going to let the Dam raise the kids or if you are going to pull the kid and bottle feed. You may want to also have kid milk replacer and a bottle on hand in case of emergency also.

Also- do you know if this will be her first kid or has she kidded before?

 

[Eckielady]

Oh, and your supply list will of course vary based on if you are going to let the Dam raise the kids or if you are going to pull the kid and bottle feed. You may want to also have kid milk replacer and a bottle on hand in case of emergency also.

Also- do you know if this will be her first kid or has she kidded before?

I'm not sure on that. I'll ask but I don't even know if the owner will know. Sounds like she bought her bred and hubby wasn't happy. Do we need to interfere with goats birth? What happens if mama is left to take care of it? See, no idea how this works and still trying to figure out if we are ready for this. We don't have a way to separate her right now.

 

[Fields Mountain Farm]

Hello... Congrats on the upcoming new family members...Lol
Getting a new one will generally upset the pecking order of your current herd. If you have younger goats it'll probably be fine to have them together, but if all are approx the same size as the new momma you really should find a way to confine her till after she kids. There will be a lot of pushing and shoving and head butting and she could go into early labor or be injured and you could loose babies, momma or both.
Moving a pregnant goat at this point in pregnancy is very stressful on her so she'll need a place to settle in and get to know you. Fiascofarm.com has some awesome videos and pics of goats in labor and delivering kids. Check it if you get a chance, it helps to know what to expect and how and when to intervene.
And don't leave a water bucket where she can back up and drop a kid in it when she delivers. If you don't have a way to keep a bucket where that can't happen, then only put it in with her while you're there. Take it out at night.
Hope all this helps a bit and you can always pm me if you'd like.
Love talking goats!!!

 

[sannabelle]

I never thought about the water bucket learn something new all the time!!

 

[Fields Mountain Farm]

Morning sannabelle!

 

[Eckielady]

All of the other goats are young except for one but she's smaller. We have them all in together and have been watching closely and Mama definitely has everyone worried about her. She's let it be known that she is not to be messed with so I don't worry too much about anyone going after her. We are trying to guess at her gestation since we found out that the lady that had her had got her at an auction and has NO idea how far along she is. Any guesses.

 

[Eckielady]

I would guess her a little older than I was thinking. I think she's at least 3 or so.

 

[Fields Mountain Farm]

So glad they are all getting along well..Makes it much easier on you!
It's very hard to tell just by pics, but probably a safe bet would be 3 1/2 to 4 months along. do you know how to check her tail ligaments?