I recently went and picked a female goat up. She wasn't living in very clean quarters so I couldn't just leave her there. Well she was very scared and I never could get near her. Now a month later,her belly looks lopsided,her vulva is very swollen and she's been jumping in my lap. She's about a year old I think. This morning I caught her butting the barn wall. And she's been licking my fingers. I checked for bloat online but she doesn't act in distress. Does anyone know what could be going on? This is my first year with goats.
Well, being overly affectionate AND pushing their head against the barn wall is a sign of impending labor. One of many, to be honest. Is she butting the wall like she wants to get out (like, frustrated)? Or is she more pushing her head against the wall and just kinda standing there (as if she has a headache and holding her head against the wall helps)? She could just be starting to trust you. Even a tamed goat, after being uprooted, can be cautious and aloof. I bet she just realized you bring food and love.
If she were bloaty, her left side would be ballooned and firm. Kids are usually held on the right side. I can feel kids kicking if I wrap my arms around a doe, and put one hand on her right side (past last rib) and one hand right in front of the udder. If she were bloaty, she would likely be displaying signs of pain, such as teeth grinding, kicking at her belly. She would likely be lethargic. When I had a goat with frothy bloat, she acted like every moment pained her, and it did. A normally affectionate velcro/lap goat turned into one who would hardly move and moaned terribly when she did.
One thing that might be important, if she was living in yucky conditions, is to have a vet check her out. Or at least take a fecal sample to a livestock vet for a
coccidia count and
worm load check. Filthy conditions often lead to higher parasite loads. Once you know what she has and how much, you can treat (give wormer once every ten days for three total wormings, to obliterate all life cycles of worm. That should get her to where she is a clean slate more or less). Also, a vet can get a weight on her. Knowing how much she weighs is critical to dosing any wormer. Too little, and the surviving worms will be resistent. Too much, and it can be toxic (though ivermectin has a very wide margin of safety. Meaning if a goat is ODed, it likely won't cause any harm). BTW, coccidiosis and worms are treated with different medications. Coccidia normally affects kids, but an adult goat can get a high enough load to cause significant problems.
A vet can also palpate her abdomen and give you his or her opinion on her pregnancy.
