I'm Not Kidding - But Agnes and Annie Are

Early spring.  It's kidding time.  Buckwheat did his job and bred Agnes and Annie.  On February 25th, Tricia let me know that Agnes would be the first to kid.  Here bag was growing larger by the minute.  Sure enough, in the evening Agnes starting acting funny, making strange noises.  We got her into the barn where she could be isolated from the others.  Soon she was laying in the corner crying.  It's her first kidding and it I can gather from all the racket that it is not a pleasant experience for her.

Soon things started moving, we could see something coming out.  Trouble was, we couldn't see anything.  Agnes was really crying with each push.  It didn't seem like there was any movement in the delivery.  We didn't know if the baby was positioned correctly or if we'd need to pull the baby out.

We've learned to be patient and let things take its course.  In most instances, they can (and will) handle most things on their own just fine, thank you very much.  We saw the head first and could see the tongue moving.  Once the head was out, the delivery progressed quickly.  

The baby seemed to be healthy and Agnes seemed calm and relaxed again.  It was a happy, peaceful time in the barn.  Most times we've had triplets or twins, this time only a single.  And it's a doeling.  We decided to name her Cupcake.

We'll have better photos a little later.  There is a problem with Cupcake, though.  She has a deficiency in Selenium and Vitamin E.  This results in really tight tendons on the front legs.  They are curled and she stands on her knees.  If you try to straighten her bent legs, they are very tight.  Tricia purchased some selenium paste and vitamin E and has been treating her.  This deficiency also contributes to an issue with nursing.  So Tricia is being the country vet to Cupcake and is also bottle feeding her with colostrum we have stored in the freezer.  Cupcake's getting better.  She was nursing on her own today, so Tricia will soon stop bottle feeding her.  We'll have updates and reports later.

Two days later, on February 27th, Annie gave birth to a single buckling.  He is a healthy little fellow, tall and playful, energetic and strong.  We haven't named him yet.  While he's healthy, unfortunately, Annie is not.  Annie is a big goat, a pretty goat - but she has had mastitis issues in her bag over the years.  She is 8 years old and her bag, although enormous, will yield no milk. 

So Tricia is bottle feeding the little guy several times a day.  He is strong.  Sadly, because Annie is unable to provide milk, he cannot nurse and considers Tricia to be his momma.  He's not really bonded with Annie.

Two little goats on the pasture.  You've "goat" to be kidding me!