I have a fainting goat in labor. Her discharge went from amber yesterday afternoon to clear this moning back to amber. She has been in labor since mid afternoon yesterday. She appears to be just a tiny little bit dialated. I can see her belly move when she has contractions. Have birthed seals and dogs, which was a long time ago, but no goats. Any advise you veterans can give me? Thanks!!
You need to do a pelvic now. If she has been in labor since yesterday why hasn't she been checked? I always go in if there is no progress after 15-30 minutes. She probably has a kid stuck or not in position to be able to deliver it without your assistance. Go in and see what is going on. Don't wait any longer. Sara
Dutchie....when you say labor....will you discribe what you're seeing just a bit. Is this doe laying down, stretching legs backward? Is she getting up and down a lot, and usually ending up laying back down on the opposit side from whence she was ? Whim
Yes, that is exactly what she is doing. She is laying down a bit, stretching her legs. Then she gets up, does a little grazing and lays down again. SHe also moves around to other places.
I am trying to feel her which is not easy. I haven't had her very long and while I made a big effort, she isn't as used to me as I would like. It can't hold her still enough by myself. Hoping my friend okgoatgal can stop by after school this afternoon. She is just laying around, occassionally getting up to eat. She doesn't appear to be in distress at all.
Attach her to a fence or put her on a milk stand if you have one and go in and check. It needs to be done as soon as possible. Not later.
Most new folks don't really get the parts of labor. Has she done any active pushing? Up and down and eating and nesting is normal perlabor kind of stuff. Unless she has been down actively pushing there isn't alot you can do but watch and wait. I would wait for your friend to come and see what she thinks. How much discharge, stringing long or just a little around her vulva? The up and down alot and rubbing her sides can mean that when she actually is in pushing labor that you are going to have kids not in a good presentation, so be warned, about 20 pushes and if she doesn't have kids presented....nose and front feet that you can feel readily than you will have to go in and rearrange the kids. WE have some excellent articles in here on presentation, what to feel for an how to do it, search them out. I let the doe push maybe 5 times and then with fingers just check out if I can feel nose/teeth and two front feet. More pushes are needed in a young milker, less in an older doe who has opened that cervic before. There is no way on the internet we can really help you with this, if you do pushes and nothing happens is exhausted and nothing is happening to save the doe you will have to get a vet. If the discharge turns redder than amber than you have to get a vet. Wish you would have found us before now, there are things we could have done that if you had from your vet would help now, but more importantly you would have been here for all the previous kiddings that were talked about on here and had time to search through for kidding advice. Hopefully this is just nothing but the 1st stages of labor and she and the kids are fine, you have just jumped the gun some. If not, you have a kid blocking the opening that will not make her dialate, and without knowing how to manipulate the cervic open or the use of oxytocin, the kids likely won't make it without a vet. Vicki
Thanks, Vicki. I know how to manipulate baby animals in the womb. I am just used to cattle that pretty much have their babies by themselves. Her discharge is still light amber. She is still hanging around grazing a bit. I don't want to traumatise her too much by tying her up right now, even if I could do this by myself. I wish I had found this site before, too. Corky has been holding out on me LOL I am going to go and check out those articles right now. Thanks a bunch!!
Sorry I didn't think to get her on here before. She just called me last night. She thinks I am an expert so as you can see she needs a lot of help here. I don't live anywhere near her either. She needs to go in but her goat is wild and won't let her. She needs someone to hold it. Laura lives near but has a goat of her own in labor right now. I just hope she is wrong about the goat being in labor all this time.
Our friend that lives just down the road from her told her a goat could be in labor for three days. I told her to get that kid out. She now says it is dead and too big to pull. She is finally on the phone with the vet and he is talking her through pulling it. I am praying for her and the doe right now.
Greg is trying one more time to pull it and then he said he is going to shoot her. He can't stand to see her suffering like this.