It’s about 4 weeks now before our Spring kids are due. An exciting time and also a time to get some very important tasks completed. In addition to getting Seren, the mum to be, her CD&T annual vaccination, we also trim hooves and use clippers to trim the hair around her udder and her bum area for a cleaner kidding and easier nursing. Seren will also start getting 1 cup of pelleted feed each morning, the extra protien and energy in it will help the growing babies and also help prevent pregnancy toxemia. This year we decided to go with 16% Goat Pellet (Non-GMO).
Our sweet girl, Seren....this will be her second freshening.
Next on Checklist; get Kidding Kit ready to go. This is our 4th kidding season and we have learned a few things along the way that have better prepared us, like what we actually need that day.
The Kidding Kit:
Disposable Rubber gloves, obvious reasons.
Several small towels to help dry the kids off once they arrive in this world.
Scissors to cut umbilical cord if it is too long, dragging on ground, after birth.
Rubbing Alcohol, if cutting cord, be sure scissors are cleaned with alcohol and cut the cord to about 2 inches in length.
Iodine 7% Solution (or diluted if using 10%) to dip umbilical cord in to prevent infection. Mum will clean this area as well. Watch for a mum that may want to bite or chew on the umbilical area….Seren has done this in past kidding and can cause bleeding and difficulty healing.
Small paper cups to put iodine in for dipping cord. Fill cup and hold up to the kids belly.
Nasal Aspirator, in case a nasal passage is blocked, mucus filled. This is not usually needed.
Nutri-Drench™ for Sheep & Goats, each kid receives 4 ml directly after birth.
Dental floss to tie of umbilical cord if for any reason it is bleeding.
Roll of paper towels, you just never know what you are going to need to wipe up, wipe off, wipe down.
Small garbage bags to discard waste.
Kidding Kit, all packed and ready to go.
Directly after kidding: Mum has lost a lot of heat and energy during kidding. We give her a gallon of warm water mixed with 1 tablespoon of molasses, and she will usually drink it all up. If mum had a hard time kidding or is struggling after, she will get Nutri Drench instead of molasses in the bucket of warm water. Mum also receives a chemical dewormer soon after kidding. In our experience, internal parasite loads can be very heavy after kidding and it is good to get mum off to a healthy start and feeling as well as she can as she takes on raising her kid(s).
We keep an eye on the umbilical cord healing for the first week, checking it daily and re-dipping in iodine as needed or spraying with Vetericyn Plus.
The After Kidding Kit:
CHEERS!
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