Yesterday I checked on the goats about every three hours – after dinner I went to the barn and looked over the gate – three goats and the dog. I found Nettle inside the barn with two newborn little boys. Nettle is one that doesn’t like to be touched. Once when trimming her hoofs she kicked me in the lip. Most goats will let you do anything you want to them if you put them on the milking stand and give them some grain – grain whores. Nettle is the exception.
I took the kids and Nettle into one of the birthing rooms and gave her some grain. My next job is to put the kids up to the teat and get them nursing. Some people bottle feed but who wants to go up to the barn every two hours? Not I! But Nettle would not let the kids nurse, kicking her hind legs and jumping all around. I then put her in the milk stand and it took all of my strength to hold her lets down while Pam got some of her milk into a bottle.
It was about 34 degrees outside; the kids were hungry and cold. We wrapped them in towels and bottle fed them under a heat lamb. I went back out about 11 pm and put Nettle on the milk stand again, held down her legs and let the babies nurse. She still didn’t like it but that was better than using a bottle. 3 am I made another trip to the barn and went through the process once again. By 3 am the new kids were dry and warm.
What to do now? I have my 18 month old granddaughter, Olive, today, so it will be interesting. I’m thinking of moving a lawn chair in the barn and bottle feed the kids. Oh my, I’m tired and my head hurts!
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