[grumpsgarden]

hi my nanny has bagged up and has milk well thick milk like how long after would she likly to kid as ive got a 7 hour drive to collect brats tomorrow so wanting to leave the right instructions with teenager and numbers in case of emercancy thank you

[kelpy]

hi,
usually within 24 hrs.
good luck

[grumpsgarden]

better leave vet and local goat keeper numbers with daughter then as it will be just my luck she kids while im collecting the little darlings from there dads oh i do hope not dreading the 7 hour round trip now 

[jaykay]

Oh no  No grandparents or aunties could do the trip?

[grumpsgarden]

no my parents are down from norfolk taking my mum with me for company and leaving dad behind with daughter no family that live in wales normaly just me and kids , and i was told she was due in may around the 15th thank god daughter is well glued in to what is what but she has never done a kidding before and only witnessed bad lambings so she not happy and worried

[Anke]

When is her actual due date? If you haven't got that I think you could be in for anything between 24 hours or a few weeks.... My GG bagged up about 5 weeks before, and then REALLY bagged up a week before. BT only a few hours before... it all depends on the individual goat, if she has kidded before, how many kids inside etc etc.

I would think Sod's law will have her kidding just as you are the furthest away from home....., so if you REALLY have to go away for that long time make sure that your vet is aware of the possibilty of a call from a distressed person not knowing much about the goat, or even better DON'T go away without another experienced goat keeper available locally and willing to help.

You say she has got thick milk - ave you tried to milk her? Unless the udder is very hot, and hard, it is best to leave it well alone and NOT to break the seal/plug that keeps the bugs away.

Check for a) ridged up tail bone, b) discharge from vulva and/or c) swollen and pink in colour and d) check the shape of her belly. Once the kid(s) enter the birth canal she will look like her sides have dropped, hollow in her flanks and much "slimmer" - then you definitely are in for a start wihtin 24 hours.

[grumpsgarden]

the goat keeper i know checked her udder as ive stopped milking her shortly after getting her due to being in kid he said she had milk again , and ive got to go tomorrow as ive got to collect my children thats not an option my daughter has been clued into what to do in an ermanceny she does have all numbers but has never witnessed  a kidding , where i brought her from she said she went to billy on dec 23 so said she would be due on may 15 or there abouts , she has stoped eating today and has been pawing the floor as well today ive been and checked her she seems ok, i now she kidded before but i dont know how many she having or how many she has had before ,

[plumseverywhere]

If she only went to the billy on Dec 23rd (and definitely not before) then she can't be due her kids right now. Its 150 days give or take a few.
How old is your daughter?
My nanny was pawing the ground to get comfy weeks before the kids were due/born but not in the agitated "its happening now" way that is different.

[grumpsgarden]

ive only got the persons word on what date she went to billy and as i had to ask over times 5 times about it , some other things which i was told has now turned out not to be true so im edgeing my bets on when she might be due , the goat keeper i know and that comes over( lots this week been fixing my back door for me) has said he thinks she due before middle may , my daughter is 15 well not far from 16 she has helped vet with a bad twin lamb delivery and is very calm normaly the worries she had where she knows i want to remove kids when born she didnt want to upset the goat , ive been and checked her a few times in the night she seems to be laughthing at me as when i go out to check it sets the lambs of so they are making a racket and she looks like she is laughing , she is munching her bed but not her feed

[jaykay]

Are you wanting to remove the kids because of CAE or just because you want to milk her? If the latter, they could stay for a day and get their colostrum anyway, which would remove the mental stress from your daughter.
Could it be organised that she can ring your experienced goalkeeper friend the second she thinks something is happening and the vet the minute she's not sure it's ok?

[grumpsgarden]

yes i have told her all that she is realy pretty good with these things i think the proplems the goat keeper has had scared her with ours so i sat her down before she went to bed this morning she insisted on checking her as well and did say we wont have the same proplems as she didnt go to his billy he has had deforemed kids and lost kids and nannys and she has been there so its been a right eye opner for her but also a help as she is hoping to get into vet school , she nows to call vet out what ever her worries i would rather pay a vet bill even if one wernt needed and our vet knows us well , i wanted to remove kids so i could milk but have said she can keep the kids if im not home until i get back lol think she will have enough to do what with all the animals to feed and water and all her lambs to feed , oh and this is not the first time she has been left with the animals but the first time with a goat we are unsure when will kid

[jaykay]

She sounds like she'll do well  Even if taking the kids off because you want to milk, they need the colostrum as this gives them a good start in life, so actually leaving them for a day at least is a good plan.

I don't know how much milk you need, but I leave the kids on for the first three months and then separate them only at night and milk once in the morning. Then the kids spend the day with mum. It saves me having the work of rearing the kids, means they can all live together easily and I only have the work once a day of milking. Plus it gives me the excuse to keep twice as many milking goats 

[Anke]

Leave the kids on the nanny for at least 4 days, and only start to milk her out after that. if she seems very full in her first 4 days, you can ease her out a bit (until the udder is soft again), and store that milk/colostrum for future emergencies in the freezer. if you milk her out before that you risk her getting milk fever as she would be induced to produce too much milk too soon. If you PTS any male kids at birth you should ease her at a bit more, taking into consideration the amount of milk/colostrum those kid(s) would have taken.

Also go easy on the concentrate after kidding, none for the first day at least, mine are usually just on soaked warm sugar beet with some bran in it, and I start to add some concentrate from about day two, but building it up to their normal ration over a two week period. They still get a lot of veg though, and of course lots of hay. Mine also go out grazing for short periods, but if your grass is very lush make sure it is only for a little time (and she may not want to go out anyway as long as she has kids on her).

Good luck. If the orginal goatkeeper got his/her dates wrong, she is just about 4 weeks from her due date... so maybe a few days plus three weeks - as in she went to "see" the billy in the previous cycle at the end of November?

[Skirza]

I don't know how much milk you need, but I leave the kids on for the first three months and then separate them only at night and milk once in the morning. Then the kids spend the day with mum. It saves me having the work of rearing the kids, means they can all live together easily and I only have the work once a day of milking. Plus it gives me the excuse to keep twice as many milking goats 

That's how I do things too 

[plumseverywhere]

Our single kid is 3 and a half weeks old. I'm currently milking his mum every other evening and there's not a lot there yet. I'll be doing the same as Jaykay and Skirza in a few weeks.  Everyone is different in how they manage their milking but I believe it has to fit in with your lifestyle (so long as the goats health doesn't suffer obviously! )
I've never adhered to a strict 12 hour gap between milkings either and so far no mastitis (touching head due to lack of wood nearby...)