Last Sunday, on March 22, Jenny had the first kids ever on the Green T! Here is how it went.
We thought before we left for church in the morning that Jenny was getting close, because she was sticking right around the barn and arching her back (I had never read that this was a sign, but since I had never seen her do it, I assumed it was a sign she was close..). I wasn't sure though, and didn't let myself hope too much, because she had been giving us false alarms for eleven days (we thought her ligs were gone, turns out they weren't gone all the way, teeny bits of discharge here and there, etc). So we left for church, and didn't really expect kids.
We went to a friend's house for lunch, so we were back around three o'clock. All eyes were turned to the goat pen, and sure enough Pinky was bucking a kid. Jane ran in and nabbed that kid, and I went to the barn to find Jenny, because if the kid Jane had gotten was her only kid, she would have been up there protecting it from Pinky. When I got to Jenny there was a kid lying down behind her. I got that one. We confirmed that they were both girls, that they could nurse, and I gave mama some water and some alfalfa hay.
Both kids were doing great, wagging tails, nursing often, healthy poop, etc., but now we had to deal with Pinky. She was not going to accept those kids if she had anything to say about it. We decided to put Honey and Pinky in a separate, temporary inclosure. (We have two permanent inclosures and one temporary.) Next thing we knew, Honey and Pinky were parading up the driveway. I went down to check the fence and there was a large branch fallen on it, weighing down the fence. We got the branch out of the way and locked Pinky in one side of the barn for the night. Honey was really sweet to the kids and did not have to be locked up. The next day, we put Pinky and Honey back in the smaller pasture, and they were coming up the driveway quicker than last time. We put the bucks in the smaller pen, and the does got the bucks' permanent pasture.
The day the kids were born they weren't drinking enough for the amount of milk Jenny was producing. They drank a lot, but Jenny produced even more. We had to milk her the day the kids were born and twice the following day, making sure both kids were already full and leaving a good bit of milk. Now the kids seem to have caught up with the amount of milk Jenny is producing, because her udder isn't tight anymore.
Next we had to name the kids. Jane named the one she had protected from Pinky Rosebud, and I named the one I found behind Jenny Dahlia, but we mostly call her Dollie. Dollie looks exactly like her mother, but Rosebud has white markings on her face and legs that she got from their sire, Ebony. Here are some pictures. The first two are Rosebud on the left and Doll on the right, and the last one is Doll on the left and Rose on the right.
We thought before we left for church in the morning that Jenny was getting close, because she was sticking right around the barn and arching her back (I had never read that this was a sign, but since I had never seen her do it, I assumed it was a sign she was close..). I wasn't sure though, and didn't let myself hope too much, because she had been giving us false alarms for eleven days (we thought her ligs were gone, turns out they weren't gone all the way, teeny bits of discharge here and there, etc). So we left for church, and didn't really expect kids.
We went to a friend's house for lunch, so we were back around three o'clock. All eyes were turned to the goat pen, and sure enough Pinky was bucking a kid. Jane ran in and nabbed that kid, and I went to the barn to find Jenny, because if the kid Jane had gotten was her only kid, she would have been up there protecting it from Pinky. When I got to Jenny there was a kid lying down behind her. I got that one. We confirmed that they were both girls, that they could nurse, and I gave mama some water and some alfalfa hay.
Both kids were doing great, wagging tails, nursing often, healthy poop, etc., but now we had to deal with Pinky. She was not going to accept those kids if she had anything to say about it. We decided to put Honey and Pinky in a separate, temporary inclosure. (We have two permanent inclosures and one temporary.) Next thing we knew, Honey and Pinky were parading up the driveway. I went down to check the fence and there was a large branch fallen on it, weighing down the fence. We got the branch out of the way and locked Pinky in one side of the barn for the night. Honey was really sweet to the kids and did not have to be locked up. The next day, we put Pinky and Honey back in the smaller pasture, and they were coming up the driveway quicker than last time. We put the bucks in the smaller pen, and the does got the bucks' permanent pasture.
The day the kids were born they weren't drinking enough for the amount of milk Jenny was producing. They drank a lot, but Jenny produced even more. We had to milk her the day the kids were born and twice the following day, making sure both kids were already full and leaving a good bit of milk. Now the kids seem to have caught up with the amount of milk Jenny is producing, because her udder isn't tight anymore.
Next we had to name the kids. Jane named the one she had protected from Pinky Rosebud, and I named the one I found behind Jenny Dahlia, but we mostly call her Dollie. Dollie looks exactly like her mother, but Rosebud has white markings on her face and legs that she got from their sire, Ebony. Here are some pictures. The first two are Rosebud on the left and Doll on the right, and the last one is Doll on the left and Rose on the right.
Written by Suzanne Tyler, Green T goatherd
