This will be a short read, because Gwennie invoked the Doe Code and I missed the whole dang thing. This is her 7th kidding, and never has she a) labored in the morning; b) gone less than 150 days; and c) kept her ligaments so close to kidding. I missed all her signs. As of last night, on her 148th day after her breeding to Proett, her ligaments were still tight. Last year she carried to 157 days so I never would have guessed she would be the one to kick off kidding season. I came outside this morning in frigid temperatures, and while her 3 very pregnant herd mates were waiting for their alfalfa pellets, Gwen was standing in her polydome shelter, looking out at me. This is not unusual since Gwen is the most introverted goat I’ve ever owned. What was unusual was the unmistakable sound of a newborn also coming from the polydome. I hustled over and found THREE damp kids. Gwen had not passed her placenta – I think I missed the delivery by minutes. I got them transferred to our kidding area and made sure everyone was dry and warm. I clipped cords, got weights and rewarded Gwen with some warm molasses water. These kids were all 4.6-5.6 lbs. Historically, Gwen’s kids are in the 7-8lb range – no wonder this labor was fast!
Here’s what she had:
Buck 1: Bezoar, heavily moonspotted, frosted ears, brown eyes, 5lbs, 6 oz
Buck 2: Chocolate, heavily moonspotted, polled, brown eyes, 4lbs, 10 oz. Reserved.
Doe: Bezoar, heavily moonspotted, solid ears, polled, blue-eyed, 4lbs, 6oz. Retained.
At least one of these bucklings will be up for grabs, and would be a great addition to any program. One of Gwen’s sons is already a finished champion, and Gwen herself earned a spot in the 2021 MDGA Top 10 Milk Producers (1-day) by producing 11.2lbs of milk in 24 hours.
Oh my goodness what a way to wake up fast and NOW!!!!