March 14, 2013

Whew, Our First Kikobian




This little guy was born at 10:10 last night, but not without a little drama. On Tuesday, I noticed that Surprise's udder didn't seem as flabby as usual, and the next day, yesterday, it filled. She stayed standing in her stall all day, and wouldn't even come out for a brief nibble in the new pasture. We were past the circled due date on my calendar, so I knew this was it.

At 9:08 pm I went out to check on her and discovered that she had started pushing. Shortly the birth sac appeared. I looked for the tips of two front hooves and a nose, but saw none. After half an hour, there were still none, and this was worrisome. After Jasmine's stillborn, I dreaded ever having another difficult birth. They're only supposed to happen in some 90-odd% of kiddings and this being my fourth, meant my average would be 50%! No fair.

I went to my birthing kit and got out a glove and lubricant, to go in to "see" what was happening. Surprise was not at all cooperative and would not stand still. At last I was able to feel two legs and teeth. That's a normal presentation, but what was the problem? I realized that what I was feeling was actually knees, not feet. There wasn't enough room to get my hand further in to feel anything else. Did they even belong to the same kid? It was going on an hour of hard labor by now and that was too long. I prayed and managed to guide the feet out. With the next few contractions I pulled. Surprise screamed and was finally able to get the head out. A wet, limp baby boy soon followed.

He wasn't moving, he wasn't breathing. I grabbed my towels to wipe away the birth sac from his face and nose and began rubbing vigorously. Surprise licked him like crazy. Finally he moved and whimpered. More rubbing and licking and he began to complain. I was so relieved.

My kitchen scale weighed him in at 10.5 pounds. Besides being large, he already has tips of horns showing! Of course, he was born at about 158 days gestation; average for a goat being 145 to 155.

I made sure there were no other kids coming, that the placenta was mostly out (no need to dispose of it, Surprise will eat it), that he was dry, had a tummy full of colostrum and his selenium/E, and could wobble about and find a teat all by himself. Because our temperature was supposed to dip back down below freezing, I hung the heat lamp in the stall and finally got to bed around 2 am. I went back out at 5 to check. Mother and baby were doing fine.

We're not out of the woods yet. His breathing is congested and I'm concerned about pneumonia. I've got him on oral and subq antibiotics, and making sure he stays warm. What I did not have in my birthing kit was my bulb syringe. I thought it was there, but couldn't find it when I needed it. I'm not positive that would have helped, but it is a must-have item.

And about the title of this blog post, "Our First Kikobian"; what is a Kikobian you may be wondering? Not a real breed, just something I made up when we decided to get our Kiko buck, Elvis. I had no success trying to breed Kinders, so I thought maybe I could start my own dual purpose breed, a Kiko/Nubian cross. This little guy is the first, but not the last.

Whew, Our First Kikobian © March 2013 

37 comments:

Roslyn Phipps (A Plow And A Mule) said...

He is precious. Hope that he stays strong and healthy.

Lynda said...

Such a beautiful baby!

Anonymous said...

What a gorgeous boy! Praying he grows strong and healthy in the next few weeks, so you can relax.

Woolly Bits said...

how cute - I hope you'll get the little fellow through the first difficult days! good luck!
Bettina

Nina said...

What a pretty colour! I wonder if the meat breed has wider shoulders and makes for a harder delivery with the milker doe? Plus the extended gestation would make for a larger kid. Now for lots of adventures with the new baby! Are there any more on the way? Maybe hoping for a little doe kid?

MTWaggin said...

No wonder Surprise had issues, the little bugger was good sized! So glad the birth was successful and will hope that he will knock off the congestion and all will be well. Maybe you've got your "problem kidding" out of the way now!

Sherri B. said...

I was holding my breath for awhile..whew..so glad the birth turned out fine. Hopefully his breathing corrects soon. He is a cutie! xo

DebbieB said...

How wonderful - what a blessing! You did a great job helping the little guy into the world. Congratulations on the new "breed"!

Anonymous said...

Leigh, your little guy is a real cutie. Hope his congestion clears up and it is smooth sailing.

Renee Nefe said...

very cute! Are the other girls showing any signs of being ready?

Hope this little guy's lungs clear up soon and he is ready to chase the chickens. ;o)

DFW said...

Leigh, He's precious! Hope he continues to show progress.

~mel said...

How sweet! I'm sure Surprise was surprised :)

Cat Eye Cottage said...

Congratulations and good luck with getting him on the fast tract to health.

Mama Pea said...

Omigosh! Congratulations (to both you and Surprise) on the huge, beautifully marked little buck. An angst-filled delivery like that is not needed, but sounds like you did just fine. (Better now that it's over, huh?) He'll get his fill of good mama's milk so let's hope in a couple of days his congestion clears up and he's on his way to being robust as can be! Thanks for sharing.

Tombstone Livestock said...

Now you just need to find a Kikobian doe. Congratulations on the new little buck kid.

Kris said...

Congrats. Hope the little guy's breathing clears up for you. Fingers crossed.

Susan said...

He looks like a sturdy little guy - I hope his breathing is clear by now. It's always worrisome when there is an issue. It will be interesting to see what this cross will bring - how many more to go?

Michelle said...

He's just beautiful! Congratulations! Praying he stays healthy and grows stronger with each passing day.

Leigh said...

Thank you to everyone for your prayers and kind words. They are all appreciated.

To answer some questions:

Nina, the two breeds are both standard size. Elvis is a little broad in the chest, but not especially so. I'm thinking he's big because he incubated so long plus he's a boy!

Hopefully Lily settled and there will be more Kikobian kids. Ziggy's pregnant too, hopefully by Gruffy!

Renee, they aren't due for a couple more months. Which I don't mind. :)

TL, or make one. :)

Susan, hopefully two more to go. Not entirely sure about Lily. Her time with Elvis was cut short by a downpour. She was very interested and willing while she was with him however.

Anonymous said...

Oh, I so hope everything stays fine, Leigh! So darn adorably cute and I love the new breed...;) .....combo! Congrats!! <3

Mary Ann said...

He's a beautiful little guy, and I hope will be healthy!

Sue said...

What a handsome, sturdy boy! Congrats to all. Can't wait to see what the other girls produce.

Kev Alviti said...

Well done. Reminds me of many lambings where my father and me struggle to get a lamb out. It all seems worth it when they come out alive!

Ron said...

Strong work soldier!

Unknown said...

What a cutie!

Madness, Trouble, Squish and Milkbone said...

OMG he is adorable! Just look at those knobbly knees. LOL. To me the knees of small lambs and goats are ust the cutest things ever!

PS, I hope this is not a double post. I've been having some problems leaving comments.

Laura said...

One way to make sure any mucus/liquid that's partially aspirated gets out is to hold them by the hind legs, and swing them in a gentle arc (left arm straight out to the side, down to right and up to right are straight out). This will help in the future. With this guy, LA 200 will probably do the trick, if you have it, Pen-G will work too. Sometimes a B-complex shot will help them feel good enough to keep going.

Congrats on the assisted delivery! I didn't like to but did many times with the sheep. It's a wonderful feeling to help a new life into the world!

SmithGang said...

Congratulations!! I've got 5 momas due in 2 weeks, hope everything goes well I've never assisted in a birth. I'm still sad over losing those twin goats last year. hoping that moma does better this time. your little one is so cute.

Farmer Barb said...

YEA!! My son asked if his name is going to be Present?

I see a contest a-brewin'!

Seeking Serenity said...

Oh I thought she looked like she was going to pop!
I surely hope his lungs clear, he certainly looks robust.

Quinn said...

Congrats to the mamagoat, and to you for being there and getting that boy out and going! How did you get the selenium/E into him?

I did a double-take on your anticipated percentage of difficult births, though...did I read that right? 90-odd percent???

Good luck to all. I hope your new buckbaby thrives! :)

Renee W said...

Congrats on the addition to the herd! Cute colors reminds me of Calico.

Ngo Family Farm said...

Awwwww, what a beautiful boy! Well done, and good thing you were there to see her through. Hope all is well, and everyone is healthy! Will be thinking of you...
-jaime

CaliforniaGrammy said...

WooHooooo! Way to go Leigh. And congratulations Surprise, be a good mama now to that beautiful little boy. He's such a cutie!

Leigh said...

Once again, many thanks for everyone's kind comments. Our little guy is doing better, lungs have cleared though I'll finish out the round of antibiotics.

Which Laura are Pen-G cuz that's what I have on hand. I agree it's no fun but like Kev says, it's great when they come out alive!

Quinn, my one goat book says 99%! I gave him the selenium E as a gel, so it was orally. Bo-Se is popular but it's prescription, and a shot.

He's thriving now though, for which I'm very thankful.

famousthecat said...

Wow, what an adventure! I think my blood pressure raised just reading this. I am so happy for you that it all turned out all right and that he's doing even better now. Best wishes that Surprise gets back to being healthy, too!

* Crystal * said...

Oh wow! Welcome to the world big guy! Happy you went in after him....Goats aren't supposed to labor long so if they are, something is up.

Had one kid present legs first, head over the shoulder, a particularly awful breech kid, and one come out head first & I had to shove him back in, get the legs and then let him come on out....Fun, fun!
Bleuberry likes to go late & have monster kids so she is no loner allowed to choose the time she kids. I induced her this year and it was great! Ended up inducing with 5cc IM of dexamethasone and 2cc of lute around 9:30 pm and had a text book kidding. Ended up inducing 3 does this year, all kidded during the day time about 36hrs after inducing and all had textbook kiddings, loved it!!e