Or maybe it's new kid in the barn. We don't usually have a kidding this late in the summer, but here she is.
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| Minutes old |
This is Sky's little doe. I had hoped for a late summer or early fall kidding to lengthen our milk supply, so I'm really happy about this.
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| 24 hours old |
The last time I bred Sky she didn't settle. I knew the mating was successful, but five months later, no kid. So I was a bit unsure this time. Sky is my oldest doe, eight years old, and this time as I watched for signs of pregnancy, I didn't see them. She was always fat, so that wasn't a clue, and her udder remained unchanged. Until the other day.
Wednesday I went to the barn for afternoon chores but Sky didn't come to her feeder like she usually does. I found her lying down behind the hay feeder, unwilling to get up. I coaxed her to stand and it was immediately obvious that her udder was very full. Plus the discharge was a sure-fire clue. I put her in the kidding stall and about an hour later, she had her little doe.
Sky is a very happy mama! She's always loved having babies. For now, they are in the kidding stall. Newborn kids usually spend the first couple of days sleeping a lot. Once she's steady on her feet and Sky is willing, I'll let them out for a supervised nose-to-nose meeting with the other goats.
New Kid On the Block © July 2025
18 comments:
What a stout little newborn! Very strikingly colored, too. Congratulations!
Thank you Michelle! It was an unexpected expected surprise.
Congratulations! What a sweet one!
Thanks Laurie!
That's a sturdy little kid! Such a good surprise
Beautiful baby.
Liz, it's always good when things go well and they're healthy. :)
I agree!
Aww! What a great way to start my Friday!
TB, baby animals are always a joy. :)
Goats can sure surprise you often!
Kevin, I know! And this was a pleasant surprise because even though I was keeping an eye on her, I doubted anything would happen.
Congrats! Brings back so many memories of our own goats.
Kristina, the babies are always the sweetest memories, aren't they? :)
When we raised hogs, we usually kept pretty good tabs on mating dates and gestation cycles but every now and then we would have one that would surprise us. It usually never ended well for the little piglets which is why we kept such good tabs on the dates.
Ed, it's so much better to keep track of dates. I confess I had pretty much given up on Sky being pregnant, but it was always in a corner of my mind to keep an eye on her.
What a great story! I wonder if it was a surprise for Sky, too 😁
I've wondered about that. I think the experienced ones know when they're pregnant, but that's a guess on my part. :)
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