Update on the New Momma

Since we lost the last doe that kidded... naturally, I was a bit anxious (can you say "nervous wreck"?) about our newest momma. I just wanted to make sure we didn't lose L, just because I missed some important sign that things were not going okay.

I had let the rest of the herd back into the common area this morning. At noon, I threw hay, checked water. Then I paid some special attention to L. She seemed a bit droopy, which worried me a bit. I had given her her own flake of hay, which she rejected. I thought I would tempt her appetite with some whole oats, BOSS (black oil sunflower seeds) and peanuts. Well, the only problem is the entire herd saw me tippy-toeing over to the barn and they all rushed me and were charging around trying to get what was in the container I was carrying. ACK. That just made me irritated at them all. So I hid the container I'd been carrying and stood around waiting for them to leave. I had tossed their hay in the smaller area, so once they all went back to eating hay over there, I went and locked them out of the common area. Then I gave L her treats. She accepted the peanuts (roasted, unsalted, in the shell) first, then I offered her a handful of sunflower seeds. She then realized she WAS hungry after all, and ate the rest of what I'd brought. But no interest in her hay still. It was a good sign she was eating oats, but hay is more important.

So I was still a bit worried. I decided to go down and get some of the "cow" hay, which at morning chores looked better to me, than the "good" hay we bought. We paid $9/100# bale for the "good" hay to feed the goats; the flakes are falling apart, crumbly, dried out and have lots of stems. We paid $7/100# bale for the "cow" hay, which comes apart in nice compact flakes, seems moister and has almost no stems. So we are going to switch out the bales. Give the calves the more expensive hay, give the goats the cheaper hay.

Anyway... once I gave her a flake of the "cow" hay, she tore right into it.

When we were out doing evening chores, I brought her out with me into the milking area. She had a few more sunflower seeds, and while standing there dropped a couple loads of berries. Then when she got back into the goat yard, she was calling out for her boy, and I saw her urinate (a lot) and more berries, and more berries. SO... this tells me her system is working well. She is eating, drinking, peeing, pooping, feeding her kid, keeping his bottom clean, protecting him from the rest of the herd. So far, so good.

Until next time.