Kids! (the goat kind)

Friday, Lili and Ripley decided they wanted to have their kids on the same day. Both girls were pawing the ground and visibly uncomfortable in the morning.

As 1pm neared, Lili laid down on the ground and next thing I know, she's giving birth to her first baby. This little boy didn't move much. He was very tiny and we didn't think he was going to make it. My husband went and got a heating lamp. After momma cleaned him up, baby #2 started coming. So, we took baby #1, dried him off as best we could and put him under the heating lamp just in time for Lili to start pushing on baby #2.

Shortly after Lili had baby #2, we milked her a little bit so we could get some food into baby #1's tummy with a small syringe we found. We knew we needed to keep the little guy warm and hydrated if he was going to survive.

We did not realize how little Lili's first baby was until baby #2 came out (or maybe it was the other way around!). Immediately after he was out, he was trying to stand and walk. This was a good indicator to us that baby #1 was definitely not doing very well. We were happy to see that baby #2 was another boy, active, and absolutely beautiful! This one will definitely be a wonderful addition to someone's Alpine breeding stock someday! His name is Eschelman and he is a cutie!

We were pleasantly surprised when Lili began pushing again (as we were expecting only 2). This next time, I realized that a baby was coming out but it was breach (legs first instead of head first). So, with a little bit of difficulty and some help from me, Lili birthed her 3rd baby. We were more than thrilled to see that it was a girl this time! She was also large and quick on her feet. She is definitely the most active and curious of all the babies so far and she's beautiful too! We're planning on keeping her for a future milking doe.

This is Lili's fourth freshening (pregnancy) and she has never dam raised before (nursed her kids herself). So, we weren't sure how she would do when her kids approached her to nurse. We were so happy to see her willingly stand for her babies as they fed from her! And the great news is that baby #1 is doing well! He is standing on his own and eating well from a bottle.

In the next blog, I will share Ripley's birth story, as they both had their babies on the same day, but both deliveries were very different. Lili was the text book delivery, which I was very thankful for since this was our first time ever seeing a kidding goat, and also since Ripley's was not so easy.