Birth On The Farm

I want to give you fair warning. The pictures are very graphic of a goat giving birth. So, if you are squeamish, I suggest you read my blog another day. Tina asked about birthing pictures and Peggy has a goat that will give birth soon and she would like to see them, so I am posting them on here. This birth did not take place this year. We no longer have this Momma goat. This was our first goat that had our herd name. Her name is Shiloh. Here is a picture of her big and pregnant. Her coloring was very unusual. The front half of her was chamoisee and then just past her withers, she was all white. Everyone in the goat world always commented on her coloring.


On a normal presentation of a birth in goats, you will see the front hooves first and maybe the nose resting on top of them. When Shiloh herself was born, her tongue was sticking out and you could see it. Her mother birthed just the head and walked around while Shiloh was blinking and looking around. We had to get the legs and assist her on the next push. Shiloh was huge as far as baby goats go. If you look closely at this picture you can see the little whitish/yellowish hooves showing. You can click on any of these pictures to make them a bit bigger.


This next picture you can see both front hooves very distinctly and the big dark bulge is the nose and head coming. During the labor, the goat will get up and walk around. They like to paw at the ground like they are fixing a nest and then they will lay back down or walk around a bit.


This next picture you can see both the front legs and the head are out. That is usually the hardest part for the Momma goat.


Now, most of the body is out and just part of the back legs are still in her. At this point, she often stands up and then the rest of the kid is birthed and it snaps the cord.


Here the baby is out and Shiloh is cleaning him off. I usually assist the Momma in cleaning off the babies using a towel. I also gather up the sac pieces, etc. so that the Doe won't eat them. I am sure God gave them that instinct for when they are in the wild. I have had people tell me that it is bad for them and others say it is really good for them to eat it. It just grosses me out, so I don't give them the option. =) I would say within 10 mins. of being born, the babies are trying out their wobbly little legs. How someone could watch an animal birth and not believe in a Master Creator is beyond me. Here this brand new little life gets on its wobbly legs and immediately starts looking for a teat to nurse.


Here is her second baby coming. He is still encased in the birthing sac. You will notice she is standing up for this one.


Here is Momma Shiloh with her twin bucklings. They are just the color I breed for. Too bad they were both boys.


I will show you these last two pictures. They are from another one of Shiloh's birthings. This shows you how they often lay when they are pushing. The lay on their side and sort of roll. They also turn and look back to see what is going on.