Recently, I posted about the two little orphan goat kids and they wanted to let you know how they are doing:) Since their rough beginning they have settled into a routine and they're doing great.
When feeding the baby kids its necessary to have one of two things. Either another goat with extra milk or powdered goat milk from the feed store. We tried to graft them to another mother who kidded the next morning but she would have nothing to do with them. Goats recognize their kids by smell. Usually, when we graft a goat to a different mother we have to fool her into thinking the baby is hers. To do that we rub part of the afterbirth from the adoptive mother on the new baby being careful to get it on the behind. She will clean it off and the baby will begin to smell like her own. We also place a bit of Vicks vapor rub (or a homemade equivalent) on her nose so that her sense of smell is confused. Then we hold her still while the adoptive kid drinks her milk. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. We tried all of that with a mother goat that kidded the day after they were born but she would have none of it. She tried to kick and butt at the kids even while we were holding her and them.
After a few days of that, we finally gave up and resorted to the powdered save a kid milk. We could have milked another goat but that would take milk from their own kids and would also mean that I would be required to milk the goat twice a day every day. Rather then do that, I decided that mixing milk powder was easier right now.
The bag of milk has mixing and feeding directions on the back. I don't like to use multi-species milk because it is not formulated specifically for goats. I prefer the one meant for goats because it is higher in fats and specially geared for growing goat kids. I also buy powdered goat colostrum which is added to the powdered milk for the first two weeks when mixing it up. We use a special lamb and kid nipple called a Pritchard teat because it more closely resembles the goats teat. They seem to do much better with it. Some people use regular baby bottles but we don't care for them. The nipples we use screw onto any used coke bottle and after enough uses the bottle can be discarded and replaced with a fresh bottle.
We don't feed Pygmy kids as much as the bag recommends because they are much smaller and don't need as much. We also find that feeding in large portions like they recommend causes pot bellied babies and a greater chance of colic. We feed smaller portions more frequently just like the mother goat would do. That means more feedings and potty trips outside but it seems to be a healthier more natural way to feed them. They are not only learning their feeding schedule but they are learning potty training too. After they drink they are taken outside and they play and use the potty. They are learning not to mess up their animal carrier and they stay clean and dry.
We will begin offering goat pellets to them this weekend because they are beginning to nibble on things outside. They haven't eaten anything solid yet but they pick up leaves and straw and give them the taste test before spitting it back out.
Every morning they wake up at 5:30 and we start the day by taking them outside to use the bathroom. Then they are given their bottle and allowed to play a bit. Then they're back inside for an hour while we take care of the rest of the animals.
They have been going to work every day this week where they play and entertain the customers. After a day at the office they come home and if its still light out they play in the goat pen with all the other new babies. They have a concrete pipe that they enjoy running through while the bigger goats jump on top. When they are a little bigger they will start jumping on top too. For now they are happy just jumping and skipping on the ground.
They've already had three field trips this week. We went to tractor supply for extra baby nipples and their very own collars. They also went to the local feed store and grandmas house. Everybody thinks they're the cutest little things.
That's their first big week. They've been very good and happy. They're growing fast and strong. The only problem is they still don't have names. We haven't had many suggestions and they are patiently waiting. They want to make sure that y'all don't forget to offer suggestions so they can go ahead and start learning to come when they're called. They also hope that they can help the people who want to raise goats on their own homestead learn as much as possible about raising babies like them so that it will be easier for other kids and their humans.
Southern Wood Elf
*Note from Prepping Granny
Please help the babies find names. You can either make suggestions for name for them using the comments button above this post or if you are a member of the HardcorePreppers2 yahoo group you can post a suggestion on there.
Thank you