Black Mesa 2009 Kidding

Black Mesa Ranch
Snowflake Arizona

2009 Kidding Schedule and Report

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2010 Kidding Page Will Be Uploaded Soon!!

The Next Generation of Kids on the Ranch - Spring 2009

(Click on any of the goat names in the table below to open their detailed lineage pages. Click on the "Results" to go to the diary entry.)

The above listed prices are for reserved kids. Prices for kids purchased after they are born will be higher.

Contact Kathryn for more information on how to put in reservations for next year's kids.

Kiddings will be listed below chronologically with the most recent first. Begin at the bottom of the page for the complete season's story.

5/29/09 Niska didn't look pregnant, and until two days ago I sure wouldn't have bet that she was. But on Wednesday she started to soften in the hindquarters and by 5 AM Friday morning she was pretty sure something was happening and that she needed to wake me up to tell me. I stumbled out of bed and checked on her. I told her that she was wrong and nothing was imminent, but I sat out with her anyway. During morning milking I could see her out digging a nest in the dirt. When I put her in the kidding pen in the afternoon she dug a nest there also. By evening chore time Niska started to string thin bands of clear mucus. I sat with her in the evening but just after 9PM I decided to get some sleep in case it would be a late night kidding. David stayed up and kept an eye on Niska from the barn camera in the office.

It seemed like mere minutes before David told me that it was kidding time, though actually I had gotten almost an hour of sleep. I threw on my clothes and ran out to the barn. Niska was in hard labor and seemed a bit distressed. I gloved up and checked inside. I felt a nose but no feet in the birth canal. I checked around again and found a hoof there also, so I got out of Niska's way and let her continue to push this little kid out (I could tell it was a small kid by the size of the leg). After a few minutes Niska started pushing hard again. She had several more pushing sessions and then a tongue and hoof appeared. She pushed some more and got the head out. I cleared it's mouth and nose of mucus in case it started to breath, then I gently helped pull the adorable 5# black doeling into the world. She is a Splash daughter so of course she is covered in white polka-dots. She is feisty and active and as cute as they come. What a wonderful ending to our 2009 kidding season. It's been just terrific!

4/27/09 I guess we were just spoiled by how easy the girls were being on us - daytime kiddings with the kids in good positions. Peri decided to change all that. She waited until evening milking time to get serious. Right before doing the milking I checked inside of Peri to determine how close she was. Her cervix was only open half way so David and I milked quickly and kept checking the video monitor to keep an eye on her.

She let us get through with milking and feeding all the kids, then she pushed hard for a few sessions with no results. I checked inside her again and felt that the cervix was almost totally open now and I felt a head coming through - but no feet. I tried to find the front legs but they were really tucked back there far and Peri kept pushing the head further out. I tried helping her deliver the kid by the head only, but it just didn't seem to be happening. So I reached in past the kid's neck which was at the cervix and into the uterus. I found a shoulder blade and worked on pulling it forward so that I could get to the upper leg. I was successful at doing that and was able to work my way down the leg to find the hoof. I then rotated the leg forward and into the birth canal. It was still a tight fit getting that 7.9# brown buckling out of first time momma, Peri, but finally he came out. Peri was very tired but handled it well. I suppose this could be considered karmic payback since Peri was also a singleton, head-first delivery out of a first time momma.

4/24/09 Miranda showed signs of kidding this morning. She fussed around and pushed a little, but seemed to think it hurt too much to get really serious. After waiting until 4 PM for her to get busy, I reached inside to check the kid's position. Sometimes a doe won't push seriously if the kid is in a bad position. I felt two hooves and a nose. So I got out of there and waited for Miranda to set the kid free. My hand in the birth canal signaled Miranda to start having harder contractions and within just a few minutes a gorgeous 7.1# black and tan buckling with black ears was on the ground. As David was finishing cleaning him up, Miranda pushed out a second buckling. This one was also black and tan but with frosted ears and weighed 7.8#. Both boys were hungry and healthy. Miranda enjoyed meeting her new boys and contributed almost a quart of colostrum for their dinner. That's a pretty good amount for a first freshener! Miranda's udder is wonderfully soft and she milks out easily. She will be a pleasure to have working in the milking parlor with us this year.

4/23/09 Can these does make life any more simple? I don't think so! Around noon today I saw Celeste separate herself from the herd and lay down under a tree. I went out and had her follow me to a kidding pen. I sat down with her to keep her company. David brought out some lunch and as we were finishing up eating, Celeste started pushing hard. In just a few minutes she had a 5.8# doeling delivered. She came in the classic diving position. David and I had discussed how many and of what flavor Celeste's kids would be. I guessed that Celeste would have a single doeling. As I mentioned to David that I had been correct in my guess, Celeste started pushing again. Out came a 7.0# red buckling with white splashes. He also came in the diving position and blew my guess of a singleton doe right out of the water. First time mom, Celeste, did a great job of carrying her twins and she looks like she'll be a great asset to our milking line-up.

4/22/09 At 3 PM Sarah Jane gave us two perfectly positioned kids. First out was an 8.0 # buckling, second was a 5.9 # doeling. Sarah Jane looks to have inherited her mom's great udder and we are so happy about that! All are doing great - what more can I say?

4/21/09 OK, this is almost creepy. The girls have been so cooperative with easy daytime kiddings. I guess we paid our dues with two kiddings late at night in the freezing temperatures on April 14th. Lillith picked 2 PM to have her twin daughters. Not only that, but she waited patiently for Princess to finish birthing her kids and let us get them fed and even grab a bite of lunch for ourselves. Then she worked to push out her first kid. The kid was trying to come head only, but I was able to find a front leg and pull it forward to make it more ergonomic in sliding out. I'm not sure how to describe the color on this 6.6 # doeling - brindle, maybe? She is mostly brown with white and black spots and brown ears. A very interesting girl. Next came a black roan girl with tan trim. She weighed 5.4 #. Very nice girls and Lillith looks to be a great new milker for our milking line-up.

4/21/09 Wow, what's with the daytime birthings? Maybe the goats finally read my memo about kiddings taking place between 10 AM and 4 PM?? Anyway, this morning Princess was being very needy. When I was out checking on the kids in the kidding pen, Princess hovered close by. When I went out to feed the cows she came with me. When going over to the milking parlor - I had a shadow. So I put her in a kidding pen and sat out there with her. She laid down at my feet. About 11 AM she started to push so I called David on the radio. Once David came out, Princess moved over to lay with him. What a traitor! Soon she was pushing hard and out came a 7.3# brown doe with white spots and splashes. She weighed 7.3#. Quite quickly after that she pushed out a tri-colored 7.6 # buckling. Both kids are quite striking in appearance. Beautiful kids. But what else would we expect from The Princess?

4/20/09 Trinity was fussing around all morning. Once the cheese work was done I went out to stay with her and she seemed to enjoy the company. Around noon she got serious and started to push. The birth sack broke and the fluid was yellow and had meconium in it. I checked inside to be sure there wasn't a problem with the kid being in a bad position. I felt a head and no legs. I reached in a bit further and found one leg that had gotten caught on the way through the pelvis. I moved that leg so it could move forward and Trinity pushed out the 6.4# doeling with not too much problem. David worked to clean her up and Trinity went over to help him. A few minutes later Trinity pushed out another doeling with one leg back. This one was 5.9#. Both kids are active and seem glad to have a bigger playground than inside their mom. Trinity looks great.

4/19/09 After we had Cassandra's kids fed and put in the newborn pen, I went out to check on Mace. She was standing in her pen and I could see that her water had broken already. I radioed to David and got all my kidding supplies ready. Mace pushed hard in multiple sessions, resting in between. Finally she pushed out two front legs - and they looked big! Finally out came a brown 8.9# buckling. He was walking and even trying to run within just a few minutes. He sure made Cassandra's babies look small when we put him in the pen with them!

4/19/09 After having Harmony and Terry kid late at night in the freezing cold this was a real treat! It was obvious when I checked on the girls this morning that Cassandra was going to kid soon. Her milk was in and her ligaments quite loose. After feeding all the animals and milking the does, I moved Cassandra into a kidding pen. She fussed around enough that I didn't want to start any other projects for the day. So I stayed with Cassandra while David did my work! As David was getting close to finishing my jobs, Cassandra started pushing hard. I called David on his radio and he showed up in time for Cassandra to push a kid's head out. No legs. Hmmm, this is really getting old! I checked inside the birth canal for a leg, but there wasn't one. The kid's legs were folded along the body on the other side of the cervix. The only thing I could do was to grab a shoulder blade that I could get to and every time Cassandra pushed, I pulled. Luckily it worked and out came a 5.1# doeling. She is brown with some black spots.

As the doeling was almost dried off, Cassandra started pushing again. I check inside to be sure the kid was in a good position since I really didn't want anymore head only deliveries. There was a tangle. A head was coming through with one leg crossing in front of the nose and one leg up over the top of the head. Usually that would be no problem to straighten out but, as a bonus, the umbilical cord was wrapped around the legs and head. Since he was coming quite fast I didn't bother to straighten out the mess. His head was out before the umbilical cord broke, and all was well. Both kids are doing great and Cassandra has turned into a wonderful milker.

4/16/09 While working with Terry to get her kids delivered, dry, and fed, Harmony was in the next pen working to have her babies. Harmony looked to be carrying a large load and we expected triplets. As it was late at night and I didn't want to stay out in the below freezing weather any longer than necessary, I checked inside Harmony to assess the situation. I felt teeth, but no legs. I reached in further and found two front legs curled underneath the kid. I pulled them forward and out came a light brown 4.7# doeling with a small white splash. She was covered in meconium, probably a sign that Harmony had been working hard to push her out but for some reason the kidding stalled. But the tiny girl cleaned up well and was dried off in short order.

I checked inside again and found the identical situation. So I pulled the legs forward and out slid an even smaller doeling! This one 4.2# - beating Tasha's doeling's record of being the smallest kid ever born on the ranch. This light brown girl also cleaned up quickly and was feisty and hungry.

Once again I checked inside and for the third time (fourth if counting Terry's little girl) I found a head and had to go fishing for the feet. I was quite adept at this by now and the 5.2# buckling came out quickly. He is light brown with a thin white belly band.

For an encore and slight change of pace, the fourth kid came backwards. He is light brown and weighed 5.7#. All four kids are active and hungry, and have absolutely no idea that they are small - they have very big attitudes! Harmony was exhausted after all that work but settled right in to cuddle her new crew.

4/16/09 Terry has been in the kidding pen since yesterday. That's when her milk came in and her kids dropped (moved into position to be born). But nothing happened. Today Terry really looked serious about kidding but still nothing happened. I debated checking inside her to see what was going on in there. At 9PM I decided to check. But when I got to Terry's pen I could see that her water had already broken. David and I got ready for the kids to come, then I did what I hoped would be a quick check inside the birth canal. I could feel kid parts just on the other side of the cervix but couldn't tell what they were. That is never a good sign. A nose or hooves are easily recognized, so "mystery parts" can only mean trouble.

I reached in further trying to decipher the clues. Once I broke the water sack I could feel ribs and backbone. The kid had probably missed the cervical opening and Terry's contractions were pushing it back down into the uterus instead of out the cervical "door". I could figure out from the shape of the ribs which direction would lead me to the back legs. In situations like this I prefer pulling the kid backwards so that I only have to track down two legs. A frontwards pull would require two legs plus the head. I easily found the back legs but in order to get them pulled into the birth canal I had to move the kid further into the womb (towards the doe's head) so that I would have enough room to maneuver them. When I did this my hand caught on a rope-like thing which ended up twisting - it was the kid's umbilical cord and I had just cut off his air supply!! I pulled the kid out quickly. Out came a 8.4 # dark red buckling with a small white splash. He was totally limp with just a tiny spark of life to him. David took over and worked his magic. It took over 10 minutes of cleaning out his mouth and nose, swinging him, patting, giving CPR, and rubbing him, but finally the fella could breath easy and hold his head up.

As I was about to go in to pull the next kid, a head emerged. No legs were visible. I cleaned the nose and mouth of the kid in case it started to breath. I really wanted to get a leg out so that the kid would come out easier, but the legs were folded back along the kid's body still on the other side of the cervix. The best I could do was to move one shoulder forward so they were more streamlined and pull the kid by it's neck. Out slid a 7.3# red doeling with a small white splash. She was energetic and ready to play.

I went in for a third kid and found two back legs. When I started to pull them there was a lot of resistance. I changed my grip and tried rotating the kid a bit, but the resistance was still there. I pulled the kid, hoping I wasn't doing any damage. Out came another red kid, this one a 6.9# buckling with big white belly band. The cause of the resistance seemed to be that the kid was somewhat stuck in the placenta and a piece of it had actually come out with the kid. David de-slimed him and worked to dry him off. The temperature was in the mid-20's so we wanted to be sure all the kids were very dry. While David did that, I got collars on the kids, got Terry her hot molasses water which she guzzled down, cleaned up the area and checked on Harmony. When I went over to meet the new kid, he was still thoroughly wet! It took a very long time just to get him to the very moist stage, and then while he was in his house with the others, one of them peed on him! Poor fella, we've started calling him "The Wet One" since he seems perpetually damp.

The three kids and Terry are all doing great. It looks like Terry will be a powerhouse in the milking parlor again this year.

Terry's Triplets. First born buck (left), doeling (center), "The Wet One" (right)

4/14/09 This morning I noticed that Tasha's milk had come in, but her ligaments didn't seem particularly loose. I worked hard to get the kidding pen cleaned up for her anyway, plus to get the pen ready for all the new kids that we expect to be born in the next 10 days or so. We also had several hundred pounds of cheese to box and ship, plus our regular cheese making activities and David's once-a-week run into town to pick up mail. It was a busy day. Just before evening milking I put Tasha in the kidding pen. She was being VERY fussy - loud and agitated. Right before David and I sat down for a late dinner I checked on Tasha. She was still noisy, but didn't look like she was planning to kid until later.

As usual David made a fabulous meal. Two bites into it I glanced at the video monitor. I saw a strange "shadow" on the ground in front of Tasha. Then the "shadow" moved. I jumped up, grabbed a walkie-talkie, and ran out to the pen. There was Tasha, staring at the ground. On the ground was a very spotted little buckling. He seemed to be breathing fine and doing well, so I went to get my kidding supplies and some feed sacks. I also radioed to David that we, indeed, were having babies. I placed the kid on a feed sack. When David showed up he found both Tasha and I just standing there staring at the kid - the kid's arrival had happened so fast that neither one of us could believe it. David got right to work de-sliming the fella.

Then Tasha had a few contractions. Nothing big, it just seemed like she had cramped a bit. But despite Tasha's easygoing kid birthing technique, it certainly was effective. Usually as a kid is passing through the birth canal it gets a bit hung up as the widest part of the head works to push out though the vulva. The widest part is around the eye sockets and forehead, so once the eyes are out, the rest is much easier. But Tasha had the full head and both front legs easily moved out with just that little bit of easy pushing. No muss, no fuss, the little brown doeling with white splashes slid easily into the world while Tasha was still standing there staring at the first kid.

We cleaned the pair up, clipped and dipped navels, weighed them (5.6 pounds each), and got them fed. Tasha had started laying down, then standing up, then repeating the cycle over and over. This is one way that a doe will work to get her kids into the correct birthing position. I was crossing my fingers that it was working. Finally Tasha laid down and a bubble emerged and burst. Then Tasha stood up and out came two back legs. I like backwards babies to come out fast to avoid them pinching off the umbilical cord and starting to breath before they have air. So I helped pull the teeny, tiny little doeling out. She weighed only 4.3# and is probably the smallest kid that we have ever had born here. But that doesn't mean the girl doesn't have spunk! She was up and sucking her colostrum down within minutes. She's a cute brown girl covered in white polka-dots.

All three kids are doing wonderfully well and Tasha, though still being a bit noisy, seems happy to be back to work making milk for our artisan cheeses. By 10 PM David and I were able to get back to that wonderful, though now quite cold, dinner.

4/13/09 Bertie has been getting bigger and bigger and since we didn't have a due date for her we were being kept in suspense. But finally today she wandered down into a ravine where she had her singleton baby while being guarded by Boone, the sire of the baby. No, Bertie is not a member of our milking team, in fact, Bertie isn't even a goat! She is a Belted Galloway cow, and Boone is a Dexter bull. Since our herd of cows are range cows, not milkers, they are a bit more skitterish in showing off their new babies, so Bertie has only given us a few peeks at the newcomer. Just enough to know that it's healthy, cute, and energetic. I'll post a picture and gender info once I can manage to get them.

4/12/09 It's Easter Sunday and we just NEEDED a new baby on the place. Oracle was glad to oblige us with her lovely 6.7 pound golden doeling. Oracle even waited until after we did all our cheese work for the day and had lunch. Then she laid down and quickly pushed out her daughter. Since the next youngest kid we have is a month old we didn't have any friends for the new baby to cuddle with, so we left her with her mom. Oracle is doing a great job of feeding, licking, and loving on her baby. They are very cute to watch together.

Three pictures of Oracle and her Snubian daughter (Snubian = half Saanen/half Nubian)

3/31/09 The goat herd went on a long browsing walk right after morning milking. Gem did not seem thrilled to head out, but reluctantly followed along. The herd decided to settle in to chew their cud out in a ravine. That made me a bit nervous since I couldn't keep an eye on Gem from that distance. So I wandered over to check on her. She was laying off by herself, looking uncomfortable, but not quite ready to kid. So I headed back to the dairy. The whole herd followed me back - except Gem. So I went back and coaxed her to follow me back to the barn. She spent the rest of the day in the kidding pen working to position her kids.

Just after 4 PM she started stringing heavy cords of mucus. As it got close to our 5:30 milking time with nothing else happening, I decided to check inside. Gem is a stoic doe and didn't complain about the violation. I could feel that her cervix was only halfway open. I got a finger through and could feel two legs working their way to the opening. So I got out of there and let Gem do some more work. David stayed with her while I did the milking.

Once chores, milking, cleaning, and kid feeding were done I checked back inside Gem. Her cervix was open and two legs and one head were coming through the birth canal! I helped pull just a little for no other reason than that it was getting late and I was quite tired. Soon a 7.9 buckling was born. He is brown with brown ears, a tiny white splash and a touch of roan on one shoulder. He was born VERY hungry and made the cutest faces, curling his tongue as if to suckle.

After this fella was dried off, Gem pushed out another brown buckling. This one has frosted ears and a big white poll spot. And, of course, he was quite hungry also. He weighed 8.2 pounds. The boys are doing great.

3/24/09 Our day started off at 5:30 with a delivery of 22 tons of feed that had to be off-loaded and stored in the barn, feeding the animals, then milking, first aid for a goat that had managed to peel some hide off herself, feeding kids, cheesemaking... well, the list goes on and on. After all the morning chores were under control I noticed that Juniper had a sleepy, far-away look so I put her in the kidding pen. After feeding the kids their 2PM meal, I went to check on her. She had lost her cervical plug and was having preliminary contractions. I took this as an excuse to take a break. I got a Sudoku game and sat out with June. Before I could complete the game, Juniper started into hard labor. So much for my little break! David showed up to help and soon Juniper had three little brown bucklings on the ground. All came in the diving position. The third fella came so fast after his brothers that he slid out into the puddle of birthing fluid and almost drown! But David, who really is wonderful at birthin' babies, was able to get the fella clear of mucus and breathing. All three boys are doing great. In order of appearance they weighed 8.0#, 7.0#, and 5.7#. Once they were cleaned up, cuddled, and fed, we were right on time to feed the animals, milk the goats, feed the other kids...

3/18/09 Espeez' milk came in last night and her ligaments were getting loose. So this morning I put her in the kidding pen. I checked on her throughout the day. She would push a bit but nothing serious. When I fed the goats in the evening I saw that Espy was stringing mucus but she wasn't having contractions or looking like kids were imminent. After we milked the crew and got the parlor cleaned up Espy still didn't look ready, but she was losing lots of birthing fluid. I decided to clean up and check inside her in case there was a problem.

Once inside I was confused about what I was feeling. It sort of felt like a "kid bubble" but it was definitely tougher and I couldn't get my hand around it. I felt a hole in it, but there wasn't the normal gush of amniotic fluid that would accompany the bursting of a bubble. Then I realized what it was - I was feeling the closed cervix. The hole was the beginnings of it opening to allow the kids to pass through into the birth canal. Because Espeez had been discharging so much fluid I went ahead and massaged the cervical opening in an attempt to get it to dilate. This worked to an extent and after 5 minutes or so I could reach through into the womb and feel a kid's head and feet. They were not directed towards the cervical opening so I moved them into position. I then got out of there and waited for Espeez to take over and push the kid out. But she didn't.

After waiting about 20 minutes I went back in to figure out what was happening. The kid had fallen back into the womb. The cervix was almost completely dilated now so I retrieved the head and a leg and coaxed them into the birth canal. That leg did not want to come. Once the kid's head and one leg were out the kid jerked the leg back in! I couldn't retrieve it without pushing the head back in also and by this time the kid had started to breath. So I reached in and moved the shoulders so they were more streamlined and out came a 7.8# buckling. He was fine and feisty but had released meconium already which I interpret as a sign of stress. So once he was slicked off and breathing well, I got ready to pull the next kid.

Barely had I moved to Espeez' backside when she gave a mighty push and a kid literally came flying out of her! If I hadn't been there to catch him he would have landed at least three feet behind Espy! This flying fella weighed in at 8.1# and had also passed meconium.

Before he could be properly cleaned off Espy repeated her pitch and once again I had to play catcher. This time I caught a 7.3# doeling. She had also passed meconium. I don't know why these kids did that, but they were all active and hungry and doing well. Espy's boys actually went to their new home before I could get a photo of them. But they pretty much were peas in a pod, looking just like their sister (pictured below).

Espeez Doeling (left), David demonstrates the dangers of photographing wild animals - Chomp!

3/16/09 Today was a very busy day and even though Lela looked serious about kidding we just didn't have time to hang out with her. But once all the other projects were out of the way I got my kidding kit and put Lela in the kidding pen. She had a bubble that was obvious when she squatted to pee but other than that she just stood there looking at me. However, once David showed up and sat on the ground with her, Lela layed down and started pushing. I felt a bit like an intruder. Lela has always loved David. Last year after she kidded she thought she should be able to live in our house with him since she had adopted him as her baby.

It didn't take long for Lela to push out a lovely 8.4# spotted brown buckling. He was feisty and strong. Lela licked on David and the new baby for a bit, then pushed out another spotted buckling, this one was black with white spots and weighed 7.5#. Both fellas are vigorous and healthy - doing just great. Lela did a great job and couldn't stop licking David's beard. I sort of felt like I should leave those two alone together.

3/9/09 Our kidding dates are based on a 150 day gestation, but the kids are considered to be at full term from 145 - 155 days. So we knew that Sydney's kids could come anytime now since she was on day 147. However, when I checked her this morning she didn't feel ready. Later in the day she looked a bit dazed and had moved away from the rest of the herd. I wasn't worried - until I saw her stringing bloody mucus just like Langley had done.

I put Sydney into a kidding stall and got ready to investigate what was happening inside of her. I was scared that there was big trouble. And, yes indeed, there almost was. Luckily I went in early enough to avoid most of it. Just like with Langley, there were too many kid parts trying to come through at one time. This time I went directly for the only head that I felt. The head and one leg moved into the birth canal and out came a lovely 6.3# doeling. Once this kid was dried off and doing well, I went in and pulled another kid. This one was a 7.1# doeling.

I thought that Syd would only have twins but I wanted to just check inside to verify that she was done. Surprise! I pulled out a 6.5# doeling. The girls were a bit surprised to have entered the world that fast but were soon walking, talking, and looking for food. Sydney did a great job and looks like she'll be a big contributor in the milking parlor this year.

Sydney's trio of doelings at 2 hours old. First born in the middle, third born is standing up.

3/8/09 Right after finishing up with Poppy and her lovely boys, I went to feed and check on the other goats. I saw Lavender (AKA Snip) laying down and not interested in having dinner. So I finished up feeding the rest of the herd and got ready for more kids. Snip quickly pushed out a black and red 8.5# buckling. A big strapping good looking fella. Once he was cleaned off his 7.5# sister arrived. She has a curly hair coat just like Momma Snip did when she was born. In fact, she's a lot like her mom and I expect she will grow up to be a beauty. Snip made plenty of colostrum for her twins and enough to put some in the freezer, too.

3/8/09 Today was busy. I cleaned out the kidding stalls, raked out the kids quarters and put down new straw for them, worked at teaching the new kids how to drink on the Caprine Feeder, and caught up with some office work. At just after 3 PM I thought it was time for a break. Poppy didn't. That's when she started having hard contractions and getting serious about moving those kids out. So I got my kidding kit moved into her stall and David came to help.

After a few hard pushes by Poppy I decided to do a quick check inside her. She has had kid wrecks before and I wanted to be sure things were going as they should. I washed her, washed me, gloved up, lubed up, and felt inside the birth canal. Nothing was there. I worked my hand in further and discovered hocks trying to move through the cervix. That would be a hard way to have the kids born. I pushed the kid back into the womb and manipulated the back legs so that the hooves would come first, followed by the hocks, with the rest of the kid moving right on out. It was a slick, easy maneuver and soon an absolutely eye-catchingly gorgeous 8.5# red buckling with white splashes and frosted ears was born. Right out of the chute this fella had personality and panache. Just what we'd expect from a Poppy/Rio kid.

I guess Cinnamon had been talking to Poppy about the "get 'em out quick" method of kid birthing. Once the first kid was out Poppy started pushing the second one along. Before getting the first kid even slicked off, a red buckling with solid-colored ears emerged. This fella weighed 7.8# and is as good looking as his brother.

This is Poppy's second year of giving us only bucklings. We wish she'd given us a doe but we'll be happy keeping one of her lovely looking fellas as a BMR herd sire. The kids and Poppy are all doing great. Poppy milked almost half a gallon of nice, rich, yellow colostrum - plenty for her kids with lots left over for the emergency supply that we keep in the freezer.

3/7/09 This morning we had some nice folks here to pick up a buckling. As they toured the doe barn, I saw Cinnamon was off by herself looking a bit uncomfortable. I checked her ligaments but they were not terribly loose. Later we had some other people here picking up a couple of wethers. Cinnamon was still off by herself. Right after our company left I put Cinnamon into a kidding pen. Within minutes she was pushing. I got my birthing kit and feed sacks moved into the pen just as Cinnamon started REALLY pushing. Cinnamon is a somewhat shy girl and usually very quiet. But let me tell you - that girl can talk when she wants to!! She really bellowed while that 6.7# buckling was working his way out. But in just minutes he was on the ground and David had moved him onto a feed sack and was cleaning him up. Cinnamon immediately started pushing again. Maybe she had other plans for the afternoon or maybe she was just tired of carting those kids around, I'm not sure. Whatever the reason she wasn't wasting any time. Very quickly she pushed out a 7# doeling. Both kids are colored exactly like their mom and we are so delighted with them. They are lively, spunky kids and Cinnamon is loving to love on them. Way to go, Cinnamon!!

3/6/09 It seemed that Langley was going through all the classic steps to kidding - her hindquarters were relaxed, her milk in, the kids had dropped, and she was having mild contractions. All seemed well for another batch of kids to enter the world soon. But at 7 PM Langley started stringing bloody mucus. That did not bode well since normally the mucus is clear, yellowish, or white. I washed her vulva area and dried it, washed and dried my arms, put on latex gloves, lubricated well with K-Y jelly, and went in to investigate.

It was a total kid wreck. Right behind the cervix I felt 5 legs, a rib cage, and one head. Every time I tried to move something, the whole mess moved as if it where all connected. I finally pulled out two back legs that I thought belonged to the same kid, but every time I pulled on them everything else moved too. I pushed the legs back in and grabbed the head. It was big enough to move those legs out of the way so I figured that I'd pull the kid by it's head only. This is NOT a great thing to do, but it was the only thing I could think of. Luckily, as I pulled the head though the tangle of legs, only one of the legs came with it. I hoped it belonged to the same kid as the head did. I pulled them both through the birth canal and finally out into the world. It was a 8.1# brown buckling, alive and kicking.

As David worked to clean him off, I went back inside Langley to pull the next kid. Normally I'd wait until the first kid was cared for but the bloody mucus and the tangle of kids made me want to hurry. I was able to match two back feet and pulled out a brown doeling. She was limp and unresponsive. David took over working with her. He cleared her airway, swung her, did CPR and chest compressions. Sadly the little girl didn't make it. Being born can be a very dangerous activity.

I went in and pulled the last kid out. A feisty 7# brown doeling with frosted ears.

Langley was a real trooper through this ordeal. She made lots of colostrum for the kids and even had plenty for us to put in the freezer in case another doe doesn't have enough. The two surviving kids are doing great and are already eating us out of house and home.

3/3/09 Marlyn Mondoe is a platinum blonde, but that doesn't mean that she's dumb! In fact, Marlyn played it very smart today. Even though she was ready to kid and I sat out with her on-and-off all day, Mare must have noticed that David was off-property on errands. So she crossed her legs and waited. It was almost 5 PM when she heard David's truck drive up and that's when she laid down and started pushing. When David got to the kidding pen, her water broke. With David there to sit with Mare, I went around and did the evening chores. Just as I was finishing up feeding and watering the herd, Marlyn slid out her first kid, head first but with one leg back. David caught the kid, and he and Mare worked to dry the 5.4# tri-color doeling off as I hurried back.

Quite soon after the little girl was born Mare produced a 6# golden blonde buckling. He came in the classic diving position.

I've been wondering if Marlyn would have large twins or small triplets and since the kids were small, I was hoping that another would be born. I wasn't disappointed! A 5.6# black and tan buckling almost shot out as soon as his brother was clear of the exit. Before we could get this third kid dried off Marlyn started pushing again! Pretty soon a head emerged, but no legs. I reached in and found a folded up front leg and straightened that out. Another golden blonde kid quickly entered the world. This one was a 6.6# doeling. What a great bunch of kids, too. Active, ready for life, and a treat to look at as a group: black & white, white, black and white, and another white - they look like they are all dressed up to go to a formal party!

We certainly did not expect Marlyn to have quads! She had carried this load with no problems at all and then had those kids all lined up in proper positions for birthing. We may have to start giving out awards for Excellence in Kidding. If we do, Marlyn will certainly be getting a trophy.

3/1/09 For the last few days Parker has been getting very loose in her hindquarters as her ligaments relaxed in preparation for kidding. I was concerned that she might cough or sneeze and I'd have to retrieve her kids out of a tree!! She really seemed to be doing her homework. Today she decided that it was time. When the herd started out on their morning browse I saw that Parker was the last to go, and she seemed reluctant to go very far. I headed to the barn to set up a kidding pen for her, she tagged along. Once I finished getting the pen ready I turned to put Parker in, but she was gone. I looked around and found her laying down behind the barn, she was starting to have contractions. I lead her into the kidding pen and she sniffed around, pawed at the new straw, then lay down. It took a couple hours for her to get the kids into position. I hoped she would do a better job than last year when she had a singleton doe born with both legs back - which is just not a very ergonomic birthing position.

This time Parker did great. Both kids were born in the classic diving position of two front feet followed by a nose. First out was a 7.2# brown buckling with white splashes and frosted ears. Once he was cared for, Parker pushed out a 6.3# brown doeling. Both kids are doing great and Parker looks much more comfortable.

2/27/09 At the beginning of our kidding season I asked the girls to please kid between 10 and 4. I should have been more specific. Evidently Rosie thought I meant 10 PM. So Rosie waited until late in the evening to get serious. Right at 10PM I saw on the barn camera that Rosie had started stringing thick ropes of mucus and a hoof very quickly emerged. I ran out to the barn just in time to catch a lovely 6.6# doeling! (Rosie had decided to kid standing up) The doeling was feisty and active right from the start. David showed up to take over kid care duties - he is just SO much better at that than I am. After getting this little girl dried off, weighed, her umbilical cord clipped and dipped in iodine, and fed, Rosie started pushing again.

A bubble emerged and broke. A hoof came into sight. I could tell from that one little hoof that the kid was coming backwards since the hoof bottom was pointing up. I automatically did a two-finger check to be sure the second hoof was right behind - but it wasn't! That's not good. So I reached in further and found that the other leg was trying to come hock first. I pushed the kid back into the womb, straightened out the bent leg and pulled both rear legs into the birth canal. I wasn't worried about the kid being born backwards. It's normally a very easy delivery. The only problem is if the kid's umbilical cord is clamped too early (possibly due to being pinched off as the shoulders pass through the cervix) the kid will breathe too early and drown before being born. I like backwards kids to come out fast! So I proceeded to pull the back legs out expecting the rest of the kid to follow along with very little problem. But that didn't happen. I pulled, Rosie screamed, the kid got jammed up tight. I have never had something like that happen before.

I stopped pulling and investigated. I was worried that possibly I had the legs of two different kids and had been attempting to pull both through. But checking up along each leg I came to the same tail. I tried pulling again. Again the same reaction from both mother and kid. The kid just seemed too "thick" to pass through the canal. Finally I realized that the kid's back legs were bent at the stifle and were not straightening out like they normally do. Stifles are like knees. Bent knees won't pass through a narrow tunnel as easily as when they are straight. Once I got the stifles to relax and straighten out, the kid came out quite quickly.

He was writhing and panicked and couldn't breathe. He had been drowning in amniotic fluid. David quickly cleaned out his mouth and nose, but the kid was barely getting any air and he went limp. David then grabbed the kid by his back legs, cradled his head with his other hand and swung the kid, using centrifugal force to bring out more fluid from his lungs. The kid started to breathe a bit but it was still hard for him. David laid the 8.9# fella on his lap with the kid's head hanging low. David patted the kid's side to drain out more fluid, then rubbed him vigorously. Finally - SUCCESS! The kid lifted up his head and announced that he was hungry.

Rosie's doeling (left) and buckling (notice the bent stifle on the buck and straight stifle on the doe)

2/26/09 Is she or isn't she? That's the question that David and I have been asking. Is Pepper pregnant, or not? She didn't look particularly large. Today we finally got our answer. Three days after her due date Pepper started stringing long ropes of thick mucus. I sat out with her on and off throughout the day. At evening chore time David came to stay with Pepper while I fed the cows and goats. Then, before I started milking the 5 goats that have kidded already, I did a two finger check inside Pepper to make sure the first kid was positioned correctly. I didn't want any problems if I didn't get back from milking before she tried pushing them out. It's always easier to avoid a "kid wreck" (tangled up kids) than to fix one. I could feel two hooves and a nose which is a great position for a kid to be in, but the kid didn't want to be born just yet. So David stayed with Pepper while I milked in record time. As I was finishing up with Ripley, the last goat to be milked, I got a call from David on the walkie-talkie - "It's a GIRL!". I rushed to finish up my chores and went to see the newest baby. She's an adorable 7.2# black and red girl with a big white poll spot and frosted ears. Pepper seemed to think that she was done with her job. She is a very large doe and I was really hoping for a few more kids from her even though she hadn't looked to be carrying a big load. I gloved up and checked inside, but no one else was home. We are glad that Pepper was pregnant and will now join our milking line-up, and doubly delighted that she had a doeling for us to keep. We do wish she would have given us a few more kids so we could share her wonderful genetics. Oh well, there is always next year.

2/23/09 Penny has always given us only bucklings. So this year it's nice that in addition to her regular buckling routine, she has added a new feature - a doe!!

Penny had been getting bigger and bigger and BIGGER for the last month. She was huge and to help support the expected troupe of soon-to-be-born kids, she had even been coming into the milking parlor for a bit of extra grain during her last month of pregnancy. We knew she'd at least have triplets but were half expecting quads.

Today, when it was obvious that Penny was finally in hard labor I saw that she wasn't having any luck moving her kids into proper birthing position. She worked hard for a while but with no results so I went in to investigate. Along with a LOT of extra fluid, I felt a huge bubble at the cervix. Having my hand in her birth canal signaled her into hard contractions and still the bubble just wasn't moving...until it burst. And the only direction for all that fluid to go was out - and all over me. I was pretty well saturated. But with the bursting of that bubble, finally Penny could move the 8# red spotted buckling through the birth canal and out into the world. We cleaned and cared for the fella and waited for Penny to get to work on the next kid, but she didn't.

I went in to check out the situation again. The situation was identical to the first fella except that this time I was able to dodge the amniotic onslaught and the kid being born was actually a girl! That is a first for Penny and we are delighted with her 6# speckled daughter.

Penny's uterus was amazingly filled with fluid sacks and other mysterious things. It was no wonder the kids were having a hard time finding the exit. So I went ahead and pulled out the third kid as well. Another red buckling with white spots. This guy weighed 7#.

It seems likely that at least part of Penny's huge size was due to having so much fluid in her womb. My guess is that all that fluid was making it hard for her muscles to move the kids into the birth canal. Of course, this is just "after the fact" musings. All the kids are doing great, and Penny looks much more comfortable.

2/23/09 This afternoon I was out checking on the does that were due to kid, but no one seemed imminent. Penny was in a kidding pen because she looked ready to pop soon. Jasmine (Jazz) was in a pen, too, but mostly just to keep Penny company. David called to me that I had a phone call. It was a new goat owner inquiring about how to tell when a goat is ready to kid. My thoughts to him were that you can just never tell. While there are clues, goats are determined to make a liar out of anyone that tries for a firm answer to that question. As I hung up from the call, I checked the kidding video monitor. Jazz was impersonating Dr. Doolittle's Push Me-Pull You. She had a head at both ends! I jogged out to the kidding pen and discovered that Jazz was doing it the hard way. The kid's head was out but both front legs were back and caught tight. There was no way of pulling a leg forward to make it more ergonomic. Luckily Jazz was able to push the kid out anyway. This kid is an amazing "spot-tacular" change from the basic brown kids that we've had up until now. Jazz's first born kid is a gorgeous 6.4# red doeling covered in white spots. Once the kid was cared for, Jazz laid down and produced another doeling. This one weighed 6# and is deep red with a white splash on one side. Both kids were born active and hungry and were up walking around in no time at all. David nicknamed them Jazz's "Song" and "Dance".

2/22/09 Last year, as a first time mom, Ripley had the strangest kidding. She never had contractions, never noticed the kids, and really was just zoned out for the whole process. She did produce milk well though and even earned the BMR Best First Freshener Award for 2008 as well as her Superior Genetics title and her milking star. This year Ripley seems to have figured out the "birthin' thing". Right after we had determined that Sassy's boy was fine and that Sassy didn't have any other kids coming, I went to check on Storm plus check on the other goats that were due soon. As I walked by Ripley I saw that she had a bubble already and I could see two hooves and a nose inside it. So David and I got ready for more kids. Ripley easily delivered a 7.2# brown buckling with frosted ears and white poll spot. Once he was cleaned, weighed, his navel clipped and dipped, and fed, Ripley presented us with a 5.9# doeling. Need I tell you what color she was? It was a good thing that I put collars on all these kids as soon as they were dry - they are all peas in a pod. I sure hope they don't lose those collars!

2/22/09 While we were helping Storm birth her babies, Sassy was in a different kidding pen. I really didn't think she was ready to kid but I had put her in there so that I could keep an eye on her. Once we were finished weighing, feeding, cuddling, and clipping and dipping navels on Storm's kids, plus giving Storm her hot molasses water, I checked on Sassy. Sassy was quite busy also and didn't pay any attention to me. That was because she was preoccupied with licking her new buckling. Sassy had very easily (and quietly) delivered this fella and was quite proud of herself. Her son is brown with frosted ears and white poll spot. He weighed in at 7.4#. Sassy made enough colostrum to feed this fella and still put a quart in the freezer for emergencies.

2/22/09 Our kidding season officially blew in when Storm decided to unleash her torrent of kids. Storm was already in the kidding pen since she had been threatening to kid for the last several days. At approx. 7:30 PM I heard the unmistakable sound of a doe in hard labor from the baby monitor in the barn. I arrived with my kidding kit and feed bags just as Storm pushed out a 7.2# brown doe with frosted ears and white poll spot. I set the kid on a clean feed bag, cleaned out her nose and mouth, then put her in front of Storm for inspection. Storm was pretty delighted with her work and nuzzled with her new daughter for a bit before working to push out another kid. She pushed hard a few times then stopped. I put on a latex glove and did a "two finger check" inside to make sure the kid was in good birthing position. I felt two legs, a nose... and another leg. Two kids were trying to come at the same time. I found a leg that I was sure belonged to the head and helped that kid move into position, then another brown doeling with frosted ears and white poll spot easily slid out. She weighed in at 7.6#. Once she has out of the way, the third brown doeling with frosted ears and white poll spot (plus a white splash) was born backwards. She was the smallest of the triplets at 6.9#. Storm is a first time momma and did a great job. She made lots of colostrum for her kids and we are very pleased with her udder and ease of milking. We look forward to having her join our milking team.

2/16/09 It's one week until our first girls are due to kid. Five of them are due on February 23rd with quite a few more following quickly after that. We have our birthing pens up, our kid pens are ready, and now we are just holding our breath until those first kids arrive.

I know this diary is supposed to be about goats kidding, but first I thought I’d introduce myself and tell you a bit about the ranch. I’m Kathryn, the Black Mesa Ranch Herd Manager. Which is a grand title that at this time of year really means “the person that gets up at all hours of the night to check goat butts”. I also watch over the health of the goats, their nutrition, health testing, and production testing. I take the girls out on long browsing walks, trim their hooves, milk them twice a day, and I can often be found hanging out with the herd enjoying their company.

BMR is a two person operation so my husband, David, and I both actually wear many hats. In general, I take care of the goats and most of the other animals plus keep the web site updated. David pretty much does everything else – a real renaissance man. David is the BMR cheese-maker, the ranch maintenance man, sales manager, pig-slopper, product packaging expert, gardener, road grader, feed hauler, and all ‘round good guy. He is also a trained gourmet chef and does all the cooking!! In what little extra time he has he does pen and ink sketches of the goats, landscape, and buildings of Black Mesa Ranch.

The goats are a great bunch of registered purebred Nubians plus a couple Saanens and an Oberhasli. They have over 200 acres to roam, munching on native vegetation. However they never fail to check their feed manger first before heading out to browse. You just never know when a free, easily accessible meal might suddenly appear! Anyway, the girls look great this year. No major problems or concerns. We are looking forward to a busy and exciting kidding season. I hope you enjoy reading about it. Thanks for stopping by.

Penny (left) and Storm (center) getting close to kidding time, Moon (right) protesting that she has almost 4 more weeks to go.