Here is a list of what I consider the essentials that I have on hand leading up to and during birthing season on my Nigerian Dwarf Dairy Goat Farm.
PreBirth - I start using this product 2 weeks before my doe is due by drenching it 2x per day. You can also make these herb balls if you prefer not to drench. This product has noticeably helped birthing season go smoother by strengthening the uterus leading up to the birth.
Ewe-ter-n - I use this herbal product to great benefit the day my doe is due and looks ready to kid. I will drench her with a tea made from the herbs every 4 hours once I can tell she is probably going to kid that day. I seem to have fewer kids present in strange positions when we use it and the placenta is passed much faster. Once a doe is clearly laboring I will give her a dose every 15-20 minutes as well as in between each kid she has. We will also continue using it after our doe kids and until she passes the placenta completely. I have also noticed it seems to give the doe stronger contractions and better endurance.
Towels - I like to make sure I have one bath towel ready for each kid I expect to have (generally 3-4 per dam). Make sure you always get the face and nose dried off as fast as possible after the kid is born. If the kid is being born head forward then I will start cleaning its nose and face as soon as the head is completely out. If it isn't chilly I will give the doe her kid and let her do most of the cleaning which helps with the bonding process, however, if it is very chilly out I will go ahead and dry the kid completely off but I will do it close to her head so that she can help too. Sometimes I have a doe that will birth her kids back to back so fast that she can't clean them all fast enough because she is overwhelmed, so I will definitely step in and help her dry them off in this case. * I have a designated set of bath towels, all in one color, that I keep washed and ready with my birth supplies.*
Cayenne Pepper - I really like having some of this tinctured and powdered on hand at EVERY birth. It works wonders for reviving weak, cold, or unresponsive newborns. I like to dribble a couple drops of tincture across their tongue, making sure not to let it run to the back of their throat if I can see they are too weak to swallow. You can also use it orally to stop the bleeding on an umbilical cord. If I have a doe that is exhausted after a birth then I will give her a dose as well of a 1/2tsp. of the powder mixed with water to provide an energy boost.
Lobelia Inflata Extract - If I have a newborn that has a lot of junk in its airways then I will give it a drop of Lobelia tincture to dilate the bronchial tubes and help release the congested fluid. I will also hold them in a towel with their head lower than the chest and a hand on either side of their chest while rubbing vigorously to help expel the mucous. You can also put a tiny smear of Eucalyptus essential oil on the kids nose to help dilate the bronchial tubes even further. I am going to share a neat little trick I learned with you about Lobelia. If you have a doe that is clearly laboring and letting birth fluid out, but cannot dilate enough to birth the kids or let your hand in, you can insert a drench gun into the cervix with 20cc of Lobelia tincture to help the muscles and tissues soften and relax so that she can finish dilating. You can do this every 20 minutes until you make good progress. I have been fairly amazed on a few occasions at how much this has helped!
Lubricant - It's a good idea to keep a good lubricant in your birthing box to cover your hand with before going inside your doe if you have to check progress or rearrange a kid. I really like to keep in my kidding box a jar of olive oil with lavender essential oil in it for this. The olive oil is the lubricant and the lavender in it acts as a calming, anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, and healing addition. 20 drops of the lavender essential oil in 1 cup of olive oil works well. You can also just use the plain olive oil in a pinch, but I like the extra support of the lavender essential oil.
Floss - Along with the cayenne for a bleeding umbilical cord I have also had to use floss to tie off the umbilical cord an inch or two below the navel a couple times when it was bleeding too much. Make sure you keep it in your birthing kit so that it is ready for when you need it! Also, I have heard that it is possible for a section of the intestine to come down the umbilical cord and get tied of in this situation, so that is something to check for before you tie the floss on.
Heat Lamps - It is a good idea to keep a couple of these on hand for times like this. I highly recommend the Prima heat lamps from Premier 1 Supplies.
Feeding Tube - Fortunately I have never had to use one of these, but if you ever do then you will be very glad that you had it ahead of time!
Nipple and Bottle - Just in case you end up with a bottle baby or needing to supplement a really weak newborn that isn't keeping up with its bigger and stronger siblings, it's a good idea to keep this on hand as well. This nipple works the best and can be attached to an empty soda bottle.
Monitor System - This is optional but very helpful. I used a regular baby monitor that only transfers sound for years, which is enough to wake me up at night if a doe goes into labor, but this year I am upgrading to a sound monitor that also has video to make monitoring my pregnant does much easier...especially at night.
Drench Gun - I like to keep a dedicated drench gun in my birthing kit that stays there. That way I don't misplace it and find myself scrambling to find it when my hands are busy with a birth and I need to administer something orally and quickly.
Echinacea Root Powder or MMune - If you have to insert your hand into a doe to rearrange kids then it is a good idea to give her 3-5 days of immune system support to help guard against infection from any bacteria you may ave introduced.
The Pet, Equine and Livestock Herbal by Katherine A. Drovdahl - I HIGHLY recommend picking up a copy of Katherine's book to have. This book is so full of herbal wisdom and birthing experience. A lot of what I have learned has come from this book. Katherine has raised dairy goats for 20 something years and has a ton of knowledge about not just dairy goats, but nearly all domestic animals!
Molasses - Our does absolutely LOVE a bucket full of hot water with blackstrap molasses right after birthing! I use 3-4 tablespoons of the blackstrap, un-sulphured molasses in a 2 gallon bucket of hot water. Make sure it isn't too hot though since goats don't tolerate as hot a temperature as humans. Ideally it will feel like nice hot bath water. Be sure to mix the molasses into it really good as it likes to settle in the bottom of the bucket. Molasses is full of so many good vitamins and minerals for a doe that has just given birth, plus she has just lost a lot of fluid so the more you can get her to drink the better. You'll be surprised at how much she can put away!
Ewe-ter-n - I use this herbal product to great benefit the day my doe is due and looks ready to kid. I will drench her with a tea made from the herbs every 4 hours once I can tell she is probably going to kid that day. I seem to have fewer kids present in strange positions when we use it and the placenta is passed much faster. Once a doe is clearly laboring I will give her a dose every 15-20 minutes as well as in between each kid she has. We will also continue using it after our doe kids and until she passes the placenta completely. I have also noticed it seems to give the doe stronger contractions and better endurance.
Towels - I like to make sure I have one bath towel ready for each kid I expect to have (generally 3-4 per dam). Make sure you always get the face and nose dried off as fast as possible after the kid is born. If the kid is being born head forward then I will start cleaning its nose and face as soon as the head is completely out. If it isn't chilly I will give the doe her kid and let her do most of the cleaning which helps with the bonding process, however, if it is very chilly out I will go ahead and dry the kid completely off but I will do it close to her head so that she can help too. Sometimes I have a doe that will birth her kids back to back so fast that she can't clean them all fast enough because she is overwhelmed, so I will definitely step in and help her dry them off in this case. * I have a designated set of bath towels, all in one color, that I keep washed and ready with my birth supplies.*
Cayenne Pepper - I really like having some of this tinctured and powdered on hand at EVERY birth. It works wonders for reviving weak, cold, or unresponsive newborns. I like to dribble a couple drops of tincture across their tongue, making sure not to let it run to the back of their throat if I can see they are too weak to swallow. You can also use it orally to stop the bleeding on an umbilical cord. If I have a doe that is exhausted after a birth then I will give her a dose as well of a 1/2tsp. of the powder mixed with water to provide an energy boost.
Lobelia Inflata Extract - If I have a newborn that has a lot of junk in its airways then I will give it a drop of Lobelia tincture to dilate the bronchial tubes and help release the congested fluid. I will also hold them in a towel with their head lower than the chest and a hand on either side of their chest while rubbing vigorously to help expel the mucous. You can also put a tiny smear of Eucalyptus essential oil on the kids nose to help dilate the bronchial tubes even further. I am going to share a neat little trick I learned with you about Lobelia. If you have a doe that is clearly laboring and letting birth fluid out, but cannot dilate enough to birth the kids or let your hand in, you can insert a drench gun into the cervix with 20cc of Lobelia tincture to help the muscles and tissues soften and relax so that she can finish dilating. You can do this every 20 minutes until you make good progress. I have been fairly amazed on a few occasions at how much this has helped!
Lubricant - It's a good idea to keep a good lubricant in your birthing box to cover your hand with before going inside your doe if you have to check progress or rearrange a kid. I really like to keep in my kidding box a jar of olive oil with lavender essential oil in it for this. The olive oil is the lubricant and the lavender in it acts as a calming, anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, and healing addition. 20 drops of the lavender essential oil in 1 cup of olive oil works well. You can also just use the plain olive oil in a pinch, but I like the extra support of the lavender essential oil.
Floss - Along with the cayenne for a bleeding umbilical cord I have also had to use floss to tie off the umbilical cord an inch or two below the navel a couple times when it was bleeding too much. Make sure you keep it in your birthing kit so that it is ready for when you need it! Also, I have heard that it is possible for a section of the intestine to come down the umbilical cord and get tied of in this situation, so that is something to check for before you tie the floss on.
Heat Lamps - It is a good idea to keep a couple of these on hand for times like this. I highly recommend the Prima heat lamps from Premier 1 Supplies.
Feeding Tube - Fortunately I have never had to use one of these, but if you ever do then you will be very glad that you had it ahead of time!
Nipple and Bottle - Just in case you end up with a bottle baby or needing to supplement a really weak newborn that isn't keeping up with its bigger and stronger siblings, it's a good idea to keep this on hand as well. This nipple works the best and can be attached to an empty soda bottle.
Monitor System - This is optional but very helpful. I used a regular baby monitor that only transfers sound for years, which is enough to wake me up at night if a doe goes into labor, but this year I am upgrading to a sound monitor that also has video to make monitoring my pregnant does much easier...especially at night.
Drench Gun - I like to keep a dedicated drench gun in my birthing kit that stays there. That way I don't misplace it and find myself scrambling to find it when my hands are busy with a birth and I need to administer something orally and quickly.
Echinacea Root Powder or MMune - If you have to insert your hand into a doe to rearrange kids then it is a good idea to give her 3-5 days of immune system support to help guard against infection from any bacteria you may ave introduced.
The Pet, Equine and Livestock Herbal by Katherine A. Drovdahl - I HIGHLY recommend picking up a copy of Katherine's book to have. This book is so full of herbal wisdom and birthing experience. A lot of what I have learned has come from this book. Katherine has raised dairy goats for 20 something years and has a ton of knowledge about not just dairy goats, but nearly all domestic animals!
Molasses - Our does absolutely LOVE a bucket full of hot water with blackstrap molasses right after birthing! I use 3-4 tablespoons of the blackstrap, un-sulphured molasses in a 2 gallon bucket of hot water. Make sure it isn't too hot though since goats don't tolerate as hot a temperature as humans. Ideally it will feel like nice hot bath water. Be sure to mix the molasses into it really good as it likes to settle in the bottom of the bucket. Molasses is full of so many good vitamins and minerals for a doe that has just given birth, plus she has just lost a lot of fluid so the more you can get her to drink the better. You'll be surprised at how much she can put away!
*These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Please consult with your licensed veterinarian in any situation that involves the health and well being of your livestock and pets.
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