We are looking for a retirement home for a couple of does.  These does need to spend the rest of their lives as pasture pets with no kids in their future.  If you think you might have the right sort of laid back home for these special girls please get in contact with us, we would love to discuss their future with you.

One doe is almost 6 years old and the other is almost 9.  Both are healthy, they just shouldn't be bred again.

Sunday was hoof trimming day for our herd, and the fact that Violet let her hooves be trimmed while lying down was a good clue that she was in early labor because she could have cared less what was going on as long as she got a maternity massage at the same time. 

Around 3:30pm she produced a bubble and we were expecting kids to follow shortly after but that didn't occur.  After waiting a half hour I checked and no kid in the birth canal.  Which is very odd.  I kept checking every half hour, and still no kid in the birth canal and my checks were not brining on contractions like usual, but she didn't seem to be in distress.  Finally about 8am I went in past her cervix - something I have not personally done before, although I have witnessed it.  Took me awhile to figure out what I was feeling but I finally got a finger into the tight ball of kid at his hip, and was able to follow that down and untangle his back legs enough to get them into the birth canal and then slowly pull him out with a twist.  He arrived upside down and backwards and we fully expected he would be dead, but no, he was very much alive.

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His sister arrived without any assistance lined up in the perfect dive position.  And since he dam was standing up and busily cleaning off her brother, she was caught on the way down.  Both kids were hungry and quickly got the hang of nursing.  Both are chocolate buckskins and have their dam's brown eyes.   Up until this point, Violet has been my only brown-eyed goat, but I am probably going to retain this daughter.  She is quite a little chatter box and speaks up sweetly every time someone enters the room. (Not complaining or demanding just saying "hi") She also comes over and hangs out with me - so much so I wonder if she realizes I helped her escape by removing her brother. 

Violet is a very well put together doe with a fantastic pedigree so I will possibly be offering the buckling as a future herd sire.  I will know more once he has had a few days to get over his balled up position and stretch out a bit.  

Violet's pedigree is the combination of two of the top milking lines from Jobi which is one of the foundation herds of the breed.  And Saranghae is the son of the fabulous Castle Rock Sarafina.  

This finishes off all of the does bred to Saranghae and our next kiddings won't be until mid April.  I am sure we will enjoy the break from sleeping in the kidding room, but we are eagerly looking forward to seeing what Kingfisher is going to produce for us this year. And we will have a couple of first fresheners kidding - Rosie and Moolatte so we get to see some new udders too.  Along with them will be Levana the "old lady" of our herd.  Depending on how this kidding goes it may be her last as she is getting along in years.  Last year she had to be induced after going over, so we are prayinig this year everything goes smoothly and that we get at least one more doe kid out of her.

It was a busy night here on the ranch last night.  First Moana x Saranghae had triplets 1 buck kid followed by two doe kids.  Then while we were waiting for Moana's third kid to be born Moana's half-sister Presley who was also bred to Saranghae started getting serious about her labor.  

Fortunately, Moana's last doe kid was delivered before we Presley got her first kid out.  She then went on to have triplet bucklings.  The third one was very stuck, and I thought she was going to end up with a c-section but I finally got him repositioned enough to be born without having to have the vet out.

Everyone is doing fine this morning, and the kids are bouncing around.  The bucklings are a all spoken for - pending deposit.  And I can't decide which of Moan's daughters I am going to keep.  I am very tempted to keep both, but I don't really have the room to do that.  The little black and white doe has a pink spot on her nose that makes it look like she is sticking her tongue out at you, but she isn't.  The other girl has some very pretty markings and is a snuggler compared to her bouncy sister.  I will have to see how they develop.