Less than 3 weeks until our first doe kids. Beatrix is due 3/19/14, and she looks like she will be having twins (at least). She is huge. Mary Ann, Alanna and Onyx are getting pretty large, too. With getting so close, we've been trying to prepare them and keep them healthy.
I've had two friends lose or almost lose does this year, one to presumed Ketosis, and the other to either Ketosis or Hypocalcaemia. This has made me question my feeding program at the end of pregnancy, so I've been doing some research.
For ketosis, it is recommended to increase the grain/concentrates toward the end of the pregnancy, which is what I've been doing. So I've got that one right. My first instinct was to cut Onyx back, because she is FAT, but I know she needs the grain to grow her kids properly. I will be keeping a very close watch on her.
My original plan was to feed the does the last two bales of the really green, leafy, rich alfalfa during the last 2 weeks of pregnancy. I was always told to feed them alfalfa for the calcium. After hearing about the possibly hypocalcaemia case in my friend's doe, I decided to look it up. Lo and behold, I was about to do exactly the wrong thing.
In researching, I have learned that during the last 60 days of pregnancy, I should be feeding mostly grass hay along with the increased grain. Hypocalcaemia (aka milk fever) is not caused by calcium deficiency, but by too much calcium. The doe's body is used to having extra calcium supplied by the alfalfa we feed for milk production, but when her body requires her to pull more calcium in preparation to make milk for her babies, it has "forgotten" how to do it, thus throwing the doe into hypocalcaemia. So when she is receiving excessive calcium for her needs and the needs of her unborn kids, when milk production begins the demand for calcium that would normally be met by bone calcium is blocked by a hormone that hinders the natural release. This forces the depletion of blood calcium and milk fever results.
The idea is to make her pull upon her reserves beforehand, so her body knows how to do it, by feeding mostly grass hay. Once she kids and begins milking, you then go back to feeding alfalfa. I'm glad I researched it before I started pushing the alfalfa heavily, or it could have caused a disaster. Perhaps not, though, because the pasture is also growing and they are eating a lot of grass and weeds and not so much hay. Also, goats are less prone to this condition than cattle. Still, I plan to be cautious and feed mostly grass hay for the last few weeks we have until our does kid. With Onyx being so fat, this is one of my big concerns with her. I don't think I'll ever keep another Alpine over as a dry yearling--they really do just get fat on nothing.
I'm also trying a Fir Meadow product I've never used before--PrePare. It's an herbal that is used to help them get toned and ready for kidding, started 3 weeks before their kidding date. We haven't had any major kidding issues so far (knock on wood!), but we have had to assist a little bit with a few of the births. Last year, Beatrix was several days late kidding, and I believe it may have been due to deficiencies. We are also upping the BoSE injections this year, to 4 weeks and 1 week prior to kidding date. I'd like to do another copper bolus, but I don't want to stress them so close to their due dates. Also keeping up with the kelp and loose minerals.
http://www.goatnutrition.com/CONDITIONSILLNESSES/Articles/ECMD007250.aspx
https://hoeggerfarmyard.com/the-farmyard/goat-health/milk-fever/
ww.tractorsupply.com/know-how_Goat-Care_goat-health-conditions-and-milk-fever
http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/livestk/01630.html
http://www.aces.edu/pubs/docs/U/UNP-0106/UNP-0106.pdf
https://fiascofarm.com/goats/ketosis.htm
I've had two friends lose or almost lose does this year, one to presumed Ketosis, and the other to either Ketosis or Hypocalcaemia. This has made me question my feeding program at the end of pregnancy, so I've been doing some research.
For ketosis, it is recommended to increase the grain/concentrates toward the end of the pregnancy, which is what I've been doing. So I've got that one right. My first instinct was to cut Onyx back, because she is FAT, but I know she needs the grain to grow her kids properly. I will be keeping a very close watch on her.
My original plan was to feed the does the last two bales of the really green, leafy, rich alfalfa during the last 2 weeks of pregnancy. I was always told to feed them alfalfa for the calcium. After hearing about the possibly hypocalcaemia case in my friend's doe, I decided to look it up. Lo and behold, I was about to do exactly the wrong thing.
In researching, I have learned that during the last 60 days of pregnancy, I should be feeding mostly grass hay along with the increased grain. Hypocalcaemia (aka milk fever) is not caused by calcium deficiency, but by too much calcium. The doe's body is used to having extra calcium supplied by the alfalfa we feed for milk production, but when her body requires her to pull more calcium in preparation to make milk for her babies, it has "forgotten" how to do it, thus throwing the doe into hypocalcaemia. So when she is receiving excessive calcium for her needs and the needs of her unborn kids, when milk production begins the demand for calcium that would normally be met by bone calcium is blocked by a hormone that hinders the natural release. This forces the depletion of blood calcium and milk fever results.
The idea is to make her pull upon her reserves beforehand, so her body knows how to do it, by feeding mostly grass hay. Once she kids and begins milking, you then go back to feeding alfalfa. I'm glad I researched it before I started pushing the alfalfa heavily, or it could have caused a disaster. Perhaps not, though, because the pasture is also growing and they are eating a lot of grass and weeds and not so much hay. Also, goats are less prone to this condition than cattle. Still, I plan to be cautious and feed mostly grass hay for the last few weeks we have until our does kid. With Onyx being so fat, this is one of my big concerns with her. I don't think I'll ever keep another Alpine over as a dry yearling--they really do just get fat on nothing.
I'm also trying a Fir Meadow product I've never used before--PrePare. It's an herbal that is used to help them get toned and ready for kidding, started 3 weeks before their kidding date. We haven't had any major kidding issues so far (knock on wood!), but we have had to assist a little bit with a few of the births. Last year, Beatrix was several days late kidding, and I believe it may have been due to deficiencies. We are also upping the BoSE injections this year, to 4 weeks and 1 week prior to kidding date. I'd like to do another copper bolus, but I don't want to stress them so close to their due dates. Also keeping up with the kelp and loose minerals.
http://www.goatnutrition.com/CONDITIONSILLNESSES/Articles/ECMD007250.aspx
https://hoeggerfarmyard.com/the-farmyard/goat-health/milk-fever/
ww.tractorsupply.com/know-how_Goat-Care_goat-health-conditions-and-milk-fever
http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/livestk/01630.html
http://www.aces.edu/pubs/docs/U/UNP-0106/UNP-0106.pdf
https://fiascofarm.com/goats/ketosis.htm