Get your due date - Gestation period for standard size dairy goats is 150 days - ruffly 5 months. Mini's go just a few days less at about 148 days. Does can kid 5 days early or 5 days late and still be just fine. If your does kid much earlier then 5 days till due they will be considered premie - on the other hand if you doe hits day 156 and still no kids it may be time to induce.
Not too much to do for the first 3 months - it's the last 2 months (60 days) that your doe will really start to grow those kids out and need extra care. If your doe is in milk you can keep milking her right up until the last 60 days of pregnancy. She'll need a little bit of a rest - her body will be needing everything to grow out kids and make colostrum for the new babies.
Changes - We don't really start see 'baby belly' until about 4-5 months along. Udders will start to develop anywhere from 6 - 1 week till her due date depending on the doe. Some does will not even drop their milk until they are ready to kid. It seams the younger the doe, first fresheners or does who milk lower quantities will udder up slower then those who have higher milk yields and / or more kiddings under their belt. The number of kids growing inside will also effect the quantity of milk and udder development - more kids means more milk, fewer kids less milk.
Dietary needs - She will need high amounts of calcium and protein - alfalfa hay fed free choice is an excellent source of both. Alfalfa pellets can also be used. There are other supplements out there, but I really believe alfalfa is the best thing you can do for a dairy goat.
Higher amounts of fats and fibers from grains - at day 60 (till due date) our does are started on grain. Anytime you change your goats diet - especially when grain is involved - diet changes need to be done *SLOWLY*. I start my girls out with 1 cup of grain and increase about 1/2 cup every 2-4 days - the more grain they are getting the slower I increase. How much grain your doe will need will depend on the individual doe - mini / standard - how much milk they usually produce - younger doe still growing - etc. A good base is increase up to .75 - 1.5 lb a day for standard does and 1/2-1 lb a day for mini's. Use your own judgement - if she is skinny in her hips - try for the higher end - if she is slow to eat up her grain - stop increasing. Think she is fat - try again- dairy does naturally have a wedge shape to there bodies and should be nice and wide in the barrel - that's not where they carry their fat. You should be able to feel her back bone right in front of her hip bones - not too sharply (too skinny).
If you can not feel / find her back bone at all or to see if she is fat - there will be lots of extra skin around her chest and under her front legs - enough to grab it by the fist full. If this is the case you can keep her on a very low grain amount or not at all until after she kids. Take time and watch her weight carefully. Once a doe kids and comes into milk it will be very hard to put any weight back on her while she is in milk. She will most likely loose another 5-15lbs after kid weight.
Grains - What to feed - you will find a lot of different answers on this one and I will explain why I feed what I feed in another post. For grain I find the best thing is a simple mix - using either whole oats or whole barley, and adding black oil sunflower seeds at the rate of 3 to 4 parts oats/barley to 1 part black oil sunflower seeds. This grain mix is so simple and works for everything from growing kids, to bucks, to milking does.
Selenium supplements - selenium is an all around immunity booster, though it's main focus is muscles - keeping the does strong and conditioned for kidding, while also growing new and strong muscles for her kids. With giving added selenium supplements to our does we have easier kiddings, and healthier kids at birth. I use Bo-Se (bovine selenium) for my selenium supplement. This is an RX drug, but most vets will be willing to sell you a bottle if you just let them know you raise dairy goats and are using it for selenium deficiency. For healthy pregnant does recommended dosage is 1 ml per 40lbs - given SQ. One shot at 5 weeks till due date, and a second at 2 weeks till due date.
Worming - hopefully your does were wormed before they were bred and will not need to be again during their pregnancy. If you do end up worming during her pregnancy choose a wormer that is safe for pregnant does. Always worm your does the day they kid. Extra stress of kidding weakens her system, unable to fight them off as well. Anytime you worm, repeat again in 10 days to kill off the second life cycle.
****Also remember to trim her hooves about 3-4 weeks before her due date so she won't be under the stress of it while nearing her due date. Shave/trim her udder front and back - belly, tail and back of her legs so everything will be and easy clean up after kidding. If you don't want to to shave it all - a trim to the tail - back of her udder and legs around her udder will work well. This helps to prevent afterbirth from clinging to her hair and causing skin problems after kidding.
Things to watch out for -
Milk fever - This can occur anytime in a does gestation or lactation period. It is a severe calcium deficiency - the does diet has not met her needs for calcium so her body starts to pull it out from her bones. Best treatment is with a CMPK drench or CMPK injection. A calcium drench is a second choice that also works as well. Signs of milk fever are - weak or sluggish standing - trembling or shaking especially after milking - lying down unable to stand - decreased body temperature (102-103 is norm) - decreased milk production.
Ketosis - or pregnancy toxemia - usually brought on by feeding grain inadequately - too much, too little, or the wrong kind. This happens when the does needs more energy from her feeds then what she is getting. For a quick energy boost simply mix some molasses with warm water. You can read more about this illness here - http://www.goatworld.com/articles/pregnancy/pregnancytoxemia.shtml
A healthy diet is the best way to keep your goats at their best and prevent illnesses from sneaking up on you.
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