So - she's within her due date time - 145-155 days post breeding - how do you tell when she is ready? Things to look for -
Watch her belly - does carry kids on their right side - as they get closer to kidding kids will drop down lower in the belly - she may appear to have lost weight suddenly or be low in the belly - as the kids move into kidding position.
Dropping her milk - or milk let down in the udder - her udder will suddenly seam larger/tighter and perhaps a little shinny. This usually only happens the same day she kids, some does may not let their milk drop until after they kid or even while kidding. Keep checking her udder a few times a day so you can see any changes. As she nears her kidding date her udder will most likely already be increasing in size.
Check her ligaments and watch her tail - To check her ligaments run two of your fingers down her spine (one on each side), start to taper off into a V shape after her hips down to her pin bones - ligaments feel like pencils along the sides of the base of the tail (see picture). As she gets closer to kidding her ligaments will drop and disappear and be completely gone at the time of kidding. Her tail will have a loose or almost dislocated look to it.
Does usually have some discharge the day of or a few days before labor. Solid white discharge maybe seen at any time while clear discharge is usually a sign of oncoming labor. Actual birthing time will vary from doe to doe. You can tell when labor starts as the does start having harder contractions - her sides in front of the hips seam to hollow out - and soon after she will begin to push.
Many are hesitant to assist in kidding, however an early assistance can help greatly in preventing trouble later as labor progresses. I prefer to assist does right away rather then wait for trouble to come. After the doe starts to push I like to reach in just a few fingers to feel that the kid is coming in a correct position. Clean hands and some lubricant is all that's needed - It is much easier to fix the position of the kid before the doe starts to push heavy and it gets stuck in the birth canal. A good position is one or both front hooves forward and the head first - it may be hard to feel the head - but just look for something sharp as kids generally have their mouths open (tongue hanging out the side) and you can feel the teeth inside.
Normal birth position
Other birth positions to watch out for -
One front leg forward and one back - this is an ok delivery position
Both front legs forward but head turned back - not good, the head needs to be turn forward.
Breached - the kid is backwards and coming tail first - kids can be born backwards without problems - but both back legs need to come out hooves first. For a breached birth - reach in and carefully pull up the back legs one at a time, If possible use your hand to cover the hoof as you bring it up to prevent any injury to the uterus.
The first kid out is usually the hardest. Watch the timing between kids - 30-40 minutes is good. If 40 minutes has pasted and the second kid is not out yet - time to reach in again. It's also possible for does to have a single birth.
After kidding -
Give your doe some warm water with molasses or honey in it for a quick energy boost. Remember to worm her the day she kids and again in 10 days. If kidding was stressful you may also give her some probiotics. Watch for the after birth - sometimes it will come out right after kidding while other times it may take closer to 24-48 hours for it to drop. Do not pull it out! Doing so could result in tearing the uterus. A tummy rub can help it pass out faster or more smoothly if complications were expected. You can do this by bouncing the belly - stand over the doe facing the opposite way of her. Place your arms around her and grab your hands together under her belly - like you're giving her a big hug. Gently bounce your hands up and into her belly - starting in the middle and working your way towards her udder.
If you are bottle raising the kids milk the doe out after kidding. I like to milk my does out 3 times a day (once every 8 hours) for the first 2 weeks. Then I will drop it down to 2 milkings a day (once every 12 hours). This helps prevent does from 'over uddering' building up too much milk in the udder that the does become uncomfortable - or it may even begin to leak out. This can cause more problems such as weakening her teat's orifices and making her more likely to pick up mastitis.
Feeding the milking doe -
Be sure to adjust her daily grain amount to fit her milk quantity. Most likely you were already feeding her about 1lb of grain a day when she kidded out. Slowly increase as her milk production rises - a good starting base is to feed 1lb of grain per every 3lbs of milk the doe gives. Some does my be harder to keep weight on and need a higher grain amount - while others seem to get fat on air. You can play around with the amount to fit the doe. Remember her milk quantity will continue to increase until she peaks (reaches her highest milk yield) usually between 2 and 8 weeks after kidding. If you were not feeding grain before the doe kidded start now. Once a doe kids out it will be harder to put weight on her while she is in milk. Remember - any time you add or increase grain to a goats diet do so very slowly. I use an increase rate of 1 cup every 4 days. I feed does their grain while on the milk stand being milked - helps to keep the doe occupied and make sure she gets her full amount.
At this time there will be high demands for added calcium and protein from the does diets as her body turns food into milk. Feeding alfalfa hay free choice is an excellent source of both.
Does will normally still have discharge - some times messy and bloody, sometimes you hardly see it at all - for up to a month after kidding. Some does may also have runny or soft berries after kidding. Make sure she was wormed after kidding with a wormer that works for parasites in your area. Adding a handful of Diamond V Yeast Culture to the top of her grain once a day will ease her intestines through this time and get her back to berries faster. I do this for the first month after kidding.
This website has a good picture guide to birth positions and ways to help. Note the author uses a rope or kid/lamp pull - which may be helpful if you have a smaller breed like nigerians or pygmys.
http://www.gryphontor.com/showarticle.php?id=7
Frequently asked questions about kidding -
Q> Assisted with kidding - should I give antibiotics?
A> No. Too often I see antibiotics used as a 'prevention' for infections on goats. Antibiotics are very hard on a goats system and should not be used unless she is sick. Also - over use of antibiotics on goats can result in the goats becoming immune to that antibiotic. After a doe kids her body spends 2-4 weeks cleaning out her uterus - anything you take in with you while assisting kidding will pass out. If you are afraid your doe is sick from kidding - take her temperature. Normal goat body temperature is 102-103'. If she does have an infection she will run a fever. I have assisted nearly every kidding on our farm and never given antibiotics after. I've only in one case had a doe that developed a uterine infection and it was on a kidding that I missed and did not assist.
Fiasco farm has a helpful pictorial guide of a doe in labor -
http://fiascofarm.com/goats/prenatalcare.html
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