# Birth with no discharge?



## Legend Hills (May 29, 2008)

Can a doe go into labor without showing the least bit of discharge beforehand? I've been keeping track of my NuPine for the last two days. She is showing increasing signs of being ready and yet NO discharge. She's driving me crazy. (She's an expert at the Doe's Code of Honor. :rofl ) I just came in from doing another barn check and she has now dug a hole all the way down through her bedding to the dirt below. She has been nesting lately but this is the first time she's done that. Still, no discharge of any kind. Thankfully she was also chewing her cud when I checked up on her so she'll be okay. At least until I do another barn check...right? :/ 

I'm so confused. I'm tired too. :sigh I'd love to get some sleep instead of checking up on her every two hours for two days and counting with nothing to show for it. Guess that is what kidding is all about though, right? :rofl


Thanks for any help you can give with this one. Take care everyone. 

Kim


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## Jennie (May 7, 2008)

almost all of mine show almost no discharge until right befor they start pushing. So I have to say it is not something that I use to judge if a doe is going to kid.
Jennie


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## Legend Hills (May 29, 2008)

Thank you Jennie. I was afraid someone would say that. What if they are chewing their cud? I've heard that they don't kid while they still have food they are digesting. Is this true? Or should I be checking on her again right now? 

Kim


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## megan (Nov 10, 2008)

I have had several give birth without me seeing any real discharge.

Does she still have ligs? is she sunken in? can you put your finger and thumb around her tail head and have them easily touch? is her bag super full?
Some will try hard to hide labor from you too.
the finger and thumb touching thing has always been a real good sign for me that kidding is very close.

it is very frustrating to keep checking and no babies - same goes for cows. I am calving now too so lots of looking at butts and bags for me!!! :crazy


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## Legend Hills (May 29, 2008)

megan said:


> I have had several give birth without me seeing any real discharge.
> 
> Does she still have ligs? *I did not feel any this last time.*
> is she sunken in? *She looks like she is but it is hard for me to say.*
> ...


This is the first time this particular doe will kid for us although she is not a FF. I've only had the one other doe kid last year. That is my first and only experience with kidding. I've read all of the signs and studied videos and such but I'm still feeling a bit unsure and anxious. Thanks for your help.

Kim


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## megan (Nov 10, 2008)

with my first goat birthing I was just so sure the goat was ready. I had bought her bred and the previous owner had no idea when her exact breeding date was. 
I tried to treat her like I do my cows. I looked for the same signs and was sure she was ready. I checked all night and at noon every day for ever. then I gave up on getting up all night long. and as soon as I gave up on her she decided she had been evil enough to me and decided to kid one evening while I was doing chores. Geez she drove me crazy!! :crazy but that was before I found this site or I probably would have know that she wasn't really ready and I had been wasting my time.


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## Legend Hills (May 29, 2008)

:lol That was me last year. Except I did find this site and drove everyone, including myself insane. I'm not so crazy this year as just tired and anxiously confused. :rofl

Well, with this latest barn check, she looked fine and even started eating, so I'm off to bed. DH says he will check her when he gets home from night work around 6am. Thanks for you help and support. 

I wonder if they can chew cud and still go into labor. Does anyone know? 

Kim


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## Sunny Daze (Jan 14, 2008)

Legend Hills said:


> Thank you Jennie. I was afraid someone would say that. What if they are chewing their cud? I've heard that they don't kid while they still have food they are digesting. Is this true? Or should I be checking on her again right now?
> 
> Kim


I have had goats kid anywhere from immediately to several hours after eating, so wouldn't count on that one!!


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## Becky-DixieDoesAlpines (Oct 26, 2007)

I've had many does chewing cud right up until pushing out kids....
Many do not have discharge till the water bag comes.....
Don't do night checks yet....you'll get exhausted!
Becky


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## mamatomany (Aug 7, 2008)

Keep checking ligaments, that is a fer sure thing with every single doe, when they are completely gone and she looks sunk in birth is impending. Feed them their alfalfa pellets before you close up shop...she will spend her night ruminating the food, thus, no babies till morning or afternoon in my case. The ones I have had kid, had no discharge, not even udders bagging up, well one, a little bit, not tight and shiney though, not at all. You obviously are paying attention to her, so when you say to yourself "hmmm that is odd, or why is she doing that, that is wierd, she is probably in labor  Vicki has said, one to many times, that usually first time people completely miss the birth and come out to find babies - prove her wrong girlfriend!


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## Anita Martin (Dec 26, 2007)

I had a FF doe give birth this year with no discharge beforehand. Come to think about it, they don't always discharge before, except like right before, especially once I see the sac and it breaks. No worries. I also have does chewing cud up to pushing, who don't even seem worried at all, will just lay down and start pushing, or stand up and push the kid out...had one do that last year and this year too. With Alpines, they do tend to go over, so I don't even check mine at all until their due dates, and this year I've luted all of them so far one or two days before day 150, so I know pretty much when they are going to kid. And believe me, they will keep right on eating and/or cuding right up until delivery. I work a full time job, live 44 miles from that job, am a part time farrier and travel a lot, and so far have never missed a birthing. Well, unless you count the kid that was born when I took the first kid in the house, came back and there was another kid. (she was taking forever, I figured I'd get the first kid out of the way and then start working on the doe some more.) Also, when the ligs drop, you won't be guessing about it. It will be very obvious, and the does back end will look arched or rounded as she gets very near. She will paw, and circle, and get up again, or go lay under a tree or in the corner of the barn. Can you see your goat yard from the house? Mine is right outside my living room window, and although I can't see all the way in the barn, I can keep a good eye on them, even at night as we have a big light on a post that illumiates the yard...hopefully keeping wolves and hyennas away. Good luck, and don't worry so much. Watch your other goats too. If you have one birthing, sometimes they will act different also, like standing around looking to see what's going on instead of out in the pasture eating, etc. 
Everything will be juuuuuusssssssssssttttttttt fine.
Anita


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## Sondra (Oct 25, 2007)

Yep happens quite a bit.


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## Legend Hills (May 29, 2008)

Thank you all very much for letting me know that they can eat and cud, up until they push with little to no discharge before hand. She is acting weird. She has been for the last two days. She is not all Alpine though. She is part Nubian too. I hear they can go early. That is why I am being vigilant. 

I'm not freaked out or insane this year, I'm glad. But I'm still new at this so will probably lose my mind at some point, but not yet. :rofl

Thanks for all the help and support.

Kim


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## shawhee (Jun 28, 2008)

Hang in there Kim! I have a LM/Nub that is on day 152 today and she has no obvious discharge, she has NO ligaments and has not for a couple of days. I think sometimes they just take their time to drive us :crazy. Here is hoping they both go soon.


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## Legend Hills (May 29, 2008)

Thanks Shawna. I just realized not 10 minutes ago, that I've been putting all of my attention on Grace and not so much the others. I noticed just now that Amity (FF Alpine) is now at day 146. Still early I know, but her flanks are VERY sunk today. I did not check her ligaments yet. I'll do that soon. Her udder is no where near ready though, unless she bags up right before. She'll be the second to go. Or the first, depending on Grace. So now I'm keeping watch over two.  And yes, they do love to drive us crazy, don't they? :lol


Kim


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## shawhee (Jun 28, 2008)

Yes they do Kim! LOL My other one is at 147 - but still has some ligaments. They are half sisters so I think they are just planning to go at the same time! eek


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## Becky-DixieDoesAlpines (Oct 26, 2007)

I never feel for ligaments ever. You can tell by the look of the tail, I don't torture them by digging around down there 
Becky


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## mamatomany (Aug 7, 2008)

[I don't torture them by digging around down there 
Becky
[/quote]
TORTURE? as I pet them I just continue running my hand down their backbone and a quick ligamnet check. One second - how do you do it?


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## Guest (Mar 27, 2009)

My doe Dixie has been nesting for a good month now and she is not due for two more weeks. She is driving me crazy! Moves all the straw to the back of the pen and then makes a nice nest. Looks like a chicken sitting on her eggs. Straw is about 2 – 2 1/2 foot now and I keep trying to move it back to the front. I leave and come back and you guessed it she has moved it again. 
I figure it is good exercise sine she is the size of a house. I am hoping for quads. Three does and one buck. HEHE Need to fill that reservation.


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## Becky-DixieDoesAlpines (Oct 26, 2007)

mamatomany said:


> [I don't torture them by digging around down there
> Becky


TORTURE? as I pet them I just continue running my hand down their backbone and a quick ligamnet check. One second - how do you do it?
[/quote]
I didn't mean to offend...just teasing. I've seen does get pretty jumpy though when they are checked a lot.
I don't know....I don't feel the rump and tailhead, you can tell when kidding is imminent just by looking.
Becky


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## homeacremom (Nov 6, 2007)

Do you have any kids? Human kids? LOL I always think of that when I get tired during kidding season. My babies put me through something similar for 4-9 months! 
Sorry, tired is just part of it and yup by the time they kid and you get through the first 24-48 with those bottle babies you are ready to cry. I still do barn checks. Worth it to me to have my finger on that barn pulse constantly... but I only have animals I NEED and have no margin for error.
As you said this is your second year. You need the experience. 

Next year you might get a mentor, have exact breeding dates then induce. :biggrin I still did barn checks, but not for as many days/nights as I would have had to letting them go on their own!


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## Jennie (May 7, 2008)

Sorry Kim I'm just getting back to this. My biggest indicator of when a doe will kid is just knowing my girls. I will do a ligament check but I had one go withen a few hrs of loosing them and one that they seemed gone for days. Things I look for are if they are doing a shuffle with their back legs, I watch their eyes and where they are standing, my girls will also yell if I leave them and they are getting close. I have only missed the start of one birthing. I was checking the doe every half hour but the baby was hungry and needed his nap so the doe had to wait a min. longer then I had wanted. I sent dd out and she had just had one. So that is what works here. When we had the really cold temp a couple of weeks ago it just meant that I stayed out with her until she kidded. Babies don't make it long at -10. I think it took a couple of days for me to warm up after that one.
Hope things go well with your doe.


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## Legend Hills (May 29, 2008)

Thank you everyone.  Still waiting. 

Grace's udder is firmer. Her ligaments are still there but soft. She has been shuffling her back legs for two days now. I noticed about an hour or two ago that her breathing was rapid as if she were hot. But it did not get above 55F at the most today. So I put her back in the kidding pen early and watched her for awhile. She began eating her hay so I felt safe to leave her. She still has no discharge. 

Amity, has strong ligaments still so I feel that she will be fine for tonight. She just doesn't give me that feeling that Grace does. 

Will be doing barn checks again tonight. No I do not have human kids. I have the four-legged kind.  And getting exhausted was completely expected for this time of the season. It will all be worth it to see the kids though. At least I hope so. :lol

Kim


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## Dacaree (Jan 31, 2009)

The ones I watch take forever, the ones I don't surprise me everytime :crazy


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## Pam V (Jan 3, 2009)

I've had around ten births so am no expert. 
Had lots of goo hanging out of does and thought I knew what to look for then one surprised me. Looked down and she was laying there pushing! Didn't see any goo earlier. But might have missed it cause I did work earlier that day. Hand breeding is so much easier on the brain. I pasture bred at first. Still got a date or two just being out there but there were the ones that I was crazy watching. It was the mix girl that was probably boer cross that really fooled me. I had no date on her. She had such a fleshy butt that I couldn't feel the ligs. I eventually said, 'She must not have been bred.' About a week later she was in the barn with 2 kids. Its crazy!
Pam


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## cindy (Sep 16, 2008)

I have several does that eat, push, eat, push, eat, push...drives me crazy. They bellow with a mouth full of hay! I keep a baby monitor on all the time. I can hear what's happening in the barn and listen for the pushing. I've had a few that really know the Does Code of Honor...GRRRRR


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## Legend Hills (May 29, 2008)

:lol Don't we just love this time of year? :lol

Well back out to the barn for me now. Nothing yet. :sigh

Kim


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## Anita Martin (Dec 26, 2007)

I have one FF, my last to go, who lost her ligs last week when another doe was kidding. She doesn't look ready to kid, but if I went by how she felt, I'd say she should have kidded a week ago. LOL
Anita


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## Pam V (Jan 3, 2009)

I'm on doe watch tonight, too.
Pam


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## goatkid (Oct 26, 2007)

This year Arwen was eating her hay with prebirth mucus stringing from her. Other does have come to both hay and grain, then proceeded into the goat house and kidded within the hour. Some also chew cud until the serious contractions start. After a while you just get a feel for what your does are doing. Kathie


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## Legend Hills (May 29, 2008)

I hope it goes well for you Pam.

I guess every doe acts different. My barn check a few minutes ago found ligaments back and tight. UGH! :crazy

Crazy does. :lol


Kim


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