# Baby hooves and warming babies?



## mammabooh (Sep 1, 2004)

Are kdis' hooves usually fully formed when they are born? Cookie's baby's hooves are not, and I'm wondering if maybe there is something wrong with her. Her umbilical cord hasn't dried either, which I find strange. It still looks like it did when she was first born (she's approximately 27 hours old now).

It's not looking very good at the moment. She was eager to eat when I went out at 1:30 in the morning, but when I went out later, she was floppy and on her side. Cookie was cuddled right up to her, though. I wrapped her up in a towel fresh from the dryer and got her warm and fed her close to 2 ounces, but now she's on my lap wrapped in a towel and she is shivering. Is there anything that I can do?


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## rootsandwings (Apr 20, 2004)

BoSe and vitamin E.


hooves are soft when they are born. also sort of pale and wxy from being wet. It takes a while for both hooves and umbilici to dry.

did you dip her navel in iodine? if not, do it now.


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## mammabooh (Sep 1, 2004)

Yes to the iodine. I just gave her more selenium/vitamin e paste.


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## MaddieLynn (Nov 23, 2011)

We had a doe who had triplets after never even looking pregnant. They were extra tiny - the smallest weighed 3.3 pounds! His hooves weren't just soft, they were almost like jello. I was afraid that they would tear or something, but he's three weeks old now and they've hardened up nicely.


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## Greylady (Mar 28, 2012)

Being new to goats myself, I wondered the same thing. They hardened up. The cord took a while though. It even was a while before it fell off. Had one bucking weighed 7 lbs and the doeling was 5 lbs. She was not eating and we used a syringe to get colostrum down her. She was weak then but you would not know it now.


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## mammabooh (Sep 1, 2004)

I gave her more selenium/vitamin e paste, some baking soda, and a little bit of cayenne pepper in her mouth (per Jessica from Celtic Knot) and more colostrum. She is no longer shivering and is napping surrounded by towels in the laundry basket beside a sunny window in my kitchen. I have the alarm set and will give her just a bit of colostrum every hour...I figured that would be easier on her than trying to get a bunch down at once. 

Wish us luck!


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## thaiblue12 (Feb 14, 2007)

I use half a cc of Bo-Se injectable, I am not familiar with the gel and if it works as quickly. 
You can dip her hooves into the iodine as well. Sometimes one kid in there is slow to start especially with multiples. 
I would be taking her out to Cookie to nurse, this way they still bond and you do not have a single bottle baby, they do not do well as singles in the house. 
Once she is stronger I would leave her with her mom.


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## mammabooh (Sep 1, 2004)

A spunky, hungry baby was just returned to her mother. I put Cookie on the stand and the baby latched right on and sucked away for quite a while. I put her on the other side and she nursed there for quite a while too. So, I put them both back in the kidding pen and will monitor them regularly. I'll probably have to put Cookie on the stand until she (Cookie) gets the hang of it. She's very interested in her baby, but she just wants to lick her face and turns around every time the baby gets close to her teat. I guess we'll just have to break her of that somehow. I'm beyond delighted at the moment!


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## bluefish (Jan 27, 2006)

Sorry, you've probably said, but is Cookie a FF? I had that problem with a FF last year. She was very attentive, but didn't like to let them eat. I helped for a couple days, but after they get a little more mobile, they get there no matter what.

Also, most goats won't let the babies have more than a mouthful or two at a time. Keeps the little ones from eating too much at one time. I worried about it at first, but the babies were growing fine and full of spunk.

My DD's boer was down one baby this year and he's a PIG. She had a heck of a time keeping him from eating too much while she was eating. So, she solved it by sitting down. She's the only goat I've seen sit like a dog. It was so funny to see, her sitting like that contentedly munching while the little one squalled like he was dying.


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## mammabooh (Sep 1, 2004)

Yep...she's a 1st-timer.


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## mammabooh (Sep 1, 2004)

I just went down with a bottle in case it was needed, but found the baby in the pet carrier with a full tummy. I had put a 1/2 gallon bottle full of hot water in there earlier, so I swapped it out for another, warmer bottle. When I pulled the baby out of the carrier, she nursed for a little bit. I picked her up to see if she wanted the bottle, but she didn't have any interest. She was alert and perky and it made me happy!


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## Oat Bucket Farm (Jul 28, 2006)

That is great! You did good getting her and getting her warm and fed. Glad she is happy and back with her mama now.


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## BackfourtyMI. (Sep 3, 2007)

So glad all is going well now & all the babies are eating & acting like normal baby goats.
They are so much fun when they really start moving around & jumping, etc. Your going to have so much fun with them.


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## mammabooh (Sep 1, 2004)

She's still doing great...I even saw her jump a little bit this morning, and she sort of ran from one end of the pen to the other. I've been switching out hot water bottles every once in a while for her and she cuddles up to the bottle in the pet carrier. I'm hoping that it will warm up enough today that I can let her out to play with Mudge's kids...those kids are cracking me up with their antics! As of yesterday, Miss Lavinia (Vinnie) weighed 8 pounds, Miss Edwina (Winnie) weighed 8.5 pounds, and Cookie's girl (no name yet) weighed 3 pounds. I hope they can all play together just fine!

That's another thing...Cookie's baby needs a name. Her mom is Celtic Knot C.C. Cookie and her dad is Buttin' Heads Tin Roof Sundae, so we need a sweet treat name. The white spot on her forehead sort of looks like a crescent moon, so I thought Moon Pie might be a good name. I'm very open to suggestions, though!


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## rootsandwings (Apr 20, 2004)

a cookie and a sundae sounds like an ice cream sandwich.


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

Klondike?


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