# S.O.S!! Afterbirth still hanging out and dragging!!



## Narnia75 (May 16, 2015)

Our doe had triplets at 3:00 a.m. and the afterbirth is still hanging out and dragging on the ground! 

What should we do?? Should we pull it out? One friend said that if we pull it out, the doe would bleed to death!


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## nehimama (Jun 18, 2005)

Whatever you do, DON'T pull it out. It should come out naturally in about 24 hours. When did the doe kid?


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## nehimama (Jun 18, 2005)

Oh, I re-read your post, and I see she kidded at 3 AM. She *should* be able to pass the afterbirth without intervention.


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## marusempai (Sep 16, 2007)

You can tie knots in it so it doesn't drag on the ground, but be careful to NOT PULL. It can take awhile to release all the way and that's normal.


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## MOSTBCWT (May 5, 2016)

Let nature take it's course. They been giving birth long before you got involved.


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## Narnia75 (May 16, 2015)

Earlier, I texted our vet and she said to gently pull it out! :hrm:


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## cfuhrer (Jun 11, 2013)

You could check with your vet about administering some pictocin (sp). But usually that's only if she's not dropped it after 24 hours.

I'm not big on people second guessing their vet, but in this case I think your vet is wrong.


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## marusempai (Sep 16, 2007)

Pulling out a placenta that is not fully detached from the uterus is a great way to cause a hemorrhage - in any mammal. Sometimes goat placentas take a really long time to slough all the way. I've seen well past twelve hours, personally (I don't really keep track).


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## punchiepal (Oct 11, 2008)

Tie up in knots and milking/nursing often will release natural oxytocin producing uterine contractions to help it release. Sometimes I bump them like I am checking for more babies to promote more contractions, and it seems to help.


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## Narnia75 (May 16, 2015)

We tied in knots and hung a dishrag on it as well. We milked her out this evening. Still hanging. 3:00 a.m. will be 24 hours.


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## Narnia75 (May 16, 2015)

Yay!! It finally came out around 11:30 p.m.!! Whew!! What a relief!!! We will sleep better tonight!!


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## mzgarden (Mar 16, 2012)

good post to follow, thanks for raising the question and to everyone that answered. I've not experienced this particular scenario so it was good to follow along and learn.


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## Caprice Acres (Mar 6, 2005)

I've always heard not to pull. I seem to recall vets pulling afterbirth from cows to check for uterine tears after rough fetotomies/calvings. Ruminant placentas are only attached at certain points, and they have a lot of layers in the placental attachment - so while I'm not 100% sure, I would hazard a guess that bleeding out in ruminants from pulling the afterbirth probably wouldn't be a huge risk. I could very well be wrong, but now I have a question to ask my therio professor.  

A fun placentation website I found: http://arbl.cvmbs.colostate.edu/hbooks/pathphys/reprod/placenta/structure.html


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## Farmers Pride (Feb 26, 2011)

I too would never try to pull on a placenta that is slow to slough and be expelled. It will happen on it's own. If I get a doe slow to expel the placenta I will give her a dose of Oxytocin. It causes the uterus to contract and speed things up or get them moving again if she stalls out. It also helps with helping her to produce colostrum and milk if she is being a slow starter.

Greg


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