Farmer's Wife 3.0

      Ah, yes... it has finally happened. My husband wasn't here to help with kid rearing and I had to handle it myself. I never wanted to be put in this position. I could tell Buttercup was in distress and had been in active labor with her third kid for over 3 hours. Her labored breathing was almost too much for me to handle. She has given birth before, only resulting in twins. I have watched this process many times but never really had to assist in the grunt work. I could tell she was weak and desperately needed assistance. I kept thinking... Can I do this and save them? My scatter brained self had to think fast. 

     I quickly called my grandmother to watch my toddler and began the necessary prep work. Gloves, towels, and readily made kid milk. Thank goodness we only have larger goats now. I was able to find the feet of the last baby left in her womb with finesse. I helped her ease out the last baby, which was the smallest of the triplets. Buttercup was actively trying to cox the other two kids to drink and clean them off at the same time. I rubbed and patted for what felt like a lifetime. Finally, a small very wet whine was released from the small black and brown kid. She even stood within minutes for making her first viable sounds. Buttercups other two babies had teats actively eating, so I went ahead and introduced the small babe to the bottle. Her name will be Lucky if she survives the next few months. Hopefully, Buttercup will not try to cull her and with my assistance with extra food the three kids should all survive. 

     

  ______________

    We don't always do everything perfectly, and I am no exception to that comment. Although my willingness to help did save all four goats, by husband scolded me. Apparently, I didn't do everything, "he would have done in that moment." I should have tried to get Lucky to feed from her momma, as soon as, possible. My instincts to use the kid formula had been a bad decision on my part. Babies need their mother's colostrum for their benefits. Only time will tell if Lucky will have the same chances of growth and survival as her siblings. For now, I will be making trips down to the field with bottles to help feed the kids. Maybe I should have called him first and wrote down steps? 

     Lucky is an exact replica of her mom. She is feisty and already exploring her environment under her mom's watchful eye. The other two kids are nearly twice her size and have similar markings, but in a different shade of brown. Lucky will become a part of our permanent herd as she matures. If for some reason she isn't making progress she will be coming to the house until Spring. Yes, my husband can get mad if he wants to. That baby will be in the house receiving care and warmth. Grandma has already volunteered to come feed her while I'm at work. 

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