Goat Update

What have our goats been up to since November? 

It's been a hot debate among our animal caregivers (and us on our short visits home) if either Gerda or Svetlana are bred. I took these pictures Dec. 8th. Are those the beginning bellies of babies?

In this picture, Svetlana does look pretty big... 

No udders or kids appeared in December, January, or February. It's typical for first time moms (like Gerda) to not show as much and for udders to not be noticeable until close to giving birth. Svetlana doesn't have that excuse; she's two years old. We decided Fritz was a dud and discussed what to do with him. So disappointing. No babies = no milk, our main reason for the goats. Where could we get another billy? 

This past Sunday, our neighbor texted that when checking the animals, she found a baby goat dead in the shed. The back legs had been chewed on by something; we assume that's courtesy of the cats. Svetlana was very anxious and wouldn't settle or let anyone close to her. My guess is because she couldn't find her baby.

Lots of things we don't know: When was the kid born? Is Svetlana a bad mom who didn't get the baby up and moving and eating? Or was it too cold? Or was the baby premature? Does this mean Gerda is bred too? Why did it take so long for them to get pregnant?

That last question we might have an answer for: 

Based on goats' 150 day gestational period, Svetlana got bred in early October. Gerda's belly has always looked smaller than Svetlana's, which means that she's a little further behind. Guess we need to keep our eyes open for more babies... Hopefully Gerda will hold off for another week or two until we can be home and checking regularly.