How to find Ligaments

Very helpful. So when those ligaments are not palpable or you can't feel them, then that means they are close to kidding? Thanks for helping the newbies!

 

When your fingers can 'meet' all the way around the tail head it means she's pretty much ready to kid. The ligs start to get 'mushy' 24-36 or so hours before kidding *in my experience* however when you can make your fingers meet, it's usually only a few hours til kidding time.

 

My doe has been the last two days for sure with ligaments gone, and my fingers meet under the tail head. I think it has been the same for at least over a week though! I keep reading it means they will kid in the next day or so. I didn't know about the posty leg thing until yesterday and she definitely had that yesterday morning, also, and still does. She has had a small white string of discharge off and on for about 2 weeks. Last night she had a *tiny* bit of brown tinged stuff come out. I didn't sleep and kept going to the freezing cold barn to check. I thought by today she would have had them but still nothing! She is huge and waddling, and looks like she has triplets in there!

 

thank you for posting this Stacey. The first doe that I had that kidded it was easy to feel her ligaments but this doe that I am waiting on now is really difficult. Is that normal? I do not know if it is because of their bodies being shapped so differently but it has been impossible for me to find them. I can rap my fingers around her tail head so I just assume that they are gone.... Can I be wrong?

 

Good thread Stacey!

Fiasco Farm has a great example too...
http://fiascofarm.com/goats/prenatalcare.html

I remember when I first was trying to figure out the ligaments thing, the above link really helped me. :thumb: It's so easy when you finally get a hang of it.

 

That fiasco farm link helped me too on saturday...I have a girl with ligs gone, but she hasn't delivered yet...will be keeping close eye on her though.

 

First Fresheners sometimes dont loose there ligs all the way. The ligaments run like a V down the tail so, you need to feel about a 1/2"-1" on either side of the tail. The feeling around the tail head doesnt work. FF are very good at loosing there ligs for a few hours and then they are bak.
The udder is the Best way to tell when they kid. All of My does are very easy to tell when they are in labor!!! THANK GOD!!

 

Here's my piccy. Took it last year and got complements on how well it showed the proper area.

 

I had one doe with ligaments completely gone for almost a month before she kidded. We could wrap our fingers all the way around her tail.

 

Ok I've been having issues with this too bc I can already grab the tail all the way around but she's still a week or more out from kidding the others are way to hard to do this to but all were bred within 6 days of each other I cannot find this pencil rubberband thing of ligaments everyone is talking about... Does anyone have a skeletal/ nerve diagram? That might really help me out bc I am still lost in the ligament dept and udders don't help me either bc my doe last year was full hard and nearly touching the ground for almost a month before she kidded! This year she's not nearly as full but I now she is close to having them by the bred date. Any more help on logs would be great!!

 

Hi all. Stacey - this is a great post I checked for ligs last year and it let me know when to really watch my doe. This year, I have my 5 year old doe due to kid again (not sure exactly when but soon) and her daughter (woops). Daughter is just over 10 months old (woops again) and I am not sure when she is due (triple woops! I witnessed the train wreck of the buck getting at her in Feb but he must have got to her before then as well because she looks very far along...)

So the thing is - like Carol said - her ligs seem to come and go, or are very difficult to find some days, then back, one lig disappeared - the other I can feel....Tonight I can feel both but not very easily....BUT I can put my fingers around her tailbone and basically touch my fingers together...and she has made a small udder.....Is the tail bone thing more reliable with FF? and if so, should I be checking on her more because it could be soon OR should her ligs disappear like my older doe???

 

Here's some pics I did for finding ligaments and figuring out when a doe is kidding.
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.441696899291347.1073741829.221500494644323&type=1

 

I don't trust ligaments on does like that. If their ligs come and go, I'll never trust them as a sign that they're ready to kid, but as a sign that they'll kid in 2-3 weeks.

I know they're ready to kid when they start being restless, peeing a lot, vocalizing, tummy talking, or they have a kid hanging out the back of them when I step outside!

 

Thank you Stacy for this video!!! This was very helpful to our family, we are newbies to goat rearing! Wish there were more videos on how to care for goats!

 

:leap:HOW EXCITING for Saanens N Alpines! Obviously, she has delivered by now. Pics are where?