Glory Gets an Ultrasound

The preferred method of breeding goats is to provide two romantically inclined goats with a suitable location for a lovely date, chaperone the encounter, diligently record the event on the calendar and anticipate the new arrivals 150 days later.  But then there’s reality…

Since there is no guarantee of pregnancy after the first date, it’s necessary to watch to see if the doe comes into heat approximately 3 weeks later so she can go on another date if needed. And because it’s possible to miss signs of heat when you’re not spending as much time with your goats as you’d like (long hours at work and sub zero temperatures are contributing factors!) it’s a good insurance policy to put the doe and buck together on an extended date of several weeks “just in case.” And while this increases the chances you’ll end up with cuddly kids, it also increases the chances of an unknown due date.

Luckily, most of the girls got pregnant as planned this year but as they say “there’s one in every crowd” and this year it’s Glory. Since she missed her original due date, we’ve been watching her closely. Several times this week she showed signs of being in early labor only to change her mind and remain stubbornly pregnant. (Yes, goats can have false labor, also know as Braxton Hicks Contractions.)

So today we loaded Glory in the front seat of the truck and drove her to the vet clinic for an ultrasound to find out what’s going on in there. I’m happy to report that Glory is indeed pregnant with at least one kid who is very near full term. Dr. Joel found a healthy fetal heartbeat and the consensus is mom and kid are healthy.

Glory wasn’t too sure about the ultrasound machine itself, but she seemed to enjoy the outing and the change of routine it provided along with all the attention from the clinic staff. (So sorry about piddling on the floor!) Now if only she’ll deliver so I can change my routine of 1:30 a.m. goat checks!