It will be kidding time here in a few short months and we just can’t wait to see all the adorable bouncy babies! Our first year kidding we were so nervous and were not sure what goat kidding signs to look for.
We knew how to tell we had pregnant goats, so we knew we definitely had babies on the way. We had so many questions about what the goat labor timeline would look like.
We wanted to be sure that we would be there when our does kidded, so we needed to know what the common goat kidding signs to look for were.
If your goats are close to kidding, make sure you have your goat kidding supplies ready too!
Haven’t bred your goats yet, but want to know all the details? Check out the Ultimate Planner for Breeding Goats.
Goat Labor Timelines – are they exact?
One important thing to remember is that each goat labor timeline will vary based on your doe and her unique situation. Most does will present with these signs of goat labor, but some will do them sooner or later than others. So get to know your individual does.
Here are the top 5 goat kidding signs:
1) Loose Ligaments are a sign of goat labor
One of the signs of goat labor are when your does ligaments get loose.You should start feeling your does ligaments before it gets close to her kidding time, that way you know what they feel like normally.
The ligaments you will want to feel are her tail head ligaments. If you feel at the top of her hip bones and run your fingers down towards her tail, you will feel her ligaments (they feel kind of like pencils).
As your doe gets closer to kidding time, these ligaments will get softer and softer. Once you can no longer feel these ligaments (you will literally be able to touch your fingers together around her tail head), then she should be kidding very soon.
Of note, sometimes a doe will seem to loose her ligaments, but then they will come back some, only to go away again later.
2) Extra Discharge
One of the signs of goat labor is extra discharge. In our experience some of our goats had discharge before kidding and some did not.
However, if your goat has discharge before kidding, you can be sure they will be kidding soon. Just how soon, you can’t be for sure as some goats will have this discharge a week or so before they actually kid. But it is definitely a goat kidding sign you can watch for to know your does is getting closer to giving birth.
3) Full Udder or Bagging up.
Bagging up is one of the easiest signs on the goat labor timeline to spot. You will notice that your doe will start to get milk in her udder as her pregnancy goes on.
However, once she is completely full — her udder will look almost shiny and her teats will actually be full. Once her udder is fully bagged up, she will be kidding very, very soon.
4) Sunken Sides or Babies Dropping
Goats, like humans, will get a big pregnant belly. Some goats will look more pregnant than others. Their bellies will grow straight out to the sides.
One of the signs of goat labor is their sunken sides. As the babies get ready to be born they will drop (also like humans) and get lined up for birthing time.
When this happens, your does sides will suddenly look sunken in. This is a sign that kidding time will be coming soon.
5) Change in Behavior
Another of the goat kidding signs that you can look for is that a does behavior may change as kidding time comes close. She may start to separate herself from the herd.
Last year, the day before Chloe gave birth, she stayed in the stall all day by herself instead of going out to graze. Does who are really friendly may get a bit wild and does who are a bit wild may get much more friendly.
Your girls may become much more vocal. You may also see your girls show more interest in other newly born babies. They may also start to paw at the ground and become restless. These are definite signs of goat labor and you should expect kids soon.
Want to see Goat Kidding Signs? Check out our video!
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These are the goat kidding signs we look for. Are there any goat kidding signs you always look for?
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These are the exact signs I follow, too. My does have tricked me so many times in the past and I used to wake up every 2 hours to check. But now that I understand the early signs and the timeline of early labor, I don’t worry as much.
This is really helpful my Nigerian dwarf is 3 days overdue and her udder looks like it wants to explode the tears are pointed outwards and when I feel it there is not loose skin that I can pull. She is a first freshener and she is my first doe to have kids. Thanks for the great information
So glad we could help! Here’s hoping for some super cute baby goats for you soon! 🙂
Our Nigerian Dwarf’s bag has not filled and she has only a small amount of discharge. She was bred when we bought her but we did not know her due date. However, we did notice today she started pushing her head into the walls and shifting her weight frequently. Her sides have been sunken for about a week and her ligaments have been soft for about 3 weeks.
We just moved her into a kidding stall based on this new behavior. It looks just like my Nubians just before they give birth, but this is my first time with a Nigerian Dwarf. If my past experience has taught me anything, she will probably kid sometime around midnight tomorrow after we have given up.
Hi Josh,
It sounds like she is probably at the start of labor. Usually their udder fills before kidding, but not always. Sometimes it will fill literally RIGHT before they kid. And occassionally it will fill right at kidding/right after. The other behavior you mentioned definitely seems to be signs of labor.
Good luck and here’s hoping for healthy kids soon 🙂
Best,
Kristin
My goat “Sita” has not sunken in yet, bit she has been having alot of discharge, and she is super restless she keeps lying down and pushing and then getting up and walking around with her eyes closed, she has had alot of contractions.
My goat she is supposed to be due May,12,2019 and today is April,16,2019 and she is acting weird every time I go out side she starts to rub on boards but no discharge her belly is starting to drop she has a little bag and when she lays down she paws and just by looking at her tail it looks very very loose and i’m very concerned the people i bought her from said she was bred and I don’t know the date but I texted them and they told me and her due date is in may.
Has she kidded? Sometimes tail ligaments can be pretty gone for a bit before kidding.
Has she kidded yet? Sometimes they look close for quite a while before kidding.