The Lord graciously granted Betsy, one of our nanny goats, to give birth to twins. They are pure Nubians. One is a male, the other a female; and so, please meet Donny and Marie. Here is a picture (Donny’s on the right, Marie’s on the left):
And here is a video:
They were born just before sunrise on a near freezing morning. Due to some confusion in our understanding of when new-born goats need to be up, around and suckling, we let them be for several hours. Well, for some reason Betsy didn’t clean them off, and when we checked on them again, they were still laying down, one struggling to get up stuck in the birth wetness. Needless to say, we got them up and cleaned out their little shed and put fresh hay in it. We went and looked up some new-born information in our goat books, and they indicated they needed to be up and suckling within 30 minutes. Sigh. They looked very weak, weren’t really up and about, and weren’t eating; and so, we decided to milk Betsy for her colostrum and bottle feed them. We did this a few times throughout the afternoon. Before our community meeting that night, we closed them into the shed because it was going to be a cold night again. After the meeting we checked on them, and they appeared to be walking around a bit and even latching on to Betsy’s teats a little, and so we decided to not interfere for the night. And we prayed.
Well, God was merciful, and in the morning they were up and standing when we let them out. We watched them throughout the day and saw that they indeed were suckling. Since then they’ve only gotten stronger and are now getting around quite well.
Here is another video:
We are thankful once again for the Lord’s provisions, and his mercies in allowing the new little ones to live and begin to grow healthy.
— David
Awww! How sweet! I would love to have a goat or two and a sheep or two. 😀
How precious! God’s creatures are truly remarkable. While I watch the videos of your animals I always find my face in a full smile and often I giggle. Precious memories of our farmlife rush back to me. Thank you for sharing all of this.
Just curious…what is the plywood there for and do they hang there alot, or did you just happen to catch them there? Funny how their names coordinate with their “practicing their rhythm”. Ha!
Beth
Hi Beth,
That’s actually the door to their shed that we put up at night. Goats seem to like to climb up on things, and that is about the highest thing they have right now on which to climb. 🙂 Plus, maybe it’s nice for them because it’s stable footing?
They’re prancing and running around even more today (8 days since they were born).
— David
Hi, I must say I am learning so much from you both.. can’t wait to have some goats as well. They are so playful! Praise God that He took care of them and that they are Healthy! Look forward to seeing all your new animals… Lord willing soon!
Debylin
David and Susan,
Thank you for sharing the videos. I love goats and will have some when I get my barn built (soon I hope).
Manette