Eden Wellness welcomed 5 new babies this past weekend! Most went smoothly except for our second doe that kidded. She had twin girls and they are beautiful! Unfortunately Sweet Heart had a hard time after birth. She was a weaker kid. We don't know exactly why, but this can happening during kidding in goats.
She wasn't breathing well and couldn't move at all even after 15-30minutes. It's common for babies to struggle a little at birth, they just came into a new world! It's not as common though to see a kid not get up and not have it's instincts kick in. The mother did not pay any attention and I tried to keep my distance so she could do her job. She wasn't so I had to help.
From then on, I had to be the "mom" and get her nourished back to health! For us since we have a smaller farm right now, we want to make sure each baby can survive if possible. They are so valuable to us, especially the girls. So started a long day from late morning of birth to early morning feedings with her. She is doing wonderful now and I can't believe it!
Here are some simple things that helped:
First, we had to get her temperature up before anything else. She would not be able to properly drink and and survive if we didn't get her body temperature up. Her body was in survival mode at that point. So what did we do? I took her temperature every 15 minutes and surrounded her in heat packs. That helped tremendously and guess what made the final heat wave? Cayenne Pepper! You might be wondering why, right? Well, cayenne actually helps to raise body temperature. It's one of those "hot" herbs. Sure enough, by barely putting a little on her tongue, she essentially woke up and her body heat rose bit by bit!
Next once she was at a normal temperature, we were able to give her some electrolytes to get her body going and give her some quick energy. As I syringe fed her the electrolytes she very slowly got her energy back. After that she was able to get some colostrum from her mother so she could get all the benefical bacteria and immune support for her body.
Now, she is doing great and up on her feet! She is going to be a friendly one and hope she will eventually produce some "sweet" milk!
Of course we have other adorable babies and everything is slowly beginning to scream spring. The birds are chirping and wildlife is on the move! This is one of my favorite times of the year.
Joy and be able to share the delight of new life with others is fulfilling! Who doesn't love a cute kid (baby goat)?
Besides the cute babies, I love the produce we eventually start to get. It takes a while as the babies grow and mature before we can get all the milk to ourselves! I am patient however, because I know the amazing benefits of goat's milk. Let me share some amazing facts with you!
Did you know?
According to the Journal of American Medicine, "Goat's milk is the most complete food known." It contains vitamins, minerals, electrolytes, trace elements, enzymes, protein, and fatty acids that are utilized by your body with ease. In fact, your body can digest goat's milk in just 20 minutes. It takes 2-3 hours to digest cow's milk.
Here are some other health benefits:
*Goat's milk is less allergic - It does not contain the complex protein that stimulate allergic reactions to cow's milk.)
*Goat's milk does not suppress the immune system. Unless of course you are allergic to goat's milk. Most people are not. It is rare to be allergic to goat's milk.
*Goat's milk is easier to digest than cow's milk (An old statistic showed that goat's milk will digest in a baby's stomach in twenty minutes, whereas pasteurized cow's milk takes eight hours. The difference is in the structure of the milk.)
*Goat's milk contains twice the healthful medium-chain fatty acids, such as capric and caprylic acids, which are highly antimicrobial. (They actually killed the bacteria used to test for the presence of antibiotics in cow's milk!) Wow!
*Goat's milk does not product mucus; it does not stimulate a defense response from the human immune system. Sometimes you can tell if you are drinking cow's milk that you get a thick coat of mucus in your throat, that could be a sign you are allergic to cow's milk!
*Goat's milk is a rich source of the trace mineral selenium, a necessary nutrient, however, for its immune modulation and antioxidant properties.
What if you are lactose intolerant?
*Easier digestion allows the lactose to pass through the intestines more rapidly, not giving it time to ferment or cause an osmotic imbalance.
*Goat's milk also contains 7% less lactose than cow milk. Additionally, most lactose intolerant people have found that they can tolerate goat's milk and goat milk products.
*Goat's Milk Soothes the Digestive Tract and goat's milk has long been used and recommended as an aid in the treatment of ulcers due to its more effective acid buffering capacity.
So what else is great about it?
*Children on goat's milk have been observed to sleep through the night and remain more satisfied between meals.
*Goat milk is naturally homogenized. It forms a soft curd when compared to cow milk and hence helps in easy digestion and absorption. Regular intake of goat milk significantly improves the body weight gain, improved mineralization of skeleton, increased blood serum vitamin, mineral and haemoglobin levels. These points are considered advantageous when compared to consumption of human milk.
These are just a few of the reasons why we love goat milk! We drink raw goat milk here on the farm. That's the best if you can find a clean source that has it. Goat milk from the store isn't bad, it's just been pasteurized and has been sitting in the coolers for a while (which can give it a strong "goaty" taste).
Enjoy trying some goat milk or goat milk products if you wish! You can also check out on our website our facts page where you can find out more about goat milk.
