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The biggest advantage to the newborn kid and the mother to survive a difficult delivery is for you to BE THERE so you can assist or call for assistance when and if it is needed. For you to be there, you have to know when it is going to happen. "Reading" the tail ligaments is the best way I have found to know when labor/delivery is imminent. It takes some practice at first, but like riding a bicycle, once you have it , you'll never forget it and it WORKS. The ligaments are easier to feel on a slender goat rather than a fat one so, practice there first. Once you get it down, you can usually find them regardless of the goat's weight. The pictures below show the general position of the ligaments. They stretch from either side of the base of the tail ( where the tail attaches to the spine ) out and down to the pin bones ( those are the boney protrusions you can feel on either cheek of the butt of the goat---if the goat's head points in the north direction these bones point in the south direction. )

The picture below shows how to check these ligaments. The best way to find them is to place your hand on the goats back at the rump with the heel of your hand resting on the goat's back and your fingers resting on the goat's tail. Now spread your index finger and your middle finger, making a "V". Press down and move these 2 fingers side-to-side just a little, you will feel what feels like stretched strings about 1/4 inch in diameter just under the skin.

If you get into the habit of feeling these ligaments twice a day ( once in the morning and again just before retiring ) you will get a "feel" for their tension. When they begin to loosen ( they will actually begin to sag ), I have found that the doe is usually within 24 hours of delivery. When the ligaments are not detectable at all ( feels like just a mass of mushy tissue ) then, for me, it is usually only 10-12 hours before delivery. This will vary a little for each doe but it is surprisingly similar.

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