Mama Goat Udder Watch begins THIS Wed 3/30! (newsletter)

Mar 26, 2022

So, this happened last weekend! Yep, that's a baby squirrel in my hand!



ManChild and I were at my parent's house visiting. When it was time to leave, Dad opened the garage door and there was this little one just looking up at us:

It hopped right over to Dad and as he was petting it's teeny tiny head, he kept getting further and further under his hand like, "Ah...safety."

Until Dad picked it up:

Oh the preciousness! Apparently it's common for the babies to not have any fear of people yet. We looked all around the yard to see if we could find where it came from. We found a nest in their backyard Leland Cypress and put the baby on the ground next to it. He just hopped his way right back to us. Hmmm...did something happen to his mom?

We took him home to the farm, stopping on the way to pick up goat milk puppy formula per the interwebs. I didn't have something called the Miracle Nipple but I did have a plethora of syringes so I used that to feed him. I was learning as I was going, having never done this before. He chowed his formula down and then I read that he might be dehydrated and need pedialyte. Well damn. I gently pinched his skin on his upper back and it didn't go down as quickly as it should so I learned how to make a homemade version of the pedialyte and fed that to him. He was very happy to have everything I was feeding him! :-)

I went super slow in feeding but still not slow enough darn it. Baby squirrels can aspirate their formula (which is why I went slow) and develop pneumonia. The next morning I heard the telltale clicking when he was breathing so I posted on a local group and a very nice woman in the town next to us said she was a licensed wildlife rehabber and could take him. I took him right over where he hopped into her neck pouch with 3 other baby squirrels, burrowed in and went to sleep!

That's when she told me that this is the way to feed a squirrel:

Ah! Ok! So, I ordered some of those Miracle Nipples just in case I ever get this opportunity again! What fun! He has since been named Peanut and is a part of a group of 5 baby squirrels that she is rehabbing. I'm glad he has friends to play with and a group he can be released with. She releases them into her backyard :-)

I miss him! I only had 12 hours with him so it's surprising that I would bond with him so quickly but how can you not with such a tiny baby?

Luckily next week we will begin Udder Watch 2022 and I'll be snuggling some baby goats soon!

What is Udder Watch? Well I've been following Danelle from Weed 'em and Reap for years and the past couple of years she's been talking about the "pop" of a goat's udder (noticeably filling, not actually popping!) before birth. Supposedly 12-24 hours later they go into labor. Funny, I knew this about sheep and I was always paying attention to our ewe's back ends in the spring but I never paid much attention to it for our goats. Probably because I'm with them a lot and I know the EXACT date they were bred. So this year, I'll look for the "pop!" Along with the softening of the ligaments along the tail, isolating, talking more, and my Inner Voice.

I've gathered together my birthing supplies and have asked on The Mother Ranch Facebook page for old towels and have had a great response! If you're curious what goes into my kit, here you go!

1. Antibacterial wipes: because goo gets on things you don't want it on.
2. Hairdryer: to warm up cold babies and/or babies who aren't yet nursing because they are too cold.
3. Water bottles: I'll have about a half dozen. For me and for mixing with #4
4. Hot water thermos: for, surprise, hot water! After mama goats give birth, or even in between #1 and #2, I give them a bowl (sometimes more than one) of molasses in warm water to help them perk up
5. Stethescope
6. Directions for babies in weird positions.
7. Thermometer cover, I think the thermometer is in the barn...
8. Dental floss to tie off umbilical cord
9. Scissors to cut umbilical cord
10. Water bottles in case a baby isn't doing well and needs to be bottle fed (please God no.)
11. Readers because I'm 52
12. Nipples to go on the water bottles
13. Flashlight
14. Bowls for the warm water/molasses concoction
15. Syringes for feeding #18
16. Kid Colostrum just in case
17. Hand sanitizer for me
18. Nutri-Drench to give to mom and/or baby if they are doing poorly
19. Molasses
20. Betadine solution
21. Super 7, antibacterial spray to use on the umbilical cord

Not in this pic are a chair, a stool, a stack of clean towels, more light, a granola bar for me, phone charger, tripod, lube, gloves... I'm sure more will come to me as I start packing it into a tub!

Last weekend I trimmed all the goat's feet and gave everyone their CDT shots:



Other than the 3 (the two boys and one naughty girl) who had to be manhandled by Brad into holding still, the rest ate their grain like the perfect sweet angels that they are while I worked.

Also! Sweetness feels like I'm ONLY talking about baby goats lately and wanted you to know that he's still around!:

CAN YOU HELP?:

This week I received an email from a friend who I haven't heard from in ages. She and her family spends most of her time in far off places, helping in Ethiopia, Kazakhstan, Nepal, and now, Ukraine.

Then I tracked her down on Facebook and there she was, making daily videos in Ukraine with her 22 year old son Willson at her side, photographing it all. Their base is in Poland, on the Ukrainian border.

They have a big white van and she drives from Poland to Ukraine to drop off food and military defense gear and pick up women and children to bring back to safety in Poland. With donations they have been able to purchase a home that will be a 50 bed transition home for Ukrainian women and children who are fleeing. They will be able to stay 2 nights, get settled, clean, feed their children and pets, do some laundry, and get situated on where they are going next.

There is so much fear and uncertainty for those people, brought about by one hateful man.

And then there is Sally and Willson and the Polish and Ukrainian people that are all working together to help innocent women and children fleeing war.

Sometimes life is too effing much and doesn't make sense. But Sally and crew are flying in the face of hopelessness and we can help her do that!

Sally has angel friends in South Carolina named Suzanne and Fred Edora. They have set up an Amazon wishlist, you can choose what you'd like to send, and have it shipped directly to them. They package it all up into huge duffels and fly it to Krakow, Poland.
This is how you can send stuff through Amazon to the Edora family in SC so they can fly it to Poland.

1. Click on this Amazon link and there will be a list of things to choose from.
2. When you get to the shipping part you should see "Fred Edora's Gift Registry"-choose to ship to him (once you choose him scroll to bottom and click on "use this address" Double check that it says Fred before you push buy!

Click here if you'd like to give money. They have a NetworkForGood.org link to donate to but it said: You may choose to enter a description to recommend how you’d like your donation to be used. Note, however, that all grants are unrestricted and the nonprofit is not bound by your recommendation. However, this is the site that Sally has linked to.

If you cannot send through Amazon or funds, would you consider forwarding this email to as many friends as possible, with a short note saying this is a way to help the Ukranian people? And remember every little bit helps! It's perfectly okay if you can only send a few dollars, or one item on the wish list—EVERYTHING HELPS these people who are fleeing.

THE GIVEAWAY:

Congratulations to Kelly Blythe, you won the baby goat print! Keep an eye on your email!



See all of the prints of my original watercolors here!

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