What is a goat birthing kit you may ask? A goat birthing kit, or kidding kit is a box or tote filled with things you may need when your goats are in labor. It’s filled with supplies and some people include medicine and supplies for caring for new born kids. When and if you have to step in it’s so helpful to have everything you will need at your fingertips ready to go so you don’t have to run around looking for anything.
Do You Really Need A Goat Birthing Kit?
Having a goat birthing kit is very important to have on hand should you need to step in and help your mama goat give birth or help a struggling kid. You’ll want want you need readily available at your fingertips so you don’t have to dash around looking for gloves, or lube, or a bottle.
Having a well stocked kit ready to go will give you peace of mind, relieve some of the stress around kidding season, and set you and your goats up for success.
Do Goats Need Help Giving Birth?
Many times goats will not need help giving birth, but there is always the chance that you may need to render assistance if a baby isn’t positioned properly. It’s always best to be prepared. I have yet to need to step in and help one of my goats, but I always have my goat birthing kit ready to go should I need to.
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How To Stock A Goat Birthing Kit
Walmart, Target, Dollar General Etc.: These are great options for stocking your goat birthing kit on things like gloves, or paper towels.
Tractor Supply, Farmer CO-OP, or any other Farm Supply Store: You can find some of these items at your local farm supply such as Tractor Supply but make sure you begin collecting your goat birthing kits supplies before kidding season hits because it can be quite hard to find things when everyone needs it. Especially with supply chain issues.
Valley Vet: We went to every farm supply near us and called the others and no one carried a kid/lamb puller so Valley Vet is were I finally managed to get my hands on one.
Amazon: Is a great options if you can’t find something locally, just make sure you check prices to make sure you are getting the best deal.
17 Things That Should Be In A Goat Birthing Kit
So what goes in a goat birthing kit anyway? I’m so glad you asked! Let’s dive into building your own goat birthing kit:
- Old Towels
- OB Lube (you can purchase it in a gallon bottle here or in 5 oz tube)
- Disposable Gloves
- Bottle
- Nipples (there are two kinds to choose from, these are my personal favorite. But lots of people will recommend Pritchard nipples. I keep them both on hand just to be safe.
- Kid Puller
- Heating Pad
- Nasal Aspirator
- Scissors with Alcohol wipes
- Iodine
- Dental floss
- Teat dip with teat dipping cups
- Udder balm
- Thermometer
- Flashlight with back up batteries
- Veterinarian or Mentor Contact information (this Facebook group is also a great resource)
Extra Things To Include In A Goat Birthing Kit
- Paper towels
- Puppy pads
- Wormer of choice
- Needles and Syringe
- Feeding tube with syringe
- Betadine, Povidone or Chlorhexidine Scrub (use to scrub your hands/arms in case you have to “go in” and assist) (buy it here)
- Garbage bags
- Milk replacer (you can get a bag of it, or simply use whole milk from the store)
- Back up colostrum (if you have a goat in milk it is always a good idea to milk out some of the colostrum and store it in your freezer)
- CDT vaccines
- Heat lamps
- Selenium Supplement: BoSe or Selenium/Vit E Gel or Replamin Gel (especially if your area is selenium deficient)
- *BoSe is prescription only but great to have on hand. I prefer Replamin over basic Selenium/Vit E gel because it contains selenium, Vitamin E, cobalt and other minerals (buy it here)
- NurtiDrench
- Electrolytes or homemade electrolyte mix
- Molasses (add to warm water for mama goat to drink)
- Honey (Rub on gums for energy)
- Cayenne (Mix with honey and rub on gums for weak kids or mama goat to increase blood flow)
- Bananas (Provides energy and vitamins to mama goat)
- Camera
Additional Items To Include In A Goat Birthing Kit For Emergencies
These additional items are good to include in your goat birthing kit should an issue happen:
- Ketone Test Strips (to test for pregnancy ketosis)
- Dextrose or glucose solution or propylene glycol and Probios to treat ketosis
- CMPK gel (calcium gluconate) to treat hypocalcemia, aka “milk fever”
Bonus: Kidding Pen Supplies
Don’t forget your goat kids! After they are born it can be really handy to include these items in your goat birthing kit:
- Bedding such as straw or shavings are always great to have on hand. If you do choose to use shavings you should be aware that they stick to wet baby goats like Velcro! So if you are going to use them be sure to dry the babies off very well.
- Empty feed bags or large black garbage bags are a great way to make clean up easy, cut open and laid flat under straw or shavings for easy clean up.
- Baby monitors (optional but so nice to have! We love our Motorola touch connect 5.0” HD video monitor. It comes with a monitor and an app for my phone that I can check when I am away from the house.)
- Depending on your weather and when the babies hit the ground a heat source or “kid hut” for warming kids may come in handy.
- Warm water, grain and hay for mama goat. *I like to use a shallow dog bowl to ensure the babies don’t tumble in and get stuck in the water.
Goat Kidding Kits Conclusion
Having a goat birthing kit is a must, even if you don’t use everything in your kit it’s important to have it should you need it. We all hope and pray for an easy kidding but their is always the chance that you will need to step in. Being able to step in quickly, and having everything you could possibly need ready to go.
What is in your kidding kit? I’d love to know!
