How to determine if a goat is pregnant at home, signs and methods

Beginning goat breeders are often faced with the problem of how to determine the onset of pregnancy in a goat. Sometimes it is not possible to take an animal to a veterinary clinic for an ultrasound. The computer scan method shows the fetus at mid-term. Therefore, in folk practice, a wide range of methods are used: from palpation to testing using a female rapid pregnancy test. But not all methods are reliable.

Signs of a goat being catty

Pregnancy in goats is called gestation, gestation, gestation, or gestation, and lasts on average 5 months. Childbirth may begin 5 days earlier or later than expected. Signs appear in the third or fourth week from the date of mating of the goat. Therefore, it is important to mark this date on the calendar. You can learn about pregnancy in the short term by observing the behavior and appearance of the animal. But this method of determination is not reliable. Changes in the body of goats are individual and do not always occur.

Appearance

Visual changes in the appearance of a mated goat:

• increase in body size;
• swelling of the udder.

A few days after mating, hard balls form in the upper part of the udder. In the second half of pregnancy, the udder becomes full. At a later stage, the fetus begins to move, and the goat moans. Body size is not always reflected in appearance. Sometimes only a rounded, slightly drooping belly indicates pregnancy. The unexpressed symptom remains the only one throughout the entire period, so breeders remain in the dark until birth.

The size of the goat also increases with obesity, which is mistaken for pregnancy.

Change in genital organs

In non-fetal goats, the genital loop is narrow, and the part under the tail is wrinkled. After fertilization, the wrinkles are smoothed out and the loop is filled. At an early stage, wrinkles still remain, but swelling is clearly visible. At a later stage, the loop becomes smooth. The vagina swells and turns pink at 10-12 weeks.

To see the differences, you need to examine the goat before covering. Experienced breeders even advise taking photos. According to farmers' observations, the goat's hungry pit disappears after successful covering.The sign is clearly visible at a later stage, but not always immediately after fertilization. Not all goats with a swollen loop have had their pit disappear. Therefore, it is more reliable to determine early pregnancy by examining the loop.

Behavior

A calving goat begins to stretch like a cat, stretching its back and hind legs. She shows caution where there were no barriers before: she doesn’t jump onto the roof or over the fence. The animal is frightened by sharp sounds. During pregnancy, appetite increases.

Behavior is also not a reliable sign, since even pregnant goats often retain their usual activity. Caution appears at the first pregnancy, and during subsequent periods the animals feel more confident. If 22 days after covering the goat does not come into heat, then fertilization has occurred. If she is ready to mate after 1.5 months, then the pregnancy is false.

How to determine if a goat is pregnant at home

Determining gestation at an early stage is important in order to start the goat in time - to stop milking. During pregnancy, the body's forces are aimed at the formation of the fetus. Milk will be needed to feed the kids. The body of a goat that is milked during pregnancy becomes depleted. Her bones become brittle from a lack of calcium, and her milk is low in nutrients. The kids grow up weak. Therefore, starting or stopping milking preserves the health of the animals.

Milking is gradually stopped a month and a half before birth. The appropriate time is also calculated according to the calendar, counting the days from coverage and focusing on the expected date of birth.During this time, farmers confirm or deny the goat's caloric status in various ways.

Using a goat (reflexology method)

The method is suitable for determining gestation in the third week after mating. The goat is brought to the goat and their behavior is monitored. If the animals are indifferent to each other, then pregnancy has occurred.

If the goat is not covered since last time, after 3 weeks it will come into heat again. Readiness for mating will be manifested by bleating and reddening of the loop. The female may eat more than usual or refuse to eat. The disadvantage of the method is that the behavior of the goat is not indicative. The male can even jump on a pregnant female. But with a typical reaction, checking with a goat allows you to reliably determine pregnancy at a short period.

Palpation

3 months after mating, pregnancy is checked by palpation. Experienced goat breeders test the number of kids in the offspring. During palpation, the pulse and movement of the cubs are felt, and a heartbeat can be heard through the phonendoscope.

To determine if a goat is male, you need to place both hands on its belly, slightly above the udder. You won’t be able to feel the movement of the kids right away. Sometimes breeders have to wait 40 minutes. You need to feel the goat while sitting and listen sensitively to the sensations. The kids move in waves, but barely noticeably.

Pregnant goat It strains the abdomen if you place your palm on it and interferes with examination. In order for her to relax her muscles, you need to grab her by the scruff of the neck - the skin on the withers.

Change in milk yield

The goat's pregnancy, coupled with cautious behavior, is indicated by an increase in the amount of milk. The change is especially noticeable after a state of hunting, during which milk yield decreases and behavior becomes restless. A pregnant goat produces thicker milk. It settles on the walls of the dishes.The amount of calcium in milk increases.

Rectal examination

The method helps determine kittenness in the third month.

How the examination is carried out:

• the entire length of the index finger is inserted through the anus;
• point slightly up and to the left, then to the right.

During pregnancy, a pulsation of the pelvic artery, which supplies the uterus, is felt in the rectum. The longer the period, the more it swells.

Traditional methods

In private farms, milk is sold. In order not to start goats in vain and not to lose a valuable product due to an error, breeders, along with visual inspection and palpation, use several “chemical” methods for determining gestation at an early stage.

With milk

The easiest way to determine pregnancy is by looking at the milk. But the method is only suitable for goats that have already given birth to kids.

For analysis you will need:

• milk;
• a glass of clean water;
• a syringe without a needle or a pipette.

How to find out if a goat is calving:

• take a little milk into a syringe or pipette;
• drop into water.

The milk of a pregnant goat is heavy and will sink to the bottom. There will be circles of drops on the surface, and in the middle the water will be clear. Regular milk clouds the water evenly throughout the volume.

The test helps determine pregnancy, both during the month and 3 days after coverage. Some breeders believe that diet and water hardness can make the result unreliable. Even the difference in temperature between water and milk can have an effect, so the liquids should be at the same room temperature. But as an additional way of checking, you can use it and check the milk from time to time.

Application of soda

For analysis in a home laboratory you will need:

• morning goat urine - 0.5 cups;
• soda - 1 teaspoon.

Soda is poured into the urine and the reaction is observed.The hissing of the solution means that the goat is not covered, and the precipitation of sediment without hissing means that the goat is clothed.

Iodine test

The study also requires goat urine collected in the morning. To check, you need to drop iodine into the biological fluid. A drop remaining on the surface means dryness. If iodine is mixed with urine and sank to the bottom of the glass, pregnancy has not occurred.

litmus test

For analysis, white sheets of A4 paper are cut into strips.

Method of analysis:

• dip the indicator paper in urine;
• drip iodine on top.

The test is positive if the urine turns purple. Blue color means no pregnancy.

Laboratory and veterinary methods

Testing at a veterinary clinic is done in early and middle stages of pregnancy. There are several reliable laboratory methods. But they also have disadvantages, and some are difficult to implement in a barn:

Sometimes breeders use a female pregnancy test. The test strip shows the antibody response to the hormone gonadotropin, which is found in humans and animals. Opinions about the reliability of the results also differ, as in the case of drops of milk in water.

Signs of false pregnancy

The state of false gestation is accompanied by the usual symptoms, swelling of the loop and udder. The goat's milk becomes heavy. But after a while she comes into heat. Therefore, the only sign is readiness for mating in the middle of the term.

Hunting during pregnancy is often explained by the fact that the embryo has resolved. But such a judgment is erroneous and contradicts the laws of biology.

The embryo does not dissolve, but may be released prematurely. Goats often lose their fetuses during one of two periods:

• on the 8-10th day - when the membrane dissolves and the egg adapts to feeding on uterine secretions;
• on the 20-22nd day - during implantation of the embryo and transition to nutrition through the placenta.

The endocrine system of goats does not respond to fetal loss and continues to produce hormones. In some cases, a false pregnancy lasts 5 months and even ends in childbirth.But instead of kids, liquid comes out. This condition is called hydrometer.

Goats are polycyclic animals, with a pronounced period of sexual activity. If pregnancy does not occur, the hunt ends with hormonal changes and its repetition. If there is a hormonal imbalance, the period does not start again. In this case, formations remain on the ovaries - persistent or yellow bodies. They secrete progesterone, which is found in blood and milk.

The abdomen enlarges due to the production of watery discharge by the uterus. Since the cervix is ​​closed, up to three liters of fluid accumulates inside. Only an ultrasound can detect a false pregnancy.

The disappearance of signs after 1-2 months indicates that the breeder is faced with false gestation. For goats who have become pregnant many times, this body reaction is normal. After the next mating they become truly pregnant. Pathology is suspected if the animal's body is deceived regularly. In this case, you need to contact a veterinarian.