Preparing for babies: Getting your kidding kit.

I have finally got enough time to put together a post on getting together a kidding kit, but I know that for most people kidding season is already over. Oh well, it's better late than never! Anyway, here are some things that you'll want to get:

• Towels - These are for drying off the babies when they come out. You'll need two per baby you're expecting, one for drying and one for wrapping her to keep her warm. You'll also want to bring a bag to take them back to the house in, they're going to get gross!

• Flashlights - If your doe kids at night you will be grateful for a flashlight. Make sure you get two bright ones with fresh batteries to make sure that you aren't left in the dark.

• Navel clamps or iodine - It is ultra important to make sure to dip or clamp the babies cord soon after birth, otherwise the kids umbilical cord might get infected. I prefer the clamps because they aren't as messy as iodine, they are reusable (make sure to sterilize them), and they're safer.

• Baby nasal bulb - You have no excuse for being without this! They're cheap, easy to get, and are a must-have for sucking mucus out of a kids' nose and mouth.

• Weak kid tube - This is for feeding kids that are too weak to drink milk. The soft tube goes directly into their stomach and thus allows you to feed them. This is not a crucial supply, but it might save your kid's life.

• Baby Bottles - Even if you're not planing on bottle feeding, get some baby bottles just in case something happens to your doe or she rejects the kids. I really like Evenflo's classic glass 8 oz bottles, though you do have to cut a small x in the nipple so that the babies can get milk fast enough.

• Disposable surgical gloves - These are very important to have just in case your doe has problems and somebody has to "go in". Just because people tell you that your doe probably won't have problems kidding anyway doesn't mean that you can skip these; be prepared or you'll be sorry.

• J-Lube, OB Lube, Safe-Lube, or K-Y Jelly - This is another product that you'll need if your doe has problems kidding. A really good lubricant helps that hand slip into the doe and might be the only thing that will get the giant baby out of her. Some people say that you can use Vaseline or vegetable oil, but they simply don't work.

• Syringes, needles and Penicillin or LA-200 - If a doe is assisted in labor she needs antibiotic shots for the next two weeks. I prefer LA-200 because you only need to give it every 70 hours, as opposed to Penicillin which is given twice a day.

• Colostrum replacement powder or homemade colostrum replacement - Get this just in case something happens to your doe or her colostrum. It's best for babies to have real colostrum, but sometimes there isn't any available and you'll need something else to give them.

• Nutri-Drench - This is not an absolutely necessity, but I suggest getting it. It works like magic on weak kids, moms, and tired, pregnant does. When Roxy had a very difficult kidding this year a friend gave her a couple pumps of Nutri-Drench; it had her standing, eating, talking, and drinking again in only a couple of hours.

• Calcium Drench - Again, unnecessary but a good preventative measure! Milk fever is caused by calcium deficiency. Calcium deficient does pull calcium out of their bones to put into the milk and can die from it. I didn't use any Calcium Drench this year, but I intend to get it next kidding season!