Trouble in Goat Land

Rose has had a setback and is not doing well at all. I'll be surprised if she lives.

Wednesday and Thursday, she was perfectly fine, frolicking all over the place. But Friday morning, she was very lethargic, huddled in one spot and shivering just like before. She is very skinny and is not growing like Cosmos is. I don't know how much milk she is getting since Hyacinth won't stand still for them to nurse whenever I'm around. I thought she was probably letting them nurse when I wasn't there because the babies seemed to be thriving.

I held Hyacinth still (no small feat) so that the babies could nurse and I could observe them closely. It looks like what is happening is that Rose is not getting the whole teat in her mouth and it keeps popping out. So while Cosmos is sucking vigorously, Rose is constantly searching for the teat and only getting a little sip every once in a while. Then when she actually latches on tenuously, Cosmos will shove her out of the way and take the teat that she had.

I'm not sure why she can't seem to nurse effectively. Maybe something is wrong with her mouth. Tonight I noticed that her jaw feels a bit swollen.

I've tried bottle feeding her, but she won't take a bottle. I've tried separating Cosmos from his mother and sister so that his sister can nurse without his interference, but Rose won't attempt to nurse unless Cosmos does. I am able to get her to nurse if I put Hyacinth on the milking stand so that she can't get away, but she still doesn't get enough because Hyacinth will wiggle and kick, which makes it even more difficult for Rose to keep the teat in her mouth.

At this point, I have done all I can. I called the vet today and I've done everything he suggested...and then some. It's very sad to watch her standing there all forlorn and shivering. If she makes it through tomorrow, I'll take her to the vet so he can check her out again.