Dr. tatiana Stanton wants to remind sheep and goat producers about some lambing and kidding resources CCE has for goat and sheep farmers. These are compiled from various Cornell web pages, making them easy to find. We hope that you might find them useful during the approaching birthing season!

Kidding with Confidence 

http://goatdocs.ansci.cornell.edu/Resources/GoatArticles/GoatHealth/KidCare/KiddingHandbook.pdf  

Although this 28 page booklet is designed to help experienced meat goat producers mentor beginning meat goat farmers who have bought goats from them, it has excellent graphics and charts on the stages of birth, different kidding positions, how to instruction pages on how to tube, how to milk out colostrum, common kidding ailments, and standard treatments. This document can also be useful to beginning dairy goat, fiber goat, and sheep farmers as well.  

Photographic sequence of lambing

These slides were prepared by David Kennard of Wellscroft Farm and Fencing that David has used for many years for the Wellscroft lambing workshops 

 Part 1 - https://cpb-us-e1.wpmucdn.com/blogs.cornell.edu/dist/5/6103/files/2015/06/lambing-part1-27u24yb.pdf

Part 2 - https://cpb-us-e1.wpmucdn.com/blogs.cornell.edu/dist/5/6103/files/2015/06/lambing-part2-1r2z6jj.pdf

Low Input Lambing and Kidding Guide

 https://blogs.cornell.edu/goats/research/low-input-lambing-kidding/

This is a resource guide for managing lambing and kidding efficiently without sacrificing animal well being. This ~70 page guide discusses ways to manage birthing more efficiently and also has a chapter on pasture birthing.  Where "Kidding with Confidence" seems in some respects to focus on everything that can go wrong, the Low Input Lambing & Kidding Guide takes a much more sustainable view at how to manage birthing year after year. 

Please feel free to pass along these resources to other goat and sheep folks that you know, and best wishes for a successful birthing season!