Tuffy went ahead and kidded on February 5th. It's a boy, the last of Ivory Jack's kids. Another lovely 1/2 LaMancha 1/2 Alpine Saanen buckling... he's a really sweety though. Maybe he displays less of Ivory Jack's genes than the other boys this spring.
I didn't have breeding dates on Tuffy, so we were keeping pretty close tabs on her. The day before she kidded, her new little udder filled up with milk, and I guessed we were getting close. The next sign was the usual clearish stringy mucus down to her hocks, and I brought her right in the cabin.
It didn't take long for things to happen. She was really animated, obviously pushing (on Ben's legs with her horns). Two feet popped out, so I did a quick check for the head but it was trapped behind the pelvis. There was no room to maneuver and I couldn't get a good grip.
Tuffy wasn't happy with my internal exams in her point of pushing, but the state of affairs called for action and I'm glad Ben was there to help hold her from flopping around while I worked on her. She was yelling and slamming into things and the baby was stuck to the point I thought I would lose them both.
I kept pushing the legs back in while trying to pull her head through and I guess eventually that worked, because the baby came through the bones. It took heavy steady traction to get him all the way out. I was surprised he survived. I thought I would rip his head off.
So that's Tuffy's story. She abandoned the kid, just like her mother did to her. But that's okay. The kid is fine under our care, and she has a nice amount of milk. All's well that ends well, I suppose.