So, here is a question for any of you who breed donkeys (Mel!?)...about 3 weeks ago now, I thought Emma was going to have a baby at any moment. The reason that I thought this (despite that fact that her udder had not gotten anywhere near as big as I though it should) is that the baby dropped. You know what I mean right? The baby moves into position and all of a sudden the belly goes from being wide as a house to narrow and pointy. Usually, this happens when birth is, at most, a couple of days away. I double checked my old text books and my newer donkey books and they all agree about how these things should proceed...
Emma doesn't seem to agree because the baby dropped, but now, Emma is getting wider again. It's like the baby decided to roll over. I have never seen this happen before. I checked with the vet, who said "maybe it's a donkey thing". (Can you tell that there aren't too many vets with donkey experience around here?) Anyway, IS this a donkey thing? Am I being paranoid?
I will freely admit that I have absolutely no objectivity where Emma is concerned. Actually, I find it hard to be objective about all of my animals. This is why doctors are not supposed to treat members of their own family. However, my riding buddy also saw Emma during this time and she agrees, the baby dropped. I am not making this up. I also know that the muscles and ligaments in her pelvis are like mush and have been for at least the last 4 weeks. I think you can see it in these photos...
Compare this shot I took on Easter...
To one I took this afternoon...
Two weeks ago, you couldn't see the belly at all from this view. And no, I didn't get any decent pictures, I didn't think I would need them. I didn't think I would see the belly popping out the sides like this again...
Her udder has continued to get larger, but she still has no milk. I guess that is what we are waiting for. Emma is doing well, she is happy and healthy, although bothered by the warmer temps. I am hoping that her temperature regulation will work better after the baby is born and she matures more.
So, does anyone have anything to tell me about donkey babies doing flip-flops before they make an appearance in the world?
Oh My~ I wished I could help, but I have no experience on this.....
ReplyDeleteWhat about Cornell? Anyone there that can help? I'm sure you've already thought about them, or know that they can't help...
ReplyDeleteCornell is kind of a last resort, they can only help if I take Emma to them. At this point, subjecting Emma to that would do more harm than good. They are there if I need them, but I hope to God that I don't. If Emma seemed at all distressed I would take some action, but for now her only worry is that I don't feed her on time:)
DeleteDonkey babys do move around. They can go from the normal of sticking out evenly on both sides, to sticking way out on just one side for a few days, then back to normal or out the other side for a few days then back to normal
ReplyDeleteThanks Mel, that is reassuring. This is definitely an active baby. I have seen it moving quite a lot, much more than I generally see with the horses. I am glad to hear this isn't unusual. Leave it to a donkey baby to be an independent and creative thinker even in the womb:)
DeleteEverything will go smooth. You just have to think that, wilds donkeys have babies also very young.
ReplyDeleteKeep positives thoughts..
My fingers are crossed for you and Emma, you're on top of everything and I'm sure it will all go fine. I'm thinking it would be great to have a baby cam in the maternity ward for all of us to check in on Emma! It would be great for when you were at work too!!
ReplyDeleteI've been thinking about doing just that! I am not sure it will work because my internet connnection is not great and my technical skills aren't either. Do you know anything about them? Do you think it would work with a crappy DSL connnection?
DeleteI really don't know much about them either but if you check out the "Hencam Blog" she's got webcams in her goat yard, chicken coop and outside that are pretty cool and I think I read in her Q&A stuff how she does it. If you had an iPhone with a lot if Internet coverage 6g would probably do it, you could activate the personal hotspot option and run a webcam off of it; I'm just not sure exactly how to do it. I'll do a little reading and see if I come up with anything.
DeleteIt looks like it will work, but Emma will probably have the baby by the time it's figured out and up and running! I can't copy the link here but it 's www.hencam.com/henblog/how-hencam-works/
DeleteGood luck!
I think you're right about Emma having the baby before I get all that figured out and set up. I don't have a cell phone because they don't work here and my DSL connection is so slow that it takes 15 minutes to download a 2 minute YouTube video. I read the link you sent and it looks a lot more complicated then I can manage out here in the boondocks. Thank you for the info though, I really appreciate it. If you stumble on something that might work out here, let me know. This high tech stuff is not my forte.
DeleteI wish Emma would have this babe already so we can all breathe a sigh of relief..lol
ReplyDeleteHang in there, Emma's Mama.. we're all sending you good vibes! : )