Three pair of blue eyes stared back at her from the first stall, and tiny pink cleft muzzles lifted in a cute imitation of their mother's broken cry of joy. Each cleansing lick from the doe nearly knocked them off their feet, but they staggered close to her for more nourishment.
An agonizing bleat from the next stall indicated all was not well there. Carmen moved to the next stall to find the doe lying on her side, pawing at the ground and panting. As the doe strained, one tiny hoof emerged, and then disappeared as the contraction subsided. One hoof? Two hoofs and a nose should be the proper presentation. Was something wrong?
Carmen entered the stall and knelt beside the doe. "Come on girl," she said, tugging on the collar. "Get on your feet. It'll be easier that way."
The doe lurched to her feet and immediately went into another contraction. Squatting, the doe strained again and one hoof presented again, only to disappear again after the contraction ended.
What did the books say to do in this situation? Elevate the rear, wasn't it? That way the kid could reposition naturally. She tugged on the back end of the goat, but that method was obviously going to take someone much taller. Maybe if she made the doe kneel. She tugged at each front foot until the goat was on her knees, her hind end in the air. But that lasted no more than a few minutes before the doe dropped to the ground and strained with another contraction. Had it been long enough?
Within seconds the one hoof was visible again and the doe was screaming in agony. What now? Manually reposition the kid inside the doe? Something she had only read about. And where was that book? Oh yes, with all the emergency supplies they had gathered for this occasion.
Racing to the dairy, she jerked out a drawer and removed the book, some disposable gloves, a pair of scissors, some cord and a bottle of iodine. She slammed the drawer shut and crammed the supplies into her arms. Where was Katie? She should be here by now. Alex might or might not be able to help. At any rate, he might not find the task at hand as unpleasant as she anticipated it would be. If he did, at least one of them could go call for help.
She darted back to the kidding stall and knelt beside the goat again. The goat was still on her side, pawing the ground with her forelegs and bleating miserably as she strained in vain. The poor thing. She must be in agony. Maybe it would be a good idea to run down to Josh's place and call the vet. But there wasn't time right now.