Keeping A Sick/Weak/Preemie Goat kid Up Sternal: How To

By Deb Haines

Many times we don’t expect to have sick, weak or even preemie goat kids and we are unprepared for them. These kids need to be monitored carefully and kept warm.

This is when many find it difficult to keep these weak babies in a sternal ( upright position).

Keeping these sick, weak and preemie kids in a sternal position is extremely important. This position allows for easier breathing for the kid , when goat kid is on their side then half of their thorax has added pressure, this now prevents them from easily inflating the lung lobes on that side.

Keep in mind, these babies are not very strong at this age, so they have very little muscle strength to create a vacuum to totally inflate the lung lobes with added pressure.

Here is a simple way to keep these kids in a sternal/upright position.

Once you get your towel in this folded position you can lay multiple babies if needed with more towels and you can also lay the towel on a padded heating pad.. This can help bring less worry on how to keep these weak kids upright.