9 Supplies for Building a Lambing and Kidding Kit

The barn is quiet except for the soft sounds of a doe in labor, and the only light comes from your headlamp cutting through the cold, pre-dawn air. This is the moment when preparation pays off, transforming potential panic into calm, effective action. Having the right supplies on hand before you need them is the single most important factor in a successful kidding and lambing season.

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, this site earns from qualifying purchases. Thank you!

Be Prepared: Assembling Your Kidding and Lambing Kit

The goal of a lambing or kidding kit is simple: to have everything you might need for a normal delivery, a difficult one, or immediate newborn care, all in one clean, organized, and easily accessible place. A sturdy plastic tote with a locking lid works perfectly, keeping supplies dry, dust-free, and ready to grab at a moment’s notice. You don’t want to be searching for lubricant in a dark barn at 2 a.m. while a ewe is struggling.

Think of this kit as your insurance policy. Most births will go perfectly fine without any help, but you aren’t assembling the kit for the easy ones. You’re assembling it for the triplet that’s born chilled and weak, the first-time mom who needs assistance, or the kid with a malpresentation. A well-stocked kit empowers you to handle common issues confidently and to recognize more serious problems that require a veterinarian.

OB Gloves – VSI Shoulder-Length OB Sleeves

Anytime you need to check a ewe or doe’s progress internally, you need obstetric gloves. They are non-negotiable for hygiene, protecting the mother from bacteria on your hands and arms, and protecting you from birth fluids. This simple barrier is the first line of defense against introducing a uterine infection, which can be devastating for a new mother.

The VSI Shoulder-Length OB Sleeves are the right tool for the job because anything shorter is useless for this task. These disposable plastic sleeves cover your entire arm, allowing you to safely and cleanly reach inside to determine a baby’s position. They are durable enough to resist tearing during a difficult pull but offer enough sensitivity to feel what you’re doing—a critical factor when you’re trying to reposition a tangled limb in a tight space.

These sleeves typically come in a box of 100, which is an economical supply that will last a small-scale farmer for many seasons. They are single-use for a reason; never attempt to wash or reuse them. For any farmer with a breeding flock or herd, these are a foundational item in the kit.

Obstetric Lubricant – Jorgensen J-Lube Powder

When you do have to intervene, obstetric lubricant is your best friend. It dramatically reduces friction, making it far easier and safer to assist a difficult birth, whether you’re correcting a malpresentation or helping to pull a large kid. Using lube protects the mother’s sensitive tissues from tearing and reduces stress on the baby.

Jorgensen J-Lube Powder is the superior choice for a farm kit because it’s a concentrated powder you mix with warm water as needed. This makes it incredibly space-efficient and cost-effective, as you only prepare what you need for the situation at hand. The resulting lubricant is exceptionally slick and non-irritating, providing better performance than most pre-mixed gels that can be watery and less effective.

Before you need it, make sure you have a clean squeeze bottle or small bucket dedicated to mixing the lube. The process is simple, but you don’t want to be fumbling for a container in an emergency. Because of its storage stability and high performance, J-Lube is ideal for the hobby farmer who might only need it once or twice a season but needs it to work perfectly when that time comes.

Aspirator – Prestige Medical Bulb Syringe

The first few seconds of a newborn’s life can be the most critical, and a clear airway is paramount. An aspirator, or bulb syringe, is used to suction mucus and amniotic fluid from the nose and mouth of a newborn lamb or kid, especially one that is weak or struggling to breathe. This simple action can be the difference between a vigorous, healthy baby and one that fails to thrive.

The Prestige Medical Bulb Syringe is perfectly suited for this delicate task. Its soft, flexible rubber tip is gentle on the fragile tissues inside a newborn’s nostrils and mouth, preventing injury. The 2-ounce bulb provides enough suction to be effective without being dangerously powerful, and its overall size is easy to handle, even with slippery, gloved hands. It’s a simple, reliable medical-grade tool that does its job without any fuss.

Using it is straightforward: squeeze the bulb before inserting the tip into the nostril or mouth, then slowly release to draw out fluid. After use, it must be cleaned thoroughly with soap and warm water and allowed to air dry completely to prevent mold growth. This inexpensive tool is a lifesaver, and no kit should be without one.

Navel Dip – First Priority Triodine-7 Solution

A newborn’s wet umbilical cord is an open doorway for bacteria to enter the body, leading to a dangerous infection known as navel ill or joint ill. Dipping the navel in a strong antiseptic solution immediately after birth is a crucial preventative step. This simple task seals off that entry point, dries the cord quickly, and gives the newborn a much better start.

For this job, First Priority Triodine-7 Solution is the standard. It is a 7% tincture of iodine, a concentration that is potent enough to kill bacteria and effectively cauterize and dry the umbilical stump. Weaker iodine solutions or other antiseptics are simply not as effective. The dark color of Triodine-7 also serves as a visual confirmation, making it easy to see which animals have been treated when you have multiple births at once.

Application is key. Don’t just spray or dab it on; the entire navel stump needs to be fully submerged. Use a small, dedicated dip cup (or even a clean film canister or shot glass) filled with the solution and press it firmly against the newborn’s belly, sloshing it around to ensure complete coverage. Iodine will stain everything it touches—clothes, hands, and barn floors—so handle it with care.

When to Intervene and When to Call Your Veterinarian

Knowing when to step in—and when to call for backup—is one of the most difficult skills to learn. Patience is a virtue during lambing and kidding. A normal, healthy delivery can take time, and unnecessary interference can cause more harm than good. Watch for steady progress: after the water bag appears, you should see feet and a nose within an hour of active, hard pushing.

It’s time to glove up and investigate if the ewe or doe has been pushing hard for over an hour with no progress, or if you see an obvious sign of a problem, like a tail but no feet. If you decide to intervene, give yourself a firm time limit. If you cannot correct the problem or make significant progress within 15 to 20 minutes, stop. Your chances of success decrease as both you and the mother become more exhausted.

This is the moment to call your veterinarian. Do not wait until the animal is in critical distress. A vet has the tools, experience, and medication to handle complex situations like a uterine torsion, a truly oversized baby, or a C-section. Knowing your own limits is not a sign of failure; it is a mark of responsible animal husbandry.

Heat Lamp – Premier 1 Supplies Prima Heat Lamp

A newborn lamb or kid has very little body fat and can become dangerously chilled in a remarkably short time, especially if it’s born on a cold night or is part of a multiple birth. A heat lamp provides the critical supplemental warmth a weak newborn needs to dry off, regulate its body temperature, and gain the strength to stand and nurse.

Barn fires are a real and terrifying risk, which is why a cheap, hardware-store heat lamp is a poor choice. The Premier 1 Supplies Prima Heat Lamp is designed specifically for the rigors of agricultural use. Its key feature is safety: a heavy-duty plastic housing stays cooler than metal reflectors, and a strong wire guard prevents animals from touching the hot bulb. This robust construction makes it far less of a fire hazard.

When setting up a heat lamp, safety is the absolute priority. Secure it with a chain, not just the built-in clamp, and position it high enough that neither the ewe nor her babies can touch it—a minimum of three feet above the bedding is a good rule of thumb. Use a red bulb, which is less disruptive to the animals’ sleep cycles. This lamp isn’t for every birth, but for reviving a chilled, struggling newborn, it’s an indispensable tool.

Colostrum Replacer – Sav-A-Kid Colostrum Replacer

Colostrum, the first milk produced by the mother, is liquid gold. It’s packed with essential antibodies that protect the newborn from disease, as well as the fat and protein needed for that first burst of energy. A lamb or kid that doesn’t receive colostrum within its first few hours of life has a dramatically reduced chance of survival. A colostrum replacer is the emergency backup for when the mother can’t or won’t provide it.

Sav-A-Kid Colostrum Replacer is a critical supply to have on hand because it’s made from real goat colostrum, providing species-specific antibodies that are most effective for kids and lambs. It’s formulated as a complete replacer, not just a supplement, which is crucial if the mother has no milk, rejects a baby, or dies during birth. The pre-measured, single-use packets are shelf-stable and easy to mix, ensuring you can provide a life-saving meal at a moment’s notice.

This is an emergency-use-only product. Your first goal should always be to get the newborn to nurse from its own mother. But if that’s not possible, having a packet of Sav-A-Kid means you can still provide that critical immune support and nutrition. You may not use it every year, but the one time you need it, you’ll be profoundly grateful it’s in your kit.

Feeding Nipple – Pritchard Teat Screw-On Nipple

Whether you’re feeding colostrum to a weak newborn or raising an orphaned bottle baby, you need a nipple that is easy to use and readily accepted. The wrong nipple can lead to feeding frustration, aspiration, or a failure to thrive. A good nipple encourages a strong, natural sucking reflex.

The Pritchard Teat is widely considered the best option for lambs and kids. Its unique two-part design features a soft yellow base that feels natural in the mouth and a firmer red tip that prevents the baby from swallowing the entire nipple. Best of all, it screws directly onto most standard plastic soda and water bottles, eliminating the need for specialized, hard-to-clean bottles.

Before its first use, the tip of the nipple must be cut open. Use a pair of sharp scissors to snip off the very end, or use a razor blade to make a small X-shaped slit. Start with a small opening; you can always make it bigger if the flow is too slow. Having a few of these on hand is essential, as you never know when you’ll have a triplet that needs a supplemental feeding or a first-time mom who needs a little help.

Ewe/Doe Drench – Keto-Nia Propylene Glycol Drench

The health of the mother is just as important as the health of the newborns. Pregnancy toxemia, or ketosis, is a metabolic disease that can affect ewes and does in late pregnancy, especially those carrying multiples. It’s caused by an energy deficit, and a drench can provide a rapid, life-saving boost. It’s also useful for reviving a doe that is exhausted after a long and difficult labor.

Keto-Nia Propylene Glycol Drench is an excellent choice because it offers a two-in-one solution. The propylene glycol provides a direct, easily absorbed source of energy to the bloodstream. At the same time, the included niacin and B vitamins work to stimulate the animal’s appetite, encouraging her to start eating on her own again, which is the only true long-term solution.

Administering a drench requires a drenching gun and proper technique to avoid getting fluid into the animal’s lungs. Hold the animal’s head level—don’t raise it too high—and insert the nozzle into the side of the mouth, dispensing the liquid slowly so she has time to swallow. For anyone with ewes or does prone to carrying triplets or quads, having this drench on hand is a key part of responsible flock management.

Record Book – Rite in the Rain All-Weather Farm Journal

Good animal husbandry is built on good data. Keeping accurate records of birth dates, weights, parentage, and any health interventions is essential for making smart decisions about breeding, culling, and herd health. A simple notebook might seem sufficient, but a barn is no place for regular paper.

The Rite in the Rain All-Weather Farm Journal is built for the reality of farm work. Its pages are made of a patented waterproof paper that sheds water, mud, and worse. This means the critical notes you take in the middle of a chaotic birth—tag numbers, birth order, whether a kid needed assistance—will survive to become part of your permanent records. A standard notebook can be ruined by a single spilled water bucket.

For best results, use a pencil or an all-weather pen, as some inks can smear on the specialized paper. Keep the journal right in your kidding kit so it’s always there when you need it. For the serious homesteader or hobby farmer looking to improve their stock year after year, this durable, reliable record book is a far better investment than a cheap spiral notebook.

Post-Delivery Care for Mom and Newborns

Once the babies are on the ground, warm, and dry, the work shifts from emergency response to supportive care. The first 24 hours are a critical bonding period. For the mother, offer a bucket of fresh, warm water, perhaps with a bit of molasses stirred in for a quick energy boost. Ensure she has access to high-quality hay and give her space to clean her babies and encourage them to nurse. Keep a close eye on her for signs of a retained placenta or illness.

For the newborns, the priorities are warmth, colostrum, and a clean navel. If you haven’t already, dip the umbilical cord in your iodine solution. Double-check that each baby has successfully latched on and had a full meal of colostrum within the first few hours of life. This is also the time to apply ear tags or any other identification you use for your record-keeping.

The most important tool now is your power of observation. Watch the new family closely. Are the babies active and nursing regularly? Is the mother attentive and allowing them to nurse? A healthy, bonded family is the goal, and your careful preparation helps ensure you get to enjoy that rewarding sight.

Assembling a comprehensive kit doesn’t guarantee you’ll avoid problems, but it ensures you’re equipped to face them with confidence and competence. This preparation allows you to be an effective partner to your animals, ready to provide the support they need. A successful kidding and lambing season is one of the greatest rewards of farming, and it begins long before the first baby arrives.