Bert

Bert is a little Angora cross buckling who was born to a first-time mother. We checked her udder and discovered it was small but she was producing colostrum. The little fellow got a decent start but mama just could not keep up with him and he weakened. When he started to show signs of pneumonia, I brought him in for a few hours to start him on medication and observe him. Sweet little Tootsie Pie, our best "abandoned" dog, did what she could to keep an eye on him as he rested. We returned him to his mother and began supplementing his feedings with a bottle.

We have a doe with a ridiculous udder. One of her teats is so large that her own kids cannot suckle from it so we have to keep it milked out to prevent mastitis. We milk her and then put that milk in a bottle for Bert to enjoy. Oh, and Bert's name - when we realized he was not going to die of his pneumonia, Katy named him Bert. She had just finished watching Mary Poppins for the umpteenth time. The dark gray patch on this little kid's nose reminded her of soot. She named him after Bert, the chimney sweep from the movie.