Quote Originally Posted by paul.angelides View Post
Thanks mate for the reply. You see this is my problem, the males are mating them like mad. EVERY girl has had at least 10 locks now. I would have expected to have easily palpated something by now but its very possible I'm feeling too superficially. I was worried about squeezing too firmly and damaging any follicles, or worse still her. I do exactually what you say but feel nothing yet. I just expected more at this stage from so many locks and over quite a length of time. I may resort to ultrasounding a couple with the vets to see if its me being incompetent (very likely) or the girls not playing ball!!
Paul
Last night Adam Wysocki told me not to be afraid to squeeze them, and that the follicles (even when big and softer-feeling) are not easily damaged.

Clearly you don't want to do it full-strength, but a firm, deep grip is okay. I also palpitate with the tips of my fingers running down the very middle so i can feel it easier. You can press in there fairly deep, to the point that you'd almost expect to feel the backbone through the tummy, and lighten your grip a tiny bit to let the lumps safely pass when you start feeling them. My bet is you're afraid to hurt her (a noble concern) and you're not going very deep as a result. She's pretty tough, and i think as long as she can still make it through your hands it's okay.

I guess i'd say... I gently press until it stops giving way. Like, she flattens out and eventually i stop being able to press much further without actually puncturing her. At that point, i don't relax my grip or push any further i just firmly hold it and she starts moving forward. I was able to feel them when they were still quite small, like maybe 10mm