Do you need to milk a goat?
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Question by : Do you need to milk a goat?
I don’t want to know how I just want to know if you abseloutely have to milk a female goat. And is it true that males are more agressive?
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5 Responses to Do you need to milk a goat?
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No you do not have to milk a goat. if you don’t milk a goat then she will stop producing milk. And no its not true that males are more aggressive. I have a female and she beats the males up.
Nellie!
February 12, 2014 at 4:27 pm
the only female goats you have to milk are your dairy goats but if you don’t want to milk the goats just leave the babies on….Sonnas and Togs are some of the few dairy goats that need to be milked if the babies are taken away….. Male goats are only more aggressive when the are in rut…
*~oopsy~*
February 12, 2014 at 5:27 pm
Males are more aggressive than females, but depending how they were raised they can still be very sweet (smelly, but sweet)
No you do not HAVE to milk a female goat. If you breed her and she has kids you can let the kids nurse and when you are ready to wean them you just stop milking. The pressure in the udder will build and this will signal to her body to stop making milk. If you are planning to show a dairy goat for any reason, you might have to milk her, but otherwise you shouldn’t have to for a pet goat or meat breed.
Also female goats do not produce milk unless they have given birth. Just like most women do not produce breast milk until they have had a baby.
Starletlace
February 12, 2014 at 5:34 pm
Depends on the breed of goat, and the individual goat within that breed.
Meat goats like Boers don’t need to be milked, neither do the Dwarfs or Pygmies.
But dairy goats are a different matter — just like with cattle. An Angus cow just raises her own calf, but a Holstein HAS to be milked (or have 10 calves nursing on her).
I’ve had many, many so-called dairy does that were sorry producers and could easily be left to raise their own singleton kid. But when you get into GOOD dairy goats, there is no way that you can get by without milking a GOOD doe. I’ve had Nubians and Alpines that gave over 2 gallons a day — no way her kids can take all that milk and if they try, they’ll get sick.. Plus with a doe that produces like that, if you don’t milk her you set her up for mastitis and damage to her udder attachments. I’ve seen more good does ruined by lack of regular milking than any other cause.
As for aggressive bucks, yes males are generally more aggressive than females – BUT – I’ve had some very aggressive females (especially when pregnant).
Bucks that are dam-raised (raised by their mother or another doe) are much less likely to become aggressive than are bucks that are bottleraised. Bottleraising bucks causes them to imprint on humans. An imprinted intact male of any livestock species is a dangerous animal due to the fact that he directs his natural dominance urges towards humans, instead of towards his own kind.
Ann B
February 12, 2014 at 6:33 pm
THANK YOU STARLET!
A doe must have kids in order to produce milk
and i just had to go behind and comment on the other answer.. I bottle feed my kids.. my nubians make about a gallon a day or so.. i often have to supplement with milk replacer or with other does milk..
you do not have to milk any goat.. if you don’t want milk, then don’t breed her. and if she freshens and the kids nurse.. when they stop nursing.. she will start to dry up..
males are not usually aggressive.. they must be handled a certain way.. now that only goes for bucks.. wethers lack testosterone.. so you should not have an aggressive wether.
its not bottle feeding that makes bucks imprint. .its bottle feeding. and OVER HANDLING. I have bottle fed all my kids.. since i have started breeding 4 years ago. i have a friend who has done it for over 40 years. and she has always bottle fed.. and NEVER had an aggressive buck.
and please guys when you talk about breeds. please spell it right.. its saanens. and togs (toggenburgs) and boers! otherwise the reader is misinformed and won’t find info on a them!
heartsnhooves
February 12, 2014 at 6:54 pm