Goat in milk before kidding

davismanor · #1 04/24/14, 08:32 PM

Our goat has had kids in the past but not in several years. We think she is bred but we have no prof and if she is it has only been two months. However she has started to make milk! Is this ok? Should we milk her? We are unsure about going on and could use some advice! Thanks for your assistance!

BlueRose · #2 04/24/14, 08:35 PM

Go ahead and cross post this in the goat forum. There are alot of very knowledgeable goat owners on there.

Cyngbaeld · #3 04/26/14, 02:28 PM

Yes, go ahead and milk her. Some does will milk thru several yrs without kidding again if they have been bred at least once. All of my does will milk thru. They tend to slack off in winter and pick back up in spring.

Callieslamb · #4 04/26/14, 02:37 PM

I disagree....sorry. If she hasn't been bred in years and was dry before, I'd not milk her until she kids. Goats, sheep, cows - all bag up before they give birth. Yes, you can squeeze milk out of them but don't do it.

Cyngbaeld · #5 04/26/14, 06:27 PM

Well I am going to totally disagree with you on that. You are risking mastitis if she isn't milked. It will not harm her in the least to be milked until she kids.

Sherrynboo · #6 04/26/14, 06:34 PM

What about the colostrum for the kids if she starts milking now?

Sherry in GA

Alice In TX/MO · #7 04/26/14, 07:15 PM

Oh dear. I have questions.

What about the two month's rest she's supposed to have before kidding?

What if he's wrong about breeding dates?

cfuhrer · #8 04/26/14, 07:24 PM

Was she dry up to this point?

Is her bag hot and/or tight?

kasilofhome · #9 04/26/14, 08:26 PM

I Smith cyg on this .....I put down a doe because she ended up with such a bad case of mastitis. I feed early milk to the milking doe herself need. It does change thicker and more yellow nearer to birth. I have been doing it for years .....so since I allow a that one doe.to.suffer.

tripletmom · #10 04/26/14, 08:29 PM

My cow had milk a month before she freshened. First calf. I too was concerned about the colostrum for the baby so didn't milk her but I bet we could have.

davismanor · #11 04/26/14, 08:51 PM

Dry up until a few days ago to my knowledge. I checked only because she looked different. Could not be more than 10 weeks pregnant because she was not with a buck. Not hot and tight, just loose but bigger. Like she might be if she was 3/4 milked. I always give a two month rest before but she did not kid last year.

copperpennykids · #12 04/26/14, 08:54 PM

We only milk if the doe is strutted (big udder, and uncomfortable). We have high production Saanens...

Cygnet · #13 04/27/14, 09:03 AM

The udder will get bigger as the glands enlarge during the pregnancy. It can be a really noticeable difference. Doesn't mean there's actually (much) milk there. Have you actually tried to milk her?

Most likely, her udder's getting a LOT bigger this early, she's probably carrying triplets or better. Unfortunately, bucklings are also more likely than doelings.

wr · #14 04/27/14, 02:29 PM

I have no desire to start an argument but if one milks through, will the goat produce colostrum after kidding?

I have never dealt with goats and on the few occasions I have had milk cows, I've always dried them off before calving.

Alice In TX/MO · #15 04/27/14, 04:01 PM

Yes. The actual birthing hormones stimulate colostrum production.

kasilofhome · #16 04/27/14, 05:03 PM

Yes, a doe will produce colostrum for the babies. This was a major question that my breeder had. She is on a daily milk test she tested the great grand dam of my does and that doe had been milked for over a month prior to birthing twins. A week after birth she tested the milk. Results were that the milk was not acceptable due to amount of colostrum in the milk. Never worried again and I watch for those dependence very carefully so as to not harm another doe.