Why do you pull your babys?

goatsareus · #21 07/08/07, 08:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mygoat

I understand what you're getting at. I told the previous owner such when she started looking into goats again. (not to mention the doe was very skinny when I got her... she didn't up her grain after kidding) I told her it was a management thing and that there were just some things she'd have to learn to do if she looked into goats again.

You are a smart women

Keep up the good work, we need more examples like you!

goatsareus · #22 07/08/07, 08:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vicki McGaugh TX Nubians

Ask the same folks who have posted above who they purchase from...they may sell dam raised kids from untested goats, but they prefer not to purchase them that way.
So for me it's a no brainer, yes my kids are delivered and raised by me. It fits the goals of my farm...YMMV. Vicki

Purchase goats

? Is that a joke? My goats are like rabbits.....I can't give them away

I have been raising goats since way before CAE was thought of. I haven't bought a goat since 1979. I keep a closed herd.

ozark_jewels · #23 07/08/07, 08:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by southerngurl

This is the thing that never makes sense to me. It doesn't take any longer to tame them than to feed them. It's easier.

You may think that until you have 100 kids running around out there. Believe me, it takes about 20-30 minutes total to feed them all using lambar feeders. How long does it take to tame all 100 kids by playing with them every day?? I'm not just hypothesizing.....I've done both ways.

homebirtha · #24 07/08/07, 09:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HaysFarm

There's alot of info to take in and review. It's hard being new to this, cause there is always 2 or 3 sides to each thing. You never really know which way is right or worng.
Don't want anyone to be hurt, but at the same time don't want to take babys from there moms. And at the same time, anything i have to bottle feed i'm gonna love and not want to eat,,lol Thank you again everyone for the info.

You will find that to be the case with most issues. There are always at least 2 or 3 differing opinions on the subject and it's hard to know who to listen to.

Two points I would make:
1 - You can always change the way you do things later on. If you bottle-feed for the first year or two, until you can be more sure of their CAE status, you can always switch to dam-raising later. Of if you dam-raise for the first few years and are planning to butcher all the babies, you can always switch to bottle-feeding if you find problems with the current system.

2 - Whatever you decide, make sure you buy from tested herds and test your animals. Personally, I am not confident of a goat's negative status until I've gotten 2 or 3 negative test results over the course of 18 months on my farm. I would not let a doe dam-raise her kids until I feel really confident that she is negative. But YMMV.

trnubian · #25 07/08/07, 01:03 PM

I have to give another vote to the kids don't help the does out in the udder department if they are left on. I have done both. Dam raise and prevention raise. I left kids on this year. (Singles and twins. All the udders have been damaged to an extenet. (Not permanently, next year when they freshen they should be fine.) BUT they have. The does are un even. I milk ALL the does twice a day wether they have kids on them or not. They get milked. The kids just empty out the one side they prefer more often than I do which prompts more milk production on that side. I am sorry but there is no way I can go out and milk that other side our 4-6 times a day to keep up with the other side. It's just not feasable for me.

It to me is just plain easier to hand raise. I can keep an eye on the kids and I KNOW how much they are eating or not eating. This gives me a clue as to if they are sick or not. My hand raised kids are just as big as my dam raised kids. My hand raised kids get all they milk they want 4-6 times a day for the first week and then by the time they are 2 weeks they are on 3 times a day. They stay on 3 times a day until they are 2 months and then we go to twice a day until 12 weeks when they are weaned or taken to once a day depending on the individual kid. But they get all the milk they want at each feeding. Sometimes my does just plain don't milk (and my does milk WELL) enough for all their kids and I have to supplement with last years frozen milk that I put back just for that reason.
They are just plain easier to work with with no extra effort. I don't spend a lot of time with my kids except to feed them and that is when I do chores. We show so having kids friendly and ready and willing to follow you into the show ring sure beats the heck out of dragging a screaming fighting choking kid into the ring. It took 2 weeks to get our dam raised kids to accept being led. I tried to play with them while thye were little but they would have nothing to do with me. They just got more and more wild.

That's just my preference. I don't have time to dam raise and worry about the consequence that can come of that. I know many people who do dam raise with extreme success, it's just what works for you. You may have to try both ways before you decide. And it's all about your reason for raising them in the first place.