Need help with new goat.
 

I just came home with a Mini Nubian that had a kid 9.5 weeks ago. I was told I could milk her, but there's nothing coming out. In fact her bag feels very empty. Is it possible that she's just withholding?

If her udder feels empty, then she's not withholding. If they just took the kid off her, she'd be bagging up.

Did she have a kid on her? Did her kid(s) die? Had they been milking her?

Let me add some more information: I have absolutely no experience with goats. I've been reading about them and decided to buy this Mini Nubian that I was told I could milk, because she had a 9.5 week old kid that is ready to be weaned. She has never been milked before and this was her first kid. I also bought, from the same person, a Nigerian Dwarf that is due with her first in September. The mini's bags are larger than the ND, but they are not as big as I thought they would be. I expected them to be more obvious when you look at her. One side is bigger than the other, though. She feels like she might have something in there, but nothing is coming out. I'm not pulling or tugging on the udders. I'm doing it how I've seen it done on the youtube videos I've watched.
Should I just call it a night and try again in the morning?

Yes, probably a good idea. By then, her udder (singular, the term for the two halves together) should be full if she is really making milk. How long are her teats? Are you able to take her teat in your hand easily? Or are you having to milk with finger tips?

Do you have a milk stand?

Trap and milk. :)

Close the top of the teat by gripping with thumb and first finger. Then use the rest of the fingers to move the milk down the teat and out the orifice.

you can skip to about 2:25 for the milking action

They are not very long at all. It's easier for me to use my fingertips than even part of my hands. I do have a stand for her. I built it before we brought her home. The only thing I don't have is the part where you lock her head in. I wasn't 100% on her size at the time.
Thank you so much for your help! I greatly appreciate it.

If you are just using your fingertips, most likely you aren't trapping the milk in the teat.

I tried with my whole hand. I tried with a few fingers. And, I tried with my finger tips. Nothing was coming down. Her teats are so small that it's difficult to really trap with out also holding her udder.

Thank you for the videos, by the way.

I found a video to help me with technique.

Wow. That's amazing and awkward. Makes my hands hurt to watch.

But, I can see what she's doing. She's pinching the teat shut at the top between the base of her index finger and the side of her thumb, then using the length of her index finger to move the milk down the teat. Kind of like what you do with a cone of cake icing.

I'm glad I have goats with longer teats.

How amusing. Great dairy breed indeed. What a whopper of a milk pail too! I wonder if she needs help carrying it back to the house?

Obviously goats belonging to someone who did NOT shop for Nigerian Dwarfs with milkable teats. :hair

I can't imagine milking like that twice a day. Higher butterfat isn't worth the effort. I'd get a milk machine or different goats.

There ARE good ND goats out there. The video didn't have them, unfortunately. Please don't use one video as a condemnation of a whole breed.

http://sanctuaryfarm.blogspot.com/20...t-to-milk.html

Good discussion of ND teats and a couple of pictures.

I just watched the video to get a better idea of how to milk my Mini Nubian, that has tiny teats. I'll try to post a picture later. The ND looks to have tiny teats, too. Can I expect them get bigger when she kids?
I was able to milk her this morning. I probably got about half a pint. I milked right onto the ground, though. She's been living with a buck and I read that can make the milk taste bad. I would hate for my family's first taste of goat milk be gross. I need more practice to aim where the milk goes, too. How long can I expect it to be before her milk tastes normal?

Here's her udder and teats.

Living with a buck won't affect the taste of the milk.
I have one heavy milker that is 4 yrs old and still has tiny teats. I just milk one side at a time, switching back and forth as each hand tires. I hold the udder with one hand and milk with the other. Takes twice as long as any of the other does. Thankfully she has large orifices and is calm and patient.

good luck milking, are you feeding her on the stand TSC sells those little plastic tubs that hang off the front of the feeder, helps the doe release the milk eating that nice sweet feed and they get super excited to get up on the feeder.
our doe would only let our 11 yr old milk her - she has big teats (Oberhasli) but the childs tiny hands were more to her liking.....

I am feeding her on the stand. You can actually see her eating in the picture above from a bowl. I was thinking of getting something that I can hang on the stand. I'll take a look at TSC. The picture was taken right before I started milking her this morning.

Did you get your headgate built? :D

I wouldn't expect much development on the teats. My MiniMancha has teats like that, and she's about five years old. I machine milk her.

Ditto on the buck having no effect on the milk.

Honestly I don't know if I need to finish it. I lead her with a dog's leash and then tied it up and she stayed nicely. I did have to put something up to keep her from backing up, though. Once I got going she didn't seem to mind.

The headgate will accomplish what you need. :)

Ok, then I will definitely get it made tomorrow. Thank you for your help!

I milked her again tonight and everyone in the family tasted it. It tastes just like the whole milk we get from the store. You guys were right about the buck not affecting the milk. This is great, because the lady I bought them from has a super sweet buck that she wants to sell me.

The only time I know where the bucks affect the milk is when they are in rut. Then you get a goaty taste to the milk. Your milk should be good seems how it isn't rutting season. You definitely need to move the grain dish up, makes it easier to milk them and keep them calm. If a kicker I use straps to hold the back feet down.

If you don't practice good milking hygiene, (washing teats, milking with clean hands, etc.), you might get bucky milk. Just having the buck in the pen isn't going to do it.

We have both mini-nubian and nigerian does. In comparison, the minil-nubs have HUGE teats, lol. I can use my whole hand. The nigerian milks is fatty and milk-shake levels of awesome. But my Maggidans milker makes it possible with my crazy arthritic-like hands.

A milker of some kind makes the nigi milking relaxing and nice. It's worth a look, just in case it would make your life (and cheese & yogurt making) awesome :)

In the video posted, that is how my husband milks, and so he likes the little teats! He's nuts. The does in the video, Cindy and Cinnamon, had very nice hand milkers! And Cinnamon has a nice rear udder.

Did you take the pic before or after you milked her?

I had goats with the smaller teets and while it is manageable and there are implements to help with milking I decided for me I prefer the longer nubian teets.

I did have a saanen with smaller teets and a few nigerian's. I got the maggidan's milker and back then it did help alot!
Since then I have also got and tried the Segal milker for milking 2 goats at a time, and just recently I picked up a Dansha farms battery operated milker am on my 3rd day of using it, it actually works pretty well but its a little cumbersome the hoses are stiff so I may end up tweaking it.

I have a Nubian with itty bitty teats too and she is my unfavorite to milk LOL. If you plan to get more does, I would look at teat size for sure and try to find some larger teats as well so your hands don't get sore! I agree the machine would be nice on her if it bothers your hands. :)
CONGRATS on your goats!! :)