Young buck not breeding does

[No Regrets Farm]

Last year, I lost my buck. This spring, I purchased a buckling to use for breeding. I am used to seeing a buck act..well...bucky. This guy is still pleasant to be around. Just grazing with the girls. The only thing I have seen him mount is another young buck.

Unless he's just to shy to breed while someone is looking, but I dont know that he's doing his job. My girls still act like they are coming in to heat, he will sniff them, but I havent seen him do anything else.

I cant afford to pay for all of the girls to get bred this year, but I dont want to be without babies this spring.

Has anyone one else been in this situation?

[BlueHeronFarm]

We didn't see our young buck doing it at first. But he was doing it at night - because a couple of the girls didn't come back in.

Now he's fully rutty - no one is left unbred, that we know of... 16 down.

Try getting a buck rag from someone else. Still not sure if it is an old wives' tale, but we let our guy sniff one and his full rut began shortly after.

[HazyDay]

How old is he?
Breed?

I know what you are worring about! My buck diddn't go into rut till the end of Spetember, but still was able to get a Boer doe bred 2 months before that! (Maybe he thought he was to be true and just have one doe! Well he was wrong and now he is happy breeding over 10 does this season and more are coming! But the bad thing is after my last doe had her last projected heat he stopped smelling and being bucky! So I worry when this doe comes that is booked! Maybe I will have to find another buck!)

Well maybe you should have gotten one of my March bucklings! at around 2 weeks they started breeding everything they could mount! Man I wished they they were papered bucklings! They would have got a HUGE number of does bred!

hehehe The best thing to do is just wait! Sorry not the answer you wanted!

[ozark_jewels]

I had a Saanen buckling last year running with 40 dairy doelings. He barely smelled at all and I *never* saw a doeling get bred, even though they lived right beside the house. They all kidded with twins this past spring.
Maybe he is a night breeder like mine was??

[moonspinner]

I echo the question how old is your guy? I have an 8.5 month old ND who was showing me nothing but disinterest in the girls. Then last week an "out of town" doe came by for stud service. My boy happened to be out of his pen grazing when she arrived and he made a beeline for her, all set to do the deed. I was shocked! The proof though will come when my next doe comes into heat and I will expose her to him.
Sometimes it takes bucks longer to get with the program than others. Some bucks are ready at a couple months; others I've known not til a year. These are extremes and most should be ready to go somewhere in between.
If you see him starting to extend himself, breeding shouldn't be far off.

[armeda]

We have pygmy goats. Buckwheat was born in April. We brought him home as a baby and bottle fed him. We put him in wth out 3 girls when he was big enough to not get hurt. He just lived with them 24/7. We had babies born at the end of May and first half of June to all 3 moms.

[No Regrets Farm]

He's an Alpine, born in March. We ended up getting two bucks, this one and another Alpine that was given to me (he was also born in March). The one that I want to breed is larger and seems more masculine/mature. Since I didnt see him doing anything, I put the other buck in with the herd thinking competition might get him going. The littler guy is very passive and hangs out by himself most of the time. I actually feel kinda bad for him, even the girls think he's a nerd.

A couple of the does have crusty backsides, so I am thinking maybe he is a night breeder. Do crusty backsides mean they have been bred, or atleast attempted? Or do I have a different issue?

Thanks for all the insight!
Cindy

[southerngurl]

I too have a buck that's not very bucky. I just bought him, he's almost 8 months old. He has a little bit of a buck smell, but doesn't look like a buck, and hasn't been acting like one that I've seen. He's not in with the does just yet, but will be next week, sure hope he does something. Either way he's just going to stay with the does until march.

Does it mean much that he's got a little buck smell?

[BlueHeronFarm]

Crusty backside is a good sign...though I have seen doelings crusty from their own discharge, too.
I'll bet he's doing his job.
Our buck - while stinky and more public now - is still VERY sweet and mild mannered for the most part. He grazes with the gals, even as some shamelessly parade their goods in front of them.
...would you consider a marking harness? They're only about $20 and will let you know for sure if he's been at least attempting it.

[red hott farmer]

No we had a young buck born in July. and he was shorter than all the girls and they pushed him around. So we had to Help him Get him a pallett to stand on and hold the girl next to the pallett and let him smell the girl. Then he did the rest. He mounted her while we Held the girl. After 2 breadings in really took off. and they are bread now. and now he is actine like the big buck. Pushing the girls around and walking proud and growing up fast.

[goatkid]

I have a March Alpine buckling who had no problem breeding my 3 year old Saanen X doe. He doesnt holler like my big boys, but he knows how to make babies. I recently brought home a 5 month old Nubian buckling and put him in with 3 doelings. At first he didn't seem to pay much attention to them. All three have cycled and I saw him complete the act with one of them. He'll spray himself one day and then go back to acting like a cute baby goat.

[Sher]

LOL..I understand your concern. We were used to Micky being boisterous and smelling to high heaven. Now, we have his son Wyatt Urp, he turns 1 in Dec. Anyhow..no bad perfumes and not very aggressive with the girls.

We turned Urp in with the girls in June. I am awaiting five girls' deliveries as we speak and the other girls are definitely bred also.

If I remember right, Micky was slow and not too smelly at the first. I think they "come into their own" with age.

Best of luck!