on the subject of bottle raising and weaning

oceanmist · #1 01/29/08, 04:37 PM

i was just wondering how long you feed baby goats milk replacer? what the best type of MR? is Uni milk okay for them?

when do you introduce solid food/ hay?

how many bags of MR does it take to get them to weaning?

do you ever come out ahead when bottled feeding with MR?

Thanks Misty

oh ps, I lost the thread with the info on the milking machine... so just thought I'd mention it again.. this gal at our library bought a brand new Caprine Supply milking machine and only used it a couple of times, she would like to sell it for around $500...

Loda Farm · #2 01/29/08, 04:43 PM

I use whole cows milk to bottle feed. It is not cheap at $2.90 a gallon. I have never tried milk replacer, as I have heard bad things about it.

As far as weaning, this past year, I weaned my bottle babies at 6 weeks old. The first few babies I had died from bloat after being introduced to hay and grain. Those combined with milk was causing bloat. The last batch I weaned at 6-7 weeks when they started eating solid food on a regular basis, and they did great. I introduce hay at about 3 weeks. Some will eat it, some are not interested. grain I add abot 5-6 weeks. Usually by that age they are chowing down.

Laura

yarrow · #3 01/29/08, 05:05 PM

we never use milk replacer of any type. If we run low on goat milk (or raw jersey) I buy whole milk from the grocery store. I never wean before 16weeks, for the kids I'm keeping for myself... they will still be getting two bottles a day... morning & evening until they are 5 months old, min. If I have the milk, I will feed until they are 6 months. We start putting hay in the kid pens when they are 2 weeks old. No one really eats it at that age, but there's a lot of nibbling & tasting. We begin to introduce alfalfa pellets (we feed the little eraser sized ones) at about a month. Again, not much real eating going on LOL, but lots of dumping, spilling & a bit of chewing. We also begin to add a medicated pellet feed about the same time. I don't give grain at all until they are about ready to wean.... everyone does what works best for their own herd. I'm sure you will get LOTS of different ideas and ways of raising & weaning your kids.. you'll have to do what works best for your own situation.
susie, mo ozarks
ages ago acres nubians

Alice In TX/MO · #4 01/29/08, 05:18 PM

If you'll read some recent posts here (do a search), you will find that replacer kills.

fishhead · #5 01/29/08, 05:36 PM

Some people are successful with MR but lots of kids die on it.

Maybe somebody should start a thread and find out why. Brand? Feedings/day? Extra ingredients? I'm sure there are lots of variables that work for some and some variables that don't work for others.

coondog · #6 01/29/08, 06:12 PM

We used the Advance Kid Milk Replacer with colostrum for our saanen buckling who we got at the age of 2 weeks. He did very well on it, no problems, but I do prefer to use goat milk if at all available. For one thing, I really hated to mix the formula, but also I just prefer natural when at all possible. I have heard a lot of people say that the replacers killed their babies, but many times I have wondered if the babies died from overfeeding. Our vet firmly warned us to only feed him small amounts and to feed more frequently rather than feeding larger amounts and less often. It worked great for us, he is healthy, and we are now looking forward to the kids he sired last Fall.

**mygoat** · #7 01/30/08, 07:55 AM

MR is not just often deadly to the kids, but if they do survive they often are scrawny, weak, underweight, and sometimes stunted... Generally less healthy than milk raised kids. That is, if they survive. So, it's a trade off... pay more for healthier kids, or pay less for less desireable kids. I'll always pay the extra bit, myself, as I've rarely heard good things about replacer.

DQ · #8 01/30/08, 10:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fishhead

Some people are successful with MR but lots of kids die on it.

Maybe somebody should start a thread and find out why. Brand? Feedings/day? Extra ingredients? I'm sure there are lots of variables that work for some and some variables that don't work for others.

its really pretty simple in my opinion. MR is not milk. baby goats are made with all the right stuff to digest milk. not a mix of vitamins and milk parts. it is the same, and well documented with human babies fed with MR, lots more digestive trouble and health problems down the line. you can pretty easily extrapolate that research into the goats and MR. you will of course have many that will struggle through it by some stroke of luck or slightly different circumstances but they do ok INSPITE of the MR not because of it, and that is an important difference.

mary,tx · #9 01/30/08, 11:04 AM

Unimilk is not good. I would recommend that you NOT use that or any other soy based replacer. If you use a replacer, choose one that is milk based.

ozark_jewels · #10 01/30/08, 12:50 PM

Can you buy/barter milk from someone near you with healthy cows?? That makes the best replacer and you'll be much happier with the results than with milk replacer.
In my opinion, three months on milk is the minimum for maximum health and growth.
I introduce solid foods/hay at about two weeks of age.

dkdairygoats · #11 01/30/08, 01:47 PM

If you are going to do MR use one for lambs or kids. I have also lost kids in similar situations maybe due to MR but have had several kids do fine. I now use fresh goat's milk because it's available to me from CAE and Johne's negative does. I used Sav-A-Kid by Manna Pro, 8# bucket cost $17. Fresh milk is cheaper.

oceanmist · #12 01/31/08, 01:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dkdairygoats

If you are going to do MR use one for lambs or kids. I have also lost kids in similar situations maybe due to MR but have had several kids do fine. I now use fresh goat's milk because it's available to me from CAE and Johne's negative does. I used Sav-A-Kid by Manna Pro, 8# bucket cost $17. Fresh milk is cheaper.

Thanks so much. I hadn't heard that so many babies die on MR, but I agree with the possibility of over feeding them. We did raise one bottle baby last year, the little alpine on my avatar. She was on Land O Lakes lamb MR and we just diluted it more than the bag said too and made sure to do small feedings often. Of course they don't carry this in my town, but we are getting raw goat's milk so far and I think that's the best. Natural, easier to digest and all that.

Our buck is eating finally! Little stinker didn't want anything to do with the bottle to start off with and had us concerned. He latched right on to the human bottle though and so he is getting a go at it.

we are supposed to get around 8 inches of snow tonight and then a bunch of cold weather soooo they will be in the bathroom for a while longer LOL.. isn't it fun when they figure out how to jump the baby gates?

Thanks again for the info, Misty

Jcran · #13 01/31/08, 02:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rose

If you'll read some recent posts here (do a search), you will find that replacer kills.

Um, that would be me. I won't ever, never use milk replacer again. Killed 3 of 10 kids; lesson learned. I am using whole cows milk with buttermilk and evap milk. I think I'll go to straight cow milk next week as some folks say that is plenty. They are thriving on it now. They are all born right about New Year's Day. They will be weaned at 8 weeks old as they are meat animals. They are already eating hay and grain with gusto, just not large amounts of it. BTW, IF you do run into problems with enterotoxemia with kids, Jack and Anita Mauldin's site had a great protocol that saved one kid's life.

white eagle · #14 02/01/08, 12:21 AM

I will never again use milk replacer for any goat kids. The first goat kids I had I bottle raised on cows milk and they grew great well later I tried milk replacer with goats milk an the baby goats never grew good at all. They looked like I never taken care of them and was told my goats never got feed correctly which wasn't true. I was looking at some of my goats I raised on cows milk an they where in great shape but the ones I raised on goat milk replacer didn't grow good at at or not to their full grown size. So IMO never use goat milk replacer before I will ever use goat milk replacer again I will buy 30 bucks worth of cows milk. I will say when I did use goat milk replacer they never bloated or have the scours but just never grow good at all.

Good Luck with your goats and do not use Goat Milk Replacer get cows milks or find true goat milk.

Just my 2 cents on this.