Milk Supply Going Fast

CookingPam777 · #1 06/05/08, 08:50 AM

My doe just kidded Feburary 27 and her milk supply has gone from 1 quart and 3/4 to just under a quart. Thankfully one of the kids are being weaned and we have enough to feed the other kid. But why is it going so fast? It has been creamier but that's all I notice. She is very healthy. Gets 4 lbs of grain for a day hay alfalfa pellets minerals fresh clean water whole corn as a treat I bring her out to graze. She gets plenty. It's almost like she is naturally weaning them off. This week alone she was getting a little over a quart and now she down to under. I am not doing anything differently. She is wormed her worm load is under control. I just don't get it. I have done massages and bumping nothing works. Shouldn't I see this kinda of drop off around 6-8 months of milking ahe only been milking 3 months.

CookingPam777 · #2 06/05/08, 09:21 AM

Thought I should mention this as well she is an angel while being milked and does not get stressed out about it at all. So it is not a stress thing. Any ideas?

tioga12 · #3 06/05/08, 10:34 AM

What is the weather like where you live? Production drops off when the weather gets extremely warm and picks up again with cooler temperatures. Alfalfa pellets and shredded beet pulp also help boost production- and I'm guessing oats would too. Are you milking her twice a day? If not, you need to milk more frequently (twice daily) to keep up her production.

CookingPam777 · #4 06/05/08, 11:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tioga12

What is the weather like where you live? Production drops off when the weather gets extremely warm and picks up again with cooler temperatures. Alfalfa pellets and shredded beet pulp also help boost production- and I'm guessing oats would too. Are you milking her twice a day? If not, you need to milk more frequently (twice daily) to keep up her production.

It is quite warm here beening raining a lot but still hot. We do alfalfa pellet beet pulp and oats. Yep milkin' twice a day. So your thinking it maybe just the weather?

nehimama · #5 06/05/08, 11:37 AM

I'm not sure if I remember; is she a first freshener for you?

I've heard that, the length of lactation of a first freshener affects subsequent lactations. That is, if she was allowed to dry off after only four months her first freshening, that will be the length of her lactation for all subsequent freshenings. I don't know how true this is, and don't know if you have a milking history on her.

Maybe someone who knows better will jump in here and correct me if I'm wrong.

By the way, it's very warm here, and I've noticed a drop in production this morning with all four of my girls.

NeHi

DQ · #6 06/05/08, 12:29 PM

heat can do itbut 4 lbs of grain plus corn as a treat? that is alot of grain considering many goats eat a total of 4lbs of feed a day total including forage. could she be developing acidoses from prolonged grain overload? http://www.sweetlix.com/user_files/F...sisInGoats.pdf

DQ · #7 06/05/08, 12:32 PM

forgot to add that I have never fed more than 1 lb of grain per day to my heavy gallon+ per day milker. rihgt now I have put her on straight alfalfa with NO grain (as an experiment) and she has only backed off production slightly. goat guts need alot of fiber to function properly

Dreaming2Loudly · #8 06/05/08, 12:45 PM

I have always heard to feed 1lb of grain for every 3 lbs milk given.

CarolynRenee · #9 06/05/08, 12:54 PM

I noticed a drop in milk production the last few days and I personally attribute it to the hot weather. If I remember correctly, had the same problem last year, although not as dramatic as you may be experiencing.

whinnyninny · #10 06/05/08, 06:08 PM

My temps have been in the low 90's, is that hot enough to drop milk production?

Weather started getting hot right around the time I got these goats. They were milking 1 gallon a day (total) when I got them, now I'm averaging 2.5 quarts a day! That's with free-choice alfalfa pellets fresh every day!

tioga12 · #11 06/05/08, 06:15 PM

We hit 80 degrees here today and I noticed a significant drop in production this evening at milking time. :-(

XCricketX · #12 06/05/08, 08:28 PM

I'm getting a drop too.. 1 1/2 gallon, now down to slightly less than a gallon.

CookingPam777 · #13 06/06/08, 07:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nehimama

I'm not sure if I remember; is she a first freshener for you?

I've heard that, the length of lactation of a first freshener affects subsequent lactations. That is, if she was allowed to dry off after only four months her first freshening, that will be the length of her lactation for all subsequent freshenings. I don't know how true this is, and don't know if you have a milking history on her.

Maybe someone who knows better will jump in here and correct me if I'm wrong.

By the way, it's very warm here, and I've noticed a drop in production this morning with all four of my girls.

NeHi

She is indeed a first freshner. I have up grain and it's picked up to slightly above a quart but this morning it is below again. So frustrating

.

CookingPam777 · #14 06/06/08, 07:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DQ

heat can do itbut 4 lbs of grain plus corn as a treat? that is alot of grain considering many goats eat a total of 4lbs of feed a day total including forage. could she be developing acidoses from prolonged grain overload? http://www.sweetlix.com/user_files/F...sisInGoats.pdf

It 4lbs a day like you do and it's just a handfuls of corn throughout the day. If I don't give them this they start jumping fences on me and start looking for food. They eat their hay but sometimes I guess something else they feel is a must.

CookingPam777 · #15 06/06/08, 08:01 AM

It's mid 80's here. The morning milking she did well it was a cool morning but turned out to be a hot evening. So yes seems a weather thing. Will update everyone on how the milk production goes. I expect she will go down when I have someone else milk her while we go away on vacation. She did that when I was sick one time. She was giving 1 quart and a half at that time. Then my mom was milking her. I got better and took over and she was only giving a half quart. After I took over again she's been fine. She does not like others milking her but is a total angel for me. She was tamed from being a unfriendly pasture goat so she still doesn't trust anyone else very much. She must be a 1 person goat.