can I graft an older doeiling onto a doe that JUST delivered?

[Cheryl aka JM]

Okay~ Letitia had her baby this morning. Only one~ and he's a buckling. CUTE as could be! I'll get a pic later. Now~
1. I don't want a buckling from Letitia.
2. I know that buckling will be easier to sell now as a bottle baby than when he gets older
3. I don't like the taste of Letitia milk until about 5 or 6 weeks post freshening (judging this on last years milking)
4. I am buying a 4 week old doeling from CarolT

CAN I graft the 4 week old doeling onto Letitia so she will milk Letitia for me for the next several weeks and sell the buckling?

What do you think?

[southerngurl]

It would have been best if you had just swapped right when th boy was born. You can try but its iffier now. If you have any birthing fluids put them on the doeling and see if mom will lick them off.

[mekasmom]

I've done it before. They don't seem to like the new kid at first, but after it feeds a few times (with you restraining the doe) it's fine.

[LittleRedHen]

I have done so before but it took patience

[dosthouhavemilk]

Depends on the doe...as well as the kid being grafted. Has the four week old ever nursed a doe before? Or straight bottle raised? If she has never nursed before you could have some trouble getting her to nurse.
It is far easier to do when the doe has just kidded. At the very least, assuming you can get the kid to nurse you could always have the doe on the stand twice a day and have the kid nurse, but separate them the rest of the time.
It will take supervised nursing for at least the first three or four days to be sure the kid is getting enough. Also, penning them alone together, but giving the kid a space to get away from the adoptive mother if she takes exception.

[Backfourty,MI.]

Why not let the buckling nurse off his mother since your selling him anyways & you don't like her milk for so many weeks? I dam raise all our kids, doelings & bucklings & they are always super friendly but We do spend alot of time with our kids.

I have 2 of our bucklings born & dam raised here last spring, you can lay your head next to theres & pet them & talk to them & they'll just stand there & listen as long as you'll love on them. They do not have to be bottle fed to be friendly & saleable.

[Cheryl aka JM]

Its not that I'm worried he won't be friendly and saleable if dam raised~ it's that around here you can't sell a buckling for anything unless it's a bottle baby someone wants to raise themselves. So if I dam raise him he will be for our dinner table....but he is just so darned cute! LOL!

I expect I'll keep him and get over the cute factor for the yummy BBQ factor. The doeling I'm buying is nursing her own momma and there is no point in disrupting that. Why fix it if it aint broke.
He's just so stinking cute...you just wait till I post pics of him!

[Backfourty,MI.]

Oh Yes, please post pictures!! I always put my bucks up for sale early, that way I can start taking deposits on them, but they don't leave here until I do CD & T's, Cocci treatments & I know they are weaned & ready to go.

You could always take some adorable pictures for us & then for craigslist, list him & see how many bites you get. Just tell them when he'll be ready to go to the first good home with a deposit?