Ideas for drying off doe?

Sher · #1 08/03/14, 05:13 PM

Hi..been a long time since I've been on here..hope all is well for everyone.

Peachy..an Alpine..has been in milk for 16 months or better. I would very much like to dry her off. I milk her once a day. A couple of days ago..I did not milk her in the morning as usual. She she had gone 24 hrs. by that night..she was SO huge I broke and milked her last night. So this morning..I did not milk her again..tonight she is fairly huge again.

I just don't want to run the risk of mastitis. As I recall..she was hard to dry off last time around too.

Thanks for any help. She gets some hay in her milkstand bucket and a handful of sunflower sees.

Wendy · #2 08/03/14, 05:55 PM

Cut out any grain. When I dry up a doe I just stop milking. The fullness of the udder is what triggers them to stop producing. If you keep milking, she'll keep making more. I have never had one get mastitis this way.

Sher · #3 08/03/14, 05:59 PM

Thank you so much Wendy...I do think that is what I did last time around.

**mygoat** · #4 08/03/14, 07:56 PM

Yes, stop grain and switch her to a meh quality hay as well if you can. The bagging up is uncomfortable but that is the trigger to stop producing. You can milk her out in a few days to relieve her (or just take a bit). The irritated udder along with constant reopening of the orifices when people try to 'relieve' them too much is actually more of a risk of mastitis than simply stopping milking. Depending on the animal, sometimes I go back and relieve them to avoid udder damage several days later.

MDKatie · #5 08/03/14, 08:16 PM

It takes 5 days of fullness to really trigger her body to stop making milk. After 5 days you can milk her out to check for any signs of mastitis. Make sure to use a really good teat dip after milking her.

Sher · #6 08/05/14, 07:51 AM

mygoat and katie...thank you so much for the input..I appreciate it. She is huge this morning...but in a great mood..lol. I think/hope this is a turning point for her today. This girl milked all the way through that horrible -40 degree weather without missing a beat. She's comical and has a mind of her own..just love this girl!

Again..thanks girls..I've really missed ya.