07/25/05, 12:36 AM
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(formerly Laura Jensen)
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Join Date: May 2002
Location: Lynnwood, Washington
Posts: 2,379
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Here's a thing I wrote when another person was asking about bottle feeding older kids (edited slightly):
Here's what I do when I have the time and inclination to bottle feed kids. In fact, I just did it with a set of triplets that are about six weeks old because of some damage to the dam's udder. It took four feedings before the kids were sucking down their whole ration in one go. Please be aware, though, that this isn't foolproof. A kid may simply refuse to use a bottle until it starves to death. I've never seen this personally, but my friend had a close call once.
After the first few days, I separate the kids from their dam at night. In the morning, I milk the doe and feed the milk back to the kids in a bottle. There are a few things you need to know to make this work. First, the milk has to be the right temperature. I bring a bucket of really hot water out to the barn. Before I give the kids the bottle, I warm the milk in the bucket of hot water until it feels warm on the underside of my wrist. Second, the flow in the nipple has got to be right. The best nipples are amber, like for a human baby bottle, or the Pritchard teat (red and yellow). Both of these types have a longish, pointy thing on the end that you trim to adjust flow. The black Nipples will work, too, but aren't as nice. Buy several nipples so when you mess some up, you still have some to work with. Once you get the nipple so it will flow a little bit, fill it up with water, and try to milk the water out. It should flow similar to a regular goat teat. The Pritchard teat is expensive, but is especially nice because it won't allow enough vacuum to develop to cut off the milk flow.
Sit on something low, or the stall floor. If the milk bottle drips when you turn it upside down, squeeze it before you invert it and let the vacuum stop the flow. You don't want milk pouring down the kid's throat. Gently tuck the kid in between your legs so it can't get away. Soothe the kid until it calms down and accepts being constrained. Open the kid's mouth and put in the nipple. The kid will holler and try to spit it out. Hold his head and keep the nipple in the kid's mouth while he chews and hollers. Until he starts sucking, keep his head horizontal, not tipped up, to reduce the chance of him aspirating milk. You can close his mouth and draw the nipple out to release a few drops of milk so he can get an idea that that's where the milk is. Just keep the nipple in his mouth, unless he starts coughing or shows other signs of having tried to breathe some milk. If the flow is correct, this shouldn't be a big problem, since there will be only small amounts of milk coming out of the nipple. If he just can't get over it and start sucking a little, give him a break after a few minutes and try again later when he's hungrier. With a kid that young, I'd only wait a few hours.
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Last edited by Laura Workman; 07/25/05 at 12:45 AM.
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still not voluntarily eating, maybe a little lethargic. the internet sites and books that I have all say a goat should have a temp of 103. I am a mother hen and I think I am overreacting to little things but..... what if? I sure would hate to lose the little darling. anyway she and her mates need to have the 2nd overeating (enter what sis 
