Can doe's go sterile?

Backfourty,MI. · #1 07/05/09, 07:49 AM

I am not having any problems with my doe's or buck but my mom has a doe that a friend gave her. She was never bred before & is now about 2 years old. My mother has been trying to breed her since this past winter & no luck. The friend gave her a buck too which my mom was sure was his problem so she butchered him, I gave her a young buck to raise & he's old enough & still no pregnant doe, the young buck is now between 6-7 months old?
I'm sending her a young doe home this weekend but she won't be old enough till the end of September to breed.

MaggieJ · #2 07/05/09, 08:03 AM

A two-year-old doe that has not been bred previously may well have problems getting pregnant. Could be due to an accumulation of fat in the body cavity. For reproduction, it is probably best if a doe has her first litter before she is a year old.

o&itw · #3 07/05/09, 08:25 AM

Even if one manages to get the doe pregnant, she is likely to have trouble delivering. The (I think it is pelvic) bones in a doe only remain flexible for about a year. Having a litter spreds them for her first (and later) kindlings.

I am not saying she can't have a healthy delivery, but there is a lot in the literature saying the chances are poor. That being said, the biggest problem in getting a doe pregant at an older age is usually fat. Even a younger doe, needs to be feed sparsley, sometimes, because dwelling in a cage with minimal exercise for a while, can lead to a fat build-up in the animals organs.

brody · #4 07/05/09, 09:32 AM

hmmm interesting ...

I have a doe that I have NO CLUE as to age of - be interesting to see if she catches - and nerve racking too

Backfourty,MI. · #5 07/05/09, 01:08 PM

Thanks everyone! I kept telling my mom I thought it was likely it was the doe she had but she had already butchered the 1st buck. Just sent her home with an unrelated doe but she'll have to wait 3 months to breed her as she is only about 13 weeks right now.

Can bucks go sterile too after so old, I know the heat if too hot can be a temporary thing but I mean with age?

katduck · #6 07/05/09, 05:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Backfourty,MI.

but she had already butchered the 1st buck.

That's too bad. I came very close to butchering my (now) best buck for the same reason. Fortunately, the rest of my does became old enough to breed so I had someone else to prove himself with. I'm so glad I didn't send him to freezer camp! I'd been told the doe had litters before and was a good mother, so I was sure it was his fault.

Kat