Dry doe starts milking again?

Hello everyone. My wife and I are brand new goat owners having purchased three Nigerian Dwarfs does two weeks ago from a homesteader in Vermont. Two of the does are older and freshened in June, the third is one of the kids born at that time. The previous owner didn't have the time to devote to them and as a result never really milked them. They do not like their udder or teats being touched which I'm assuming is due to the lack of interaction they've had in that regard. So my wife and I have been putting them up on the milking stand and massaging their udder and simulating milking while they eat to get them used to it. They haven't stopped kicking and resisting yet but yesterday one of our does actually produced milk. We managed a few tablespoons before she threw such a fit we had to let her loose. Is it normal for a "dry" doe to start producing milk again and is there any way to help her along? Both of the older does are well within the standard 305 day lactation period and we would love it if we can get them producing again. Thanks.

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  • I bought a doe and her five-month-old doeling--the breeder had kept them separated from each other for quite a while and assumed the doeling was weaned, but once they were back together, even though we never caught her in the act she was nursing mama dry.  We dressed mama in a cotton scarf that covered her udder, crisscrossed over her back and around her neck, and then we got to keep all the milk.

  • There is no way to know for sure. I have had them go a year or more. You often do not see them nursing much, because it is in short bursts. I have a doe with a single kid this year (7 months old) who appeared to be weaning her when I suddenly got a pound and a half of milk. That went on for a few days, and then almost nothing again. A few weeks later the milk reappeared and she has been pretty solid at a pint and half each night. It's up to the mom and kid to decide when they are through.

    Lee Pilkovsky said:

    When can I expect her to start weaning? The little doeling has been nursing a lot lately, or so it seems. The amount of milk I've been getting has been all over the place, ranging between a few tablespoons to as much as a cup per milking.
  • When can I expect her to start weaning? The little doeling has been nursing a lot lately, or so it seems. The amount of milk I've been getting has been all over the place, ranging between a few tablespoons to as much as a cup per milking.
  • Yep, she is not a dry doe. Her sneaky kid has been nursing and you may be able to get quite a bit of milk, as she starts to wean.

  • Sounds like you have a doe in milk :-) With food to maintain production you should at least stay stable for a while. She wouldn't do as much as she would if you had been milking her all along as well as her kid nursing, but that's a pretty good amount! Congratulations!

  • The doeling is one of her kids and she has been trying to nurse but it never lasts more than a few seconds, at least when we are around to witness it. I milked her dry this morning and managed to get just shy of a full cup. I figured I would start milking her twice a day on a set schedule and see what happens.
  • When did the doe last nurse kids? The more recently that she nursed kids, the more likely you will be able to get her going again, but don't get your hopes up about a great production if it's been a couple weeks since she last nursed her kids. If the doeling you bought is her kid, then she's  probably still nursing, and you just caught the doe at a time when the doeling hadn't nursed recently.

  • Well, I don't know about goats, but it's possible in humans for a mother who hasn't had kids to start producing milk with stimulation, so I would assume it's plausible for a goat too. :)

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