Smart questions when buying a milking doe

I am trying to buy a few does to milk for my family this year. Ideally I am looking for a buckling from the same herd that is unrelated to the does so I can keep having milk year to year. What questions should I be asking potential sellers? I have been asking about what the herd is tested for regarding disease. Most are testing for CAE and Johnes but no one is testing for Brucellosis or Q fever. Wouldn't those tests be at the top for home milking? Also the does that are for sale seem to be older, which I understand is to make room for new ladies in the herd. How old is too old? The oldest I was offered is a 6 year old doe and her daughter this spring after kidding.

I have two wethers and two doelings so I'm not completely new to having goats. I just haven't made it to the breeding/milking stage and it seems all my reading hasn't prepared me for buying a doe in milk...I'm just drawing blanks. Any advice is appreciated!

I don't breed does after they are ten years old. Their production is on the way down by age 6, and unless the goat has really stellar genetics, they are not great by age 9 when it comes to milk production. Production is going down by the time they are about 6 years old.

If a goat is milking, the seller should be able to tell you how much she is producing. An average Nigerian will peak at close to half a gallon a day, although top milkers produce 3-4 quarts a day at their peak, which is about 2 months after kidding. Then they start to go down a little and level off. Many will level off at about a quart a day for many months.

I've never tested for brucellosis because Illinois is a certified brucellosis-free state, and in fact, almost every state is certified free of the disease, as well as TB. Q-fever is pretty rare, so it's not something most people worry about. It's contagious and causes abortions, so if someone had a number of does aborting, hopefully they would get testing done at that point.

Keep in mind that as a buyer, you can always request testing on goats that you are considering purchasing. Of course, you would pay for the vet bill and the tests, but they can be done prior to purchase so that you don't bring home a goat and then find out that she has a disease.

You might also ask if someone has a closed herd. For example, the odds of my goats suddenly having Q-fever is almost impossible since I don't bring in new does ever (not since 2005) and only bring in new bucks about every five years from established herds that have tested negative for diseases for years (and haven't had abortion storms).

You can also ask the seller why they are selling a doe and her daughter. Unless they are keeping one or more of her daughters, it probably means they are not crazy about her or what she had produced in terms of progeny ... unless they are just cutting back in total numbers, and she is on the less favorite list. If someone has a lot of goats, they may cull a goat for all sorts of reasons that might not translate as negative for you ... such as not liking the goat's personality. I once sold a goat because I felt sorry for her because she was at the absolute bottom of the pecking order and was always being beat on by the other does.

Replies

Deborah Niemann-Boehle March 1, 2019 at 12:40am

I don't breed does after they are ten years old. Their production is on the way down by age 6, and unless the goat has really stellar genetics, they are not great by age 9 when it comes to milk production. Production is going down by the time they are about 6 years old.

If a goat is milking, the seller should be able to tell you how much she is producing. An average Nigerian will peak at close to half a gallon a day, although top milkers produce 3-4 quarts a day at their peak, which is about 2 months after kidding. Then they start to go down a little and level off. Many will level off at about a quart a day for many months.

I've never tested for brucellosis because Illinois is a certified brucellosis-free state, and in fact, almost every state is certified free of the disease, as well as TB. Q-fever is pretty rare, so it's not something most people worry about. It's contagious and causes abortions, so if someone had a number of does aborting, hopefully they would get testing done at that point.

Keep in mind that as a buyer, you can always request testing on goats that you are considering purchasing. Of course, you would pay for the vet bill and the tests, but they can be done prior to purchase so that you don't bring home a goat and then find out that she has a disease.

You might also ask if someone has a closed herd. For example, the odds of my goats suddenly having Q-fever is almost impossible since I don't bring in new does ever (not since 2005) and only bring in new bucks about every five years from established herds that have tested negative for diseases for years (and haven't had abortion storms).

You can also ask the seller why they are selling a doe and her daughter. Unless they are keeping one or more of her daughters, it probably means they are not crazy about her or what she had produced in terms of progeny ... unless they are just cutting back in total numbers, and she is on the less favorite list. If someone has a lot of goats, they may cull a goat for all sorts of reasons that might not translate as negative for you ... such as not liking the goat's personality. I once sold a goat because I felt sorry for her because she was at the absolute bottom of the pecking order and was always being beat on by the other does.

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