Breeding

Tammy October 12, 2010 at 2:58pm

They are such funny little goats. LOL

Jane Wagman said:

My doe that just kidded was flagging and backing up to the bucks in the next pasture the day before she kidded - what a hussy! :)

Buck smell seems to really vary from buck to buck and some of them have very little smell at all. I have had my boys penned next to the girls without any problems, but I get tired of the noises they make trying to attract the girls attention so find it better to pen them out of sight of the ladies.

Jane Wagman October 11, 2010 at 10:44pm

My doe that just kidded was flagging and backing up to the bucks in the next pasture the day before she kidded - what a hussy! :)

Buck smell seems to really vary from buck to buck and some of them have very little smell at all. I have had my boys penned next to the girls without any problems, but I get tired of the noises they make trying to attract the girls attention so find it better to pen them out of sight of the ladies.

Deborah Niemann-Boehle October 11, 2010 at 11:06am

Pen breeding is putting a buck with does for a month or longer, so you really don't know when the due date is, unless you just get lucky and walk out there at the right moment. The alternative is to watch your does for signs of heat and take them to the buck to be bred, so that you have a due date, which gives you about a one-week window to watch for kids, rather than a month-long window.

You can take your doe somewhere to be bred, but you have to watch her for signs of heat and then drop everything and run her over to the buck, provided someone is home there. I did it once with a la mancha doe, and she didn't even get pregnant. I thought it was a pain, but some people don't mind.

Being close to does won't make your milk stinky and nasty, but if a buck rubs his head on their udder, that will do it! So far, this breeding season, only one buck has done that during breeding. You just need to wash their udder well, and the milk will be fine. Worst case scenario, you might have to dump the milk from one milking, but your barn cats or dogs will be really happy that day.

Congratulations on your new goats!

erica mathews said:

Hi,
I'm new here and very new to goats (in fact, we pick up our first three tomorrow). I have been very diligently reading through all these posts and have found the amount of information amazing! I have a dumb question...

I see you talking about "pen breeding", which I assume means putting the buck in with all the does and letting things happen. I saw a few of you saying you don't like pen breeding. I am wondering what the alternative is? What do you prefer over pen breeding.

Also, I really hate the smell of the bucks (I don't know anyone who enjoys it, I know). I was sort of planning to find a buck in the area to service out when I am ready to breed but some of these posts have led me to believe that's not possible. The doe I am getting should be ready to breed again in the spring. I'd like to go ahead and breed her but what should be my best course of action? I assume I will need to start looking now to see if it's possible to even find someone willing to let me use their buck.

Should I just think about getting my own buck? If I did get a buck, could I keep him (and a wether?) somewhere else entirely on my property? I have a lot of land and a good number of barns so I can spread them out pretty far if I wanted to. We intend to use the milk for consumption so I am wondering just how far they need to be so that the taste of the milk isn't contaminated.

Thanks for all your good advice!

erica mathews October 11, 2010 at 8:30am

Hi,
I'm new here and very new to goats (in fact, we pick up our first three tomorrow). I have been very diligently reading through all these posts and have found the amount of information amazing! I have a dumb question...

I see you talking about "pen breeding", which I assume means putting the buck in with all the does and letting things happen. I saw a few of you saying you don't like pen breeding. I am wondering what the alternative is? What do you prefer over pen breeding.

Also, I really hate the smell of the bucks (I don't know anyone who enjoys it, I know). I was sort of planning to find a buck in the area to service out when I am ready to breed but some of these posts have led me to believe that's not possible. The doe I am getting should be ready to breed again in the spring. I'd like to go ahead and breed her but what should be my best course of action? I assume I will need to start looking now to see if it's possible to even find someone willing to let me use their buck.

Should I just think about getting my own buck? If I did get a buck, could I keep him (and a wether?) somewhere else entirely on my property? I have a lot of land and a good number of barns so I can spread them out pretty far if I wanted to. We intend to use the milk for consumption so I am wondering just how far they need to be so that the taste of the milk isn't contaminated.

Thanks for all your good advice!

Deborah Niemann-Boehle July 7, 2010 at 8:52am

A goat's milk supply gradually goes down starting at about two months until whenever they dry up, which could be six months, a year, or longer, depending upon the doe. When they're ready to dry up, you'll usually start to see a significant drop every single day, and within a few days, it'll be obvious that she's drying up. If they're giving a cup or less per milking, you can usually drop to once a day, and within a few days, they'll be giving you a cup or less at that milking. At that point, you can stop milking, and the doe won't get engorged.

The buck should not be trying to mate the does unless they are in heat. Normally, does do not come into heat once they're pregnant, although I'd heard other people say that it happens sometimes. Last year was the first time I'd ever had a doe cycle again after being pregnant, and I've been breeding 15-18 does per year for about five years now, so although a doe can come into heat if she's pregnant, it is NOT common -- maybe happens about 1-2% of the time.

When I pen breed, I usually only see the buck breed about one out of five does, which is why I hate pen breeding, because I don't like surprise kiddings. I like to have that five-day window, so I know when to expect kids. If you've seen him breed all but one doe, you've done really well!

Tammy said:

Ok, here I go again. Sorry. Need help.. Our buck is a little over 1 year. We have been pen breeding our doe's for two months. We have seen him in the act several times with all of the doe's, but one. He shows no interest, however it could have happened. These are my questions: It has been 90 degrees and higher here in Kentucky. Our milk supply has been less and I am not sure if it because they are pregnant or the heat. We have noticed that at least two of our doe's are tight around the waist. (If that is how you would explain it). Do doe's go in heat even if they are pregnant? Because I have not seen him showing any interest in the two we think could be pregnant. Still not sure why he doesn't seem to like one of the doe's. Any ideas? He is young and hasn't had a chance to prove himself. However, he seems to come from good quality. I can estimate roughly the time he was first seen with the doe's for possible gestation, which would make them due in October. So should I stop milking them in August? and Do you just stop milking or gradually? I want to be as sure as possible before I just decrease or stop. Any suggestions?

Tammy July 6, 2010 at 10:18pm

Ok, here I go again. Sorry. Need help.. Our buck is a little over 1 year. We have been pen breeding our doe's for two months. We have seen him in the act several times with all of the doe's, but one. He shows no interest, however it could have happened. These are my questions: It has been 90 degrees and higher here in Kentucky. Our milk supply has been less and I am not sure if it because they are pregnant or the heat. We have noticed that at least two of our doe's are tight around the waist. (If that is how you would explain it). Do doe's go in heat even if they are pregnant? Because I have not seen him showing any interest in the two we think could be pregnant. Still not sure why he doesn't seem to like one of the doe's. Any ideas? He is young and hasn't had a chance to prove himself. However, he seems to come from good quality. I can estimate roughly the time he was first seen with the doe's for possible gestation, which would make them due in October. So should I stop milking them in August? and Do you just stop milking or gradually? I want to be as sure as possible before I just decrease or stop. Any suggestions?

Deborah Niemann-Boehle June 26, 2010 at 3:31pm

Very few people do AI. I've been saying I'm going to buy AI equipment for about five years and haven't done it yet. SuperiorSemenworks.com has ND semen, equipment, and workshops on AI.

Adrienne said:

Interesting discussion. Does that mean that a lot more people are doing AI for their does if they don't have a buck? How does one find out if someone near them has a liquid nitrogen tank with space for rent, or is it worth it just to spend the $1000 or so on the smallest tank available and rent extra spaces yourself? Does anyone know of good resources about how to perform AI on goats? Or even better, know how best to find a professional?

Adrienne June 26, 2010 at 10:51am

Interesting discussion. Does that mean that a lot more people are doing AI for their does if they don't have a buck? How does one find out if someone near them has a liquid nitrogen tank with space for rent, or is it worth it just to spend the $1000 or so on the smallest tank available and rent extra spaces yourself? Does anyone know of good resources about how to perform AI on goats? Or even better, know how best to find a professional?

Deborah Niemann-Boehle said:

Either wait five months or get ultrasounds on the does. It's not very common, but some does will come into heat even if they've been bred. I've only had it happen to one doe in eight years, and I usually have 15-20 does. It is possible that one goat wasn't bred, and her behavior is affecting the behavior of the other does. This is not a great time for breeding, because not all does cycle this time of year. (I know NDs are supposed to cycle year-round, but that hasn't been my experience.) Even though they might look like they're in heat, they're not actually ovulating. There are lots of possible explanations, other than the buck.

Tammy said:
I bought a buck almost 2 months ago. He has been in with the girls for almost two months. We have seen him in the act and it seemed successful. However, this month the doe's are acting aggressive, flagging tail, etc. like they are in heat again. The male is over a year old. How would I know if this buck is not able to breed?

Deborah Niemann-Boehle June 23, 2010 at 7:39am

Either wait five months or get ultrasounds on the does. It's not very common, but some does will come into heat even if they've been bred. I've only had it happen to one doe in eight years, and I usually have 15-20 does. It is possible that one goat wasn't bred, and her behavior is affecting the behavior of the other does. This is not a great time for breeding, because not all does cycle this time of year. (I know NDs are supposed to cycle year-round, but that hasn't been my experience.) Even though they might look like they're in heat, they're not actually ovulating. There are lots of possible explanations, other than the buck.

Tammy said:

I bought a buck almost 2 months ago. He has been in with the girls for almost two months. We have seen him in the act and it seemed successful. However, this month the doe's are acting aggressive, flagging tail, etc. like they are in heat again. The male is over a year old. How would I know if this buck is not able to breed?

Tammy June 22, 2010 at 10:37pm

I bought a buck almost 2 months ago. He has been in with the girls for almost two months. We have seen him in the act and it seemed successful. However, this month the doe's are acting aggressive, flagging tail, etc. like they are in heat again. The male is over a year old. How would I know if this buck is not able to breed?

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