Can Double teats be fixed?

I have a doe with double teats that make milking difficult. I usually get squirted in the eye by the extra little  one.  I thought getting a milking machine would help but her teats are too small and the inflation collapses right at the end of the teat so it does not get anything out. I have the small cups for Nigerian dwarfs too.

Any suggestions?

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Replies

  • Does having extra teats make the goat more susceptible to mastitis? If they are functional I would see that as one extra orifice for bacteria to enter the mammary system and if it isn't functional could milk get trapped there and harbor infection? I have no experience with extra teats but I know they are quite common in boer goats. 

  • Here is what Carla Emery, author of The Encyclopedia of Country Living, has to say about extra teats.

    "A 3-teated goat, with one normal side and the other with two nipples instead of one, isn't uncommon. Nor is a 4-teater with two nipples on each side. You can use them just for brood goats. That means you let them rear kids and don't try to milk them, or you can try to make them into the family milk goat anyway. The third nipple may or may not release milk. If it does, you may have to develop a special way of milking that double teat to compensate for the problem of two nozzles. I had one that I milked from behind, between her legs, because somehow when I grabbed her from that angle I had more luck getting both squirts in the bucket. I wouldn't use that son of such a goat for breeding for fear the trait could be passed on through him." 

    It's funny you would ask that, because I just re-read that chapter last night! Hope this helps. 

  • Some people cut them off when they're babies, but if she's already mature and milking, that's probably not a good idea. I should also add that this is a disqualification in the show ring.

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