I just got my first doe in milking along with a 3 month old wether. She freshened with 2 kids but one died. I don't think she was cared for very well. I think the owner had a lot going on. I asked her questions about what kind of minerals she was giving and she kept saying I think purine goat chow. I think she was clueless. Anyways with that being said. When I picked them up she was lopsided and she mentioned that one baby died. I was really upset with the situation for 2 reasons one, because she pulled the 1 kid off the night before and didn't bother to mik her. And secondly she didn't sell me her wether. She sold me a 3 month old wether. Oh yeah and did I mention she only freshened 2 weeks ago. Sigh.
Ok so red flags are going off everywhere but I felt so sad for the mom. I just wanted to hurry and get her milked out. I should have said no thanks, but I had a bleeding heart for this mom. I just thought how could she pull the kid and not milk her for a whole day.
So the first day was really difficult, she was really upset rightfully. And she was really mean to the wether. The wether cried most of the first day. The second day the wether Didn't cry much and I put them together in the pen. When she would charge the wether he went into the igloo, and she seemed to leave him alone. She was crying for me the second day but I really wanted her to make friends with the wether so I ignored her. I just made sure she got milked and fed. The second night they slept together in the same igloo. I think they are getting along much better.
Question:
I bought Timothy hay and alfalfa. Is hay supposed to be fed freely or just a certain amount? Should I build a separate pen for feeding because the doe needs alfalfa? How does that work with feeding?
What minerals should they get free choice? I have baking soda, sweetlix and I just ordered Celtic sea salt mixed with kelp. Do I need anything else? I think sweetlix has selenium so do I need selenium? Or what about copper? I have top goat by nutriena for grain
When milking she was real difficult and I have been milking 3 times a day and only getting 1/2 cup is that normal? One side is completely dried up. She is getting much easier though. I ordered a hand pump to see if I can get more using it.
She is still bleeding a little from giving birth. The lady said her vet said its normal. How long is this normal? It's not much
They were infested with mites so I treated with ivomec. I alo ordered California Masatstis test and medicine. Just in case. How long before milk is drinkable after this?
I probably will have more questions later.
Trisha
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A 1/4 cup twice a day is fine for a growing wether, but he doesn't really need it much beyond six months. They do need to be together, even though the doe is mean to the wether sometimes. They're herd animals and will be more upset if left alone.
Ivomec injectable isn't supposed to be used in lactating animals because it stays in their system for a very long time. A goat researcher at a conference said 90-100 days. The ivomec label makes it sound like it might be okay after a month since you're not supposed to give it to cows within 28 days of calving:
A 1/4 cup twice a day is fine for a growing wether, but he doesn't really need it much beyond six months. They do need to be together, even though the doe is mean to the wether sometimes. They're herd animals and will be more upset if left alone.
Ivomec injectable isn't supposed to be used in lactating animals because it stays in their system for a very long time. A goat researcher at a conference said 90-100 days. The ivomec label makes it sound like it might be okay after a month since you're not supposed to give it to cows within 28 days of calving:
I gave her injection of Ivomec. I Have been working other side hoping I will get milk to come back. Will the kid wether get picky about eating Timothy later if he really likes alfalfa? She still charges wether sometimes but for the most part she is leaving him alone. Is it ok that I left them together? Also they yell for each other when I try to take her to milk, so I have been putting the kid in a dog kennel nearby to milk. The kid would be yelling the whole time unless I gave him alfalfa. Do I need to give him grain too since he is eating alfalfa? If so how much should he get?
IF it's been less than 2 weeks since she kidded, I'd work the other (dry) side of her udder too. Never know! She might start producing again on that side if it hasn't been that long.
Free choice hay is fine, and you don't really have to worry about the wether getting alfalfa right now because he's still growing, so he can use the calcium. After six months, though, it would be better for him to just have a grass hay.
Sweetlix has a good amount of selenium and copper, so that's probably covered. There is a lot of info on here about copper deficiency, but the short version is that you might need additional copper if you have high sulfur or iron in your well water.
I'm not familiar with Top Goat by Nutrena, but I know that the Nutrena feed that they sell at my local store has a pathetically small amount of copper -- only 10-15 ppm, and it should be at least 35 ppm, so check the tag and see how much copper is in it.
Goats typically have discharge for about two weeks after giving birth.
Did you do ivomec drench, pour-on, or injectable? Withdrawal varies depending upon route of administration.
"Normal" production varies tremendously from goat to goat. However, 1 1/2 cups a day from one side is terribly low. A doe really needs to be giving about 3 pounds a day to feed twins, so that would be 3 cups a day from one side. Based on everything you've said about the situation, however, who knows if this is due to poor management or bad genetics. Just keep doing what you're doing, and her supply should increase, especially at two weeks. The hormones are still there for good production. Good luck!
Replies
Sorry, that's the Australian label for ivomec. The US label says do NOT use in dairy animals of breeding age:
http://www.allivet.com/p-2154-ivomec-1-injection-for-cattle-and-swi...
Deborah Niemann-Boehle said:
A 1/4 cup twice a day is fine for a growing wether, but he doesn't really need it much beyond six months. They do need to be together, even though the doe is mean to the wether sometimes. They're herd animals and will be more upset if left alone.
Ivomec injectable isn't supposed to be used in lactating animals because it stays in their system for a very long time. A goat researcher at a conference said 90-100 days. The ivomec label makes it sound like it might be okay after a month since you're not supposed to give it to cows within 28 days of calving:
http://au.merial.com/products/ivomec_injection_cattle.asp
Thank you so much
Trisha
IF it's been less than 2 weeks since she kidded, I'd work the other (dry) side of her udder too. Never know! She might start producing again on that side if it hasn't been that long.
Free choice hay is fine, and you don't really have to worry about the wether getting alfalfa right now because he's still growing, so he can use the calcium. After six months, though, it would be better for him to just have a grass hay.
Sweetlix has a good amount of selenium and copper, so that's probably covered. There is a lot of info on here about copper deficiency, but the short version is that you might need additional copper if you have high sulfur or iron in your well water.
I'm not familiar with Top Goat by Nutrena, but I know that the Nutrena feed that they sell at my local store has a pathetically small amount of copper -- only 10-15 ppm, and it should be at least 35 ppm, so check the tag and see how much copper is in it.
Goats typically have discharge for about two weeks after giving birth.
Did you do ivomec drench, pour-on, or injectable? Withdrawal varies depending upon route of administration.
"Normal" production varies tremendously from goat to goat. However, 1 1/2 cups a day from one side is terribly low. A doe really needs to be giving about 3 pounds a day to feed twins, so that would be 3 cups a day from one side. Based on everything you've said about the situation, however, who knows if this is due to poor management or bad genetics. Just keep doing what you're doing, and her supply should increase, especially at two weeks. The hormones are still there for good production. Good luck!