Male goats are called BUCKS or BUCKLINGS as babies. If a male goat has been castrated (neutered with simple rubber banding) they are known as a WETHER. The ONLY way to get milk from a goat is to get a female doe pregnant so she can have babies first.
In order to give milk, a goat must first get pregnant and have kids of her own. Her body creates the milk to feed the kids. Dairy breeds have been bred to give more milk than their kids would require. Occasionally a goat will give milk without having kids – this is referred to as a precocious udder.
Goats' milk is highly nutritious, contains essential vitamins and minerals (and higher amounts of potassium, iron and vitamin A than cows' milk8) and is an ideal food for the whole family to enjoy.
Male cattle are called bulls and they do not produce milk. Young female cattle who do not produce milk yet are called heifers, once they begin to produce milk they are called cows.
You can let your does raise their kids, have fresh goat milk in the refrigerator and still have a life by milking once per day. Sometimes a doe will reject her kid, or one of her kids if she has multiples. Occasionally a doe dies after kidding.
Goat breeds like Nubian, La Mancha, Alpine, & Nigerian are the most popular milking breeds. Nigerians are known for the sweetest tasting milk, so if you are on the lookout for a milking goat and are nervous about the taste of the milk, go Nigerian. You'll get sweet, fresh-tasting milk every single time.
Goat's milk, first of all, gets its flavor from the presence of short- and medium-chain fatty acids. These are fatty acids that give the milk its particular flavor. It's that grassy, goaty, earthy flavor that you get mainly when you are eating goat cheese. It's very different from cow's milk.
You can begin breeding Nigerian Dwarf goats when a doe is full-grown at one year old. While bucks may be ready at three or four months, it's best to wait until they are eight months of age. Unlike some animals, you can breed Nigerian goats at any time of the year.
The balanced proportions of the Nigerian Dwarf give it the appearance of the larger breeds of dairy goats, but does stand no more than 22.5 inches (57 centimeters) and bucks no more than 23.5 inches (60 centimeters). Ideal weight is suggested to be about 75 pounds. Dwarf goats breed year round.
Animals are disqualified from the show ring for being over-sized and/or for other faults" that would mean you probably don't want a buck much more than 100 lbs or so. And since the yield is about 25% then at most you can hope to get is around 25 lbs of meat.
The larger dairy breeds tend to be gentle giants. We've raised Alpines in the past and they are sweet and eager to please. They're easier to train on the milk stand and not quite as willful. Our fiber goats are the most docile of all the goats I've raised.
Most goat breeds only come into heat one season a year, generally in the fall season. Nigerian Dwarf Goats come into heat every month. Goats in heat are loud (see “noise” below), can be aggressive, want attention, try to escape, personality changes, and they will try to mate anything and everything.
Things to Avoid
Keep your goats away from toxic plants such as cherry trees, rhododendrons and azaleas, since these can kill them. Also never give your Nigerian dwarf goat moldy hay or feed or any other food that you suspect might be spoiled.Nigerian Dwarf goat medical needs. Like all goats, Nigerian Dwarf need periodic hoof trimming and deworming, depending on their diet and lifestyle. Most people trim hooves every 4-8 weeks, deworm several times a year, and vaccinate annually. Fortunately, their small size makes handling them easy.
Kidding, or giving birth, typically happens about 150 days after breeding. Does often have twins and sometimes triplets. After birth, the doe will freshen, or begin to produce milk. If she is continuously milked, she will lactate for up to 10 months.
Bucks and Wethers
As with all goats, the most important feature of their diet should be free choice good quality hay or forage. However, they don't need the higher protein or calcium levels found in alfalfa or legume hay so should be fed quality grass hay instead.Dairy goats need to be milked at least once a day, seven days a week, rain or shine, cold or hot, until they dry off. You cannot go on vacation and leave them un-milked. They will be in pain and they will develop mastitis.
Physical Characteristics: Full-grown animals range from 16-21 inches tall at the withers for does and 23.5 inches tall at the withers for bucks. They weigh an average of 60-80 pounds and come in a variety of colors. Nigerian Dwarf Goats are ideally supposed to look like small dairy goats.
The secret to the mild, sweet taste and creamy consistency lies in the butterfat content of the milk. We raise Nigerian Dwarf goats, which produce milk that's quite high in butterfat (6 – 10%), hence the mild taste and creamy consistency.
Use solid, strong fencing to keep your goats inside.
- Your fencing should be at least 4 feet (1.2 m) high for Nigerian dwarf goats.
- Keep in mind that Nigerian dwarf goats are small. If they can push their head through somewhere, they can escape your fence.
- Also, solid fencing provides protection from the wind.
Nigerian Dwarf Fainters (the crosses) can actually be registered with the Myotonic Registry (the registration organization for Fainting goats). Not only are they smaller than a standard size goat (my Fainters and my Nigerian Dwarf goats are about the same size), they do a party trick! They faint.
Nigerian Dwarfs are great. I've got a few myself. They don't stink. They smell like livestock.
Goats are high maintenance.
Still, goats have a certain set of particular needs that most pet species do not. These minerals can be toxic to other species. They have sensitive digestive systems and are prone to bloat when their systems are upset by sudden changes in diet.This makes it feasible for a pygmy goat to live in a home. Unfortunately, goat feces have a pungent aroma, and goats often drop feces where they stand. This cannot be avoided, but urination can be trained. Training should start with a new baby goat for the best circumstances.
While Pygmy goats are most commonly kept as pets or used as meat goats, they can also be used for milk production. Pygmy goats can produce, on average, between one to two quarts of 4.5% to 11% butterfat milk.
The Nigerian Dwarf goat was brought to the United States in the 1950s. Since then, these little goats have been used as both milk production and companionship animals. Nigerian Dwarf goats are known for their even tempers and gentle, playful personalities.
A pet-quality Nigerian Dwarf goat will range between $50 and $100 per head. These small goats can make wonderful pets and may be the perfect choice for a homesteader or family. They produce a decent amount of milk given their small stature, and require minimal acreage when compared to larger breeds of goats.
Goats are social animals who need the company of at least one other goat, but also get along with cows, sheep, horses, or donkeys. They also get along with cats and most dogs.
Usually takes me 1 hour to 1 and a half hours to milk 15 goats. That is with 6 giving 5-6 lbs, 5 4lbs, and the others giving 2.5 to 3 lbs and thats per milking. I do have a milking machine(it's only 1 at a time), but most of the time I hand milk. usually takes 2-4 min to milk each goat.
