Re: Adventures in milking.............

[Guest guest]

LOL oh my gosh,,brings back memories,,

My first goat to milk was a nubian/Saanen cross,,, we had such fun !! foot in bucket, goat choking herself,, my knees all muddy, goat all muddy..Me ,,loosing my temper,,, chasing goat who just got loose,,, cussin her big time !!

You will learn to love it !!!

It will get easier,,and you will get a system,,and things will run smoothly ,,, well,,sort of.If nothing else,,she will teach you great patience,and you will be able to tackle any problem with ease after milking goats,,, 35 goats in PA,,, started with 2,, LOL good luck to you,,, keeep at it,,

[Guest guest]

1. A goat will throw herself on the ground in an attempt to NOT be put on a milk stand.

we have had new goats absolutely REFUSE to ge on milk stands. We eventually cut off the legs and managed that way. They do get used to it though!!

2. Milking a Nubian can be the most frustrating and annoying thing I've ever done.

Every breed has its personality problem goats!! We have had them from all breeds, it is more of an individual basis thing. Keep at it and you will survive, even though it seems awful now!

3. Milking a LaMancha just makes me love her that much more. She was a TOTAL easy milker and I got 2 quarts from her the first try. I swear she even looked back at me and kissed me a few times while I was milking her. I didnt even have to put her head in the vice.

There are those in every breed too! For those goats we survive the other type!

4. I have to come up with a "system" for this milking stuff. I felt like I was very unorganized and worried that I was not cleaning them well enough, etc.

Once you get comfortable with the goats you will find it easier to function. Just spend time with them and try to relax with the milking thing, even if they refuse! And read every goat thing in sight. Try www.fiascofarm.com

They have great info on goats for beginners to well advanced goat keepers.

Rhonda

..

[Guest guest]

We had a goat, her last name was Tick, her first name was Luna, that

alone should tell you something.

The first time we went to milk Luna we realized that this " Just a pet "

goat might not have been such a pet afterall. Luna ended up being

fastened by the collar to the ceiling as well as to the milk stand,

she had a bowl of sweet feed in front of her that she ate while she

gave us a hard time. Her back end was a bit of a problem as well. We

put small cat collars around both back legs, they were attached by a

short chain. The collar on each leg was attached to the milk stand,

actually underneath. This was what we did every milking for the first

month of Ms Tick's life with us.

That goat had more personality than any other we have had here, we

miss her. She loved second hand smoke, drank your coffee, coke or tea

if you left it in reach. She would let out a yell like the world was

ending, usually indicating that you were late for b'fast or supper.

The point of all this rambling is that that crazy goat of yours might

just become a much loved sweetie.

Belinda in TN

>

> LOL oh my gosh,,brings back memories,,

> My first goat to milk was a nubian/Saanen cross,,, we had such fun

!! foot

> in bucket, goat choking herself,, my knees all muddy, goat all

muddy..Me

> ,,loosing my temper,,, chasing goat who just got loose,,, cussin her

big time !!

> You will learn to love it !!!

> It will get easier,,and you will get a system,,and things will run

smoothly

> ,,, well,,sort of.If nothing else,,she will teach you great

patience,and you

> will be able to tackle any problem with ease after milking goats,,,

35 goats

> in PA,,, started with 2,, LOL good luck to you,,, keeep at it,,

>

[Guest guest]

Goats are individuals and don't judge a breed by a single idiot.

I cull on personality as much as anything else. If a doe won't

straighten up and become a stone statue on the milkstand at the end of

14 days (we milk morning and evening) then she is culled.

I found early on it's a genetic thing and very much inherited. Life

is too short to mess about with a nasty tempered goat on the milkstand.

I have seen ornery Alpines (some that would literally bite hunks out

of YOU and other goats!), LaMancha (meanest goat I ever did see was a

yearling doe who would attack you and MEAN IT!!), Nubians,

Toggenburgs, Saanens, and Oberhaslies... in other words they are all

out there across all the breeds.

I also found that milking is best learned by having someone who REALLY

knows how to show you and mentor you for a few milkings. A lot of

problems result when you put a first time milker on a first time fresh

doe!!! Most people will pull teats and pinch, and do lots fo stuff

that would make the most docile doe pitch a ring eyed hissy!

Donna

Safehaven Nubians

Dandridge, TN