Today, many citizens move to live in rural areas, where they get animals, in particular goats. And some, buying a home in the country, want to enjoy daily useful fresh milk. Therefore, the questions about how to milk a goat, how many times a day, what to feed and what to do to increase milk yield are far from idle.
Is it worth it to hand out an unlisted goat?
There is an opinion that a young goat should be milked before it is first covered. And some novice goat farmers blindly follow this rule.
This is actually unnatural. Although it is often possible to get a goat to give milk at this age. By nature, it is envisaged that milk appears in an animal after it brings in offspring. And this is understandable: offspring need food. Until this time, all the forces of cattle go to the growth and formation of internal organs. And since these owners begin to milk the goat “in girlhood”, one does not have to rely on the fact that a healthy individual will subsequently be formed from a teenager.
Goat and cow are milked in different ways.
Every breeder should know about this. The udders of a cow and a goat are different in shape. The nipples themselves are different. The cow is milked with fingers, sliding down the nipple. The udder itself is only massaged before milking and during milk so that the milk descends into the nipples.
And how to milk a goat? Fists work here, not fingers. Do not slide on the nipple, injuring it. It is enough to squeeze the udder a little higher than the base of the nipple with a ring of thumb and forefinger and then, without moving them, smoothly include the middle, ring and little fingers into the process of squeezing.
Then the ring is opened, the milk is allowed to go down and the procedure is repeated. It should turn out as if the person is working with a full package in which the cream for decorating the cake is recruited, and tries to empty it.
How to "run" a goat before lambing
If the animal does not bring offspring for the first time, then the female continue to be milked during pregnancy. A month before the offspring, lactation should stop, since milking a goat in this period means interfering with the development of healthy kids.
This must be achieved gradually. That is, two months before lambing, the number of milking is reduced to once a day. Then it is recommended to perform the procedure every other day, then every three days. It is important to ensure that the udder does not become hard, lumps do not form inside it, there is no heat and soreness.
There are cases when a goat does not “start up”, but continues to give milk right up to lambing. Then it is recommended to simply leave a little in the udder with each milking, without extruding the animal to dryness. The very last drops contain the greatest amount of fat, and may they benefit future kids.
Preparing for goats awaiting first offspring
The birthright is beginning to be prepared for milking in advance, about a month before lambing. This does not mean that goats are trying to force the female cow to give milk. She should only be taught to calmly take hygiene procedures, to enjoy touching the udder, since milking a first-born goat, which is frightened when a human hand reaches for the nipple, is quite difficult.
Therefore, it is recommended at the same time to approach her with gentle words, moistened with warm water with a bath towel, to wipe the udder, gently massaging it. You can give the animal some chopped root crops, but not potatoes, during this procedure.
How to increase goat milk yield
By the way, about root crops. They are the very kind of feed that contributes to an increase in milk in the goat. Turnip is especially different in this sense.
The branch feed also has good properties. But poplar branches should be avoided, as they give milk bitterness. Of herbs, shiritsa (amaranth or rudd), euphorbia, quinoa are especially useful. They have a lot of protein, which contributes to an increase in the udder of milk.
It is known that dairy animals require a lot of fluid. And goats are extremely sensitive to the purity of drinking. Therefore, you should be especially careful during this period: daily give the goat warm water in a clean bowl in the amount that it needs.
The next important factor to increase milk production is considered the milking process itself: its frequency, thoroughness, regularity.
How many times to milk a goat per day?
This is worth talking about separately. First, first you need to figure out how many times to milk a goat after lambing. Experienced experts answer that five-fold milking will be optimal. Moreover, the first milking after lambing should be started immediately after the goat rises to its feet.
Goats are extremely sensitive to the regime. Therefore, you need to milk them clearly at the same time. Even moving the procedure time by one hour, the goat grower will feel the loss of milk received.
Before and after milking, the udder should be washed with warm water, wiped dry, greased with petroleum jelly or special ointments and massage.
You can make your own ointment by steaming in a water bath a natural beeswax with a certain amount of vegetable oil. The number of components is selected empirically and it depends on what consistency the ointment wants to get the goat. This ointment softens the skin, heals small cracks and wounds, does not give milk a smack.
It is very important to carefully squeeze the last drops of milk. Leave the animal only after the udder has become completely empty. Therefore, after the milk has allegedly already ended, you need to wait a couple of minutes, massage the udder and try to milk it a little more. This procedure is carried out even in cases when a milking machine is used.
In order not to cause inconvenience to the goat, pulling it during milking by the hairs on the udder, you should regularly cut the hair in this place. Every day you need to examine the mammary glands, so as not to miss the appearance of wounds and their suppuration. If this happens, the animal is isolated and treated: treated with an antiseptic, used to lubricate wound healing tasteless creams, such as Solcoseryl.
But the kids were already three months old, they completely switched to normal food. How much do you need to milk a goat now? Gradually, the animal should be transferred to three times milking, if the yard is summer. And with the onset of autumn and winter, goats are transferred to a two-time milking.