# Hand Breeding Vs month in pen



## cashmere (Jan 14, 2013)

What is the opinion on hand breeding vs living together for a month. My breeding pen is still under construction so have been hand breeding. 
Put doe and buck together in morning. Any suggestions.


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## J.O.Y. Farm (Jan 10, 2012)

I honestly prefer hand breeding.. I like to see the deed and know when my doe is due... not just a round about time of the month.. That would drive me batty  lol!


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

I like hand breeding so you know the exact date. Whatever works best for you.


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## cashmere (Jan 14, 2013)

When do you put them together and for how long


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

If you can tell she is in heat, then when you see her in heat, put the male in. I only leave him in long enough to do the deed a couple times, then take him back out. You could leave him for a period of time during the day.

If you can't tell heat, then everyday put him in the pen and see how she reacts. If she is not liking him bothering her, then take him back out immediately and just keep trying until she is interested.


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## Tenacross (May 26, 2011)

It's nice to know the actual date. This forum is full of waiting... and waiting... and waiting... posts during kidding season.


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

I prefer to pasture breed. I go out daily and check for activity, my Buck and Doe's let me know. I write down on the calender, when I see a Doe is in, or being constantly chased, every day, until she goes out. 
If she was witnessed bred, I will put that down as well. 
So, if a Doe is in and 18 to 21 days later, she does not come in, she is preggo, then on the 22nd day, I start planning the due date. 
I have had no issues with knowing, when they will kid. 

You have to think of what month you want babies, so, count 5 months later, from when you want to breed. Allow a month extra, cause sometimes a Doe, does not take the first go around but, does on the second.

You can hand breed, but for me, it is too much, as I have many Does.


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## cashmere (Jan 14, 2013)

Ok thank you! This is the first time breeding my own does last year took does to a lady that had bucks. This is so exciting 
She does not seem to be in heat will keep trying.


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## sweetgoats (Oct 18, 2007)

If hand breeding is possible that is the the best IMO only so you have the date. 
When I hand breed I have a halter on the doe and I am holding her the whe time and I know it happened. Make sure the doe hunches afterwards.


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## TDG-Farms (Jul 12, 2013)

Another ya for hand breeding. We keep minimal bucks (2) for 50 some does. So hand breeding assures that they have enough... mo jo to go around  Helps if you can pen a buck next to the doe pen to see who is in heat each morning / evening. We use power river horse panels AND combo panels between them just so the buck cant destroy the fencing. This is also how we separate the boys from each other. Unless they are being jerks then we move them around a bit so their is a walkway between em.


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## Noahsoak (Sep 16, 2013)

My does have the ability to walk to the buck pen, which keeps my bucks fairly crazy. When I see mucous and the does standing looking at the bucks or calling to them - you can be pretty sure. I open the pen and out she goes to the bucks gate. Since the doe can run back to her pen when she has enough - I keep the buck on leash and put him back after the breeding. However, that worked at year 1 - now that the bucks pack a bigger punch (in weight) - I'm not so sure I want to be "leashed" to the buck at this point. lol I did find last year, the does would come in heat, breed, then back in heat within 7 days - then they would go the 18-21 days until bred.

I swore I would never have bucks - now I am in love.


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## cashmere (Jan 14, 2013)

Yeah that's what I said too no bucks but a year later we have two


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## MsScamp (Feb 1, 2010)

I do pen breeding. I throw the bucks in for 2 months, and the girls generally start kidding within a week of when he went in. Spring and summer are too busy to do hand breeding, and winters are too darned cold! :laugh:


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## milkmaid (Sep 15, 2010)

According to Goathappy (a member who no longer comments)...



> I was told by my mentor that in order to get more doe kids(or at least one doe kid per kidding) that you need to take the doe to the buck only once, and early in the heat and then don't take the doe to the buck again. The reasoning for doing it this way is that male sperm swims fast and dies young, while female sperm swims slow and lives longer. The doe ovulates at the end of the heat so by breeding her only once early in the heat you are giving the female sperm a chance to "win the race" so to speak when she ovulates. I've been doing this for 3 years and my kidding rate is always at least 50/50. The first year I bred goats I took the does to the buck like 3 or 4 times during the heat and I had 100% bucks that year with the exception of a doe who was taken only once because she wouldn't stand(we didn't think she was in standing heat) but she was the only doe that year that kidded with does and she had twin does.


Quoted from her comment on this thread: http://www.thegoatspot.net/forum/f219/very-bucky-year-119493/index2.html


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## ptgoats45 (Nov 28, 2011)

I do both  When I pen breed I use a marking harness on the buck. It is pretty obvious when the doe has been marked as bred by a large area of color on her rump. If you have a lot of does to breed I would hand breed them, just because you can limit the buck and make sure he doesn't get worn out or that he doesn't miss does by sticking with one all day while one or more others are also in heat. I usually pen breed the Boers and hand breed the dairies.


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## TDG-Farms (Jul 12, 2013)

Goathappy may of been right about the male sperm and the female sperm. BUT the female sperm get distracted along the way. Chatting with friends or shopping. So it still turns out to be a 50/50 chance anyways


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## ptgoats45 (Nov 28, 2011)

TDG-Farms said:


> Goathappy may of been right about the male sperm and the female sperm. BUT the female sperm get distracted along the way. Chatting with friends or shopping. So it still turns out to be a 50/50 chance anyways


:slapfloor::ROFL: I love it! lol

All the times I have AI'ed my does, I thought I was doing it a tad bit early trying to increase doe chances I ended up with 2 sets of twin bucks and one set of buck doe twins.


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## cashmere (Jan 14, 2013)

Wow that is great info. Today is the first day that the buck was very interested in her he was chasing her around the pen with his tongue out singing to her. I had to leave to get feed and when I came back he was not interested again do you think he got her? 
The other buck in the next pen was ready to tear down the fence to get her this morning. I had to put up a board to keep him calm.


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

Yes, he most likely got her. He will do it again until she is out of season.


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## Moocowman123 (Feb 12, 2013)

About what goat happy said, what do they mean by saying only take her in once? Does she mean only let the buck mount her once or what? I would like to try this.


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## TDG-Farms (Jul 12, 2013)

We do it twice just to make sure but once should be enough. When they collect semen a single ejaculate on average fills 15 straws. When you AI you use one straw.


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## ptgoats45 (Nov 28, 2011)

Yup and that one straw only holds .5 cc and is typically diluted down to 100 million sperm cells per straw. It is believed that fresh semen will live in the female for 24 hrs, whereas thawed semen will live for 12 hours.


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## Tenacross (May 26, 2011)

TDG-Farms said:


> Goathappy may of been right about the male sperm and the female sperm. BUT the female sperm get distracted along the way. Chatting with friends or shopping. So it still turns out to be a 50/50 chance anyways


:ROFL::hi5:


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## Tenacross (May 26, 2011)

I have a goat mentor that believes the same as Goathappy and last year I took a doe of mine over to her farm to breed toward the end of my doe's heat cycle, like I would do for AI. She felt sort of bad for me saying it would most likely result in bucks. She had triplet does. I had a really lucky doe year though.


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## BCG (Jun 30, 2012)

I use a marking harness. I have too many does to babysit. Every feeding I check all the does for marks and record the date. Most kid on the due date, some a day or 2 later. Works great for me!


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## cashmere (Jan 14, 2013)

After the first encounter will she have a second heat.


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