# What type of cows milk is best for kids.



## clint (Apr 16, 2009)

This looks like a great forum. You guys have done a great job with it.
Here's a newbie question for you.
What type of cows milk do you think is best for kids? I think(if my figures were right) that it will cost less to feed milk out of the store than to feed a milk based milk replacer.(I know soy based milk relpacers are a no,no)

But what type. 1%,2%,whole,skimmed?

Thanks, Clint


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## Goat Vader (Mar 25, 2009)

Welcome Clint, Under the topic Feeding, Raising Kids from Birth, there is a recipe for cow's milk. I was told not to feed my kids cow's milk at a pack goat seminar, as it is hard for them to digest. I've been feeding mine Land-o-Lakes Doe Replacer. My 2 kids are 3 weeks old now, and I've gone through approximately 1 1/4 buckets of food.


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## sweetgoatmama (Dec 10, 2008)

It's not true that the cow's milk is hard to digest. The recipe I put under raising kids was developed by the vet on the WS University's GOAT list. She says that powdered replacer is much harder on them than the recipe and she has done the research.

YOu do need to use whole milk as it has the butterfat you need, along with the added buttermilk in the recipe.

Just because someone gives a seminar, doesn't mean they have been working with the latest research. A lot is being done as far as goat nutrition that a lot of people don't know about since they don't keep up to date on their skills.


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## goingnutsmom (Nov 28, 2009)

We supplimented with whole cows milk last year with no problems.
No hard or runny poop and there were days when they were cold turkey put on just straight cows milk (like when the kids spilled the goats milk at milking time)


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## sweetgoatmama (Dec 10, 2008)

THe only real difference between the two types of milk are the sizes of fat globules, cow's milk are larger but not as many of then, and a few trace minerals. I usually mix 1/2 and half when at the end of the season the goat's milk runs short. But have gone as far as 100% cow's milk with no difference. 

You do want to make sure they are on a good trace mineral for goats, but you'd do that no matter what kind of milk is being used.


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## clint (Apr 16, 2009)

Thanks everyone,  

Your information is very helpful.

Clint


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## sweetgoatmama (Dec 10, 2008)

Here is more info from the WSU list on the milk replacer. Makes sense to me. I think that there must be some butter chunks mixed back into the buttermilk as I see little chunks in the storebought stuff.

>>> Butter is fat, buttermilk is the watery fatless stuff that runs off when you make butter and contains some solids-not-fat. Evaporated milk is concentrated because water has been removed from it. If you mix the two, the kid will get extra solids-not-fat which is all to the good.>>>--Irene Ramsay


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