# Udder Drying Up



## Maria (Jan 11, 2011)

I have had 2 does kid, the first one had a very difficult delivery, the kid didn't survive, I let her dry up because I didn't want to add to her trauma by milking her twice a day.

The second doe, Snow White, had an even more difficult labor, and although I milked the colostrum out and froze it, I didn't wish to milk her until she got better. She kidded last sunday, and I figured she'd be dried up by now, but she's doing wonderfully well today so I thought I would check and see if she dried up completely.

She milked out about an ounce of milk. Since she's still producing, does this mean that if I start milking her twice a day, that she'll perk up production? 

And if yes, will this harm her health in any way? I don't want the milk if it'll harm her, but if there's a chance she may can still produce, I'd like to start milking her now that she's feeling better and if it's not too late, but ONLY if it won't cause her health to decline any more than it already has through the difficult kidding.


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

If you are still getting milk from her....chances are real good... for milk production...especially if .....she is a dairy type... and will last a long time.. in giving higher volume.... then meat type breeds.....they will also give milk for a time just not as long..........Just feed her good quality hay and increase her grain..... milk her daily...... just do the feed increase gradually ...so she doesn't scour.... :wink:


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## liz (Oct 5, 2007)

If you can milk her twice a day she will produce, it won't hurt her health. You know your girl, if she seems to be doing poorly in a few days to a week then back off and to once a day to allow her to dry up.
Massage her udder and bump her as a kid would and you should be able to get more than a few squirts, if you've never milked before, it takes patience and practice.
Also, since she's on penicillan, and it's just been a week, you may want to dump the milk for now...there's still colostrum in her udder too and until that is completely milked out it will make her milk have an odd taste. I personally dump milk if I need to give Penicillan for a week after the last injection because my hubby has a pen allergy and I don't want to risk him getting it second hand.


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## Maria (Jan 11, 2011)

Thank you Pam and Liz, I went to check on Billy Jean again (no changes) and had to come back in to google something. 

Is there ANYTHING that will cause the RIGHT side of a goat to move besides a kid? Not the rumen side, but the right side?

Either I am going crazy or that kid is still alive (I know there's no way it can be, no possible way), because me and my two daughters clearly saw a huge bulge move down from her belly, to up right beside the top of her leg. It looked like a ball rolling up her side.

If it had been just me I would have thought I was seeing things, but this is the first time I have seen her side move in DAYS, and my daughters saw it too.

I'm not about to do anything about it, I'm just wondering what in the heck could it be????

I will go milk her out when she gets her last shot, and start milking her twice per day. I don't plan to keep the first of the milk anyways, it's good to give to cats isn't it? It won't be worth keeping until she's producing a cup a day, I use a cup per 3 pound batch of soaps, and since I won't wish to be freezing any, until she starts producing that much, the milk can be tossed or given to the cats if it's ok for them to drink it. It'll be going for soaps only, until I get some udder wash. I have been cleaning her udders with just warm soapy water, nothing more, I can't figure out where to buy the udder wash. I was going to google it to find an online company, once I was ready to start collecting milk for cheese, but the first of any milk will go direct from goat to soap to be shipped out of state to my sister-in-law so udder wash isn't a dire need at this point.

She was also to get her first, good backside bath today. I've been washing her backside with warm sudsy water in a bucket, but today I was going to suds her backside and back legs up really good by the hose, but it's raining now, and none of my goats will stand still for a good scrub down when it's raining.


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## liz (Oct 5, 2007)

Hmmm...are you saying that Snow Whites belly moved? That is really wierd I've actually never seen a kid roll, more like pokes and jabs on the right.


Just a little FYI....I don't use udder washes or teat dips, I trim udders to prevent dirt from accumulating, a quick wash with a warm wet washcloth( added antibacterial soap in a small pail) if it's muddy out, if not then I use baby wipes on the udder and teats, wipe again after I'm done.
The milk is safe for the kitties...chickens like it too.


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## Maria (Jan 11, 2011)

Thank you Liz, yes, it is more of a "roll" upwards than a poke or jab like a kick would be. 

Maybe it's her intestines trying to get back in place after I scrambled them all up 

I didn't know one could use baby wipes, are these safe enough even if one plans to make cheese? I don't know how to pasturize the milk, and some have told me doing that takes a lot of nutrients out, but I'm not too sure about not pasturizing before giving it to the children to drink. It doesn't matter if it's for soaps, but I want to be very certain that I don't give any tp the children unless I know it's absolutely safe to drink.


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

> Thank you Pam and Liz,


 Your welcome... :wink:

Wow a moving bump....unusual...do you know how to bump a doe... to check for babies inside?


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## liz (Oct 5, 2007)

Maria, using the milk is all a personal preference, some pasteurize but most, including myself do not. The way I see it is this, I know my does are healthy, I know what goes into them and even though I don't use "hospital grade" sanitation, my does are clean, milking equipment is clean and my cheeses turn out great, I have only ever had raw milk..my niece and nephew enjoy it as well and no one has ever had any illness from it.

As I said, it is all in personal preference :wink:


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## Maria (Jan 11, 2011)

Pam, I did bounce her but couldn't tell. She didn't have that mushy feeling Blue Eyes had, but again, I wasn't able to tell. The vet also bounced her and said he did not believe there was a kid still in her. She did pass some more afterbirth this evening, oddly it did not have that rotten smell one would think it'd have after being in her for so long. It didn't smell like anything other than blood, no stinky eww smell at all. 

Someone said maybe the rumen settling could have been it, even if on the right side, so I am going to assume that all the pushing she did was her body trying to expel afterbirth, and has finally gotten it out. But will get an XRay to be double sure. 

Liz, thank you for the additional advice about the milk. When it comes time to milk for us, I do plan to get a proper pail, but for now I have been using a typical stainless steel bowl. 

Right now I know the pennicillin bottle says not to drink milk until 48 hours after last shot, she got that tonight, so I have 2 days to work on her udders before I will need to find a suitable milking pail, get some baby wipes, and find a good clean location for milking. I figure my shop is the best place for milking for humans, the greenhouse is way too dusty.


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## liz (Oct 5, 2007)

Maria.... With my mini girls, I milk into a SS bowl and then pour it into a lidded ice cream pail to be taken to the house without anything getting into it. It's a bit hard to find a decent priced SS pail to fit under a nigi!
Also, if you have a Tractor Supply close by, go to the dog leash/collar section...they have SS pails there..in varied sizes from 2 quarts to 2 gallons, they work just as well as a "milk pail" only thing is they don't have a cover, easily fixed though by putting a square of linen over it. Economical and serves the purpose.


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