# Dam Raising vs. Bottle Raising?



## Ali_1010 (May 8, 2011)

Ahhh! So, I went to a NDG breeder today to meet her and see her herd (she has AMAZING animals, WOW!) and we talked "goats" for quite awhile. 

However, she bottle feeds all her kids, and warned me my incoming doeling from another breeder (who is dam raised) will most likely be very wild and hard to tame and I should try showing her best I can, try and get her nice kids from her (which I would bottle raise) and then sell her off as a lawn ornament. 

So my question is-how hard IS it really to tame a dam raised kid?


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## freedomstarfarm (Mar 25, 2011)

My kids are all dam raised never even seen a bottle and they will come right up to you and climb on your lap after the initial _who is this new person_ phase. 
I really think that is is all in the amount of time spent with them and the way you handle them. 
Only two of my adults were bottle babies. One drives me crazy climbing all over me and blocking gates. The other is still not even 6 mos yet but seams great about not jumping on you. 
Of all the others only one doesn't let you get close and she came to me already 3 yrs old a year ago is now starting to come sniff. The rest love to come up and be petted and loved.

Give the one you are getting some time and even if she starts out skittish she should come around.


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## KW Farms (Jun 21, 2008)

Here is an article written by a local farm near us on bottle feeding vs. dam raising. http://ctcfarm.com/goatbottlefeed.html I agree with this article almost completely. :thumb:

I try my very best to keep my kids dam raised. I'm not a big fan of bottle kids...just from personal experience with them. I have had VERY friendly kids, some that are tolerant, and some that are wild...all being dam raised. The tame kids are the ones that i've handled early on and spent time with, where the wild ones I got really busy or caught up in other things and didn't have enough time to spend with them in those first couple of weeks after birth.

However, i've found that with frequent handling and treats, you can tame a wild kid pretty easily. But it does take consistent work.


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## AlaskaBoers (May 7, 2008)

Some of my most friendly does are actually dam raised, and then you have the issue of goats...not acting like goats should after they've been bottlefed! they can become monsters! lol. 

Honestly I think it really depends on the temperaments of the parents.


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## HoosierShadow (Apr 20, 2010)

We have boer percentage goats, and all ours are friendly except for the fullblooded doe who won't come to you. If you catch her she is usually just fine, but good luck walking up to her - simply because nobody messed with her before we got her.
All our kids are dam raised and are such spoiled brats  They never run from you and always eager for attention.

Our fullblooded buck came to us untamed at 2 1/2 years old - took 3 people to catch him and hold him for trimming/meds/etc. He's probably the biggest baby of them all! He loves to be rubbed behind the ears. Of course he's soooo stinky right now since he's back with the girls...heh....

If your getting a young doeling that might be a bit wild, I really recommend working with her as much as possible. Our two youngest twins are a month old and were a bit wild/scared of us, now they want nothing more than to be rubbed on and talked too, it's soo cute


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## Burns Branch Boers (Apr 11, 2011)

My buckling was raised, by his dam, on a ranch. When I saw him at 3 months old he took off and ran the other direction! LOL 

But when we got him home we gave him treats-would always sit and talk to him, pet him. Right away he came up to us. Today he just turned 6 months old and he is a very well behaved little buckling and he LOVES his human brother and sister (my children) and if I would let him, he would curl up in my lap and go to sleep! LOL!!


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## Sunny Daze (May 18, 2010)

Well, I would have to disagree with some points in that article but thats just my opinion  I have found no difference in the mothering abilities of my dam raised vs. bottle raised. I have had terrible mothers that were dam raised and wonderful mothers that were bottle raised. Also, if you milk your does and give them this milk vs. replacer, they should be getting the same immunity as if they were drinking it straight from mom. I do, however, think dam raised kids tend to grow better with less maintenance when they are younger. After all they do have access to milk 24/7. They also start to eat grain sooner since they watch mom (although having bottle kids in with an older kid can help too).

With that said, I bottle some and dam raise some depending on how busy I am when the particular doe kids. I will say the does I have that give me the biggest headache are my dam raised kids!! I have a lot on my plate and while I try and make time just to go in and play with the dam raised kids daily, it doesn't always happen and never seems to be quite enough. 

Another thing I have noticed is that some of my friendliest does who I have let dam raise have still ended up with wild kids so I think the amount of time spent with the kids really is the big factor!


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## TheMixedBag (Oct 16, 2010)

Not a huge fan of bottle raising goats for myself, all my kids were dam raised this year. It really does depend on how much and how well they're handled from birth. My buckling was dam-raised, took about 2 weeks to tame him down, and we're just starting halter breaking this month. My Saanen doe was dam raised, tamed down in about 3 days with milking and treats. My nubian doe was bottle raised and will NOT get out of our way...she's also very very licky, and we're still not sure why.


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## liz (Oct 5, 2007)

I let my mamas raise their kids....And even though I have house chores as well as a full time job, when I decided to get goats 11 years ago, I made them a top priority...Wether I ever decided that I would be able to show or just have them as I do now, they are not a job to me, they are an extremely enjoyable part of my life and I treat them as such. Each and every kid born here has gone to a new home being a friendly, loveable addition to a new herd.
As was mentioned...taking the time to just relax and sit and cuddle new kids makes them more people oriented and once the initial phase of getting to know their new "person" and new home is over, they continue to be happy little characters that love attention.
Mama knows best when it comes to feeding them and I have been around enough bottle kids to know that regardless of wether they are bottlefed because mama can't feed them or because it was the choice of the breeder to see that dam raised are just as sweet and friendly provided you do more than just feed and water them.

Every breeder is different and I'm sure that each method of feeding kids has it's own advantages.


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## firelight27 (Apr 25, 2009)

I dam raise all of mine. I really think it is more healthy for them to be dam raised in the long run, as long as your does are tested CAE free. Like everyone else has said, its about the amount of time spent handling the kids. I've found the friendliest kids are the ones I take in the house and cuddle with on the couch. They aren't distracted by their siblings and mother at that point and as long as you are careful of watching for accidents, seem to love jumping all over the couch. But I've also found you absolutely must spend as much time as possible with them in that very first week or you'll more work ahead of you trying to convince them you are not the boogeyman.


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## milkmaid (Sep 15, 2010)

I agree with almost everything that has been said here!


> she bottle feeds all her kids, and warned me my incoming doeling from another breeder (who is dam raised) will most likely be very wild and hard to tame


That is NOT necessarily true. It depends on how much they are handled, especially when very young.


> So my question is-how hard IS it really to tame a dam raised kid?


Really, how hard is it to cuddle a cute, mischievous little pixie-faced baby every day? :greengrin: 
As for taming a doeling that is already wild, I've never tried it. I did have a dam-raised buckling that was a little stand-offish, and with frequent handling (which is possible for me because my goats are more pets than farm animals) he is really friendly now.

IMO, it would be WAY easier (not to mention more natural) to let the mamas raise them, and cuddle them often; than to stick to a regimented feeding schedule night and day, and then have to teach them manners because they are so pushy and forward!
Again, that's just opinion. I can't argue too strongly about it because I've never raised or even owned a bottle baby.


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## Paige (Oct 14, 2010)

I am not so into dam raising. I bottle all of my kids. One reason is I don't have a lot of time to tame them down or chase them to catch them. Every dam raised goat I have seen has been a jumpy nervous wreck for anywhere from a couple of months to a couple of years. I DID one time buy a little month old saanen wether that was on his mom but I put him on a bottle right away and he tamed down. He is still not as friendly as my other goats but he is not hard to catch or anything. The all the other dam raised goats I have had have been pretty jumpy and hard to handle. One time I had a couple of oberhasli does that a was boarding for about 6 months. I was milking those crazy goats the entire time in the same order and same routine but a lot of the time I either had to a take out a can of grain or a lasso to catch them. I spent just as much time with them as I do my other goats but they would never really tame down. As soon as I thought I was getting some where they would do something crazy like try to trample me or try to jerk my arm out of its socket and gallop away. They were not the only dam raised goats I have had but all the others were all pretty similar. This is just my opinion and I have nothing against people who leave their babies on the mom but it just does not work for me.


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## Mini Goat Lover (May 4, 2011)

All my kids are dam raised and they are super sweet and friendly. I think it all depends on how much time the breeder spends with the kids on a daily basis so they get used to people. I believe almost any goat can be tamed with a little love and treats.


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## NubianLover (Sep 19, 2010)

I purchased three bottle babies this year. The buckling is friendly, but he also isn't always wanting to be in your lap, either. The two doelings I purchased are still on the bottle and sometimes drive me nuts! They keep trying to nurse off my arms, clothes, ANYTHING.... (and I do correct them!) 

As to my older does.... Half have been bottle raised, the other half were not. They are all equally friendly.... In fact.... my dam raised does try to lick your face when they see you. And these girls were "wild" up until last year as they weren't handled very much.

So, I agree, it depends on the goats and their temperments.


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## Devin (Feb 6, 2011)

I've got 2 4 month old babies, my doeling was raised a bottle baby, and my wether was dam raised. Both are very nice and neither are afraid of us. My wether is the one who has the worst pushy habits like jumping up and such. He tries to climb on everybody! My doeling has jumped up on us occassionally but gets the point easily when tapped on the nose and doesn't do it again. Of the 2 she is definately the sweetest! Her worst habit is chewing on clothes! but he does that too. He is harder to catch, because its a game to him, he is not scared, he just wants to be chased! LOL! My doeling comes running everytime she sees us.

I think if a goat is dam raised out in a big pasture where they get very little attention then, OF COURSE they are gong to be a pain to tame down. But if they are treated like pets and given attention I really don't see much of a difference. 

Bottle babies don't have to be pushy either, mine is not! I think a lot of people let bottle babies get away with murder and then wonder why they are brats when they grow up! It was so adorable when they were 10 pounds, but not so much when they are 100 pounds! That is something we thought about daily with our bottle baby, we did not let her get away with anything we didn't want her doing at 100 pounds.

So really, dam raised vrs bottle fed is not the real issue I don't think. Some of it has to do with personality of the goat, but I would say 80% would have to do with how people interact with them. you can have a wild dam raised kid, or give him daily attention so that he enjoys people. You can also have a pushy ill mannered bottle kid, or you can teach them manners like their momma would and be just fine!


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## Goat Song (May 4, 2011)

I dam raise all of my kids. Soooo much easier! All of my kids act like they were bottle raised though; very friendly, and they love to be in your lap and follow you everywhere.  

If you get a shy dam raised kid (or bottle raised...) try giving them raisins! I have yet to see a goat that didn't come around when offered a raisin! At first, you might have to gently pop the treat in their mouth, as not all of them are curious enough to make the first move. But once they realize that humans are the treat dispensers, they go ballistic with joy every time they see you in hopes that they will get another goodie! :wink: 

I tried bottle raising my kids this year, but everyone suffered. The kids wouldn't take the bottle no matter what I did. The mama's wailed (gotta love those dramatic Nubians!), wanting their kids back, and I was all around flustered. I like the dam's to keep their kids for awhile (once the kids hit 2 weeks though, I separate them at night). One of my does likes to "talk" to her kids while they are still in the womb (SO cute!), and she gets so excited when her kids are finally born! You can just see her face light up with joy! Hehe, so she gets to keep her kids extra long.  

I think it boils down to personal preference. I don't think one way is superior to the other. Each has its pros and cons, and I think it's up to each person to decide which way works best for them and for their goats. 

I hope you enjoy your new doeling that's coming! Congrats!


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## liz (Oct 5, 2007)

> I think if a goat is dam raised out in a big pasture where they get very little attention then, OF COURSE they are gong to be a pain to tame down. But if they are treated like pets and given attention I really don't see much of a difference.


Absolutely.....not saying theres anything wrong with raising up large herds, but the management is much different than having just a small pet type herd. I think thats where the misconception of "dam raised=wild kids" comes into play....I'd be scared of being around people too if I've been just with goats and the only time I was picked up was to get a needle poke for a vaccination.
Commercial goat breeders do business in a different manner than those who only have a few goats to keep.
I personally only have at max maybe 6 kids born each year, mainly because of my time restrictions but I know it's better for my animals to be able to have the one on one attention they get and thrive on. And though I do enjoy the milk...hand milking more than 3 does a year would have me getting up at 3:30 am instead of 4am to milk and feed before work....and I really like my sleep.


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## freedomstarfarm (Mar 25, 2011)

I do have a pretty large herd (about 25 total) but I also am a stay at home mom. I answer phones for a dog training company. It allows me to spend a lot of time out with the goats. My older daughter who is almost 2 loves petting them and the kids get a ton of attention from her and I. We also have family, neighbors and friends that are over all the time playing with them. 
I will say that is not what I have seen from most other large herd and even some small. Some people don't have the time and unfortunately others the desire to spend with their goats. 

Each has their own personality but thru all the time we spend with them we get them very friendly with us all but that one girl who is just now starting to come around. 
We had some people com the other day to look and they commented that "they are just like dogs, they come and stand next to you to be petted"


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## Jessaba (May 13, 2010)

I dam raised all my goats unless its necessary to bottle feed. As far as getting dam raised goats tame...very easy...spend time with them. When I have babies I spend at least an hour or two a day with...at first they aren't sure what to think of you..but the more they see you the more they want to play with you and jump on you...bottle raised goats don't act like goats as they aren't taught how. 

Just my opinion...


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## BoerKikoLady (Nov 2, 2010)

I prefer dam raising. Kids may be a little wilder at first vs bottle, but by the time they are 6 months old they are fine. If I do have to bottle baby I keep them with their mom or the herd. They learn alot from their moms including what to eat and what not to eat. If mom is quiet they will tend to be the same.


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## Pygmy Packer (May 19, 2011)

I have a dam raised Pygmy wether and doe(BTW I know the giy I got them from did not spend more than 30sec. a day with them) and thay are both tamer than any of my brother's bottle rased Obes(7).

So I agree with prity much every thing here but I think that breed also plays a factor.

O, and wethers are brats to some level or another  :thumb: :sigh: 

And I just witnest my wether get owt of the goat pen so good by for now :thumb:


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## Dreamchaser (Oct 30, 2008)

I don't notice a difference between bottle fed and dam raised. I have had both, and as long as you spend quality time with the goats they are about as even as you can get. The only difference that I have noticed are the bottle fed ones can be pushier.


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