# Do baby goats always nurse so rough???



## New-goat-mom (May 21, 2017)

I will start by saying, I am SO glad I am not a momma goat! These kids are brutal when they nurse! It's bad enough with Anabelle's single but poor Eliza with the twins! She will stand with her legs spread and crouch a bit to add stability, then call them to nurse. They slam her udder as hard as they can. One day she hadn't got her stance perfect and they literally knocked her over. Is this normal? I haven't weighed them lately (I know I need to) but they are clearly growing, very active and playful, peeing and pooping normal... so I don't think she's starving them.


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## Davon (Sep 22, 2017)

Kids. . !

They do sound aggressive. Don't know that there is anything you can do about it besides weaning though. I get really mad when they rip skin off of the udders. I guess that is why some do all bottle feeding. I'm not willing for that, but if I had an expensive show goat, I might.


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## mariarose (Oct 23, 2014)

It isn't an "always", but it is a "too often" I have had them completely take mom off her feet before. I have a doe this year that the kid has ripped the skin on the teat. I started taping the teat so that the sides were taped, not the tips, so that the teeth were on the tape but the kid was still able to nurse. It sorta worked...


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## mariarose (Oct 23, 2014)

Give the moms chopped up garlic and vitamin C. This will help stave off brutality mastitis and support mammary tissue.


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## fivemoremiles (Jan 19, 2010)

If you think that kids are rough. some time watch lambs nurse. lambs butt so hard that the ewe is lifted up.


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## mariarose (Oct 23, 2014)

fivemoremiles said:


> If you think that kids are rough. some time watch lambs nurse. lambs butt so hard that the ewe is lifted up.


I get an image of a gang of lamb "Toughs" striding about in gang colours randomly tumbling ewes....


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## ISmellLikeGoats (Oct 4, 2017)

That's true about lambs, we have orphan lambs on one of our goats and they are brutal, they pretty much pick up the smaller goat.


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## cwatkin (Jul 9, 2012)

This seems to be normal and I have seen some of my kids lift the back end of the mother off the ground as well. I think it stimulates milk release or something but yes, it does look quite rough.

Conor


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## Damfino (Dec 29, 2013)

Some of our kids are rough--especially the buck kids--but some of my mamas are also very good disciplinarians. I have one doe, Petunia, that's really good at refusing to let her babies nurse unless they are being polite. She'll either walk off or bite their tails until they learn manners and I have to watch her udder for over-filling during that stage. I like a strict but caring mama. Petunia's babies are always very friendly but polite toward people too.


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

They do get rough, it is not fun to watch. 

Has anyone's goat ever gotten injury caused by hitting her udder too hard, like small lumps internally in her udder up above her teats where they pound her so hard or bruising?


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## mariarose (Oct 23, 2014)

I suspect that I have, but it is hard to prove a single cause.


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## New-goat-mom (May 21, 2017)

Well it sounds like a lot of the babies get pretty rough. Thankfully she doesn't seem to be inured... yet. They are, however, only 3 weeks old. I keep thinking I would let them starve to death if I was their mother! Lol


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## Treu Shutz (Feb 27, 2018)

Davon said:


> Kids. . !
> 
> They do sound aggressive. Don't know that there is anything you can do about it besides weaning though. I get really mad when they rip skin off of the udders. I guess that is why some do all bottle feeding. I'm not willing for that, but if I had an expensive show goat, I might.


They're rough during bottle feeding too if I don't have a good grip on the bottle Chilli will clear knock it out my hand or pull it out my hand


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