# How do you milk?



## critterhavenfarm (Feb 19, 2009)

I have been milking since last year, and only do about 2-3 goats. But this year I'd like to milk all 7 I will have in milk instead of just letting the babies drink it all straight from mom, and get these girls used to and evaluate them on the milkstand.

Do you normally milk twice daily if your babies are dam fed also? What we normally do to raise babies is let them stay with the moms all day and then pull them at night and put up separately from the moms, so that we can give them their PM bottle. 

What I was thinking of doing was milking the moms out in the morning, then put the babies with them, but then they will still have drained the moms by afternoon...so does anyone milk just one time daily?

Looking so forward to all of this! Then next year when our own herdname girls are big enough to be bred and have babies I'll have about 15 to milk. Hopefully by then I'll have the barn setup with a milk parlor AND be able to have my pump and surgers ready to go!!

Susan


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## Amy Goatress (Oct 2, 2008)

We usually milk the dam after the kids have been weaned though, twice a day on everyone but some we bottle fed their kids from the beginning so they got milked twice a day, by hand. We don't usually milk our 1st fresheners unless they rejected their kids or have too much milk for their kids.


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## goathappy (Oct 5, 2007)

What we do is when the babies are at least 3 weeks old we start separating the kids from their moms at night and milk the moms out at night after the kids have been with them all day, then milk them in the morning when they are all full. When the kids are around 3 months old, we separate them and put the kids in a pen all the way across the yard where they cannot come in contact with their mothers. Boys will stay away from their mother permanently after weaning, and the does we keep away for 5-7 months, depending upon how stubborn the mothers are(usually 6 months 'breaks' the mothers and kids and they stop nursing when you put them together) When we separate kids we start milking the does twice a day.


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## liz (Oct 5, 2007)

At 3-4 weeks I separate at night...usually around 9, strip out mom then milk at 4:30 am (before work)and leave the kids with mom thru the day, at 7-8 weeks I keep them separate til after the second milking at 4 30 pm and then let them with mom til bedtime...has worked out well here.


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## K-Ro (Oct 14, 2007)

I milk twice a day and leave the kids on their moms. I really ought to take the kids away at night so at least I would get a decent amount in the mornings, this years kids are little pigs.


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## rebelshope (Sep 21, 2008)

I am new at this and I have only one doe in milk right now, but I left the kids with her for about 4 weeks. The kids were born in Jan and it was to darn cold to go out and milk :wink: . Now I bring the kids in between 8 and 9pm. Then I milk about 7 am and leave the kids with her all day.


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## StaceyRosado (Oct 5, 2007)

pull kids at around 10pm milk around 8 or earlier. Leave kids on mom all day and then repeat :thumb:


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## lesserweevil (Oct 5, 2007)

I do what Stacey said =]

LW


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