# Issues with FF Lots of questions ***update, new questions***



## jay13 (Apr 12, 2009)

Ok so my doe Vanilli Kidded on the 29th and I am finally a first time goat mommy! Anyway, she just had one very big doe and I noticed that her udder is VERY lopsided. I figured this was probably due to the baby just nursing off the one side because it gets and stays VERY full even though she stays with her kid all day. So.... trying to remedy this I have been trying to milk out that side to keep the pressure down so that the little gal can nurse from that side(which she has done on occasion). How do I fix it? Do I just have to keep milking out that side every day twice a day? I also noticed when I milk the one side that there is a lot of milk on the other side as well so I have been milking both which means I have been getting about a quart of milk a day already! Unfortunately it tastes a little off... like a bit of a sour high note to it. Is this just because it is so new? I took the milk from the first day to freeze as colostrum but is it possible that this continued milk is also colostrum or has it in it? I have never had milk taste like this before. The milk gets strained and cooled immediately after milking and I have tried as best I can for good sanitation, sterilizing utensils ect. Is it a case of new milk? What can I do with the extra milk since it really doesn't taste that good.... cheese? or is it just pet milk? How long can I expect this to last?

Also, I had Vanilli pretty well milk stand trained before she freshened, she loved to get up on the stand for her grain. Lately though I have had to drag her up or even milk on the ground. The latter was this evening with disastrous results I might add. I thought we were doing pretty good but even putting her front feet up and picking up her back end didn't work tonight  I must have looked a sight!


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## StaceyRosado (Oct 5, 2007)

*Re: Issues with FF Lots of questions*

yes the milk has traces of colostrum for a week or so. I always wait 2 weeks before drinking the milk.

As to the lopsided udder - yah thats how to help her out, I would milk twice a day. Thats a good producer for a FF you want to keep that production up.

Milking stand behavior is hard when they are first taken from their kids they dont like it. Try bringing her kid with you to the milking stand so she doesnt feel like you are stealing her from her kid.


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## CrossCreekTX (Aug 10, 2009)

*Re: Issues with FF Lots of questions*

Only let her have grain on the stand and be firm. She'll soon be ok with milking. I'd milk her routinely 2x a day, both sides. You can leave a little in the side the kid is nursing but drain the other completely.

Freeze the colostrum tasting milk in case you need to supplement one of the other doe's babies or decide to switch the doeling to the bottle.

IMHO it is easier to take the kids and bottle raise them than leaving them on mom. You don't have near the hassle at weaning time and don't have to separate the kids at the time when you really want them joining the herd and going on pasture. You also have more control over how much the kid eats and can keep a closer eye on the doe's udder. Many high producers give more than the kids need leading to mastitis and/or a kid that is overfed. Overfed kids don't develop as good a rumen as slightly underfed ones do.

I think the does are happier without the kids hanging on them too. At least mine are. They like their freedom and enjoy getting on the milk stand for their grain and milking sessions.

Just my way of doing things, other people have other ways.


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## jay13 (Apr 12, 2009)

*Re: Issues with FF Lots of questions*

Due to the way we are set up right now, the only way to take the kid off of the dam is to put the kid in the tiny indoor kidding pen all day. I just can't bear to do that to her since I feel she should be able to romp and play with her friends, our whether and the cat...lol Also momma goes nutsoid if I keep the kid from her. The other day Dexy, the doeling wound up on the wrong side of the fence and Vanilli would not leave the fence until I picked up Dexy and brought her back around. Very Frustrating.

ETA: I got a quart of milk this morning from Vanilli and it doesn't taste bad anymore! Yay!


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## StaceyRosado (Oct 5, 2007)

*Re: Issues with FF Lots of questions*

you can always separate at night -- thats what i do once the kids reach 4 weeks old, I get milk and so do the kids. Helps keep production up as the kids demand and I demand.


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## jay13 (Apr 12, 2009)

*Re: Issues with FF Lots of questions*

Good news on the milk stand front. She is now jumping up onto the stand to get her twice daily ration of grain. Thank good ness because lifting her up onto the stand twice a day was getting old fast! The doeling is still nursing primarily off of one side but the one time I taped the used teat to make her drink off the other, the taped teat started spraying because it was so full, I felt terrible! Should I consider doing this perhaps during the day so (which is the shorter period of time between milkings) or just leave it be? I really dont' want her udder to stay uneven! BTW at one week fresh I am getting about a quart of milk a day even while leaving the kid on her 24/7!


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## StaceyRosado (Oct 5, 2007)

*Re: Issues with FF Lots of questions*

I think you will just have to keep milking her because she is making more milk then one kid can handle.


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## jay13 (Apr 12, 2009)

*Re: Issues with FF Lots of questions*

Ok, new questions... lol

I am getting about a quart from her in the morning and a cup or two at night... when can I start separating them at night so that I get the most bang for my time?

I noticed this morning when I went to milk her that the full side (Dexy, the doeling still prefers the left side to the right) was actually leaking milk all over the place and there was a big puddle of it where she was laying. I am losing milk to the ground! How can I prevent this? Or is it just a matter of letting her udder expand so that she can contain the milk she makes? I was told that her mother was a gallon milker so I expect that she will really start producing soon.

Also there is still a bit of a tang to the milk... any ideas? or could I still be just getting a bit of colostrum in it?

ETA: I saw Dexy nibbling on some hay today just like her momma... I swear she was born a week old!

Thanks again for your help


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## StaceyRosado (Oct 5, 2007)

*Re: Issues with FF Lots of questions ***update, new question*

I wait till the kids are 2 weeks old before separating.

You can milk her more often to reduce the amount of milk leaking onto the ground.

the tang could just be the way her milk will taste. What breed of goat is she?

Are you cooling the milk immediately? What i do is put an ice pack in the milk bucket to start the cooling process as I milk


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## jay13 (Apr 12, 2009)

*Re: Issues with FF Lots of questions ***update, new question*

Yeah, I am doing the whole icy water bottle in the bucket thing. She is a pure bred alpine girl. She still looks so lopsided, and she was crying at me this morning when I came out as if to say "Maaaammaaaaa I need help!" of course she is still being an absolute pill on the stand but at least she jumps up on her own now. If I start to milk her, say, three times a day, won't that just compound the problem by making her produce even more that she can't carry?

How long does it typically take for a doe's udder to stretch out enough to contain the milk?

Dexy will be two weeks old tomorrow... and like I said I swear she was born a week old! 9 pounds 13 ounces and horn buds already showing! I wound up disbudding her at 2 days old! Do you think I can start separating them now?


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