# girls first time on stand



## ohiogoatgirl (Jan 31, 2010)

well i just moved the milk stand into the barn and organized some stuff in there. i put the girls on the stand to trim their hooves. they liked getting fed, the rest they didnt care for too much. :roll: 
need to make a little door in the wall between the milk area and the goat area. because right now i have to walk each goat through the gate, into the barn, onto the stand. i want to get that door in soon so i can start feeding them each on the stand like will be done once i start milking.
i cant wait! they are due about may 18!


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## milkmaid (Sep 15, 2010)

Cool! :thumb: My first milking goat hadn't been accustomed to a stand or to having her udder touched before kidding, so when she did kid, it was a real pain to teach her to milk.
With my second milker, before kidding I made sure to get her on the stand every few days or so, going through the motions of milking her. The first time I really milked her, she did GREAT!


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

They will adapt to it... milk stands are a neat asset to have.... :thumb: :greengrin:


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## ohiogoatgirl (Jan 31, 2010)

DAY 2: fed each goat on milk stand. pet them all over. they still pull their belly up when i first touch their belly, but i think thats mostly because it seems to tickle. ha ha! they did good. they see me put the feed in the bucket in the stand and they want the feed... moonbeam jumped right up once she saw the feed and i wouldnt let her around the front of the stand to eat. but milky way puts her front legs up on the stand and starts eating but wont jump all the way up. so i have to pick up her butt and get her the rest of the way up. gonna make her jump up tommarrow. i cant wait to start milking!!! about 68 days left until they kid!!!


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## milk and honey (Oct 31, 2010)

Good Girl!! i'm very excited for you... Just beginning myself and having some problems... let mine be a lesson for you! ha ha I'm getting my second doe introduced to the milk stand too. she's due
June 10. 
Have fun!!


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

Sounds great....good job... :hi5: :thumb:


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## nubians2 (Feb 20, 2011)

I don't have my stand built yet but every time I go out to feed I am always feeling up under her belly. Some days it doesn't seem to bother her and others she stops eating and just looks around. Only once has she actually lifted her back legs. I did this occassionally before she was bred and she didn't care at all then so she must be getting more sensitive in that area. I am hoping that by working with her now that it will make things easier later, well atleast I am keeping my fingers crossed that way. The funny thing is that it will be first time and mine too. I guess we will learn together.


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## FunnyRiverFarm (Sep 13, 2008)

I never try to touch my does udder areas (other than to clip hair away ONCE before their due dates) before they kid. It is natural for them to want to protect their udder area/milk supply before they give birth--they are holding out for their babies and any threat to that is very offensive. I feed them on the milk stand but I don't mess with udders at all in non-lactating does and have never had any milk stand issues that were not easily corrected within a couple of days. After kidding, most does WANT to have their udders and teats handled so they don't get nervous and fidgity about it. In my experience, forming a trusting relationship with the doe and establishing a routine before kidding goes much farther in terms of milkstand manners than any amount of forcible udder handling.


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## ohiogoatgirl (Jan 31, 2010)

DAY 3
got them both to jump up on the stand. thats the only thing that i'm really working on. getting them used to the stand and me touching their belly. mostlyi just sit there and pet em.


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## Amos (Oct 2, 2008)

How's it going so far? 
The first week or so of trying to get a FF used to milking is going to be hell, but like FRF said, it gets better! 
What kind of goats do you have?


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## WarPony (Jan 31, 2010)

FunnyRiverFarm said:


> I never try to touch my does udder areas (other than to clip hair away ONCE before their due dates) before they kid. It is natural for them to want to protect their udder area/milk supply before they give birth--they are holding out for their babies and any threat to that is very offensive. I feed them on the milk stand but I don't mess with udders at all in non-lactating does and have never had any milk stand issues that were not easily corrected within a couple of days. After kidding, most does WANT to have their udders and teats handled so they don't get nervous and fidgity about it. In my experience, forming a trusting relationship with the doe and establishing a routine before kidding goes much farther in terms of milkstand manners than any amount of forcible udder handling.


I really appreciated this advice when you shared it with me last summer. I backed off on handling their udders (I still touched them on their belly and legs but didn't mess with their udders) and just focused on getting them used to the stand and stuff because they were VERY violent if I tried to handle their udder area. Being a horse person i was used to getting my animals desensitized to everything ahead of time so it felt like the totally wrong thing to do. lol.

But once they had their kids and nursed for a while they were much more cooperative.... as long as they had food in front of them. lol. The second they run out of food they start to buck like broncos, haha!! So I waited until they had their kids and fed them on the stand and just handled their udders before I needed to milk them and by the time I started milking them about 2 weeks after kidding they were awesome about it... as long as they had food.


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## ohiogoatgirl (Jan 31, 2010)

so its been a week... decided against cutting a door in the wall. i unrolled a bit of fence from the gate to the door. now i just open the gate and the goat walks right in to the stand. 
their udders are starting to come in a bit around the teats. i cant wait for them to kid!


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## WarPony (Jan 31, 2010)

ohiogoatgirl said:


> so its been a week... decided against cutting a door in the wall. i unrolled a bit of fence from the gate to the door. now i just open the gate and the goat walks right in to the stand.
> their udders are starting to come in a bit around the teats. i cant wait for them to kid!


The waiting is the hardest part. I usually really have a lot of patience. I have no problem waiting until Christmas to open my presents, lol. But OH MY GOSH. Waiting for the girls to kid made me crazy. Now i am all impatient for this winter and to breed them back and then have more kids next spring. I get all giddy just thinking about it. hehe.


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