# Show me your milk rooms!



## Nigerian dwarf goat (Sep 25, 2017)

I am going to get a stall in my barn poured with concrete for a milk room!!! I need some ideas to keep it as organized and functionable as I can! Any ideas and pictures of your own would help out a ton!

Thank You,
Nigerian Dwarf Goat


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## Sfgwife (Feb 18, 2018)

Nigerian dwarf goat said:


> I am going to get a stall in my barn poured with concrete for a milk room!!! I need some ideas to keep it as organized and functionable as I can! Any ideas and pictures of your own would help out a ton!
> 
> Thank You,
> Nigerian Dwarf Goat


Mine is a simple milk stand and bucket for my hiney. I keep my jar of cream and jar of wet towels on the floor beside the stand. Simple but it works for me. I only milk one right now... tomorrow it will be two. So i dont need much. It is in the corner of a stall that we use for broody mamas, young kidlets, extra hay, a few feed bags and mineral. It does have a shelf and sometimes the shelf is nice for other things.


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## Nigerian dwarf goat (Sep 25, 2017)

@Sfgwife Is it a dirt or a concrete floor?
I think I am goin to corner off a section to put the babies, because right now, they are roamin the barn while i am milking because the goat pen is far away from the milk room and it makes me nervous!


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## Sfgwife (Feb 18, 2018)

Nigerian dwarf goat said:


> @Sfgwife Is it a dirt or a concrete floor?
> I think I am goin to corner off a section to put the babies, because right now, they are roamin the barn while i am milking because the goat pen is far away from the milk room and it makes me nervous!


Dirt


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## Goats Rock (Jun 20, 2011)

If you pour concrete, put a floor drain in. Even if it only runs to the outside, you can always run more pipe to channel it where you want it to go. 

I have a smooth finish and put rubber mats down so there are no slipping goats. Makes it easier to hose down and get rid of spilled milk, etc.


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## Nigerian dwarf goat (Sep 25, 2017)

Goats Rock said:


> If you pour concrete, put a floor drain in. Even if it only runs to the outside, you can always run more pipe to channel it where you want it to go.
> 
> I have a smooth finish and put rubber mats down so there are no slipping goats. Makes it easier to hose down and get rid of spilled milk, etc.


I am sloping it down so it can run down the drain pipe we have in the isle of the barn.


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## NigerianDwarfOwner707 (May 17, 2018)

Goats Rock said:


> If you pour concrete, put a floor drain in. Even if it only runs to the outside, you can always run more pipe to channel it where you want it to go.
> 
> I have a smooth finish and put rubber mats down so there are no slipping goats. Makes it easier to hose down and get rid of spilled milk, etc.


One trick. Instead of pouring concrete, get the 18x18 concrete squares from lowes. This is the base of where we put our barn down, and a patio for our goats. You can see them in this thread: https://www.thegoatspot.net/threads/woohoo-goat-barn.204871/page-4


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## Island Milker (Dec 11, 2018)

my milking stand is outside under a maple and cedar tree. Its kind of a pain in the ass in the winter needing to put a raincoat on to go milk and to get the goats to come out. It did just fine all winter however.
soon to have an area with a cover over it, maybe next year.


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## Sfgwife (Feb 18, 2018)

See. Simple and smallish. But it works for me. . Paul built my stand for me. Every week i scrub and bleach it and daily i wipe anything off that gets on it.


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## NigerianDwarfOwner707 (May 17, 2018)

Is it possible to leave goats in 24/7 with a milk stand?


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## Dwarf Dad (Aug 27, 2017)

NigerianDwarfOwner707 said:


> Is it possible to leave goats in 24/7 with a milk stand?


Yes, just make sure the stanchion cannot close and lock by itself. Or make sure to close and lock before leaving.


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## Sfgwife (Feb 18, 2018)

NigerianDwarfOwner707 said:


> Is it possible to leave goats in 24/7 with a milk stand?


I have a pin in mine that i lock open or closed as needed. I have had goats in that room and i just pin it open when they are not on the stand and never had problems. You can see it on the top left by the neck "leg"


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## SandyNubians (Feb 18, 2017)

:up:
I do that as well. Always opened fully when im not there. My goats are in with it 24/7. However, they love to use it as a sleeping spot, and doing so poo and pee all over it. I don't milk on it right now. I gotta resand and stain all of it again, after that it won't be in there anymore. Right now i just clip their collars to the fence and milk right there. Really gotta get my milk stand clean and ready again!


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## Trollmor (Aug 19, 2011)

Make sure it is very easy to keep clean! This must be done every day, no matter how sick you are! If possible make a gate that can close the others out, since you want them to be well willing to jump up when you want to milk them. It is easier to keep clean if the goats do not have access to the stand.


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## Nigerian dwarf goat (Sep 25, 2017)

The goats wont be able to access the milk room unless I bring them there or they get out. The hose is right behind the room and I have a little hole in the wall with a small pen to put babies while milking. I will need storage in there because the goat shed (the place I keep grain, hay, alfalfa, and supplies) is just a small deer stand with a door and a few windows (one window is busted out thanks to hurricane Harvey storms so a few feed bags is keeping it dry in there). So I will probably start keeping supplies and other stuff in the milk room to make the goat shed a little less crammed. I would keep the stuff in the tack room in the barn, but the chickens would get to it, and it is too far away from the goat pen. I keep cow, chicken, cat, dog, and donkey stuff in the tack room in the barn And old horse stuff that I need to get rid of to make more room in there.

I also keep the head lock open when I am not using it.


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## Trollmor (Aug 19, 2011)

A detail: Since I very much liked to have my goats eagerly queueing up to get in, I used to let the kids follow their mothers up onto the stand, and get some treat. Rather easy to teach them to come in when they were mature.


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## Chelsey (Dec 7, 2018)

My parents had a milking room for the cow while I was growing up. It was a room built off the barn that opened up into the cow pen. Some things that I would have changed if I could: insulating it (it was super cold in the winter and that made for stiff fingers), shelves within reach while milking (if I noticed a problem and had to use a product, it wasn’t within close range), smaller door (the door was the whole wall which was nice and big to let the cow in, but it sagged), and some kind of gritted concrete (the floor was smooth concrete which got slippery when wet). Things I really loved about the milking room: high pressure hose (to clean the floor and occasionally her poopy side, I seriously suggest one) large eating area (it made it so she ate grain slower. I would possibly add large rocks to make it even slower), and an open side into the barn (so I could still see what was going on and didn’t have to get up to check on things). Now I have just a stantion under a carport and would LOVE a milking room again. I made my stantion and while it’s functional, I have to sit behind the goat. I would like to be able to put my legs underneath it and milk from the side again.


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## Trollmor (Aug 19, 2011)

Stiff fingers and sore teats, especially if you use a milking machine. Yes, everything within decent reach. That is one of my reasons for having a separate room for milking, that allows the animals only when they get milked. Oh yes, all surfaces non-slide, both for humans and four-legged! They are supposed to go in there also when pregnant. Oh, yes, milking from the side is much more convenient, for both goat and milker, also when the goat does not need to lift her tail. 

If I had to choose between an insulated room and one that is easy to use in all these other ways, I think I would choose to hand milk and refrain from the insulation. Both are best, of course.

This is a very interesting thread. Anyone more who can share pictures of milking rooms and stands?

(Edit: A better word!)


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## BethJ (May 28, 2019)

I would love to see more pictures as well! I'm still planning my future milking area


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## Nigerian dwarf goat (Sep 25, 2017)

I will get a picture of my unfinished milk room in the morning. it only has a milk stand and a small pen in it right now though


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## cristina-sorina (May 4, 2018)

These are the best pictures I could find. Our milking station is pretty basic, it is right next to our goats loafing area. We have 2 stands butted up next to one another, I like the rail on the yellow stand, it provides a good place to brace the goat, especially if they're squirmy. We put an old folding table in front of the milking stands and it's a dirt floor underneath. We have running water in the barn and electricity which makes milking a lot easier.

I have dreams of pouring concrete with drainage in one of our stalls with a sink, a fridge, wipeable walls and cabinets to organize my goat pharmacy/ supplies. Oh and bright lights so I can see better...a girl can dream right??


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## Nigerian dwarf goat (Sep 25, 2017)

Here is my milk room. I will pour concrete, and put a shelf in. I can't wait for it to be finished!!!






























This is the view of the goat pen from the milk room, a little far away, but not too bad


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## Trollmor (Aug 19, 2011)

cristina-sorina, I just LOVE that photo of the suckling kid! What a style!!! But I would prefer the goats to be separated by a standing place for the milker, not forcing you to walk all the way around to start milking the next goat! If you have an assistant (child???), that person will have just about enough time to shift goats on one stand while you milk the goat on the other stand. If I can add to your dream, it would be a nice shelf for straining the milk after each goat, and another UNDER the stands, for the milk pot, to prevent hoofs into it ...

nigerian dwarf goat, I wonder how you use your stand? Are you sitting or standing when milking? How does the goat get up? If she jumps by the yellow bucket, and then you sit down on it, your clothes will get dirty when bad weather ...

I am impressed by the "crossword", and by the clock, and I wonder how you prevent the hens from messing on your coming milk shelf?


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## Nigerian dwarf goat (Sep 25, 2017)

Trollmor said:


> I wonder how you use your stand? Are you sitting or standing when milking? How does the goat get up? If she jumps by the yellow bucket, and then you sit down on it, your clothes will get dirty when bad weather ...
> 
> I have a little stool I sit on when I am milking. My goats just jump up on the stand, and since i have small goats, if they cant get up themselves, then I will lift them up. The yellow bucket is what I bring all my stuff out there with like the baby wipes, the bucket, etc
> 
> ...


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## Trollmor (Aug 19, 2011)

I meant the stones in the treat bucket. Anything that will cause the goat to get concentrated on searching for the goodies will do as a "crossword"!

But I am still puzzled. Are you sitting close to the goat you are milking? You can not possibly stand up!


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## Nigerian dwarf goat (Sep 25, 2017)

Trollmor said:


> nigerian dwarf goat, I wonder how you use your stand? Are you sitting or standing when milking? How does the goat get up? If she jumps by the yellow bucket, and then you sit down on it, your clothes will get dirty when bad weather ...


I have a little stool I sit on when I am milking. The goats just jump up on the milk stand themselves, and since my goats are little if they cant get up on the stand, I will just lift them up.



Trollmor said:


> I am impressed by the "crossword", and by the clock, and I wonder how you prevent the hens from messing on your coming milk shelf?


The chickens usually dont go into the milk room unless I open the gate, and when I go out to milk, the chickens are eating their scratch or are in the compost pile behind the barn and usually dont try to bother me.


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## Nigerian dwarf goat (Sep 25, 2017)

Trollmor said:


> Are you sitting close to the goat you are milking? You can not possibly stand up!


Yes, I have a little stool that I sit on when I milk, but it was in the garden because i was pulling weeds.


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## Nigerian dwarf goat (Sep 25, 2017)

Also as yall can see the little deer blind that I call the goat shed has a pallet with hay & alfalfa on it, 3 storage bins for feed and minerals, and a big box filled with goat stuff. It is very crammed in there and i would like to move some of the stuff into he milk room


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## Trollmor (Aug 19, 2011)

Nigerian dwarf goat said:


> Yes, I have a little stool that I sit on when I milk, but it was in the garden because i was pulling weeds.


Ah! As you can see, we do look carefully at your shared photos! 


Nigerian dwarf goat said:


> It is very crammed in there and i would like to move some of the stuff into he milk room


And get the milk room crammed instead? :hide:


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## cristina-sorina (May 4, 2018)

Trollmor said:


> cristina-sorina, I just LOVE that photo of the suckling kid! What a style!!! But I would prefer the goats to be separated by a standing place for the milker, not forcing you to walk all the way around to start milking the next goat! If you have an assistant (child???), that person will have just about enough time to shift goats on one stand while you milk the goat on the other stand. If I can add to your dream, it would be a nice shelf for straining the milk after each goat, and another UNDER the stands, for the milk pot, to prevent hoofs into it


We actually don't milk from the side, we milk our goats from behind so I don't have to go all the way around. Sometimes if they misbehave on the stand I will sit on the side of the stand and sort of pin them up to the rail so they can't dance around as much. 
I like your addition to my dream! That's an interesting idea to have a way to milk into a pot under the stand so thy can't get their hooves into it.


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## Trollmor (Aug 19, 2011)

Nice you like my addition, which I tried out for many years. Very rarely, a piece of dirt could land in the milk there underneath, and once actually a hoof (followed by the whole goat!!!), but most of the times even a dancing goat failed to put any much dirt into the milk. (Sometimes milk all over me and the rest of the room, though ...)

(I fail to understand how you reach the udders from behind on the yellow stand.)

Goat psychology, for those of you who are at the planning stage: Goats prefer to be milked from the side. Look at how they do when they feed their young! They check the kids' ID by sniffing on their butts, (which in its turn stimulates the youngsters to suck more intensive). If a human milks, the goat will also occasionally check ID by sniffing, which many of you no doubt have felt.

When you have filled your pot, you will gladly just turn around to fill the strainer, and then turn again to milk the next goat.

Be careful to have a good working position! Ergonomy!


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## cristina-sorina (May 4, 2018)

Trollmor said:


> (I fail to understand how you reach the udders from behind on the yellow stand)
> 
> Be careful to have a good working position! Ergonomy!


This is the best picture in could find if hubby milking. We sit on the back of the milk stand and put the pail right behind them, it actually keeps a lot of the belly hair from falling in. My brother in law who kept over 300 sheep in Romania and milked them twice a day to sell the milk and cheese always milked his sheep like that. I originally started milking on the side but decided to give his milking style a try and found it works so much better for me ergonomically speaking, plus I end up with cleaner milk. The goats have all gotten used to being milked from behind and do very well.


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## Nigerian dwarf goat (Sep 25, 2017)

I made some changes yesterday!! Also, instead of me pouring in concrete, I think I am going to use that money for a sink and a mini fridge! Since so many of y'all have dirt floors, I figured I could go without it and go with some other things that will make my milking much easier!


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## Trollmor (Aug 19, 2011)

@cristina-sorina Aha, you sit on the stand! Never occurred to me! This shows that also an old Troll can still learn new things! 

@Nigerian dwarf goat Beautiful shelf! I think you did the right thing! Also a concrete floor must be washed and brushed, so it is not so much more daily work to rake a dirt floor!


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## Nigerian dwarf goat (Sep 25, 2017)

Trollmor said:


> @cristina-sorina Aha, you sit on the stand! Never occurred to me! This shows that also an old Troll can still learn new things!
> 
> @Nigerian dwarf goat Beautiful shelf! I think you did the right thing! Also a concrete floor must be washed and brushed, so it is not so much more daily work to rake a dirt floor!


That is the thing. If i get a concrete floor, then i will have to get a pressure washer, and that is about 600 more dollars. Pouring concrete would probably cost me 5$ a square foot my milk room is about 20 x 10 so that will cost me another 1,000$. All in all, i think it would be better for me to keep a dirt floor and use the rest of the money to make improvements to my herd and to my other animals on my farm.


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## Chelsey (Dec 7, 2018)

Nigerian dwarf goat said:


> That is the thing. If i get a concrete floor, then i will have to get a pressure washer, and that is about 600 more dollars.


 My family used a special hose and nozzle, it attached right to a regular spigot. I don't know how much it cost, but it couldn't have been that much cause my dad does NOT spend extra money and he already had a pressure washer at the time. I do understand about the dirt floor though. It's cheaper and more easily maintained.


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## littleheathens (Apr 27, 2019)

Here's my super-not-fancy-but-upgraded milk space. It went from the dirtiest building on the farm to our attached garage (that we never park in). It's clean (enough), bright, social (kids help more now), my does are more compliant, and the person sized door leads to the kitchen- super handy. It's also near the hose and we moved feed that we soak each day into the garage too. Loving it!


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## Nigerian dwarf goat (Sep 25, 2017)

@littleheathens I love your milk room! So handy and convienent!


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## TexasGoatMan (Jul 4, 2015)

Depending on the weather I milk under a metal shed outside (cover) adjacent to the goat building/feed room or inside the building. Warm weather milking is done outside in the open and during cold winter weather milking is done inside the building.I can tell you that the goats prefer the outside stands over going inside unless it is cold or raining. I have shelving inside that holds all the wipes, creams or what ever is needed. Outside I just carry out the necessary items usually wipes and fightback spray. I use metal milking stands with head locks. The flooring on the stands are expended metal which allows the goats good footing and actually cleans some of the dirt from the hooves making trimming the hooves a little easier. The building is made of wood in the fashion of a normal house structure with a porch on the front to allow the goats to get onto before entering through the door. The Building has electricity for lights and other needs. Plans are to put in a small refrigerator soon for milk and other items needing refrigeration.


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