This is my guide to breeding and birthing goats
First lets review the technical goat terms:
Buck or Billy=Male goat capable of breeding.
Doe or Nanny=Female goat.
Doeling= A female goat who has not been bred or not sexually mature.
Kid=A Baby Goat.
Buckling=A Male baby goat fully intact.
Wether=A neutered male goat.
Side note Polled means that it was born without horns if they are born with horns I might say horned or nothing at all
Next here's some breeds and what they are used for
The Nigerian Dwarf Goat(NDG) used for Milk,Meat and Breeding
The Pygmy Goat used for Meat,Breeding and annoying everybody
The Boer Goat used for Meat
The Nubian Goat used for Meat and Hide
I have NDG and Pygmy goats so this will be my experience with them but it should apply to most goats
#1 Enviornment and Habitat
Goats are great in areas with overgrown foliage but during storms or bad weather they should have proper cover and housing
they need plenty of room 20 square feet each roughly
#2 Buck to Doe ratio
1 buck can cover up to 40 does at 3+ years
I think 1 buck with 3-4 does should be a good backyard herd
right now we have 2 does with one buck and they are doing good but I don't recommend having 2 bucks with under 10 girls
#3 Breeding
First you want to make sure the Buck is healthy before he covers the Does up to date with his shots and wormed
You can get a stud service but I recommend having him with the does for 45 days to make sure they have been sucessfully covered
#4 Pregnancy
The gestation period for goats is 5 months(153days)or whenever its inconvienent for you
#5 Birthing
If it is her first time she may need help
You can tell when a goat has gone into labor because she will be away from the other goats and will be having "birth juice?" coming out and her sides will be hollow
Usually they won't need help but be prepared.Do not intervene unless she looks like shes having a hard time
If she is giving birth at night,you chug some coffee and stay with her(if it is her first time)
Once the kid is delivered dip its umbilical cord in iodine and give mama some warm water to drink
There will be afterbirth pick that up with a pitchfork and put it in the woods leave mama with her baby
If the baby goat is constapated then consider giving them an enema this is a guide to how to give a baby goat an enema
Google Tennessee meat goats enema(I tried to add a link but it wouldn't let me)
#6 How to bottle feed
IF the mama wont nurse her kid(s) you are gonna need to bottle feed them
Get some GMR(goat milk replacement) use the directions that should be located on the back and heat it up until warm but not hot.Get a bottle with a teat they might have some at TSC and hold the baby goat on your lap and they should take right to the teat
A good YouTube channel for raising goats is "weed em and reap" they are a great homestead and I have learned a lot from them
Thank you for reading please comment on anything I might have gotten wrong
First lets review the technical goat terms:
Buck or Billy=Male goat capable of breeding.
Doe or Nanny=Female goat.
Doeling= A female goat who has not been bred or not sexually mature.
Kid=A Baby Goat.
Buckling=A Male baby goat fully intact.
Wether=A neutered male goat.
Side note Polled means that it was born without horns if they are born with horns I might say horned or nothing at all
Next here's some breeds and what they are used for
The Nigerian Dwarf Goat(NDG) used for Milk,Meat and Breeding
The Pygmy Goat used for Meat,Breeding and annoying everybody
The Boer Goat used for Meat
The Nubian Goat used for Meat and Hide
I have NDG and Pygmy goats so this will be my experience with them but it should apply to most goats
#1 Enviornment and Habitat
Goats are great in areas with overgrown foliage but during storms or bad weather they should have proper cover and housing
they need plenty of room 20 square feet each roughly
#2 Buck to Doe ratio
1 buck can cover up to 40 does at 3+ years
I think 1 buck with 3-4 does should be a good backyard herd
right now we have 2 does with one buck and they are doing good but I don't recommend having 2 bucks with under 10 girls
#3 Breeding
First you want to make sure the Buck is healthy before he covers the Does up to date with his shots and wormed
You can get a stud service but I recommend having him with the does for 45 days to make sure they have been sucessfully covered
#4 Pregnancy
The gestation period for goats is 5 months(153days)or whenever its inconvienent for you
#5 Birthing
If it is her first time she may need help
You can tell when a goat has gone into labor because she will be away from the other goats and will be having "birth juice?" coming out and her sides will be hollow
Usually they won't need help but be prepared.Do not intervene unless she looks like shes having a hard time
If she is giving birth at night,you chug some coffee and stay with her(if it is her first time)
Once the kid is delivered dip its umbilical cord in iodine and give mama some warm water to drink
There will be afterbirth pick that up with a pitchfork and put it in the woods leave mama with her baby
If the baby goat is constapated then consider giving them an enema this is a guide to how to give a baby goat an enema
Google Tennessee meat goats enema(I tried to add a link but it wouldn't let me)
#6 How to bottle feed
IF the mama wont nurse her kid(s) you are gonna need to bottle feed them
Get some GMR(goat milk replacement) use the directions that should be located on the back and heat it up until warm but not hot.Get a bottle with a teat they might have some at TSC and hold the baby goat on your lap and they should take right to the teat
A good YouTube channel for raising goats is "weed em and reap" they are a great homestead and I have learned a lot from them
Thank you for reading please comment on anything I might have gotten wrong