# Breeding/Freshening question



## Livinwright Farm (Apr 17, 2011)

I am asking for my family and also for friends of ours...

Once a doe has kidded, how long should someone wait, for health & safety of the doe, before breeding her again?  If the doe kids in early May, would late November/early December be too soon?

How do you cycle your breeding? Do you have half of your girls bred one year and then have the other half bred the following year?

What exactly is meant by skipping a season? Does this mean skipping a year between breeding? If so, is it true that doing this will make the doe less likely to settle?


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## AlaskanShepherdess (Apr 17, 2011)

Pat Coleby believes that breeding the goat to give birth once every 2 years is the absolute best for their health. Most people breed to give birth once a years and they still remain perfectly healthy. 

Honestly if you could garuntee that they are getting ALL the nutrition they need you could breed them twice a year. But I don't plan on doing that. I think it's too hard on the animals, I'd rather not risk it.


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## lilhill (Apr 18, 2011)

We breed our does to kid once a year.  After kidding season is over, everyone gets at least 6 months off to get everyone back into good condition before breeding season rolls around again.


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## freemotion (Apr 18, 2011)

What are you breeding for?  If for milk for your family, you can breed once a year and the doe gets the last two months of her pregnancy off.  So you start drying her off about a month or so before that if she is a good producer, maybe a bit less if she is not giving much by then.  So you can have at least 8 months of good milk production, some drying off time, and some colostrum time.

Some individual goats will have a very, very long lactation and can produce a reasonable amount of milk for a couple of years and you can skip a year of breeding and still get milk for your family.


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## PattySh (Apr 18, 2011)

I have dairy goats and this year staggered the breedings for kids  to be born Feb-May so we would always be in milk. Most of our family can't drink processed milk so it's a great idea for our family. I like to dry the goats off 2 months or so before they give birth. My 5 yr old grandson was really mad last year when the goat milk ran out! We were so anxious to make goat cheese this year, we actually have been planning the recipe to use it in before the cheese is made. Looks like Luna bred due in May didn't conceive, no udder at all, but I bought Dolly a nubian late in the breeding season so hopefully she is due in June.  I would not consider breeding closer than a year apart if I had a goat breed that bred throughout the year.


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## Livinwright Farm (Apr 20, 2011)

Okay, I believe my family will be choosing to do a combo of what you all have mentioned.
Once everyone has kidded we will plan on stagering breedings starting in early to mid November through January 1st.
At least this fall we will be able to make sure Cali doesn't breed with her twin, and that Maude won't breed with her son Marly.


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