Bottle baby issue

[Kirago13]

I have adopted a special needs bottle baby. She is partially blind and for lack of a better description. a little retarded. She was pulled from her mom at 3 days old due to her sibling dying and mom not caring for her. I adopted her when she was 3 weeks old. She is now 9 weeks old and WILL NOT eat anything other than a bottle. I began grinding her grain in my food processor and mixing it in her bottles like baby cereal, in hope of her "getting the taste for it" and eating the grain that is down for her. She has not shown any interest in anything other than her bottle. She will only sleep with me or when someone she knows is holding her. I take her to work with me every day. I am a nurse and my residents LOVE HER. she is our "therapy" animal, which basically means she runs around and makes them smile. She wears diapers and lives in my house. I dont think she can see the grain to eat it and I have put her nose in it, stuck it in her mouth and done everything short of getting on my hands and knees and eating it, to show her how. How do I get her to eat grain? She is very healthy, has gone from 6.2lbs to 12.4lbs. Shes had her shots, been wormed and I grind the medicated grain to mix in her bottles. She also gets a supplement mixed in her bottle for gut health and other vitamins. She runs around my kitchen like a maniac and is otherwise healthy appearing. She occassionally grinds her teeth but does not appear to be in pain. It seems more like "practice cud chewing"

 

[chickens really]

Provide her with hay to nibble. Leave the grain out for her.

 

[Kirago13]

Provide her with hay to nibble. Leave the grain out for her.

Should I cut it into smaller pieces or leave it the way it is? Yes, I am willing to cut hay up if it will help. I'm almost to the point of getting on my hands and knees and eating grain myself so she can learn. L. She is very loved and I will do whatever it takes. Plus I have 37 residents at a nursing home who would be devastated if something happened to her. She is thriving, just not like a "normal" goat

 

[chickens really]

Should I cut it into smaller pieces or leave it the way it is? Yes, I am willing to cut hay up if it will help. I'm almost to the point of getting on my hands and knees and eating grain myself so she can learn. L. She is very loved and I will do whatever it takes. Plus I have 37 residents at a nursing home who would be devastated if something happened to her. She is thriving, just not like a "normal" goat

No. Just provide the hay. Also an older kid would teach her how to be a goat. Goats need other goats. I was told bottle babies do best if housed outdoors and fed twice a day with another older kid. They get too conditioned and don't learn without other goats .

 

[chickens really]

Also 9 weeks old she should be being weaned off the bottle and drinking water from a bowl plus eating feed.

 

[Kirago13]

No. Just provide the hay. Also an older kid would teach her how to be a goat. Goats need other goats. I was told bottle babies do best if housed outdoors and fed twice a day with another older kid. They get too conditioned and don't learn without other goats .

I do not feel she would be safe outside with my goats, they have horns she doesnt, they can see, she can't. She is developmentally delayed and it would be unsafe for her. I do take her out to the pen and let her watch them and interact thru the fence if she chooses but she shows no interest. I'm thinking because of her delayed issue it just may take her more time, like a premature baby.

 

[Kirago13]

Also 9 weeks old she should be being weaned off the bottle and drinking water from a bowl plus eating feed.

I understand that which is my concern. I know she's delayed so I'm thinking she just isnt there yet.

 

[chickens really]

I do not feel she would be safe outside with my goats, they have horns she doesnt, they can see, she can't. She is developmentally delayed and it would be unsafe for her. I do take her out to the pen and let her watch them and interact thru the fence if she chooses but she shows no interest. I'm thinking because of her delayed issue it just may take her more time, like a premature baby.

A look no touch pen with interaction is what she needs and possibly another kid her age to show her how to be a goat.

 

[Jesusfreak101]

If you feed her everything she needs in a bottle she won't learn to eat because she not hungry. Momma goats kick the kids off before they are full and they learn to eat from what i hearing if you feed her so much she constantly full. It's like. A spoiled kid if you give them everything they don't learn to do things for themselves. Also if she doesnt learn to eat now it will cause problems for her as an adult. Maybe get one of you calmer goats and have them together will help to but slow introduction first through a fence then supervised and see how they do. And you should see some head butting but if should stop. Just remember they going to act like animals so keep that in mind they will act according to that.

 

[Hipshot]

You can start by deluting her milk .add a little less and al ittle less every other day .take all feed out of her bottle .will she nibble grass ? What type of feed are you trying to get her to eat? Palatable kid starter is hard to find here.I use a pelleted groat grower.But bottle babies don't like it .So a sweet horse feed is added ,or is all at first.If she can't see I don' see how putting her with other goats will teach her anything .I have two bottle babies, and the goats butt them so hard. I worry they will kill them .You have to be creative .Her eyes may not work well but her nose should work fine. Everybody is in a rush to wean because milk replacer is so high .However meat goats will go a long time before they self wean.So start deluting and offering a very sweet smelling feed.Also allow her to graze .If she will .