Crazy FAT Doe- Why?? And How To Slim Down? *PICS ADDED*

[pridegoethb4thefall]

I have a small herd of NDs, 5 does, 1 buckling. They are all old enough to breed (hence the new buckling), and most have been bred by him about a month ago.

My oldest doe, Betty, is seriously fat. *I think* Im pretty sure she isnt preg from her exposure to a buck back in july since she has NO udder development, and she accepted my bucklings advances several times last month (november 17th), so Im 99% sure its not advanced pregnancy.

My issue is how huge she is. She eats the same as everyone else- pasture, alfalfa hay and grass hay, minerals, BOSS, and every other day about 1 cup of goat chow (no more than 1 cup every other day, and she isnt getting anyone elses ration since we hand feed from their cups as a treat).

She is about 6 or 7 years old and has freshened several times. She is naturally on the big side for a ND, but she's the biggest ND Ive ever seen.(she is papered, so Im sure she is pure, well as sure as I can be just going by looks and papers)

I *think* she is fat because her sides puff out (both sides, NOT bloat or worms), I can barely feel her ligaments and her spine has a nice layer of fat that I can barely feel through to feel her spine. Her ribs are kinda hard to find too. She acts like she's starving ALL the time too! Ive wormed her, she's had her vaccinations and has plenty of rocks and toys to jump on (which she does use)... So I cant figure why she is SO much fatter than any of my other does?

Im not sure what to do... I think she may be bred now, and I dont want her to get super fat and have kidding issues. Maybe its just my imagination? She still looks fatty in the AM before their AM feeding too. I cant imagine her getting any bigger due to pregnancy and not having any trouble with kidding...


Will try to post pics in the morning, too dark out here now. Any ideas/suggestions??

 

[Pearce Pastures]

I don't have much of an answer for why she is so much larger than the others, besides just a guess that some goats are a bit more predisposed to packing it on. My NDs are pretty well the same size, but our pygmy is one we have to watch because she likes to eat. Is there a way to feed her separately from the others. I know that would be a royal pain here. If you can though, you might cut out the BOSS and possibly the feed too since she can get plenty of nutrition from the pasture, hay, and minerals you provide.

 

[ksalvagno]

I would definitely cut out the BOSS and the feed. Some Nigerians are bigger so is that some of it? Is she taller than the others too?

 

[pridegoethb4thefall]

Here are this mornings pictures-

Mind you, she is a bit fluffy from her winter coat, but I swear she looks bigger in person. And if you see her trotting away at a slight uphill angle...holy smokes, she looks even bigger!!

BTW, I dont think Betty is more than 1 month preg at this point, so the tummy isnt babies...

The brown and white doe in the front looking up is the same age- she's the one who had quads last year.

Best I could get of her non-udder, she wouldnt lift her tail no matter what! (so no 'pooch' pic)

Sooooo, what do you think? Crazy fat, or just my imagination?? I think she is naturally 'bigger', but she just seems soooo much bigger than my others, I think she is overweight.

 

[LadyIsabelle2011]

The first thing I thought when I looked at her was pregnant, very pregnant. If not she is the fatest goat I have ever seen but when I looked at the pic without reading the post I thought, "Huh, wonder when she is due?" ...Was she this fat before you had her breed back in july?

 

[pridegoethb4thefall]

hmmm, I recall her being a bit smaller in the tummy area. She was not fed as much hay there as she is here,(not very good pasture either) and was running with a buck, but also she was drying off from her last kidding, and still had a slight udder. Her udder is totally gone as far as I can tell- Ive never had her for a kidding, so I dont know when she tends to build one. I brought her home on August 19th 2012, and she had been with the other buck at least a month prior to that. I dont see or feel any fetal movement in her belly, and not enough udder to even get a handful...well...maaaaayyybe a tiny handful, but it feels like fat, not udder filling, especially with how close she *should* be to kidding if she settled from the other buck.

AND she did let our buck mount her several times, so, unless preg does just let bucks breed them, I dont think she could be preg from the other buck.

I think I may have to stop all treats, grain and BOSS for her, but what if she is preg?? Doesnt she need extra nutrition?

 

[pridegoethb4thefall]

Pic of her from Sept, 01, 2012, no winter coat-

About a month ago, she is in the middle-

Sorry, dont have alot of good pics of her... The lady I bought her from told me Betty was due to kid 'sometime in the fall'. I jst dont think she was bred and settled since she accepted our buck. Although, when she did that, she had NO signs of heat and it was the very day we brought him home, within 2 to 3 hours of his arrival. Weird...

Guess she's just a porker!! Still gonna watch her for kids, but I just dont know what to think. And I really dont want her THIS fat if she settled with our buck.

 

[pridegoethb4thefall]

Any othe opinions?

Fat or just a healthy rumen and a bit over conditioned?

Should I put her on a diet and excersize regime?

 

[LadyIsabelle2011]

Hmmmmm, looks like she has always been a chunky girl and your extra good care has def. put her in extra good condition She still might be preggers but I am little less confident in saying that after looking at her past pics, especially with no udder development. I have no experience with goats and dieting though :/ You could always cut out the treats and if you have time to leash train her you could start taking her on 30 minute walks everyday, it would be good for her and you.

 

[CrazyCatNChickenLady]

Its really hard to tell with pictures. It could just a healthy rumen and a bit over conditioned. I saw an open doe recently that looked SO much like yours. She looked HUGE from a far but when you got hands on you realized she was perfectly conditioned just had a HUGE gut! She was definately bigger then your girl.. And a nigerian dwarf. Id stop feeding her her grain ration if you're worried..