Milk Production

[Nathan Justice]

Hey there! I am new to the Backyard Herd Forum. I recently bought a couple dairy goats. A Buck and Doe. I am milking the doe. My question is, I was milking once a day, but I started milking twice day. I increased how many times a day I milk to see if it increased milk production. So far, I am getting the same amount. Only a quart. Is there anything I could try to increase milk production? I have thought about adding Probiotics to my doe's feed. I also heard that Black Oil sunflower seeds are good as well. Thanks so much in advance!

 

[Latestarter]

Greetings Nathan and welcome to BYH! I don't know the answer to your question and I know there have been several other threads about increasing/decreasing production, just not sure when or where I saw them I'll tag a couple of goat pros and hope one or more come on and answer you. They may need more info like; what breed, how old, when did she kid (how long in milk), what are you feeding her and how much (takes a LOT of energy to produce milk), those sorts of things. Mean time, do browse around the goat section, there's a wealth of info and shared knowledge/experiences. Oh, we're all picture addicts here so if you have some you could share, we'll all appreciate it! Glad you joined

@Goat Whisperer @OneFineAcre @babsbag @Hens and Roos @frustratedearthmother @Southern by choice and so many others!

 

[ldawntaylor]

I'm sure some of the others have some pointers for you. But, my first question this time of year is what is the water situation. An adult goat can drink a lot. And one key component in milk is water.

Two more questions come to my mind immediately. Which breed? Alpine, LaMancha, Toggenberg, Oberhasli, or the sometimes more familiar Nubian?

The other question...was this kidding season her first?

The two I'm milking are only giving a quart each but that is a once a day milking with their kids being on them the rest of the time.

So many things can impact milk production. But answers to these will help others to give you a more complete answer in return.

 

[Southern by choice]

1. What breed?
2. When did she kid?
3. How many kids did she have?
4. What are you feeding her?

 

[TAH]

Welcome.

 

[OneFineAcre]

How far into lactation is she, and for how long was she being milked just once per day. Depending upon that, you probably aren't going to be able to boost her much.

Probiotics in the feed isn't going to make a difference. I don't think BOSS either. What kind of hay are you feeding her?

 

[Goat Whisperer]

Prettt much echoing the above. Once you answer those questions mentioned, we can go from there.

Is she bred? You saw you have 1 doe and 1 buck, are they separated? It is not wise to run bucks and does together unless you are trying to get her bred. The standard breeds are seasonal, but Nigerian Dwarf goats cycle year-round.

When was she last wormed? If she has a parasite load it could cause low milk output. It would be wise to have a fecal run on her anyway, moving a goat to its new home pretty much guarantees a parasitic bloom.

Sometimes a doe will drop in production after a move and it can be difficult to get back up. What was she milking before you brought her home?

 

[Nathan Justice]

Thanks everyone for the advice! She last kidded a few months ago. I think this was her second kidding. She had twins.When I bought her the kids were almost weaned but she had milk. However, this is her first year milking. I feed her a Non-GMO food. I recently added sunflower seed. She eats all she wants on the stand. She does not get hay because she is on grass all day long. They are both Nubians and I am running them together to hopefully see if they breed. I don't have a place to keep my Buck separated and I hate to get rid of him.

 

[babsbag]

What everyone else said. The protein level in her feed is important too. I feed straight alfalfa to my milking does and they get a 16% protein grain on the milk stand.

 

[babsbag]

Your grass is not going to give her the protein that she needs to make milk. A Nubian doe that was nursing twins that were recently weaned should be giving you more milk than that. They usually peak production at about 8 weeks but it can drop off sharply if they aren't milked after the kids are removed. I would continue to milk 2 x a day and get her some hay, preferably alfalfa and make sure her feed is high in protein. Nubians are eating machines, but it takes good quality feed to make milk. She may not do any more than what she is this year, it may be too late.