New milk goat - help! Lol

[craftymama86]

OK. So I'm really needing some advise.

We just brought home a Saanen milk goat today. She's super sweet btw. She's in milk, obviously. But I have some questions seeing as she's our first actual milk goat.

A brief rundown before I list my questions, the guy we bought her from (two hours away) told us when we got there that instead if raising animals he basically buys herds when people sell out then he cleans them up, turns around and sells what he doesn't want to keep. So he really didn't have much background info to give us aside from saying she could be 3-5 years old and she may be pregnant ( kids are fine by us! Lol). Ok! So here we go:

1. How do we find out her age? Or is there a way to figure that out without involving the vet?

2. Since we don't have her history, and we want the milk for our pigs and ourselves, what vaccines do we need and is the milk safe to consume at that time or do we need to dump it for a short period?

3. Because she is being milked, what is recommended we fed her? Our feed store only carries one kind of goat feed so is that fine for a dairy goat or do we need to supplement with something else and how much feed does she need daily?

I'll stop there and ask more later if need be, lol. We've had pygmies and we had a Nubian for a short time but she didn't like being milked and one teat was deformed. Anyways, so a dairy goat is quite a new experience for us. Plus we haven't had goats for about four years so I forgot a good bit, lol.

Thanks in advance!

 

[TAH]

OK. So I'm really needing some advise.

We just brought home a Saanen milk goat today. She's super sweet btw. She's in milk, obviously. But I have some questions seeing as she's our first actual milk goat.

A brief rundown before I list my questions, the guy we bought her from (two hours away) told us when we got there that instead if raising animals he basically buys herds when people sell out then he cleans them up, turns around and sells what he doesn't want to keep. So he really didn't have much background info to give us aside from saying she could be 3-5 years old and she may be pregnant ( kids are fine by us! Lol). Ok! So here we go:

1. How do we find out her age? Or is there a way to figure that out without involving the vet?

2. Since we don't have her history, and we want the milk for our pigs and ourselves, what vaccines do we need and is the milk safe to consume at that time or do we need to dump it for a short period?

3. Because she is being milked, what is recommended we fed her? Our feed store only carries one kind of goat feed so is that fine for a dairy goat or do we need to supplement with something else and how much feed does she need daily?

I'll stop there and ask more later if need be, lol. We've had pygmies and we had a Nubian for a short time but she didn't like being milked and one teat was deformed. Anyways, so a dairy goat is quite a new experience for us. Plus we haven't had goats for about four years so I forgot a good bit, lol.

Thanks in advance!

I am no expert but I will tell you what I know.
I would get her tested, have a fecal ran.
She should have 3-4 cups of feed each feeding while milking, now I would watch to see if she tends to over eat or not. She should have free choice hay, and maybe some alfalfa has a snack. Free choice loose minariels.
What kind of feed does your feed store carry?
I am not sure what vaccines should be given. I would say if she is CAE and CL free you should be fine. I will tag a few people on here that are more exspirenced
@Goat Whisperer @Southern by choice @OneFineAcre That all I can think of for now. I attached a website of how to check how old they are. Hope this helps.
http://www.acga.org.au/goatnotes/B010.php

 

[craftymama86]

Vet for testing? Or is there someone more specific I should look for?

Our feed store was out today, I'll be picking up a bag tomorrow and can tell you then what kind.

 

[TAH]

Our feed store was out today, I'll be picking up a bag tomorrow and can tell you then what kind.

Ok. If you don't like drawing blood then the vet would be best. But if you don't mind then you can send it in your self. Waddle is a good one to send blood into.

 

[craftymama86]

We can handle that. We process our own chickens (hubby does the actual culling though, lol) so I think we could handle that. Just never sent anything in before like that, lol. I'll check them out, thanks!

 

[babsbag]

Since you are milking her I would look for alfalfa hay or alfalfa pellets, they need the protein and calcium. She also needs some grain, try to find 16% protein or higher.

I would get her tested for CAE and CL just to be sure. While I have never heard of anyone contracting CL through milk I suppose it would be possible if she had an internal abscess. The CAE is not zoonotic but if you are testing for one might as well do both.

The only vaccine routinely give to goats is the CDT and there is no milk withdrawal time.

Since Saanens are seasonal breeders she should be due soon if she is pregnant. Most likely she hasn't been in heat since Feb. The thing is this, she should really be dried off for a few months before kidding. You can send a blood sample to Bio Tracking for a pregnancy test. You can send the sample to Sage Ag Labs and they can run all the tests for you. Another one you might consider is testing her for Johnes.

Welcome to the world of milking.

 

[alsea1]

There are some pretty good teeth templates online if you google them. In your circumstance judging the teeth will get you a ball park figure on age.
I hope that fella gave you a nice deal on her. From what it sounds like he goes to auctions and buys low and then resells sells them. From what you wrote it does not sound like he was honest about that until you drove a couple hours to see the goat.
Quarantine her would be good until you know she is in the clear. If she came from an auction yard it would be good to be careful in regards to the goats you already have.
As for feed I would go slow with introducing grains to her. Def. let her have all the hay she will eat.
Many people feed a dairy ration and others put together their own mix. I give alfalfa pellets with some wet cob and a calf manna. Goats love herbs. Google that and put in an herb garden for putting in the milk stand dish.
Nice thing about herbs is that some are good for making the goats stomach not as good a home for parasites and you don't have to toss the milk.
Some goats stress easily some not so much. But stress and new food that her rumen is not used to can cause you lots of grief.
Basic hygiene is critical in the prevention of sickness and mastitis. Your dairy area needs to be kept really clean. Also her bedding area needs cleaned. It is a major pain to have to get fecal material off an udder.
Some folks go to great pains to get the milk strained, chilled. Milk care can make the difference between milk that's fit to drink or milk that you dump on the compost pile.
Its important to keep hair and what not out of it as much as humanly possible. I clip the hair short around the udder and leg areas. This helps keep things clean.
Milk containers need to be spotless otherwise the milk will be tainted. Stainless steel buckets are good because they clean really well.
Glass canning jars are great because you can sterilize them.
As for drinking her milk google diseases passed thru raw milk to humans. There are a few that range in severity. When in doubt pasteurize the milk. It is easy to do and leaves you with a safe product.
We would love to see a picture of your new goat.

 

[Southern by choice]

Everything Babs said.

Because you do not know if she has been on anti-biotics or dewormed a safer withdrawal would be 30 days. Continue milking but pitch the milk.

I strongly recommend the Johnes testing because it is zoonotic.
http://www.johnes.org/
As well as TB/Brucelosis (more on that here)- http://www.cfsph.iastate.edu/Factsheets/pdfs/brucellosis_melitensis.pdf

Just because a goat looks fine , doesn't look sick, and the milk looks fine/normal DOES NOT mean it is "clean".

Campylobacter, listeria, e-coli, among other dangerous bacteria can be present. Goats can have a certain level of these bacteria and be fine, they live with certain bacteria- but HUMANS cannot, and it makes us very ill.

Home pasteurizing does NOT kill all the good stuff contrary to popular belief. The greatest impact is on Vitamin C which milk is not a good source of anyway. However by pasteurizing you can kill off many of these dangerous bacteria. It does not however kill off Johnes (Mycobacterium avium ss.paratuberculosis also known as MAP)

I emphasize this because you have no idea where she has come from or her background.

For many that live on farm and are exposed to a great deal will have a certain level of immunity... but those not exposed may not. Children are highly susceptible. It isn't about what kills you but about lifelong issues and effects of the illnesses that don't kill you.

So testing for CAE, CL, Johnes, & TB/Brucellosis( this last one must be done by vet- it is a federal law thing)
Fecal analysis to see parasite & Cocci level

16% or higher protein feed, HAY, water, mineral.

 

[misfitmorgan]

For age if she is under 5yrs old you can use her teeth. I always found it hard to follow in pictures so a good video that explains it well and show live example while explaining is....
On Youtube if you go to the OSUMeatGoat channel and look for "How to age a goat" it's very helpful. i cant post a link cause im at work lol. If you cant find it i can post it from home later today.

and x2 on everthing everyone suggested already.

 

[craftymama86]

Any idea how much the TB testing could cost? I found a vet nearby that can test her but I'll have to call back Tuesday when the Dr is available.