Rowdy whethered male

[Maranda_2011]

I need some help here. I bought my male goat as a kid back in may. He was my bottle baby and he grew extremely fast. I just got him a female companion she is 2 months old tomorrow. I have them separated in the barn to where they can still see each other but not come into physical contact due to not wanting him to hurt her. Meanwhile I let them out to graze and slightly play together. NOW the main problem here is my male is whethered like I stated but ever since I got my female he has started “acting out”. He does not leave the poor kid alone if he is not bucking at her he is trying to ride her NONSTOP! And that’s not even the worse part.. if I am sitting down he tempts to try and do it to me, nudging me, pawing me. How do I fix this or any ideas how to calm it down? He’s driving me nuts. This has been a complete 360 with him personality and all... HELP!

 

[Mini Horses]

Well, I would not let him with the little female at her age. Even if wethered, if he penetrates he can hurt her and introduce bacteria, infections possible.

Next, who did the castration and by what method? As you describe him, I'm wondering if a possible missed testicle. In which case he is still fertile...then you would have breeding issues.

Both butting & riding are normal kid play antics but, the zest with which you describe him isn't good for her or you. She is too young and I'm sure much smaller.

My suggestion, friends on a fence line only for several months. She needs to grow another 5 or 6 months as he's quite a bit older, stronger, larger.

I'm sure some of the other goat people will chime in with thoughts & suggestions. They may have an option that works better for you than mine.

 

[CntryBoy777]

What breed are they? This can make a difference, because some only go thru esterus cycle on a seasonal basis and some go thru it monthly. When the doe does, the wether will exhibit the antics of a buck thru the cycle. Also, as @Mini Horses has stated, these are the antics of goats and until the order of ranking between them takes place and is settled these antics will be displayed with ferver.....how old is the wether? Unfortunately there isn't an easy answer for ya and I understand your concern....it can be a bit unnerving to endure and get used to the goat "way of life" for those that have not had them before. Not saying that ya do, but some get goats and consider them as dogs or other animals and think they should act as those other animals. They will always be goats and will never change their nature. I sure hope it calms down some for ya after their "get to know ya" period, but untill they butt heads and work out their "order" on their own, there will always be these actions between them. We had pygmies and boer crosses, they cycle every month, so the activity would always increase during the esterus cycle. Hopefully, this will give ya more info to help make sense of what ya are witnessing....but as Mini said, be cautious of the wether possibly having a testicle that was missed during castration.....

 

[PattyNH]

My NG wether was like that before he was surgically castrated. It was a nightmare, but my doeling is the same age as him - she's actually a week older. Shortly after he started that behavior, she was standing up for herself, butting and mounting him back (and she's much better at holding on when she does lol). She definitely holds her own and, more often than not, comes out on top - pun intended They are now 7 months old.

If my wether gets too rambunctious, with her or me, a spray bottle with tap water gets his attention and he stops. At this point I don't even have to spray him, he just sees the bottle and bounces away. Which is good because it's getting COLD here!!

Congratulations on your new goats! And welcome to BYH!!

Patty

 

[Latestarter]

Greetings and welcome to BYH from NE TX! So glad you joined us. Sorry your problem with your wether brought you here. Do NOT let him continue those antics with you! It's a dominance display as well as breeding. You do NOT want a 150+ goat being dominant over you. While he's young,you can grab a front leg and push him over on his side and hold him down till he stops struggling. (I find it easiest to grab the leg furthest away and then push as he has no choice but to topple over) Does he have horns or has he been disbudded? Breed? You can also carry a "magic wand" (nice heavy stick) or a walking stick and whack him across the bridge of the nose. Do not hit him or push against his forehead/horn base area, as that instigates butting and is a challenge. I also never let my buck/weathers push against me with their heads and divert them from approaching me directly head on. I only allow them to approach me and pass by so their side is against me.

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