Tell me about your Oberhaslis, plz

[cdennis]

Wow this is a really helpful post! I just found an Ober for sale but she is a year and not tame. I would want her for milking, is this too old to tame? How do you even go about taming a dairy goat?

 

[Dreaming Of Goats]

I don't think that's too old. To tame her, first of all, don't breed her until she's tame because then you'll have to milk her... not fun when they're scared and kicking. Make sure that she has to come near you to get food... such as a handful of grain and any other food and "treats". Than, start having her eat from your hand, and then try petting her. JMHO

 

[ChksontheRun]

We got 7 goats in August 1 3yr old, 1 4yr old, and 5 babies ranging from 2 months to 9 months that were basically wild. They would not come near us and would not dream of being handled. We got to them all through their stomachs. The only way they got any food other than hay and browse was from our hands. We hand fed them for about 3 weeks before they would start to come near us easily. After that, we started giving them oats from a pale, but insisted on touching them while they ate. If they backed away from being touched, they got no food. After about 3 more weeks, we were able to touch their backs and get collars on them. Once we got collars on them, we were able to slowly bribe them onto the stand and start handling udders. Finally, we were able to start milking the one in milk with much sitting, and kicking, but we got through it. It takes some patience, but now I can sit in the barn and the goats come to me for attention. The youngest actually sits on my lap for attention. We have come a long way in 14 weeks and now have very friendly goats that call for us from the barn when they see us.

Amazingly, they have all stayed very healthy during this time, and even had a vet visit that cleared them for CAE, CL, Johnnes, and Brucella.....yEA

Long and short of it is, 1 year is definitely not to old to tame. Just takes some work and patience.