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Rick's Ramblin's
By Rick Skillington, County Director Marshall County
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Each year as we get
ready to wean kids, some of the most productive does
in the herd have to be culled because of Mastitis.
It appears that the doe that has the problem is usually
one of the best does in the herd. Many times, it is
usually a doe that has raised a really good set of
twins. Several times a year, I get calls from producers
that he saved a "really good doe" and now
that she has kidded, she has a set of twins and only
one half of an udder to try to feed them. When this
happens, the producer must decide whether to let the
doe try to raise them herself and have two sorry kids
or to pull one off of the doe and raise it on a bottle.
Either way, the producer is going to have to take
a decisive reduction in income on that doe. Her are
some things for producers to consider when weaning
kids. |
Let me start out
by saying that there is no way to completely control
Mastitis our of a goat operation. This is especially
true when a high percentage of the does have some
dairy blood in them. It just makes sense that the
more milk a doe gives, the more the chances are that
she will develop Mastitis. |
While there are
many different methods to wean kids and help reduce
the incidences of Mastitis, here are two that I know
will work well for producers. Modifications off of
these methods can be made to suit the production system
of the producer. Each of these methods has similar
components. |
The first method
is to leave the kids on the does until she weans the
kids naturally. If your operation is only kidding
once a year and the lack of additional labor is a
major problem, this method is one that will work for
you. The kids will keep nursing the does until her
body will usually just slow down in the production
of milk and the kids will have to start browsing for
additional food. The doe will usually stop producing
milk and the kids are weaned. There are a few things
that producers need to be aware of when using this
method. Heavy producing does can still get Mastitis
using this method. Another thing to consider is that
usually, while the doe is nursing, she will not breed
back Occasionally, some kids will never wean without
pulling them away from the doe and leaving the kids
on the does this long, some may continue to try to
nurse other animals and cause damage to udders on
does that have not kidded. Some people feel that since
the kids stay on the odes so long, this reduces the
number of years that the doe will stay in the herd
since the kids keep the doe in a less than ideal body
condition for a longer period of time. |
The other method
of weaning is one that will work well if producers
have good catch facilities and some additional labor
available. To start this method, the producer should
start limiting the feed that the does receive around
two weeks prior to weaning the kids. This will cause
the doe to slow down milk production. After two weeks,
separate the kids from the does. Some producers prefer
to remove the kids, while others swear that you have
to move the does. I suggest that you do what is easiest.
Dry lot the does with only rough hay in limited amounts
and provide only limited water for the does. After
three days, let the kids back with the does for two
hours and then remove them. Leave the does up on dry
lot for additional five days and then they can be
turned out on pasture away from the kids. An additional
thing to consider is adding an antibiotic shot into
this program. The key to having a successful weaning
program that will not hurt the doe is to observe the
does closely after the weaning. |
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