The Accidental Smallholder Forum

Livestock => Goats => Topic started by: moody_mare on January 15, 2012, 10:11:28 pm

Title: mum and daughter squables
Post by: moody_mare on January 15, 2012, 10:11:28 pm: I have an adorable 3 year old BS and her 9 month old holligan daughter. The nanny had 2 kids, but they were all seperated at 3 weeks. I took nanny and one kid, breeder kept other kid. I bottle feed kid to 5 months and re introduced nanny and kid. all has been bliss till now. Kid has started to butt nanny hard. nanny is the sweetest softest thing and just walks off.

I am worried as I struggle to keep weight on nanny (prolifict milker). Now the kid i interfering with her hay consumtion, even with 3 different racks. will this youthful exeberance die down? or is this a dominance battle?

any advice?
Title: Re: mum and daughter squables
Post by: colliewoman on January 15, 2012, 10:25:06 pm: Welcome to the world of goatlings!
If you can I would feed seperately to make sure mum gets enough, and put loads of hay as far apart as you can so the little tyke can't guard all of it. But i would think that if mum really had had enough, she would give the daughter a hiding ;D
Title: Re: mum and daughter squables
Post by: Lesley Silvester on January 16, 2012, 01:01:32 am: I would say it's a dominance battle. I'm getting the same thing with my kid who has been in with Mum and Gran from day 1. They won't take any nonsense from him though.
Title: Re: mum and daughter squables
Post by: jaykay on January 16, 2012, 02:45:15 am: Mine's the other way round, dominant mum being unnecessarily fierce with gentle goatling :P
Title: Re: mum and daughter squables
Post by: Anke on January 16, 2012, 05:50:27 pm: It is just the goatling growing up - she will calm down in a while. And yes if mum is really fed up she will put her daughter into her place. You are doing the right thing - feeding concentrates to the nanny away from the goatling, and having several hay stations.

If you can put in a hurdle to half their pen, maybe for a couple of hours a day to allow the nanny to fill herself up with hay than that may help her too.

It is even worse if you have two kids/nealry goatlings together....
Title: Re: mum and daughter squables
Post by: moody_mare on January 16, 2012, 07:42:47 pm: poor ponies got it today, thank god they are so good with the goats. newforest mare was head butted and “pushed “ out of her feed. goatling grew up with our springador youngster, they have always played (dog is mannerly with sheep and other goats!) , it is all such fun viewing. glad she will grow out of abusing her mum though.