The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Goats => Topic started by: jaykay on September 26, 2014, 04:20:05 pm
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About 16 months ago, I rehomed two pygmy wethers, brothers who were then about a year old. No problems with them at all, they are real sweethearts.
In the past couple of weeks, I've had to put my 'matriarch' goat in the secure paddock, because the railway wall has come down and they've been slow to mend it. With Ellie penned the others tend to hang around her and not wander onto the tracks!
Anyway, now one of the two wethers is acting rather billyish! I can't decide if it's because he's challenging for herd leader, as Ellie has been out of the running for a couple of weeks, or if he's a rigg. He's definitely not got any descended balls, but I suppose he could have one retained inside.
He isn't weeing on himself and I don't think he smells stronger than normal - certainly not the whiff of full billies. He seems to be 'bothering' only Ellie, not the other female. Walking around with his hackles up, rubbing his sides on the fence, and somehow looks a bit more billyish than usual.
What do people think? l
If he was a rigg, wouldn't it have shown before? He was no problem last year when the girls were in season.
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I think that if his hackles are up then I think he is just challenging her, as she is penned up he may find it easier to make the ch
Challenge. When she is loose again he may change his mind if she puts him in his place !!! :excited:
The hackles probably make him bigger, in his mind !!
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If he was a rig, he would smell and as he is now an adult you would certainly know about it. My wether kid has been mounting the girl kids, but it is just a play/dominance thing (they do it back to him too). He was ringed by the vet and I checked that both balls were inside the sack.
And you would have noticed it last year too, so probably is trying his luck in changing the position I would say.
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I have a castrated male, and he has never bothered the females, even when they are in season ....that is until this time, and he is out trying his luck with the girls!! Not sure why he has decided he may be an intact male all of a sudden. I have had to remove him each time a female is in season, whereas before he could run with them.