[Lesley Silvester]

I'm a Sanaan lover and I have had one who went four years between kidding but still producing milk.  The one I am milking now is in her second winter since kidding and still giving 3 pints a day. 

My goats come into my house to be milked but that obviously isn't an option for you.  I would think a lean to would suffice but you would need to think about transporting the milk back home.  You would need to put it into a proper container to take on your scooter.  It does need straining to get out any nasty bits, stray hairs etc. so you would need to be able to transport milking backet, sieve and jug back home for cleaning, unless you have hot water facilities at the smallholding (kettle).  I strain through muslin laid over the sieve but you can buy filters.

[benkt]

I started milking with a nanny who had a doe kid still feeding on her. This meant that at the start when I was slow and rubbish at milking, there was only half a pint or so to take off after the kid had fed. As I got better at it, so did the kid take less and I started taking more. It was a nice and gentle way to get in to the whole business.

[wytsend]

A lot of people do keep their goats away from where they live..............but this does mean you have to be extra careful/vigilant that there is nothing possible for a goat to get entangled with (for example) overnight, because you wont be able to hear their screams for help.
I live 50yds from my goats and even then I have had to go out in the night because some pratt has decided that jumping as high aspossible could be fun and then having a mishap.   Particularly with goats ...all breeds really..... they dont behave like other animals and do have accidents and then time is of the essence.
It is possible to have remote CCTV so that you can keep an eye on them, but I know nothing about these systems.

[Penninehillbilly]

It would always be a worry leaving them out so far from home, unless a friendly neighbour would keep an eye on them. Where I lived previously I was at work all day, the goats were kept inside. They were out at all other possible times. Even now the goats are inside most of the time, unless weather is dry (or reasonably so). autumn 2012 yearlings did run out 24/7 with a field shelter, but well fenced and I could see them from the house.
for milking I just bring them out of the pen (inside a bigger building) and have 2 half pallets stacked as a milking bench, goats tied by a lead to the outside of their pen.
Is there water supply on the land?
MY 2 yearlings (ToggxB.Saanen) were reared on their mums but still love attention so much they leave their food while I scratch their heads, - helps stop the fighting over the last crumbs in a bucket  .
Is there water supply on the land?
What do you mean strip her down? milking her out? I suppose if she only has one kid and that only feeds from one side, if she is a good milker there should be a decent amount from the other side. If that works then thinking about it you may not have to seperate them ?
Luckily you are thinking in advance so it gives you time to try and get round some shows this summer, don't be put off by how posh they all look, there are different levels of goat keeping, as long as goats are well fed and happy, they don't have to look the cream of the crop. :-)
I think on the defra website there will be a section on welfare of goats, and there is one on the RSPCA site, it may be worth having a  look at them.
There should also be books in your local library, even town centre libraries. It's always good to read a book, they answer the questions you don't know to ask, and it helps to keep libraries open!

[PIGBOY]

Thank you very mich for all the info!
Penninehillbilly- Sorry i wasn't that clear on what i plan to do with milking!
Basically i meant the mum and kid would run the field during the day, then in the evening i would seperate them and milk the mum (should i take it all from her?). Then in the morning i'd milk the mum from one teat and then let her run with her kid all day. Would this work? And yes we do have water on the land, so that is all good. Although we live about half a mile away we share the holding/farm with another lady who keeps sheep so when i'm not up there in the week during school( but i do go up before and after to tend to the pigs) she'll be up there sorting her sheep out. But i will milk and tend to them before and after school and spend hours up there, and at the weekend i'll spend all my time up there so i wont just leave them to get on with it. So they'd only be without me for around 6 hours in a school week, This is fine isn't it?
Thanks again 

[benkt]

Mine are usually out in a stock-fenced paddock during the day when I'm off the farm working. My wife usually pops up and checks they are all ok at lunchtime and since a couple of incidents of getting heads stuck in the mesh fencing at the beginning, she's not had to call me since.