[Anke]

We just started on real, I pressed the right fingers/thumbs in her hand. My younger daughter was quite quick to pick it up, older one took a bit longer.

[Lesley Silvester]

When I show someone, I demonstrate on their finger to give them an idea of how hard to squeeze, then get them to show me on my finger.   Then it's straight onto the goat.  Good luck.

[benkt]

We also just started straight on the real thing.  I  described  the process to them and as we do it we say out loud, "Snip" (the top of the teat to close off the flow), "Squeeze" (the rest of their fingers to push the milk out, then "Relax". To begin with the bit they find hardest is the "Snip" bit with little fingers, so I squeeze round their thumb and first finger to make sure that bit is tight enough and they "Squeeze" themselves. My three year old girl can now do it all on her own pretty reliably, my four year old boy still needs the odd bit of help with the "Snip".
Our youngest regular milker (we run a community farm) is a thirteen year old who happily milks two goats out completely (and does the feeding, watering and leading in and out of stables). Not had enough experience with in-between ages to tell how young a child could manage one goat on their own.

[Penninehillbilly]

But I commiserate with you, I used to love my "me time" in the goatshed... not anymore...

So do, I it's quite special just being on your own with the girls, I like last thing at night best, when you go in, sometimes they are restless, maybe bleating for their supper, then after milking, feeding etc, just leaning watching them pull at their fresh hay and quietly chomping away, such a calming time, then leaving them all settled and peaceful for the night  .
But if you do end up using a machine, you could still have that 'after' time, talking, stroking, etc the milking itself is only part of that bond, it's the rest of the contact and interaction that makes them so endearing (I think so anyway, don't we love our kids and goatlings even though we aren't milking them? and sometimes old milkers that have stayed on as 'pets'  )

[jaykay]

I don't milk at night but I often just go into the goat byre and sit on the milking stand, watching and listening to everyone munching - and scritching the ears of those that come for a fuss 

[Carl f k]

I don't milk at night but I often just go into the goat byre and sit on the milking stand, watching and listening to everyone munching - and scritching the ears of those that come for a fuss 

sounds better than watching eastenders or some other rubbish

[Lesley Silvester]

I don't milk at night but I often just go into the goat byre and sit on the milking stand, watching and listening to everyone munching - and scritching the ears of those that come for a fuss 

sounds better than watching eastenders or some other rubbish

It is much better.  I'll be going out to mine in a bit.

[Penninehillbilly]

I don't milk at night but I often just go into the goat byre and sit on the milking stand, watching and listening to everyone munching - and scritching the ears of those that come for a fuss 

sounds better than watching eastenders or some other rubbish

What's 'Eastenders'? 

[Anke]

I don't milk at night but I often just go into the goat byre and sit on the milking stand, watching and listening to everyone munching - and scritching the ears of those that come for a fuss 

sounds better than watching eastenders or some other rubbish

What's 'Eastenders'? 

We got rid of our telly more than 5 years ago -don't miss it at all

[Lesley Silvester]

Just coming up to the end of the second year without one.  People told me I'd really miss it.  Do I?  Not in the slightest.

[Penninehillbilly]

I would miss ours, but ir doesn't stop me spending time with my girls, trouble is there is a couple of hundred hours on the DVD hard drive I never manage to watch  .
Girls have been out all day today, they couldn't be bothered to get up to say hello when I went in for last check and hay refill.
I like CSI, keep telling OH it's so I know what clues to avoid leaving when I do him in  .
other than that it's country file, animals + gardening progs.

[Backinwellies]

Id like to thank sallyintnorth ........ you have answered a question I haven't been able to find an answer too.... I know you can have a cow and share the milk with calf/calves but I wasn;t sure if you could just abandon (well almost!) the cow to the calves if you needed a day away or in an emergency.

I love Jersey's ... milked a herd of 80 for a couple of years (a long time ago!)  and had concidered a house cow but worried about the tie of having to be there to milk every day.   My grandson has been rushed to hospital 3 times in his first year and I will be some distance from them when I move to Wales.

Has anyone tried this with any other breed?