[sokel]

We have 5 milking and TBH my hands are starting to ache by the time I get number 4 finished but its a couple of hours later that I really feel the pain ! I start with the main milker and work my way down so that as my hands start to ache I have less milking left to do 
She is a BT from milking lines and her maiden milking daughter is BT x BS  again Milking/show lines

CW if they are only giving half a pint on a night I would just stop the night time milking

[Carl f k]

She was on dairy nuts 18% , golden calf coarse mix 18% , whole oats, sugarbeet shreds ,  a handfull of alfalfa and various fruit and veg  twice a day and unlimited hay  this was for the season after she had kidded and she has slowly dropped. her kids are now 17 months old and one of her daughters is a maiden milker giving just under 5 pints a day .
yes we are milking by hand even though we have a machine.
when she was in peak yield there was 2 of us milking but there is only myself now after an accident involving a broken hip 

Ohh and the milk we use it ourselves and the dogs get some every day then a farmer friend is rearing calves on it in return for hay

I am impressed  . Good arrangement for rearing calves on it, I use my extra for the pigs and the pork ir really tender! (But I do not have 18 pints from one goat per day...) My top milker, a HB BT type nanny gave 8 litres at her peak last summer, but then got mastitis   a few times, still milking 3ltrs now though, and she did make 1560 kgs for the year! Going to get her mated again this autumn.
But I do feel for your wrists and fingers! There's another question I ask myself??? Mastitis.. How do you know they hav it?? Sorry for the questions but if you don't ask you don't learn

[Anke]

Mastitis - (usually bacterial) inflammation of the udder, most likely bacteria enter through the teat. Signs are: hot udder (generally just one half/quarter), goat uncomfortable at milking, kicks etc, milk will also not go through the filter easily, it has some more solids in... milk yield reduced. Treated with antibiotic, best given as intramuscular injection. First course usually 5 days of Pen & Strep, if not better, bacterial cultures will have to be raised to determine strain of bacteria causing problems and specific antibiotic to be used. (That's when goat keeping gets expensive! ).
I have never had anything more than subclinical mastitis, which you usually detect if you are milking twice a day. More difficult if nanny only has her kids on and you don't touch the udder regularly.
Milk withdrawal times apply.

[Carl f k]

Mastitis - (usually bacterial) inflammation of the udder, most likely bacteria enter through the teat. Signs are: hot udder (generally just one half/quarter), goat uncomfortable at milking, kicks etc, milk will also not go through the filter easily, it has some more solids in... milk yield reduced. Treated with antibiotic, best given as intramuscular injection. First course usually 5 days of Pen & Strep, if not better, bacterial cultures will have to be raised to determine strain of bacteria causing problems and specific antibiotic to be used. (That's when goat keeping gets expensive! ).
I have never had anything more than subclinical mastitis, which you usually detect if you are milking twice a day. More difficult if nanny only has her kids on and you don't touch the udder regularly.
Milk withdrawal times apply.

thanks Anke another question answered

[goosepimple]

Can I come in with a couple of questions here - was thinking about getting a milking goat but


a)  It sounds like it may get a hassle / mastitis / health issues ?


b)  ...and I'm going to sound really stupid here, but Plumseverywhere says she is milking her 'maiden' milker which has never had kids - don't they have to have offspring before they get milk? (sorry for being stupid)


 

[plumseverywhere]

My understanding is that goats from very good milking lines can come into milk as 'maidens' without mating/kidding. This is what's happened with Savannah. It couldnt' have happened at a better time though as my other nanny died a few months after I set my soap business up !! huge panic (as well as being obviously distraught) and all of a sudden Savannah developed an udder....(cue angelic music and glittery visions...this was nothing short of a miracle!)
She's done it every spring since.

We have never (touch wood) had mastitis out of the 3 goats who were milking. In fact the only thing I would say about having a milker is 1)make sure you can milk before she arrives.  2) know what to look out for but don't worry unduly 3) know what you will do with the milk before hand or at least have some ideas  the quantity will surprise you! and 4) be prepared to have a goat sitter so you can have holidays. 

[sokel]

Can I come in with a couple of questions here - was thinking about getting a milking goat but


a)  It sounds like it may get a hassle / mastitis / health issues ?


b)  ...and I'm going to sound really stupid here, but Plumseverywhere says she is milking her 'maiden' milker which has never had kids - don't they have to have offspring before they get milk? (sorry for being stupid)


 

I think its more  good luck than anything but I have never had a goat with mastitis.
most goats do have to be kidded before they produce milk but from time to time you get a maiden milker, this is the first one we have had in all the years we have kept goats

[goosepimple]

Oh I see!  That was something I didn't know!  So is it down to luck or breeding do you think? Did you just see an udder Plums and thought you'd give her a go and hey presto! You must have been thanking your lucky stars at that time!!

[ballingall]

Goats from from very heavy milking lines are most inclined to come into milk as a "maiden", and even then not every single one from good milking lines actually come into milk. It can be managed on some goats, ie making sure they don't get protein in the summer months. It's always more likely to happen in the summer, as there are long daylight hours, and rich grass to eat.


Some breeds are far less likely to become maiden milkers- Anglo-Nubian's and Golden Guernsey's for example.


Beth

[Lesley Silvester]

18 pints a day.   I am amazed.  I thought my first girl did well producing 8 pints a day.  Her daughter has only ever given four and a half pints once she had weaned her kid.  She's now down to three a day and is due to be mated this autumn.

[Penninehillbilly]

Both my goatllings are from a high yielding BS line, they started developing udders and the billys owner told me to try and avoid having to milk them, so they don't get much concentrate, just a small handful of coarse mix to keep them happy when I feed the mums. I was told they could stop developing properly, they did have cute little udders, but I resisted the temptation and their udders never got too big and hard, the girls are now a good size and I'm looking forward to see how they do next year with babies.
One milker I've dropped to once a day, she's dropped to about 1/2 litre, the other is still on twice a day, but I'm needing the milk for a couple of lambs, and the house.

[plumseverywhere]

Oh I see!  That was something I didn't know!  So is it down to luck or breeding do you think? Did you just see an udder Plums and thought you'd give her a go and hey presto! You must have been thanking your lucky stars at that time!!

Literally that GP.  I sought advice and we did all we could to NOT milk her as she was still so young but that udder just got huger and huger and Puffin's breeder came over and said to me "err, Savannah is adamant she's going to give you milk, you've got to just milk her..."  The rest, as they say, is history 

[tizaala]

I have heared of one maiden thats milked through for 8 years without  kidding .

[plumseverywhere]

Really? that's good to hear. Savannah's quite happy being milked and she's in really good health too (that's her in my profile pic). I was going to put a post on here about perhaps kidding from her one year in order to try and get a doe to keep in case her daughter is also a maiden (I will admit that with our very hectic family life, not kidding every year but still having milk is just the ideal for me)

[Anke]

Can I come in with a couple of questions here - was thinking about getting a milking goat but


a)  It sounds like it may get a hassle / mastitis / health issues ?
 

I think mastitis is more of an issue for a) high-yielding milkers and b) influenced by externla factors like stress (mine did develop it just after a show) and hygiene in the pens (Skyee is one of these goats that doesn't bother to do her business away from where she sleeeps  ...and so her backend needs regular shampooing..). I now teat-dip religiously (a weak solution of Capritect solution onto the teats straight after milking), and also top-up with bedding every other day. We have not had it this year at all (so far.. ).
Also if you milk them every day you touch the udder all the time and you will know much quicker. I really wouldn't worry about it.
PS.: You are welcome to come down and learn to milk here... I now have two milkers on the go for the whole year...