goat breeding questions

[mdoerge]

I have two Nigerian Dwarf does, one born last May, the other in June. I plan to breed them; however, if I wait until they are a year old, they will be due in October and November. I live in Northeast Ohio - we have cold, snowy winters. Would I be foolish to have kids born right before winter? I would appreciate any advice.

 

[helmstead]

Provided you have warm shelter, well bedded where you can set up heat lamps, and can be present when the kids are born (to help dry them off)...it should be fine. It gets rather cold and icy here...but our cold weather kids do fine.

 

[ThornyRidge]

Let me say that I also raise nigerian dwarf goats in NE Ohio and boy it can be cold.. in saying that let me first say don't under any circumstances breed these goats (at least the does) until at least one _i prefer 1.5 years of age.. they are not exactly matured and capable of handling birthing/kids. Nigies typically are very easy kidders (especially in the lines) however if they are young you are very much looking for trouble.. most likely a difficult kidding with a large single kid that you would need to assist and possibly reposition and or pull- I thankfully have not had that but know people who have. I know people and have a couple of friends that breed nigies here in OH all year round.. plus you never know when you might get a surprise.. another option for cold weather here is making sure barn is as cozy as a barn can be ( I am fearful of heat lamps but know they can be used if done safely) and make or buy little goat coats.. Please ask any other questions and check out some local breeders for advice . where in NE OH are you?

 

[mdoerge]

I am in Medina County. I certainly don't want to run into any problems by breeding too young. Ideally, I would like spring babies, but don't want to wait another year. That is why I was wondering about having fall or winter kids.

 

[Chatychick]

I agree with ThornyRidge as I dont breed my Nigis till they are 1/5 yrs old as I ahve had the train wreck and its not nice. I now wait till they are older as I did breed some at 1 and had a c-section with triplets...lost another as she went into shock...so now with years under my belt with Nigis I wait. better safe than sorry. With larger goats they mature faster than Nigis.I recommend waiting.

 

[Skyesrocket]

It's good to see some NE Ohioans on the board! I'm on the Lake Erie/PA line, as far NE as you can get in Ohio. I was born and raised here and know just how bad Ohio winters can get.
If you do breed for a winter birth make sure to keep track of the day or days the does get bred. So you can be there to help dry them off as they are born. If it is a hard delivery or if the kids don't get dried off and warm right away you can run into trouble with them regulating body temp for the first few days.
Goat coats are a good idea and very easy to make. You can get a dog coat pattern and make several ahead of time. I made mine with fleece and lined them in wool. You can also find goat coats on ebay.
I had a pygmy doe give birth last April. She did it on her own and had both kids dry when I got out to the barn. The doeling was fine, but the buckling was having a hard time with body temp so I brought him in for a few days. I suspect that he was born first and mom didn't get a chance to clean him up before his sister came along and he got chilled. He was fine after a few days in the house and his mom took over after that.
I did provide a heat lamp for mom and babies and they slept under it.
But this was in April and it was still in the 30's here. If it were me, I'd wait and breed them for a May delivery. Winter deliveries can be done, but you will be making a lot of trips to the barn in the snow to check on the doe.

 

[RickiHupp]

I love in SE ohio and all of my does are bred and due in february....NOT by choice, we were away for a couple of days and our billy goat got out of his cage and jumped into thiers lol. Darnit anyway!!