HELP! Goat got into Chicken Grower/finisher and possibly in labor OR Bloat?

[Stacykins]

I'm the only source of milk, and I feed them about every three hours? Or when they headbutt my leg.

Normally I'd just feed them. But their belly feels full and I don't want to make them sick.

You need to stop the headbutting behavior, now. Or else they will be rather rotten mannered when they get larger and aren't adorable, tiny babies. Don't push them away by pushing on their heads (this encourages more headbutting). Grab an ear, like their dam or another goat does when they get too rough. Headbutting is never OK. It is a behavior that can get out of hand, fast.

Don't reward them for heatbutting, either, which a lot of folks accidentally do.

Feeding them until they feel full is fine. Kids can overeat. They don't know when to stop! If you want to be certain whether they are getting enough, you can calculate how many ounces each goat needs a day based on weight. It is a good guide. Most folks don't use charts, but I find it helpful when it comes to having an idea of what they should be getting.

 

[Icedangel11]

Well, they bump me like they would their mom's udders.

So still pull their ears? I guess I could see how that could get out of hand. I couldn't imagine a full grown buck (Or weather) would be a very good thing if they associated being fed with ramming you in the leg.

 

[cassie]

No. The bumping of baby kids to get milk is not a dominance thing. They butt their mother's udders to cause more milk to be let down. They are not challenging you. A lot of nursing babies do this. In fact, most of them do.

 

[Icedangel11]

So.. I shouldn't mind if they try to bump my leg to nurse? Cause thats when they do it, when they are hungry. Cause right after they start sucking on my pants.

 

[Stacykins]

Sorry, you made it sound like they were angry headbutting you, rather than the facebump they give when they're hungry. Seemed a little young for an actual headbutt, but some start early.

 

[Icedangel11]

Oh, sorry, my bad. Yeah, it is more with their face/nose than with their head.

They each sucked down another two ounces. With how their acting hungry all the time I think they'd eat themselves to death if I left them on Tea.

 

[Icedangel11]

Tea gave another 7 cups last night, but I had to milk some onto the ground cause I ran out of jar space. XD So she made more, but that's only what I got.

I'mma start giving her grains to keep up production. How much should I give her a day?

And would anyone be willing to give me a time schedule of vaccinations/wormer/ect. for the kids? What they need and when?

 

[H Diamond]

Humor me... how tall is your doe at the withers? If you don't know where that is here: http://www.freewebs.com/nmga-miniature/Wither.jpg

I can't answer the question about a grain ration.. I don't raise minis. Standard size does, it is 1 lb for the doe and 1 lb of grain for every 3lbs of milk. If you feed a nigi that, they would be quite obese I imagine. =P

If you want an amazing kid management program, try this: http://www.dairygoatinfo.com/f28/kid-management-birth-till-kidding-kid-management-17520/. Just remember the numbers given are for full size kids, so you would have to adjust with minis.

If you want the simple version, you need to start a cocci prevention for them at 3 weeks old.
The dam needs wormed now (kidding allows any worms present to just go crazy)
She also needs a CDT vaccine
The kids need their CDT vaccine also around 2 weeks old and a booster 4 weeks later.
Then next year when Tea is around 4 weeks from kidding, she needs a booster (same with any other adult does you have)

If you want your kids to grow out strong and healthy, use the cocci prevention. Folks who don't use it, will tel lyou it's not necessary. I was one of them.
The first year I used cocci prevention, I was shocked by how much stronger and healthier my kids were.

 

[Icedangel11]

Lemme go measure her.

She gave just over three cups this milking. I've been told it's about 1/3 pound of grain per pint of milk produced? Which might make for about a pound of grain a day.

Tea is 22 inches tall.

 

[Icedangel11]

I should probably discourage them from licking and nibbling on me, shouldn't I? I just realized they may not naturally stop that when they go off milk.