Kid replacer or whole cows milk?? Help before morning, please!

[abluechipstock]

on goatwisdom.com, they have another formula on there were they mix buttermilk with regular cow's milk, they don't recommend replacer at all, my friends all use regular whole cow's milk with great results, i would get one thing and have it on hand, cd antitoxin not the toxoid, that stuff can be given orally, it helps with diarrhea, bloat, upset stomach, it effects the toxins right in the rumen, some people recommend to put a few drops in the kid's first bottles to give them instant protection from the clostridium, probiotics are good also, i recommend looking on goatwisdom, you'll learn a lot i did

 

[redhen]

Quote:
okay, new question..lol...why dont you recommend the replacer? just so i can better understand...also, the breeder said she recommends the whole milk also...just wondering why?

 

[ravencreek]

My vet told me to never give any baby animal cows milk. Well not the kind you would buy for yourself from the grocery store. I was told to always buy the powdered kind from say a farm store that is used for calves. However, I will say that when we bottle fed baby sheep some ended up with scours from the calves milk but did just fine before we gave it to them and they were on whole cows milk. So it may just be the individual baby. The breeder should be able to tell you what to feed your baby when you go to pick it up.

 

[redhen]

Quote:
LOL..

this is why i dont know what to do...

its hard! if a vet told you not to do it..but yet..SO many people on here who raise and breed them say to do it and have had sucess with it ....UGH! what do you do?..

thanks for your help though! (hugs)..

edited to ask: did your vet tell you why to never give a baby, cows milk??

 

[Haviris]

I can't get kid replacer w/out driving atleast an hour away, and calf replacer just doesn't have what a goat needs.

I have used the whole milk almost from the beginning and my kids are big and healthy growing atleast as good as (and probably better) my dam raised kids. I've just not heard good things about the replacer and I figure why mess w/ what works? If I was not getting the results that I am I would gladly drive alittle farther and spend alittle more for the replacer. (also the reason I don't bother w/ the mixture some people use, it works as is, so why mess w/ it?)

It's not really that I don't recommend the replacer, I don't have the experience w/ it to say. I Do recommend the whole milk because I know it works, and when I sell a kid that has been fed the whole milk and is doing fine, I worry the new owner is asking for more trouble then it's worth to switch the kid off what they are already use to. I could also raise them on goat's milk which I do occationally w/ keeper kids, but honestly I can't see that they do any better and if I am selling the kid most buyers don't have access to goats milk, so again I hate for them to be switched.

Since your kid is currently on mom (it is right?), and you've had luck w/ the replacer I don't see any reason not to use that if that is what you feel more confortable w/. But whatever you start w/ that is what I'd stay with as long as the baby is doing ok on it.

I've raised calves on milk replacer and never seemed to be able to get it mixed as well as I wanted (and I don't think it tastes as good to them), so that would be another reason I'd prefer not to use replacer.

I currently have 5 kids on bottles, all getting whole milk since they were around 3 days old.

 

[helmstead]

I'm late to this post...

Whole cow's milk is best. That formula where people mix other types of milk in is so dumb! You should add Poly Vi Sol to the bottle once a day (.5 cc) to bump up vitamins/minerals. And, yes - it's the same stuff you buy at the store.

The issue with milk replacer is scours. It contains a LOT of sugar, usually uses whey or soy as filler and trashes a kid's intestines.

 

[Chatychick]

With replacer it wont curd in teh babies tummies and thats what gives them the scours. I use either goats milk or whole cows milk and I add half and half for the first few weeks as it adds more cream to it. You can use buttermilk but I like half and half on my creeal sometimes and keep it here. My babies grow like weeds.
Yep had lots of problems with replacers and just not worth the time and medications. Milk is milk and dont get the skimmed not good for them either. Just good ole whole Vit D milk. That way it will curdle in the tummy and they can absorb it. No problems at all ...Good luck and if it wont take the bottle just keep trying over and over and make sure its warmed to 102 which is what momma goats milk is at. They dont like it cold or too hot. Test it on your wrist. It should be taking at least 4 to 6 oz each feeding and being a week old about 4 bottles a day. I give 1 at night so they have a nice warm tummy to sleep...

 

[ravencreek]

Quote:
LOL..

this is why i dont know what to do...

its hard! if a vet told you not to do it..but yet..SO many people on here who raise and breed them say to do it and have had sucess with it ....UGH! what do you do?..

thanks for your help though! (hugs)..

edited to ask: did your vet tell you why to never give a baby, cows milk??

Yes she said because it has VERY little nutritional value after its been processed. Yes it has SOME but not what a baby requires to grow properly. Even the whole milk was like giving it water with sugars. She also said it can cause growth problems, scours, and malnutrition over a long period. But like I said before we HAVE been successful feeding whole milk to some of them.

 

[ksacres]

I have used replacer on occasion and have never had a problem with it, certainly never lost a kid to it.

That being said, I do try to keep babies on straight goats' milk for at least three weeks-nothing is better than the real thing

I have also been told that there is very little nutritional value in the milk you buy at the store; it barely resembles the raw form.

The other benefit of replacer is that it's formulated to more closely resemble doe/ewe milk. The components are not in the same balance. You should NEVER NEVER NEVER feed calf milk replacer to a baby goat. This is the only time I've ever heard of people having real problems.

That's one reason we have chosen not to pastuerize milk for our kids (goat kids) (a WHOLE 'nother can of worms).

I would be more inclined to buy replacer for a # of reasons:
1. More cost effective
2. Doesn't spoil (within reason)
3. You can alter the compostion (less water=denser nutrition)
4. Doesn't require refridgeration
5. Can make a single serving-no storage

But that's me. Everyone has their own management systems.

If the baby is in good flesh and has no underlying health concerns, I would think that EITHER ONE YOU CHOOSE would be just fine.


Of course, if you want to pay overnight shipping, I'll send you some of the real thing.

 

[Cara]

Take a gallon of whole milk, pour off 4 cups, add 1 cup buttermilk and 1 large can evaporated milk, then refill the jug with as much of the whole milk as it will hold.

Add 1/2 teaspoon of Goat Nutri-Drench to the first bottle of the day.

That recipe should do you just fine