How to quickly wean a goat from sucking its milk, reasons and solutions
Almost all owners have goats in order to get tasty nutritious milk. Self-sucking of goats is a common cause of milk yield decline. Therefore, farmers are concerned about the question of how to quickly wean a goat to suck its milk from itself. Of course, it is advisable to first find out the reasons for this phenomenon. Different methods are used to fix the problem.
Possible reasons
When breeding goats, you need to take into account that these are very "food dependent" animals. And if individuals find a source of tasty or abundant food, then it will be difficult to drive them away from food. Often, goats, having once tasted milk, begin to constantly suck it.
Common reasons why a goat sucks its udder:
- during pregnancy, the amount of calcium in the female's body decreases, so the goat tries to restore the calcium level with milk;
- the udder of the female fills up quickly and is not completely emptied during milking. Naturally, a full udder after a while begins to cause inconvenience, which she tries to get rid of on her own;
- in some individuals, the process of sucking milk causes pleasant emotions (endorphins are released). Therefore, at every opportunity, animals will strive to enjoy themselves.
Goat's milk is a nutritious food, so it's no surprise that individual females start sucking milk. Moreover, sometimes the owners begin to give the female the first milk after lambing (within 15-20 days).
How to stop a goat from sucking its milk
Many owners agree that it can be very difficult to wean an animal from its milking habit. Sometimes it is impossible to understand the cause of the problem, and you have to resort to drastic measures. The owners use improvised means to "isolate" the udder:
- bras are specially sewn. But more often than not, animals manage to pull together such ammunition;
- clothes are put on the animal - a T-shirt or knitted dress, which are tied at udder level with special ties. The female will no longer be able to get rid of the outfit on her own;
- a kind of collar is put on the neck, which is made from a soft insulation pipe. The porous tube is wrapped twice around the neck and the ends are held together.
Not the best option is to lubricate the udder with any means, since some formulations can spoil the taste of milk. The option is not excluded that the lubricant, on the contrary, will please the animal.
How to prevent a problem from arising
A common solution is to rethink the milking regimen. To prevent the udder from filling up with milk too much, the number of milking is increased (4-5 times a day).
It is undesirable to drink milk for a long period of young goats. Experienced livestock breeders recommend not to give milk to two-month-old animals, especially since at this age the goats are already accustomed to graze and eat food. Alternatively, if there are few animals, some owners independently feed the newborns with milk.
Breeding goats is a promising chance to establish a dairy business or an opportunity to feed a family with natural products, given that these small animals are unpretentious in terms of maintenance and diet. To constantly receive milk, it is necessary not only to provide pets with appropriate care and diet, but also to prevent the phenomenon when goats suck their milk.
