How to independently determine the sex of a kid, the differences between females and males
Owners of young goats are often faced with the question of how to correctly determine the sex of a newborn kid. Since signs of sexual dimorphism appear already from the first days of an animal's life, there will be no difficulties with determining the sex. In both adults and young kids, there are a number of differences that make it easy to determine the sex.
How to tell a goat from a goat?
Goats are able to bear their offspring until the end of their life, but goats inseminate a female only up to the age of 3-4 years. If the goat is older, then it is recommended to do castration in order for it to gain weight and be used in the future for meat production.
Since the goat, to a greater extent, is bred as a dairy animal, the presence of an udder is the main criterion that distinguishes the female from the male. As the goat grows older, the udder becomes larger and adds volume. In goats, the udder consists of two lobes and is pear-shaped. The formation of this part of the body depends on the conditions of the dairy animal and the diet.
However, if the shape of the developed udder differs from the norm, this does not mean that the reproductive functions of the body are impaired in the goat.
Male from female can also be distinguished by their more massive build, large horns, long hair and a pungent musk smell.
How to determine the sex of a newborn kid?
Newborn kids have neither horns nor udders, and their physique is not much different from each other. All this greatly complicates the task of gender determination. Since signs of sex differences are visible from birth, then to clarify the sex, the genitals of animals should be checked or observed.
To determine the sex of a little kid, you should run your palm along the abdominal cavity and between the hind legs. In goats, two small milkings are found; in goats, a small seminal sac covered with hairs is felt. In females, the genital slit is also clearly visible under the tail below the anus.
In the process, the male simply spreads his hind legs, while lowering the lumbar region. The female spreads her hooves and squats a little. The direction of the urine stream also indicates the sex of the animal - in the goat it can be seen in the belly area, in the female - from under the tail.
