Feed advice for milking doe, New goat mama

[Amaggio]

Hi all, I've heard you should introduce feed changes slowly when you get new goats and i want to make sure i am giving enough grain to keep her in milk. Right now I'm giving her dumor sweet feed, alfalfa pellets, a handful of boss, as well as Timothy hay, and sweetlix magnum milk minerals. I've read about a cup of grain a day should keep her in milk but i didn't have sweet feed in my plans. I've been using it as a part of her gain allotment since that's what the pervious owner used with a handful of boss. Should i slowly switch her to something different or will this keep her in milk?

 

[Jesusfreak101]

if your milking her its more accurretly a cup per gallon lf milk mine were eating 1.5quart scoops when they were producing less milk at the peak they were eating between 3quarts to 5 quarts of grain. i also feed alfalfa and coastal hay. i dont care to much for sweet feeds i feed mine a local brand of sheep and goat feed.

 

[Amaggio]

What's the real difference between sweet feed and normal feed? The molasses? I'll want to use what i bought but how slowly do i need to change their diet? Maybe when i get close to the end substitute 1/4cup of the new stuff for the sweet feed for a few weeks?

 

[Jesusfreak101]

it depends on the ingredients of the feeds available. When switching feed you need to mix it slowly into the feed until the feed is solely the new feed.

 

[Amaggio]

I noticed today that both the goats have clumpy poop instead of pellets. It's been pellets this whole time except for today. I looked it up, and since they are still eating, drinking, not boated, and very active I'm assuming they're stressed and perhaps i changed the feed a little to much at a time. I'll give them pro biotics today and slow things down unless you have a better suggestion.

 

[Jesusfreak101]

they can react pretty much over any change some are more sensitive then others. i had a buck who if was let out for a hour or so on the first day were they could roam the pastures would always get sick no matter how short the time. i would back off some and move slower give them a week to adjust to that amount the up it alittle and adjust as nessicary.

 

[Amaggio]

Oh, thanks for that info! I've not read that one. Last night i tried to let them out in the pasture and they found the whole way so i put them back in their pens. Maybe that's what triggered it

 

[Amaggio]

By the way, have you ever had a problem getting your doe to eat their grain? I give her 1/3-1/2 cup while she's on the milking stand but she only eats one or two mouthfuls. She instead stares at me the whole time. We're a week in so i realize she's not fully comfortable with me but it's just a bit odd that she didn't demolish the grain

 

[Jesusfreak101]

she might not like the taste. i also been known to give alfalfa when milkibg some of my does didnt want grain some day but would eat the alfalfa