Of course, you can buy a regular mongrel goat, and if you're lucky, the amount of milk that a goat gives per day will be 2.5, and maybe 3 liters. This is enough for a family of 3-4 people. But it also happens that for some goats a day of 1.5 liters is a ceiling, and it will be milked not 8 to 11 months a year, but 6, and then the maintenance of the animal will be unprofitable. Therefore, if high rates are important for the future owner of a productive herd, then it is worth thinking about buying purebred goats, which can provide not only his family with dairy products, but bring a small benefit. On what breed to stay, and what goats will give the highest milk yield?
On the territory of Central Russia, its north and west is dominated by the Russian breed. For 7-8 months of active lactation, it can give from 400 to 600 liters of milk. These goats are not very large, their weight is on average 35 kg, but larger specimens weighing up to 55 kg come across.
Gorky breed is very similar to the Russian. And it is not surprising: after all, this is one of its branches. The best individuals give up to 5.5 liters per day, and fat content reaches 4.5%. Lactate up to 10 months.
I especially want to highlight the goat of the Swiss selection - zaanenskaya. These animals are very large: their weight is 50-60 kg, and there are those that weigh 90 kg. Basically, these goats are horny (i.e., hornless), with white coat, very elegant and beautiful. Milk yield reaches 600–700 or even 1000 liters per year. They are popular all over the world, they were used to improve domestic breeds in Russia, Europe and Asia.
But representatives of this breed have a disadvantage: they are demanding for food and stall maintenance, they do not tolerate extreme cold, because their wool does not have an undercoat, and it is not easy to buy a thoroughbred goat from us in Russia. But they offer a lot of mixed breeds, which are given out for purebreds. However, such dairy goats, and keeping them profitable, especially since they are more adapted to our harsh winters.
How to choose a goat
When buying an adult animal, you need to bear in mind that, besides its dairy qualities, it is important that it be healthy. Shiny wool, dense smooth skin, cheerful look are indicators of her well-being. A well-developed proportional body, a broad chest, a straight back, bulging ribs and a voluminous belly, strong straight legs — all of this speaks of the productive potential of the animal. Of course, by eye it is impossible to determine the real milk yield from a goat per day, it is better to do this by monitoring the milk yield for several days. But based on external examination, it is also possible to draw certain conclusions. A goat with good yields has a volumetric elastic udder, its shape is spherical or pear-shaped, there is no hard hair on it, as well as growths and hardening. Dairy veins shine through the skin. There are folds along the edges: a kind of "stock" of the udder in case of an increase in the amount of milk.
Room for content
For the goat should be equipped with a separate room. It is better if it is a barn built in a dry place of planks, hollow brick, clay or adobe. To keep goats with chickens, pigs should not be, because from the bird they can become infected with skin parasites, and the pork smell is poorly tolerated.
The optimum ceiling height in the shed is 2 meters, with a low ceiling, the owner is uncomfortable, and a high one prevents good heating of the room. The window is better positioned on the sunny side and a safe distance from the floor, because the animal can break it.
It is undesirable to make a concrete floor in the goat house: this material is very cold and damp, it is better to lay wooden boards on it. But they also have flaws. Over time, the tree rots, and the animal can injure the legs. Therefore, it is necessary to monitor the condition of the floor. Although there is an alternative: goats are feeling great on the adobe surfaces. A small slope of the floor does not hurt, then all the liquid will flow into a special container, and in the pen will be dry and clean.
It is good to arrange wide shelves along the wall, goats love to sleep on them, and even in cold weather they will save loungers from colds and inflammation of the udder.
A couple of goats is enough 8 square meters of pen, and in a narrow stall it is difficult for them to move, and this can negatively affect how many liters of milk a goat gives per day.
Keeping goats in summer
In the summer season, goats usually feed on grazing. But it is not enough just to bring the goat to the clearing, tie it to a wooden or iron peg and leave it unattended for a day. Properly organized grazing is a guarantee of high yields, it depends on how much milk a goat gives per day. They feel great on a freestyle walk under the supervision of a shepherd, then the food will be more complete. But in the absence of such an opportunity, a change of place from 2 to 3-4 times a day will help the animal to satisfy the need for favorite food.
When the grass is abundant in the field, the goat must be watered at least 3 times during the day. If she does not use enough liquid, then she will not be happy. To feed the goats follows from clean dishes, because these caprices are very clean and squeamish, and they will never touch a dirty bucket. If there are several goats, then some of the "ladies" refuse to drink from common dishes, then you have to take care of a bucket for each. Water should not be too cold, it is acceptable if it is 10-15 degrees.
Stall content
With the onset of cold weather, goats are transferred to a permanent stall until spring. At this time, diverse and nutritious feeding is most important for prolonging lactation and the birth of healthy offspring.
Juicy food is not excluded from the diet, all kinds of waste, coarse and concentrated food are given.
There is no need to tie a goat in the stall, and there should be a warm bed of hay on the floor. On sunny days a goat can be let out into the courtyard, about 4 hours. If there is a small frost, then 2 hours is enough.
Well, if the air temperature in a shed where goats hibernate will be positive, as the udder can inflame in a frosty room, besides the cold reduces the rate of how much a goat produces milk per day. Especially demanding to the heat of "foreigners". Goats imported from Europe do not have undercoat, so this feature should be taken into account and try to create conditions concomitant with high productivity and preservation of animal health.
Succulent feed
The category of these feed includes vegetables and roots grown in the garden: carrots, beets, cabbage, potatoes, pumpkins, zucchini, Jerusalem artichoke. The number of their use is determined by the milk yield of a goat per day. Vegetables are thoroughly washed and finely cut, 500-700 g is given per head per day. Sugar beets are particularly prominent in this series: bloating, fermentation in the intestines, and diarrhea can start from excessive consumption.
Concentrated feed
Concentrated feeds include oats, barley, bran and animal feed. Oats and barley are crushed.
Bran fed in the form of mash. They contain a lot of protein, so it is advisable to dilute it with food waste. Purification from potatoes, beets, carrots should be slightly salted and mixed with bran. To enrich with vitamins, bone meal and chalk are added.
Compound feeds contain vitamins and microelements. For goats you can use nutritional mixtures adapted for birds. They have a positive effect on the intrauterine development of the offspring, the health and immune system of animals and, of course, on how many liters of milk a goat gives during the day. In the stall period, the animal eats them up to 300 kg.
Roughage
The basis of nutrition of cloven-hoofed animals during the cold period is hay. Especially prized dry food with thin stems of herbs, legumes and cereals. Hay should not be overdried, the moisture content of a good billet is about 17%. It makes up one third of the whole goat's ration in winter, 2 kg per day is enough, but if the animal is large or lactating, then the rate can be increased to 2.5 kg.
Goat straw is preferred for spring cereals, legumes, lentils, peas, and beans. But the stems from winter crops goat eat reluctantly.
To increase the nutritional value of straw, as well as make it more attractive taste, it is crushed and sprayed with warm salted water (50 liters of salt for 10 liters). Then, kept in a wooden box for hours 16-18, add concentrates and root vegetables. Such a product is eaten by a goat with pleasure, but it should not be left next time, it can spoil.
They are very fond of goats and branch feed, in addition, it significantly increases milk yield, significantly affects how much milk a goat gives per day, contains an impressive array of trace elements. Start collecting brooms from the beginning of the summer. The branches of willow, linden, poplar, birch, hazel, ash, elm, mountain ash are suitable. Branches no more than 1 cm thick and half a meter long are cut with shears and dried several hours in the sun to produce vitamin D. They are then hung under a canopy or in the attic and dried for 2 weeks. Then folded in rows in several layers.
During the stall period a goat can be given 5 brooms per day, but birch trees can be given in limited quantities, they can provoke kidney inflammation. One goat requires at least 100 brooms for the winter.
If it was not possible to prepare brooms in the summer, then thin sprigs up to 4 mm thick can save the situation. Goats with pleasure eat up to 40 of them at a time. They are also rich in vitamins, they contain a lot of chlorophyll. Twigs can begin to cut in November and until spring.
In the feeding of goats and use the fallen leaves, it contains vitamins, and they have sufficient nutritional value. Collect the leaves with a rake in dry weather, roll into rollers, dry and clean the dirt.
Approximate daily diet
If in the summer the goat is mainly saturated on pasture, and the green juicy grass practically covers the need for nutrients, then in the period of stable housing, properly organized feeding plays a huge role. After all, a well-fed animal will never freeze, it will be fun, and even a balanced diet will help preserve its health, and the future offspring will be born strong and developed. Plus, it will positively affect how much a goat gives milk per day.
In the morning goat is better to give concentrates - 150 g or a little more for a large animal and a pound of root crops per head.
At lunchtime, hunger will satisfy hay, wreaths or leaves.
In the evening, as much concentrated feed as in the morning. And hay for the night.
If you do not comply with the rules of feeding, livestock may develop rickets and avitaminosis.
How to increase milk yield
How much milk does a goat give per day? The amount depends on several conditions. This is a hereditary factor, the conditions of detention, feeding, the age of the goat, the number of milks per day, and the duration of lactation. Some of them do not depend on the owner: they are due to genetics, but there are reasons that a person can significantly influence. The combination of the right measures will help the goat to reach its full productive potential.
- As soon as kids were born, the goat needs to be distributed: frequent milking up to 4 times a day, massage of the udder stimulates the addition of milk, increases blood circulation, which positively affects the quality of the product.
- Significantly increase the amount of milk can increase the rate of concentrated feed. But here it is important not to overdo it, otherwise you can harm the animal.
- Milk comes from juicy additives, especially pumpkins, apples, root vegetables.
- Experienced breeders recommend feeding goats with turnips: it has a milky character. It should be added to the mash.
- The branches of the trees diversify the diet, they contain trace elements and vitamins.
- Sometimes avitaminosis is the reason for the decrease in milk production, therefore, especially in winter, it is necessary to include vitamin supplements in feed.
- How much a goat gives milk per day is influenced by the amount of water it drinks, it cannot be denied to an animal either on a hot summer day or in extreme cold. Some caring owners offer their darlings water with the addition of a decoction of herbs, lemon juice, regular tea or kombucha. They steam a handful of rowan or viburnum berries, some dried fruit. Such a goat's water is drunk with great pleasure, only it must be chosen according to the taste of the animal.
How to milk a goat
It depends on how well milking is organized how many liters of milk a goat gives per day. Some recommend starting to massage and develop a goat udder a month before giving birth, but this is wrong. Udder irritation can trigger miscarriage, and then the young will be lost.
It is better to start the massage an hour after the lambing, during milking, then the benefits of it will be obvious. After the goat gave birth, the offspring should be immediately isolated, otherwise the uterus may not be allowed to go to the owner's udder.
In order for the animal to stand still, in front of it you need to put the dishes with water and throw slices of bread, dried fruits, sliced apples. Udder should be washed with warm water, wiped dry with a towel and massage each lobe. Then clasp the nipple with your fingers, squeeze and pull down, squeezing the milk. The first streams should not fall into the hearth, as they are non-sterile.
Udder needs to be emptied completely, because of the residual milk in it mastitis can begin. It also affects the increase in lactation: the empty udder fills up faster.
If the goat is young, and the goat kids have appeared for the first time, then it is more difficult to milk it. She still does not understand what is wanted of her, and worries about new sensations. Not everyone has a machine, so you need to tie it on a short leash, to offer her a favorite delicacy or tasty drink. It is good, if someone from relatives helps, will hold and iron, calming. A little patience - and your nurse will get used to the procedure, will take it calmly.
Having successfully bought a goat with a good heredity, properly caring for it, the owner can be sure: how many liters of milk a goat gives per day is enough to provide the whole family with high-quality dairy products, and even make a tangible profit.
Goat milk is gaining popularity
It is very important to know how many liters of milk a goat gives per day, since this directly affects the profitability of production. But who needs products? It is believed that people traditionally consume the milk of cows. However, this is misleading. Goat milk is gaining popularity among consumers today. There is a significant shortage of demand for such products.
This happens for the following reasons:
- Goat milk is absorbed better than cow milk. It contains smaller globules and a high content of short-chain fatty acids, which are easily broken down in the body.
- It has a high content of vitamins A, D, B, B12, minerals (calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, iodine, zinc), proteins.
- Keeping goats is more difficult, and their production is less. Therefore, this goat milk is difficult to find. There are a lot of dairy cow farms, and goats are kept mostly in private homesteads.
Average daily production
So, how much does a goat give milk per day? Lactation in animals begins immediately when babies are born. It lasts from six months to 9 months. In some owners, goats stop giving milk even earlier, but this most likely depends on the particular animal. It is necessary in this case to think, and whether it is worth keeping such a "wet nurse." How much milk a goat gives per day depends on the particular breed. In our country, they are represented mainly by the following options:
- Zaanenskaya.
- Russian white.
- Toggenburg.
- Anglo-Nubian (Nubian).
Farmers who are engaged in breeding, claim that their animals give 5-6 liters. However, most goat owners can not boast of such indicators. To the question of how much milk a goat a day gives, they answer: 2-3 liters. The goats are milked about 6 months a year.
Advice to novice farmers
We give valuable advice, which is based on the mistakes of novice farmers. Little kids after birth must be separated from the mother. The goat must be milked immediately after the appearance of the offspring, and the children should be fed with milk. The baby is more than enough milk, therefore, the share of the person also remains. Kids are usually fed for 3-4 months, but if they aren’t deposited immediately at birth from the mother, then the products can not be seen. The kids will suck all clean when they grow up, and the goat itself will not give milk at milk yield.
How many times a day do you need to milk?
The maximum amount of milk goat gives in the first 4-5 months of lactation. At this time, it must be milked twice a day. Some farmers do this three times. According to them, a goat with this method produces more products. Then the volume is reduced, after which you can go only to the morning milking.
We must not forget that, in addition to natural and age-related factors, the amount of milk is also affected by the feeding of goats and their care. More on this.
When feeding, the main thing is that the diet is balanced and complete. It should contain the following components:
- Vegetable crops, roots from the garden.
- Dry brooms in the cold season, young branches.
- Кормовые виды корнеплодов.
- Зерновые культуры: овес, пшеница, ячмень.
- Негрубое сено, желательно из клевера с добавлением бобовых культур, скошенных в период цветения.
Особенно важно, чтобы у животных было достаточное количество чистой питьевой воды, минеральных добавок. От этого зависит и объем молока, и будущее потомство, и здоровье животного.
If you fulfill all the conditions of detention, then the answer to the question “how much a goat gives milk per day” will please the owner, since the volume of production of a usual part-time farm from an animal will be at the same level as in breeding farms.
How to milk?
The volume of production depends strongly on the farmer himself, since it is important to milk the animal correctly. After lactation, be sure to distribute the goat. Here the following points are important:
- proper nutrition
- udder massage that promotes blood circulation in the tissues
- milking 3-4 times a day.
The first thing you need to pay attention - time. The goat's body must get used to the regime. “Slept”, “later”, “today I will not go” - such an attitude will necessarily lead not only to a decrease in milk production, but also to a final loss of all products. The goat can completely stop producing milk.
It is necessary to milk 2-3 times a day, some farmers practice a one-time morning milking with a decrease in the volume of production. Before starting the procedure, the goat udder must be massaged to eliminate pain in the animal. Give milk to the last drop, the movement must be confident, of equal strength. After milking, you must massage the udder again, and then wipe the nipples with petroleum jelly.
So, in general, we answered the question: "How much a goat gives milk per day?" But we did not focus on a particular breed of animal. Consider the two main ones represented in our country.
Anglo-Nubian (Nubian) breed
So, how much milk does a Nubian goat give per day? And what are the features of this breed? It is believed that it refers to the universal. Thoroughbred goats can produce 4-5 liters per day. In addition, animals gain weight. In males, this figure can reach 120 kg, in females - 70-80 kg.
Their color is different. You can meet white, black or brown animals. Spotted goats are also found. Conditions of animals:
- The floor must be concrete, sloped. Wooden pallets are stacked on it, straw or sawdust is poured. The hooves of goats of any breed is a weak spot. On hard floor animals will beat them.
- The stable should be well heated. Nubian goats do not tolerate extreme cold.
- Mandatory airing. You can not keep goats in the same yard with pigs. They do not tolerate strong odors.
- Mandatory presence of the drinker in the cage.
- Periodically you need to walk animals. However, in extreme cold it is better to keep them at home.
Saanen breed
Now we will answer the question of how much milk a Zaanen goat gives per day, and also list the features of this breed.
Purebred goats give 4-5 liters of milk. The weight of the female reaches 60-70 kg, the male - 70-80 kg. Representatives of this breed are often called “dairy sheep”. The error is not accidental. These goats do not have horns, they are very similar to trimmed sheep. The conditions of detention do not differ from those described above. Zaanensky goats also do not tolerate cold, they do not have fluff, which warms the representatives of other breeds. With each birth of new cubs, mother begins to add production. Therefore, the longer the animal is held, the more milk it gives.
The undoubted advantage of the breed is its distinctive feature. Since these goats do not have horns, it is impossible to deceive customers when selling. Often, unscrupulous sellers give inexperienced farmers the wrong product. With Zaanensky breed such tricks do not pass.
How much milk does a goat give per day?
Lactation in goats begins immediately after the birth of babies and lasts from 5 to 9 months. The duration of this period, as well as how much milk a goat gives per day, depends on many factors. First of all, this is an animal belonging to a particular breed. Milk goats, such as the Zaanen, White Russian or Toggenburg breeds, supply their owners with milk for 8–11 months a year. And to the question: "How much milk does a goat give per day?" Livestock breeders that grow purebred stock speak confidently about 5-6 liters.
Unfortunately, the owners of most goats, usually grazing near rural houses, cannot boast of such food. But their pet with a proper course gives 2-3 liters of milk per day, and no more than six months are given to milk.
In addition to belonging to the goat dairy breed, its milk yield is influenced by age, diet, milking methods and number of milkings.
When does a goat start to give milk?
Milk goats begin to be actively milked immediately after the birth of kids. Young stock is kept separately, and milk for it stands out from the total milk yield. This method is based on the fact that the milk yield of animals more than cover the needs of the kids, and the remaining milk can be immediately sent to the person’s table.
The rest of the goats live with the babies. When does a goat start to give milk for human needs in this case? Milking is started only after the kids reach the age of 3-4 months, when the need for breast milk disappears. And this applies only to adults, well-fed, healthy queens.
Some breeds of goat meat and downy direction give so little milk that only youngsters have enough milk, so they are not milked.
How many times a day to milk a goat?
Usually goats are milked twice a day, and then, when the volume begins to decrease, only morning milking is carried out. The peak milk yield is in the first 4–5 months of lactation. At this time, some practice three times a day, which only increases the amount of milk collected. If the answer to the burning question: “How much milk does a goat give per day?” Is not encouraging, the breeder should not give up.
Most importantly, we must not forget that in addition to age and breed factors, the amount of milk produced is affected by the feeding of goats, their care and even the attitude of the host. Receiving all this in full, even the simplest goats can compete with those that are kept in the breeding farms.
What to feed a goat to increase milk yield?
The first thing that determines the yield of domestic livestock, its condition and health, is feeding. What to feed a goat to increase milk yield? During lactation, it is most important that the diet was complete, balanced and nutritious. Therefore, milk goats in the conditions of a personal compound can be offered:
- any vegetable crops, tubers and roots from the garden, which are pre-washed and cut for the convenience of animals,
- young branches and dry brooms prepared in advance, if we are talking about feeding animals during the cold season,
- turnips and root crops that increase milk production,
- cereals, among which may be grains of barley, wheat, oats,
- non-coarse hay with the inclusion of chamomile, clover and other legumes that were cut during the flowering period.
Goats should definitely get enough clean drinking water, as well as mineral and vitamin supplements that cover all the costs of the body.
If animals suffer from a lack of moisture and a shortage of important micro and macro elements, not only will the milk yield fall, but also the health of the livestock will deteriorate markedly. If goats get fodder, some livestock keepers feed more goats to increase their yield, with emphasis on nutritional value of the feed, and not on its balance. This may have the opposite effect. Goats gain weight, and the amount of milk falls.
How to milk a goat?
The high milk yield of a goat is not only a genetic predisposition, but also the result of the breeder’s hard work. To animals showed the best possible result, at the beginning of lactation from distribute.
How to crush a goat? Understand as a combination:
- nutrition that promotes milk production,
- udder massage, activating blood circulation in the tissues,
- milking up to 3-4 times a day, preparing a goat for this procedure.
How to milk a goat? From the knowledge of the correct answer to this question depends on the milk yield and the quality of milk. First of all, it should be still at the stage of stripping to teach the goat that the milker will come at the same time.
But how many times a day to milk a goat? The animals themselves will prompt the optimal mode. Three times a day milking is acceptable for dairy breeds, and some are enough once to give up all the accumulated milk.
Before starting the milking, the udder is massaged so that the process does not disturb the animal, and then washed with warm water. When the udder is dried with a clean towel, you can begin to work.
There are several ways of milking goats. Video, how to milk a goat, will provide invaluable assistance to novice goats, preparing for the first milk yield.
Each breeder chooses a method convenient for himself, but at the same time it is necessary to remember the general rules. Movement milker should be confident, smooth and soft. A goat should feel good about her. You need to give all the milk to a drop, otherwise there is a risk of not only reducing milk production, but also the development of mastitis. When the work is finished, the milker should again massage the udder, wipe it with a dry towel and treat the nipples with petroleum jelly.
How to increase the yield
The volume of milk produced depends not only on the natural factor and the age of the animal. Hosts always need to pay attention to the conditions in which they contain goats, how, when and what they feed them, treats living creatures with warmth and care, and monitor their health.
Increase milk yield by providing the goats with good nutrition. It is good to feed small cattle with washed and chopped vegetables, root crops and tubers. For example, milk production is increased by introducing turnips or forage vegetables into the diet.
Tip: By the winter for goats you can prepare (dry) a few brooms and bundles of breeze from trees and shrubs. Harvesting of rough hay with leguminous plants, chamomile and clover occurs during the period when the grass is blooming.
During the year, goats are fed barley, oat and wheat grains. Feed animals with mineral and vitamin supplements. Fresh water should always be kept in drinking tanks. Lack of fluid and nutrition leads to livestock diseases and reduced lactation.
When feeding livestock, mainly with feed, it should be taken into account that its oversupply is harmful, especially if the animals are not given other foods and additives, which leads to an imbalance in the body of goats, they become fat, and cannot reproduce much milk.
In addition to food, even the fact that a goat may be bored, for example, by the old living conditions, the former owners or the herd, affects the decrease in milk productivity. In this case, new breeders need to approach the animal more often, communicate with it, tame it, give food from their hands (bread, pieces of vegetables, etc.). Stress can be obtained by animals and when changing diet. The condition, on average, lasts from one and a half to three months.
Tip: It is important for goats to move a lot, from 7 to 10 kilometers every day, this is a necessary norm. The maximum results of lactation will be subject to passing through the goat udder from 250 liters throughout the day. blood.
The stall, which contains a goat, must have ventilation, be pretty light. Through it should not pass drafts. Be sure to timely clean the room, change bedding, if necessary, disinfection. Animals should regularly clean wool, treat anthelmintic drugs.
Which goats have the most delicious milk
When choosing a goat, you should carefully look at its health and external data and udder. A healthy female will always be with bright eyes, a flat back, a rounded belly and a broad chest. The individual covers necessarily dense wool. The legs are set wide. An external stimulus should cause her to respond.
Females with horns produce the largest volumes of milk. They are distinguished by their calm character, obedience, they do not observe aggressive attacks. The goat's udder should be round and not fleshy, should not hang too low, preventing the goat from moving.
When milking is finished, the udder should gather in light small folds and sag a little. A goat's udder is considered defective in structure, if it hangs very low, the nipples are small or overly large, pointing in different directions, the lobes are too divided.
The most delicious milk from Nubian goats. Breed belongs to the universal. With purebred females can be fed from 4 to 5 liters. milk during the day. Nubian cattle have a good weight gain. Females have a mass of about 70 or 80 kilograms. Their color is diverse. There are brown, white, black animals and individuals with spots on the woolen cover.
The content of the Nubian goats must be borne in mind that they do not tolerate cold weather, so the shed in which the goats live must be carefully insulated;
The floor in the barn is poured out of concrete, it must be sloping, lined with wooden planks on top and sprinkled with straw or sawdust so that the cattle do not knock down the hoof. When stall maintenance walking the goats is still provided. The room must be ventilated, keeping in the same shed with pigs is contraindicated, a strong odor negatively affects the goat livestock.
Hornless Zaanenskoe goats are also popular and give a good fat milk. Their peculiarity lies in the fact that each new childbearing increases the volume of lactation. The longer Zaanensky females live on the farm, the more milk they make from them, under favorable feeding and housing conditions.
Milk is bitter
Bitter milk can be obtained from a goat, if in the fields where it is grazing, poisonous grass grows, for example, a caustic buttercup. Bitterness can produce wormwood, tansy, mountain ash, viburnum, eaten by animals in large quantities, small doses may not affect the taste of the product.
Bitter milk can also be due to hidden mastitis or liver worm. Will help universal anthelmintic agent "Alben" or another drug prescribed by a veterinarian. Prevent mastitis will help daily massages of the udder of the female before milking. A vitamin A deficiency, reproductive or hormonal disruptions, infections, such as fascioliasis, also spoil the milky taste.
Unpleasant astringency is often felt in stagnant milk, this is the taste of a product obtained from a pregnant female in her late period.
Tip: bitter milk is better not to drink and not to use in cooking.
Products obtained by milking under unsanitary conditions will have an unpleasant taste with bitterness; if the goat's udder is not washed, a polluted bucket is used to collect milk, at least a little. If it is bad to care for cattle, it is wrong to feed them. With rapid cooling of the product in winter, in the final lactation phase. Also, if dairy products are thermally processed, stored incorrectly, shaken too much, this will affect its taste not in the best way.
Council: For the spoiled taste of milk the livestock breeders themselves are responsible. Even stale stale water will have a negative effect on products given by the goat.
If the breeder or the veterinarian examined the cattle, and did not reveal the disease, the goat menu should be reviewed. I exclude any bitter products, no longer give maple branches, green rape, dandelion, celandine and other similar greens. Vitaminized preparations like Tetravit are added to feed.
What does milk yield in goats depend on?
Goat's milk produced during the feeding of offspring. Milk formation (lactation) occurs under the action of specific hormones. However, in dairy breed females, udder filling occurs even before lambing. The first milking is made an hour after the birth of kids. To teach a young female primiped to the milking process, she is treated to a treat - bread, apple or carrot. Kids in advance separated from the mother. Otherwise she will feed them and there will be no milk for milking. Kids get a piece of milk made from a bottle.
The lactation period usually lasts up to 7-8 months. At this time, the goat is milked 2, at least 3 times a day. At 4-5 months, the number of milk yield decreases, so one-time milking is practiced. By the end of the lactation period, about one-liter of milk per day is obtained from one individual. The animal must be given time to rest before the onset of a new pregnancy.
The amount of milk depends on:
- age
- lactation time duration
- animal breeds.
How much milk does a goat give per day? The average performance of 2-3 liters. Females of dairy breeds can produce up to 4-6 liters per day. If you make basic calculations, it turns out that from one individual you can get 14-20 liters per week, 50-55 liters per month and about 400 liters for the entire annual cycle of lactation. Maximum peak yield is achieved after 2-3 births. The amount of milk noticeably decreases after 6 lambing. Owners of goats claim that hornless animals give more yield than horned ones. This feature they associate with the behavior of goats during milking. Hornless thrush behave obediently, patiently waiting for the end of the procedure.
Milk collection is also affected by:
Goats are very receptive to attention and care. If they live in a comfortable environment, receive a proper balanced diet, they regularly give large yields. It is very important to provide animals with a variety of feed products. В каждодневное меню должны входить кормовые культуры и корнеплоды, травянистые растения, сено, молодые ветви деревьев, отруби, комбикорм. Не стоит давать в пищу животным сырой картофель и сахарную свеклу. Обязательным условием является соблюдение питьевого режима. Коза должна иметь доступ к чистой воде. Некоторые заводчики делают специальные отвары трав и ими дополнительно подпаивают животных.
Сколько молока дают разные молочные породы коз
Dairy goats are especially famous for their milk yield.
Indisputable leaders among them are goats of Saanen breed brought from Switzerland. Because of the outward appearance of the hornless and predominantly white dye of wool, the Zaanen goats are popularly called “dairy sheep”. These animals are much larger than their horned relatives. Females reach a mass of 60-70 kgand males up to 80 kg. It was the thrush of the Zaanen breed that set the world record for annual yield - 3 thousand liters. On average, 1 thousand liters of high-fat milk per year receive from one animal.
Among other things, these goats are distinguished by their fertility and bring 4 babies per lamb each. And after each birth, the amount of milk produced increases. The disadvantages of the breed should be attributed to unsuitability for severe frosty winters. Animals have no undercoat, so they must be kept in a warm room.
Another well-known dairy breed goat - Nubian has a distinctive appearance. Wild ancestors of these animals lived in Africa, in Nubia. Later several copies were brought to Europe, where English breeders were engaged in their selection. That is why the breed is also called Anglo-Nubian.
Animals are easy to recognize over dangling ears and spotted coat. Representatives of this breed have significant dimensions: females 70-80 kg each, males up to 120-130 kg. Like zaanentsy, Nubian goats are poorly adapted to the cold and require stall. In addition, they have a stubborn, masterful temper. Despite significant shortcomings, Nubians appreciate for high productivity (4-5 liters of milk per day), nutritional value of products (protein content 4%, fat content 8.5%).
An alternative to foreign breeds is Russian breeding of dairy goats - Russian white, Gorky.
The Russian white breed of dairy goats appeared as a result of hybridization of local breeds from regions of the European part of Russia. Adult animals are small in size up to 50 kg. The coat is thick, white. They are perfectly adapted for living. in the Russian climate. During the lactation period (about 8 months) a goat can produce 500 l of dairy products.
The Gorky breed is in many respects similar to the Russian white. Animals are medium in size from 35 to 70 kg. Wool white or gray color. Purebred gorkovchanok distinguishes blue eyes. For the year, an average of 500 liters of milk can be drunk from a goat of Gorky breed, and from record holders up to a thousand liters. Animals are very unpretentious in the content. The lactation period lasts about 10 months. At the peak of lactation, one female is able to produce 5.5 liters per day.
Goat high-goat breedscommon on the territory of Russia are also Megrelian and Toggenburg.
The yields of goats from different dairy breeds differ markedly. How much milk a goat will produce per day depends on the cumulative effect of all factors. A purebred animal is capable of producing about six liters per day. While ordinary domestic thrush supply no more than 2-3 liters of dairy products. As practice shows, pedigreed animals can produce more than 20 liters of milk per week.
The volume of milk yield varies depending on the seasons of the year. In the spring months from one individual on average, get 50-55 liters. With the onset of summer in the diet increases the proportion of fresh green fodder and drinking water, which directly affects the amount of milk. In the hot period, the goat - thrush is able to produce up to 80 liters of nutrient fluid.
How to choose a good dairy goat
The choice of a good dairy goat for personal farming should be approached scrupulously. First of all, find out the features of each breed and determine the best option for your area. Then look for ads and talk with experienced breeders. During external examination an animal should, first of all, pay attention to its appearance, behavior, ask about the conditions of detention and food preferences. Highly productive females have a flat back, a wide chest, a rounded not too fleshy udder. The animal must be vigorous, active.
Conclusion
How much milk a goat produces is affected by the proper organization of the milking process. Udder needs to be developed. It is washed with warm water. and lightly massaged before milking. Milk is decanted completely. Residues of milk, even in minimal amounts, can trigger the appearance of mastitis.
Observing the simplest recommendations, any novice goat breeder will be able to achieve good results to the question “How much milk does a goat give?”, With pride to answer: “Many!”
