Goat milking question

[Northern_bushrat]

We are planning on getting dairy goats next year. We live without road access in the bush and want to primarily let the goats get by on browse (apparently this works up north, people in Alaska have done it). We would just milk in the mornings and leave the kids with the does all day until they are naturally weaned, to ensure they get enough nourishment.
So I wonder, if we were to go away for 3-4 days while the kids were still suckling, would we be able to just resume milking once a day when we get back or would there be a risk of the does going dry? And because we wouldn't wean the kids but leave that up to the does, would this be an option until the kids are about 4-5 months of age?
Not planning it as a regular thing, actually even without the goats we never go anywhere, but it would be good to know if it's at least an option without risking to does going dry.

[Drawbar]

I am not a goat farmer, but I have milked cows wayyyyy too much (and still do on occasion). Its not my place to say, but in reading your post I have two major concerns.

First is this. All lactating animals need nutrition. The last thing they make is milk, so if you want milk, you got to feed them. Protein, dry matter, salt, copper and other trace minerals such as selenium and magnesium. If you are just letting you animals run wild, you will not be getting much milk out of them.

My second concern is this. If you are not milking a lactating animal routinely, you are just inviting mastitis. Unless its toxic mastitis, you probably won't kill them, but you will make any infected utter useless for the rest of the animals life.

I like to check up on my animals at least once a day, even the ones that don't need much attention like sheep and beef cows. I figure since they did not chose to live on my farm, its the least I can do for them. Its just good animal husbandry.

[Northern_bushrat]

Thanks for pointing out your concerns about that sort of set-up...I know it's not ideal to let dairy goats get by on browse only but for us, it would not be feasible to get feed in for them. As I said, it worked for people who also live in the bush in Alaska. They did say that they got only about half as much milk as you'd get out of a normally fed goat, and that they were smaller, but they had no sick or sickly goats.

About the second part of my question, I still wonder - we would not be weaning the kids at an early age as is normally done, so as far as I can tell, they'd be doing plenty of milking on the does the way nature intended. So if we were gone for a few days during that time and the kids had access to the goats 24 hours a day, wouldn't that keep the does both in lactation as well as mastitis at bay? It's not like we'd be off in the woods every week for days on end, having fun and leaving the goats to their own devices, I just want to know in case we want to/have to go away for a few days. Living way out in the wilderness, there are no neighbours we culd ask to just pop by.

[goatlady65]

Remember that milk production is basically demand=supply. So what you take is what they make. I can't say a doe on basic browse will produce any more than her kids take from her, so I doubt you'll get much and I doubt you being gone will have any effect on her milk supply. Of course I might add that having livestock means a responsiblility everyday and they will need to be checked.
It will all depend on genetics as well. Some goats just don't produce much, others, produce lots. If you have any goat related questions on picking breeds, you can contact me.

Bonnie

[fnfredux]

This I can answer. My girls get by on browse with just a bit of corn and of course a mineral block. I have pasture and plenty of brush. I leave my kids (weather permitting) with their mothers for the first two weeks. After that I separate them at night dusk til dawn (when I milk) 5:30-6:45, somewhere in there depending on the time of year (sunrise). After milking I leave the kids with the does all day. I have gone away for up to three days, come back and put them back on the program. The first couple of days I actually had more milk in the AM because when the kids were with the does they suckled randomly during the night. Things went back to normal within a few days. There are ways to stimulate more milk but I never believe in stressing the does. I get about 2 quarts from a good milking doe while she is still feeding kids. HOWEVER, you would be wise to wean the kids by 3 months tops if you plan to milk your does for 8-9months. They do need time to recover physically before they deliver new babies. Moderation and not maximum "profit" is the key.
Get a good dairy breed. I prefer Nubians, they have always been my friendliest best natured goats, easiest to handle, and I swear, I even had one that SMILED when she got her favorite treats. Poor sweet thing, she had her two kids standing by her when I found her in a "ditch". She was four years old and savvy about things. She was rattlesnake bit the vet and I figured out. Stone dead an hour after I saw her grazing...My dog alerted, he had been barking earlier but I ignored it...I figure she was protecting her kids.

[goodwifefarm]

Hi! I've got Kinder goats and I love them! My goats live on lots of browse in the summer (no hay at all) and in the winter when the browse dies off they get hay. My milking does get a grain mix that the local feed mill grinds for me. They get this twice a day while they are milking.
I use the "let mama raise the kids method" and it works great for me. I leave kids on mom for the first two weeks (as another poster said) and then begin penning them off of mom all night, milking in the morning and then letting the kids back with her for the entire day. Then I feed mom her grain in the evening and pen the kids back in their pen and repeat the process again. You can easily be gone for a few days (not often but once in awhile) with this set up. The younger the kids are the better it will be for you to leave as they will nurse more the younger they are. I do not wean all my kids either. Mom will wean them when she is ready. I like to leave one kid on. It isn't that draining to a good producer and I feel it keeps mastitis at bay because there is seldom any milk retained in the udder. I left my doeling Star on her mother until I was done miking mom, about 8 months. After I quit milking mom, she weaned Star in a matter of days. Never had any trouble with mastitis doing things this way. Also never had a problem with tightness when drying off the goat either. Trust me, they aren't nursing much at this time anyway. I use a gentle homemade teat wash and dip before and after milking that doesn't hurt the kids. Good luck and let me know how you do! I also should mention that my kids are sweet and friendly even though they are dam raised. The key is spending lots of quality time with your critters!