I've got a milk ?

[Keren]

Okay, so this revolves around goats (sorry) but I am needing some advice from dairy folks, and trust me you can take 'doe' and substitute 'cow' just fine.

I have four does whose pregnancy status I am unsure of. I did think they were all four empty. But, of the four,

2 of them are filling in the udder noticeably and produce a liquid which looks just like milk but tastes salty
1 doesnt have visible udder changes and produces just a clear liquid like water.
1 doesnt have visible udder changes but produces a sticky, thick liquid similar in consistency to colostrum, but it is opaque and light tan in colour.

So my question being (actually a couple of questions):

a) Does this tell me anything about the pregnancy status of these does?
b) Is it normal for a completely dry animal (by that I mean not lactating, not pregnant) to have stuff in the udder? All four of these does have been completely dry (no kids suckling, not joined and not milked) for over two years.

Your thoughts?

I'm udderly confused.

 

[hillsdown]

In cows it is a good indicator as to when they are going to calve when the fluid in the udder turns from a syrup like substance to colostrum/milk. When this occurs the calf is usually born in a couple of days.

Now as far as it being normal for cows to leak when they have been dry and open for two years I would say that it is not normal .

Can you preg check your goats ?

 

[Keren]

Hills, here is the full, confusing story.

I joined three angora does as a test to my buck who had one enlarged testicle, to see if he was fertile. I saw each doe served. One returned and I remated her, the others I didnt see cycle again. At 45 days I scanned them, one scanned definitely empty, one scanned definitely pregnant, and one scanned maybe pregnant. So I figured, the buck was good as there was one preggy. Anyway, about two weeks after than scan, I found the rogue boer buck had jumped the fence and was mating Miss Definitely Pregnant and Miss Maybe Pregnant. So I thought, wow, the scan must have been wrong they are both open. So maybe the buck is no good after all.

Then ... get this, I look at Miss Definitely Empty the other day and wait a minute, one side of her udder is enlarged ... catch her, yep I can feel fluid moving up and down in the teat (she is only a one sider, the other is dead). Milked some out and it looks like milk but tastes salty.

So I'm curious now, so I go and catch Miss Definitely Pregnant ... can feel some 'stuff' in the udder ... milked some out and it is that tan syrup.

Caught Miss Maybe Pregnant ... yep, some 'stuff' in the teats too, milked a little out and it is just water.

So, now I'm really puzzled. I figured the scan was wrong on Miss Definitely Empty, but I SAW the other two being re-joined only a couple weeks ago, and now they have a substance in their udder? I guess it is possible they were cycling but pregnant, but thats awfully uncommon and to have two at the same time :?:

Does that all make sense?

The other goat with the milk-looking-but-salty secretion is my dairy doe, who I hadnt purposely joined but there was an incident where she may have been joined. Or it might be a falsie.

 

[Keren]

Forgot to saym I am scanning again tomorrow night. Just hard to find time with uni and everything. Will let you know how it goes. If no conclusive answers, may have to do bloods ... I hate doing bloods on goats though.

 

[dun]

When you are having some really hot weather, hold the does off of water for a while then give them the icey coldest water you can give them and watch their right side. Frequently you can side the kids flipping somersaults when the doe drinks the cold water.

 

[Keren]

:lol2: :shock:

I might just try that next time I am at home. It is getting pretty hot here during the day. Easy enough to keep them off water, they are on permanent tethers because they are so mad. Just take away the bucket.

 

[Keren]

So we scanned them tonight ... the three Angora does all pregnant. The dairy doe ... not sure. Maybe pregnant, but couldnt confirm. And I got a new Saanen doe today, scanned her pregnant also.

 

[hillsdown]

Keren, I am curious as to how far long the preggers ones are in comparison to the milk like substance you secreted from their udders.

 

[LoveMoo11]

From my experience, goats aren't as reliable as cows. When a cows udder starts filling, you know she's getting close to calving, and the udder progresses as she gets closer. But with goats, it seems to be more variable. One year, my doe's udder started filling about a month before she kidded. The next year, she didn't have any filling and then suddenly kidded and filled quickly!!

 

[Keren]

Normally they start to show a little bit of springing at the top of the udder - enough to tell pregnant or not - at 2 months before kidding (gestation is 5 months, so if you look at it a diff. way its 3 mths after joining). Then they really start to make an udder generallt one month for maidens and 2 weeks for experienced does, before kidding. But there are always exceptions. There are the does that look like they are busting for 3 weeks, and there are the ones that have flat udders until an hour after they kid, then boy is it huge!

To answer your question though, the Angora doe with the milk like substance (looks like milk but tastes salty) would be due January 16, the doe with the water would be Jan 15 and the doe with the colostrum consistency secretion which is clear but tan coloured would either be Jan 4 or Jan 27. My gut feeling is she is Jan 4 and that is why the diff in consistency between her and the others