My mini goat had a rough delivery of triplets a few weeks back and seems to have lost weight. She's been regularly wormed, including right after kidding and stools seem normal. She's also acting normally, but her milk production is below normal. I believe she's getting ample grain. Do some goats lose weight and then eventually gain it back? If so, why?

-- Hayley (puripada@cs.com), February 21, 2002

Answers

Oh yeah. Do they ever! They can quickly turn into emaciated walking skeletons at this time of their lactation. They simply cannot eat enough food to fill their body's needs. It's part of why I've started graining my does for their entire pregnancy, making sure they have plenty of flesh before they kid. After they kid, they will milk it all off, it acts as a reserve.

What is she eating, what kind of hay and grain, and how much, and in what kind of feeders? Does she have any competition for her food? Also, what kind of wormer did you use, and has a fecal test been done on her? Sorry to have so many questions- there are a lot of factrs to consider sometimes. :-)

-- Rebekah (daniel1@itss.net), February 22, 2002.

Is she nursing the triplets? We actually like to see our Nubians with more than the normal amount of flesh over their ribs before they kid, because once in milk, they can't initially eat as much grain as they need for as much milk as they are producing. You are seeing an empty udder all the time thinking that she is not producing very much milk, because her kids are nursing her all the time. She could be given more grain, or a better quality of hay, at least until she weans the kids. She will gain her wieght back after the kids are weaned and she doesn't have so many calories going out in the milk. Increase her grain by 1/2 cup once a day, 1/4 in the morning and 1/4 at night, do not increase her grain quickly, better yet would be to just add something high in far like Black Oil Sunflower seeds! Vicki

-- Vicki McGaugh TX (vickilonesomedoe@hotmail.com), February 22, 2002.

The doe is not nursing and I've just been milking her enough to give to my cat. The breeder (I just got the doe over the past few months) believed she may have suffered from mild toxemia, not getting enough grain during pregnancy to support three kids, two stillborn. (We all thought she was carrying a single as a first time mom). To get her weight back up she's been getting about a pound of grain a day (she's very small, around 40 pounds). She was wormed with Ivermetin. She's on a good quality timothy/alfalfa hay, getting minerals, etc. I've never had a lactating doe lose weight post pregancy like this nor bag up so little, so I was worried. Good to know this isn't unusual. I'm watching her closely and weighing her; I suspect she will come back to normal before long. Thanks all!

-- Hayley (puripada@cs.com), February 22, 2002.

There is also something called Johnes, that you could have her tested for. The main symptom is unexplained wasting.

-- Rebekah (daniel1@itss.net), February 22, 2002.

She has been cleared of Johnes, as well as TB and CAE. Figuring this out as a cause and effect, I still think the best bet is simple post pregnancy skinnies here. I think over just the past two days she looks a shade heavier now.

-- Hayley (puripada@cs.com), February 23, 2002.