hi i have a chance to get a couple pigmy x goats.what i was wondering can you milk these goats?i will use the mlk to suplement piglets and maybe use a little myself(have never tried goats milk) also what do you feed them?we feed all our stock all natural stuff nothing processed.any answers would be very helpful.thanks in advance. cindy

-- cindy young (cin_sue63@webtv.net), April 19, 2000

Answers

Hope somebody will answer your question, as I've been wondering the same thing myself (see my question about kinder goats). Actually, I know they can be milked, what I want to know is if their teats are big enough so they aren't too difficult to milk. If they've never been milked and you've never done any milking, you'll want to find someone with some experience to help you get started. Feed them hay, goat feed from the feed store (see a good goat book for quantities) and as much good pasture as you've got. They'll also eat brush and trees, keep them away from anything you don't want them to eat, and know the poison plants in your area. They do require excellent fencing; if you only have a few it is often easier to keep them in a small paddock and bring their fresh grass to them. Then, if they are tame enough and will stay with you (bottle-raised) you can take them for walks -- we used to do this all the time, and the goats and the children loved it! Goat's milk is good -- if it is fresh, cold, and clean, you will have a hard time telling it from cow milk. Oh, if they still have horns, keep them away from your other animals, because they will use them.

-- Kathleen Sanderson (stonycft@worldpath.net), April 19, 2000.

If you are going to invest time,energy,and money in a goat, you might as well get one that will give a decent amount of milk.A friend of mine bought some does that were 1/4 or 1/8 nigerian dwarf,the rest was alpine. They produced very little milk, their bodies were regualr sized, but the udder was very tiny,about fist sized. She was really disappointed and got rid of them. I would be really suprised if a pygmy cross would milk more than a quart a day,if that, whereas a decent dairy goat will give you 3-4 quarts a day, and that would be enough to make a difference to those piglets! Pygmies are popular because they are little and cute,but they are not good for much besides pets.

-- Rebekah (daniel1@transport.com), April 19, 2000.

I have to agree with the above post. I raise Pygmy goats & they sell for pets 98% of the time. I can't think off hand if I have ever sold them as anything other than a pet. I have tried to milk mine when I needed it for un-wanted kids & they are very difficult to milk. I have Nubians & Lamanchas now & I would never bother to try to milk my Pygmies again unless I really need the colostrum from them. I would use milk replacer before I'd milk them. Just my opinion & experience. You may have a little better luck with a cross, but I would also reccommend a full blooded dairy if you want to get a sufficient amount of milk out of it.

-- Wendy (weiskids@nalu.net), April 19, 2000.

I have a Pygmy mix, probably about 50-70 pounds, that I have had to milk twice because of problems with her kids nursing only one side, or, most recently, her refusing to let one kid nurse. She gives about 1/2 gallon a day--plenty for our table use. The teats are fairly small, but since I've never milked another goat, I'm used to it. My intended dairy goat, a Nubian and my very first goat, died 3 weeks after kidding last year, so this Pygmy is now my temporary milk goat.

-- Teresa (otgonz@aol.com), April 26, 2000.

Cindy, what breed is crossed with the Pygmy? Any large dairy breed crossed with a Pygmy has the potential of good milk production. I raise Kinders (Nubian/Pygmy) and my does are excellent producers for their size. I have a 3 year old who at about 85# still milks over 8# a day after freshening the first week in March. She peaked at 9# on her April DHIA test. Her dam -- a 6 year old -- peaked at 10.7# and is still milking steadily over 9#. What the Pygmy side does for the milk is raise the butterfat and protein -- great cheese milk, and very sweet and good. My does average over 6% butterfat. I feed them good alfalfa hay and lots of browse (blackberry, salmonberry, maple, etc.) with 1 to 1 1/2# of a 15% protein dairy goat grain mix per milking as long as they are producing. They will produce on less, but you will get less milk, of course.

-- Pat Showalter (kinderzed@aol.com), July 08, 2000.