How to Raise Dairy Goats? A Detailed Guide to Dairy Goat Farming Techniques

Goat milk is comprehensive in nutrition and contains no allergenic factors, making it very popular in the market. Raising dairy goats and developing the dairy goat farming industry also has very broad prospects. What are the farming techniques for dairy goats? Please see the details below.

1. Breed selection: Breeds and individuals differ greatly in milk yield. Therefore, choose the high-yielding Saanen breed, Laoshan breed, or their offspring. The body shape and appearance should have a long head, long neck, long trunk, long legs, and tall body height, with agile movement and a lively, robust constitution.

2. Raising young goats: Newborn lambs must be given enough colostrum. Colostrum has high nutritional value, is easy to digest and absorb, and provides immune disease resistance; it also has a certain influence on the growth, development, and production performance of the lambs. For lambs from birth to 4 days of age, whole milk is the main feed, given 4 times a day. From 40 days to 80 days of age, milk and forage can be fed with equal emphasis, with a small amount of salt and bone broth added; the forage should be highly palatable, good quality, and easy to digest. From 80 days to 120 days of age, forage is the main feed, with a small amount of milk supplemented. After weaning at 120 days of age, the goats are mainly raised on forage, with a small amount of concentrated feed supplemented.

3. Breeding: Goats breed seasonally, most concentrated in autumn. They can generally be mated at 12 to 14 months of age. The gestation period is 114 days to 159 days, with an average of 150 days.

4. Raising lactating does: In the early lactation period, the does' feed should be mainly high-quality forage, which they can eat freely. On this basis, the amount of concentrated feed and succulent feed can be flexibly adjusted according to body condition, degree of udder swelling, and changes in appetite. Dairy goats reach peak milk production 30 days to 40 days after kidding. During the stage when milk yield keeps rising, various nutrients stored in the body are continuously consumed, and body weight keeps decreasing. At this time, the daily ration requirements should be fully met. In addition to feeding 1%-1.5% of body weight in high-quality hay and a certain amount of concentrated feed each day, as much green grass, silage, and some tuber and root feeds as possible should be fed. When milk yield declines, concentrated feed should be gradually reduced according to body condition. Throughout the entire raising process of dairy goats, sufficient drinking water and salt supplementation must be ensured; a salt trough can be used to let them lick freely.

5. Milking: Before each milking, wash the udder clean with hot water. The number of milkings should be determined by the amount of milk: for a daily milk yield below 3 kg, milk 2 times; for a milk yield of 5 kg, milk 3 times.

6. Timely dry-off: When a dairy goat has been lactating for nearly 10 months, milk yield gradually declines. At this point, dry-off must be carried out so that the doe can better recover her body condition, ensure the development of the fetus in her body and the milk yield of the next lactation period, and increase the birth weight of the lambs. Dry-off can be achieved by reducing concentrated feed, green and succulent feed, drinking water, and the number of milkings.

7. Goat shed management: The goat shed should be warm in winter and cool in summer, with fresh air, and clean and dry. The goats' bodies should be brushed frequently to promote blood circulation, improve milk production capacity, and maintain milk hygiene. Goats raised in sheds must have 3 hours of outdoor exercise every day, and deformed hooves must be trimmed. Prevent noise near the goat shed. In summer, prevent heat and cool down; in winter, pay attention to keeping warm and preventing cold. Also, conduct regular physical examinations and vaccinations for dairy goats to prevent disease.

Dairy goat farming is relatively simple, and goat milk is becoming more and more popular in the market. The prospects for farming are very broad, and it is suitable for large-scale raising.