How to wean kids from the udder: the best methods and how to teach to drink from a bowl

The question of how to wean kids from the mother's udder is a concern for every farmer. Many farms keep animals for milk production, and raising babies significantly reduces the amount of milk produced. In addition, for the full development of goats, they must receive a variety of food. It is impossible to drastically change the diet of animals, so newborns are gradually taught to drink milk from a bottle with a nipple, a bowl.

How to wean a kid from an udder

The optimal solution to the problem is to initially keep the newborn away from the mother's udder. Otherwise, if only once the cub is allowed to the female, then there is a possibility that the goat will stop milking normally.The female will not let anyone near the udder for milking. And the animal will adhere to such behavior until the cubs grow up.

The main disadvantage of this method of weaning newborns from the udder is that the owner will have to feed the cubs with milk for the first time. If it was not immediately possible to accustom the kids to artificial feeding, then you need to wean them off the udder gradually. It is recommended to reduce the time of udder sucking within two weeks. First, the kids are allowed to go to their mother three times a day, then twice, then once a day. At the same time, complementary foods are introduced with solid food. A variety of vegetables, grass, hay, root crops and feed diversify the taste sensations of kids.

With such an extended weaning process, the body of a growing animal will not be stressed by a sudden change in diet.

A radical way is to put a special collar with spikes on the goat's face. A newborn, when trying to suck on the udder, will give the goat discomfort, and she herself will stop letting him in.Another controversial but effective method is based on the cleanliness of animals. Goats are known to have a negative attitude towards dirt and unpleasant odors. Therefore, the udder of the female is lightly smeared with manure before feeding (you don’t need to be zealous, because then you will have to wash the udder before milking). Out of disgust, the goats refuse to suck on the udder.

If you repeat the “trick” with manure for some time, then the cubs will form a stable dislike for the udder. So that the animal does not experience stress from a change in diet, milk is suggested to be drunk from a pacifier or bowl.

Methods for weaning an animal from a bottle and pacifier

When receiving milk from a bottle with a nipple, newborns are triggered by natural sucking reflexes. At the same time, newborns do not experience stress due to the fact that they were deprived of the opportunity to suckle milk. It is also a convenient way to control the amount of fluid you drink.However, this method of feeding has significant disadvantages:

the animal develops the habit and need to suck milk from a bottle;
newborns experience severe stress when pacifiers are suddenly rejected;
sucking reflex persists for a long time.

Important! Pets should be weaned off the pacifier gradually while offering nutritious and tasty food.

To wean newborns to suck on a pacifier, after two weeks it is recommended to introduce hay into the diet of babies. The first portions of dry quality foods should be small - no need to let the kids overeat. After 35-40 days, the animal's body is considered to be already stronger, able to receive smaller portions of milk. After a week and a half, you can completely transfer the kids to the standard diet - fresh grass, hay, branches, compound feed, root crops.

How to teach a goat to drink from a bowl

You should not strive to teach newborns to slurp from a bowl, since this type of feeding has several disadvantages. For immature kids, food from a bowl is unnatural, so animals can gain weight poorly. It also takes a long time to train little kids to drink milk from a bowl. However, the benefits of bowl feeding older animals are clear:

farmer spends less time feeding livestock;
sucking reflex disappears in babies,
easier to replace mother's milk with feed.

To teach kids to sip milk, farmers resort to various tricks.Alternatively, it is recommended to pour warm milk into the bowl so that the familiar aroma attracts babies. When the kid comes to the bowl, you need to effortlessly tilt his head to the milk. You can dip your finger in milk and invite your baby to lick it.

If the kids drank milk from a bottle, then the nipple is dipped in a warm liquid. When the animal reaches for the nipple, it is slowly lowered into a bowl of milk. The baby reaches for the nipple and begins to drink milk from the bowl.

Changing the diet of an animal at any age is not a one-day procedure. In the case of newborn kids, the stress that they experience when weaning from the udder must also be taken into account. Therefore, it is important to choose the most gentle ways.