How to Bottle-Feed Goat Kids

Sometimes a mother goat will reject one of her kids and refuse to allow it to nurse. When this happens, it becomes necessary for humans to intervene and feed the kid from a bottle. Although bottle feeding the goat will be fairly easy once both goat and human get used to the process, it can be difficult to convince newborn kids to drink from a bottle. The key to success is to be patient with the kid and remember that at first ite may not understand that you are trying to help.

Things You'll Need

  • Milking container for colostrum collection
  • Goat or cow milk
  • Bottle
  • Lamb or human bottle nipples
  • Sharp knife or scissors
  • Saucepan
  • Stove
  • Towels
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Instructions

    • 1

      Milk the mother goat into a container shortly after she gives birth. The milk produced immediately after a goat gives birth is known as colostrum. It is rich in nutrients that kids need within the first 24 hours of life.

    • 2

      Watch the kid closely within the first hours of its life to make sure that it nurses from its mother. If the kid does not nurse, you will need to give it the colostrum you milked into the container. If the kid does nurse, wait to see if it continues to do so, in which case bottle feeding may be unnecessary.

    • 3

      Cut an "X" into a bottle nipple designed for lambs or human babies. If the nipple already has an "X" opening, enlarge the "X" cut; kids require a larger opening than lambs and human babies do.

    • 4

      Warm fresh or frozen goat's milk to 103 degrees Fahrenheit. If goat's milk is unavailable, you can use whole cow's milk. If you are feeding a kid that is only a few hours old but not nursing, use the colostrum you collected earlier instead of milk.

    • 5

      Fill a bottle with the warm milk and place the bottle's nipple in your pocket. Kids like a warm nipple, so put the nipple on the bottle right before using it.

    • 6

      Sit on the ground with the kid in your lap and speak soothingly to it. Gently open the kid's mouth and place the nipple in it, keeping the bottle high enough so the kid's head is tilted up and its neck is extended while it drinks. If the kid rejects the bottle, keep trying -- allowing it to skip a feeding will simply leave you with a hungry, weak goat that refuses to eat. Expect that both you and the goat will be covered in milk after the first few bottle feedings.

    • 7

      Feed the kid from the bottle on a regular feeding schedule. The Fias Co Farm suggests that kids should receive 6 ounces of colostrum every 4 hours during their first day of life. After that, kids should be fed 8 to 12 ounces of milk four times a day until they are ready to be weaned, according to the Baby Goat Farm in Indiana.