Prancing Pony Farm Maremma Sheepdogs and Mini Dairy Goats
  • Home
    • Contact us
    • About Us
    • Farm Visits
    • Prancing Pony Farm Families FaceBook Group
  • Maremma Sheepdogs for Sale
    • Maremma Testimonials
    • Available Maremma Puppies and Adults >
      • Puppy Questionnaire
      • Maremma Sales Policies
      • Puppy Placement Policies
      • Shipping Maremma Puppies
      • Breeding Candidate Puppy Program
    • Maremma Visitor Policy
    • How we Raise and Train our Maremma Puppies >
      • Our New Puppy Parlor
      • The Importance of Early Socialization in LGD Puppies
      • How Many LGD's do I Need?
    • Our Maremma Sheepdogs >
      • Our Breeding Maremmas
      • Reference Maremmas
    • Maremma Litters - Past & Present >
      • May 2022 Litter Polar x Sevro
      • May 2022 Litter Marisa x Simba
      • February 2022 Litter Celeste x Sevro
      • December 2021 Litter Gianna x Simba
      • October 2021 Litter Marcella x Sevro
      • May 2021 Litter Olaf x Genevieve
      • February 2021 Litter Simba x Marcella
      • February 2021 Litter Sevro x Polar
      • December 2020 Litter Sevro x Gianna
      • September 2020 Litter Olaf x Carina
      • August 2020 Litter Simba x Polar
      • January 2020 Litter Olaf x Carina
      • 2019 Litter Olaf x Genevieve
      • 2018 Litter Olaf x Genevieve
      • 2017 Litter Olaf x Genevieve
      • Our Puppies in Their New Homes
    • About Maremma Sheepdogs >
      • Training Maremma Sheepdogs
      • Maremma Sheepdog Forum
      • Maremma Sheepdog Open Forum Facebook Group
      • Maremma Sheepdog FAQ's
    • Maremma Sheepdog Care >
      • Feeding our Maremma Sheepdogs
      • Goat Milk for Healthy Dogs and Puppies
      • Vaccine and Parasite Protocol for Our Maremma Puppies
      • Grooming Maremma Sheepdogs
      • Housing Maremmas
      • Favorite Dog Products
      • Whelping Supplies for LGD's
  • Maremma Blog
  • Goats for Sale
    • Baby Goats For Sale
    • Adult Goats for Sale
    • Nigerian Dwarf Kids 2022
    • Mini Nubian Kids 2022
    • Breeding Plan Goats
    • Goat Questionnaire
    • Shipping Goats
    • Goat Sales Policies
    • Goat Stud service info
  • Dairy Goat Blog
    • Our Prancing Ponies
    • Fun Farm videos
  • Our Dairy Goat Herd
    • Mini Nubian Does
    • Mini Nubian Bucks
    • Reference Mini Nubian Does
    • Reference Mini Nubian Bucks
    • Standard Nubian Does
    • Nigerian Dwarf Does
    • Nigerian Dwarf Bucks
    • Reference Nigerian Dwarf Does
    • Reference Nigerian Dwarf Bucks
    • Past Kidding Seasons >
      • Fall 2021 Nigerian Dwarf Kids
      • Spring 2021 Nigerian Dwarf Kids
      • Spring 2021 Mini Nubian Kids
      • 2020 Nigerian Dwarf Kids
      • 2020 Mini Nubian Kids
      • 2019 Fall Kids
      • 2019 Spring Kids
      • 2018 Fall Kids
      • 2018 Spring Kids
      • 2018 Mini Nubian kids
      • 2018 Nigerian Dwarf kids
      • 2017 Spring Kids
  • Goat care & Info
    • Goat care articles
    • Useful Animal Products & Links
    • Supplies for Goats
    • Favorite Goat products
    • Annual Disease Testing of Goats
    • Bringing Home Your New Goat
    • Health concerns of your new goat
    • Feeding Our Mini Dairy Goats
    • Feeding Mini & Dwarf Baby Goats
    • Housing Does & Kids
    • Goat Parasites
    • Pneumonia in Goats
    • Goat Hoof Trimming
    • Milking Dairy Goats
    • Our Dairy Goat Milking Parlor
    • Clicker Training Goats
    • Disbudding Mini & Dwarf Goats
    • Nigerian Dwarf Goats
    • Mini Nubian Goats
    • Mini Nubian Ears
    • Dairy Goat FAQ's

Our Milking Routine

1/27/2020

0 Comments

 

Milking Our Mini Dairy Goats

This is how we milk our goats and the products we use. There is no one “right” way to milk but this is what works for us. We’re just sharing it here for those who are new to milking goats. Feel free to adapt it to your needs or to scrap the whole thing and do what works best for you and your does.
​Happy milking!
​🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐
  • To get fresh, sweet milk you must be scrupulously clean and you need to get the milk chilled ASAP. Whether milking by hand or machine I bring the milk containers to the barn in a cooler with ice packs, to which I add cold water when I’m done milking. This allows me to finish barn chores while the milk starts chilling. I keep our fridge on 33 degrees and have a special shelf for chilling so the milk cools down fast.
  • I secure the doe onto my milk stand. I've tried several and the one I prefer is the one from Premier 1 Supply because it's several inches higher than the other stands, which is great for reaching under those short goats. And it has a detachable ramp for "well conditioned" (fat) goats who can't jump.
  • If the doe is kicky I tie her back legs to the stand with short goat leads attached to snaps. This avoids a foot in the milk, and tears over spilt milk.
  • To keep the doe happy on the stand we feed plain whole oats or rolled barley. No GMO laden "goat chow" for our goats!
  • I only milk into seamless stainless steel containers or glass mason jars. Plastic is porous and holds odors and bacteria and isn’t suitable for milking, except for if you are immediately feeding it to animals, which I sometimes do if I’m in a hurry or don’t need the milk for human use that day. But for human use sterilized SS or glass is a must. I usually milk into quart or half gallon glass mason jars if hand milking. I often milk one handed into a stainless steel frothing pitcher or a small glass jar and pour it every so often into a bigger jar, which is sitting in a cooler with ice and water, as I go. I may even have my strainer in the jar and strain as I pour. It's a bit slower to milk one handed but I'm less likely to lose milk. My Simple Pulse milking machine will milk into glass jars or a SS bucket and has a built in strainer. (I switched out the inflations that came with the Simple Pulse for the Top Flo Z Nigerian inflations from Hamby Supply and they rock! They get way more milk than the SP ones and are easier on the doe's teats.)
  • Properly cleaning the udder before milking is a must. I spray the udder with teat washand clean with a baby wipe or paper towel. (I also wash my hands before milking and as needed during the process.)
  • After cleaning the udder I milk the first few squirts from each side into a dish for the cats, inspecting it for any clumps or anything. (Venda, our tortoise shell barn cat, is my faithful milking buddy!) If all is good I proceed with milking.
  • ​I milk the doe by hand or machine, making sure to empty the udder. After I'm done milking I spray with Fightbac spray.
  • I take the milk to the house. If I hand milked I strain the milk. My Simple Pulse machine has a strainer in the lines.
  • I store the milk in glass 1/2 gallon jars with plastic lids, in my fridge set on 33 degrees. I write the day on the lid with a dry erase marker so I can use old milk first. I have a chiller shelf in the fridge so the milks gets cold fast.
  • If I used my Simple Pulse I clean it after I process the milk. I use dairy detergent and sanitizer and it only takes about 5 minutes to clean. You can also use dish soap and chlorine bleach.


Production differences between Nigerians and Mini Nubians


Milking goats is child’s play!

Milking with my Simple Pulse is so simple a child can do it!

Useful Companies & Products for Milking Goats


  • Farm to Consumer Legal Defense Fund
  • Weston A Price Foundation
  • A Campaign for Real Milk
  • New England Cheesemaking Supply
  • Simple Pulse Home Milking Systems
  • ​Hamby Dairy Supply
  • Caprine Supply
  • Hoegger Supply
  • 0 Comments



    Leave a Reply.

      Author

      Hi I'm Kim. I love all animals but goats and dogs are my favorites so I built a business around them, breeding miniature dairy goats and Maremma Sheepdogs. I love sharing my passion and knowelege  of these amazing creatures with others.

      Archives

      June 2022
      October 2020
      May 2020
      April 2020
      February 2020
      January 2020
      September 2019

      Categories

      All
      Farm News
      Feeding Goats
      Goat Care
      Goat Kidding
      Goats
      Goat Supplies
      Goat Transportation
      Milking Goats
      Mini Nubian Goats
      Nigerian Dwarf Goats
      Preparing For Goats

      RSS Feed

    If you are interested in our Dairy Goats or Maremma Sheepdogs please fill out our Goat Questionnaire or Puppy Questionnaire. We are located in Lemoore, California.
    Goat Reservations
    Puppy Reservations
    • Home
      • Contact us
      • About Us
      • Farm Visits
      • Prancing Pony Farm Families FaceBook Group
    • Maremma Sheepdogs for Sale
      • Maremma Testimonials
      • Available Maremma Puppies and Adults >
        • Puppy Questionnaire
        • Maremma Sales Policies
        • Puppy Placement Policies
        • Shipping Maremma Puppies
        • Breeding Candidate Puppy Program
      • Maremma Visitor Policy
      • How we Raise and Train our Maremma Puppies >
        • Our New Puppy Parlor
        • The Importance of Early Socialization in LGD Puppies
        • How Many LGD's do I Need?
      • Our Maremma Sheepdogs >
        • Our Breeding Maremmas
        • Reference Maremmas
      • Maremma Litters - Past & Present >
        • May 2022 Litter Polar x Sevro
        • May 2022 Litter Marisa x Simba
        • February 2022 Litter Celeste x Sevro
        • December 2021 Litter Gianna x Simba
        • October 2021 Litter Marcella x Sevro
        • May 2021 Litter Olaf x Genevieve
        • February 2021 Litter Simba x Marcella
        • February 2021 Litter Sevro x Polar
        • December 2020 Litter Sevro x Gianna
        • September 2020 Litter Olaf x Carina
        • August 2020 Litter Simba x Polar
        • January 2020 Litter Olaf x Carina
        • 2019 Litter Olaf x Genevieve
        • 2018 Litter Olaf x Genevieve
        • 2017 Litter Olaf x Genevieve
        • Our Puppies in Their New Homes
      • About Maremma Sheepdogs >
        • Training Maremma Sheepdogs
        • Maremma Sheepdog Forum
        • Maremma Sheepdog Open Forum Facebook Group
        • Maremma Sheepdog FAQ's
      • Maremma Sheepdog Care >
        • Feeding our Maremma Sheepdogs
        • Goat Milk for Healthy Dogs and Puppies
        • Vaccine and Parasite Protocol for Our Maremma Puppies
        • Grooming Maremma Sheepdogs
        • Housing Maremmas
        • Favorite Dog Products
        • Whelping Supplies for LGD's
    • Maremma Blog
    • Goats for Sale
      • Baby Goats For Sale
      • Adult Goats for Sale
      • Nigerian Dwarf Kids 2022
      • Mini Nubian Kids 2022
      • Breeding Plan Goats
      • Goat Questionnaire
      • Shipping Goats
      • Goat Sales Policies
      • Goat Stud service info
    • Dairy Goat Blog
      • Our Prancing Ponies
      • Fun Farm videos
    • Our Dairy Goat Herd
      • Mini Nubian Does
      • Mini Nubian Bucks
      • Reference Mini Nubian Does
      • Reference Mini Nubian Bucks
      • Standard Nubian Does
      • Nigerian Dwarf Does
      • Nigerian Dwarf Bucks
      • Reference Nigerian Dwarf Does
      • Reference Nigerian Dwarf Bucks
      • Past Kidding Seasons >
        • Fall 2021 Nigerian Dwarf Kids
        • Spring 2021 Nigerian Dwarf Kids
        • Spring 2021 Mini Nubian Kids
        • 2020 Nigerian Dwarf Kids
        • 2020 Mini Nubian Kids
        • 2019 Fall Kids
        • 2019 Spring Kids
        • 2018 Fall Kids
        • 2018 Spring Kids
        • 2018 Mini Nubian kids
        • 2018 Nigerian Dwarf kids
        • 2017 Spring Kids
    • Goat care & Info
      • Goat care articles
      • Useful Animal Products & Links
      • Supplies for Goats
      • Favorite Goat products
      • Annual Disease Testing of Goats
      • Bringing Home Your New Goat
      • Health concerns of your new goat
      • Feeding Our Mini Dairy Goats
      • Feeding Mini & Dwarf Baby Goats
      • Housing Does & Kids
      • Goat Parasites
      • Pneumonia in Goats
      • Goat Hoof Trimming
      • Milking Dairy Goats
      • Our Dairy Goat Milking Parlor
      • Clicker Training Goats
      • Disbudding Mini & Dwarf Goats
      • Nigerian Dwarf Goats
      • Mini Nubian Goats
      • Mini Nubian Ears
      • Dairy Goat FAQ's