The early weeks of a baby goat’s life are crucial to its health and future development. During the first 4 weeks of a goat’s life, it should only be fed with milk, and no solid food. This is common in many mammals, because young newborns still have very sensitive digestive systems, and solid food can cause a lot of problems if consumed too early or in big quantities. The process of switching a baby goat’s diet from milk to solid food (like hay) is called weaning, and is usually done when the goat is 30 days old.
How much should a baby goat eat per feeding?
The first day the goat is born, you should only feed him/her colostrum, which is the initial milk that a mother goat releases for her newborn. If the baby kids is 3-4 pounds, you should give them 0.3 to 0.4 gallons of colostrum. If the baby goat is in the 5-6 pound range, you should give them 0.5-0.6 pounds of colostrum from the goats mother. You should not feed colostrum to your baby goat after the first day.
From the 2nd day to the 10th day, you should feed the baby goat about 5 ounces of milk per feeding. We recommend feeding your baby goat 5 times a day during this time period.
From day 11 to day 20, you should increase the amount of milk you feed the baby goat to 8-10 ounces per feeding. However, you should only feed the baby goat 4 times a day during this period.
The period from day 21 to when your baby goat starts weaning can be complicated. This is because your baby goat will probably start naturally eating some grass or hay in the ground during this period. However, you should still make sure to feed the baby goat around 3 times per day, and we recommend giving them between 14-16 ounces of milk.
Overfeeding a baby goat
It can be difficult to limit the amount of milk you feed a baby goat, because they can be very fast eaters, and usually won’t stop until you forcibly take away the milk. However, you must stay disciplined and follow the eating schedule properly. It is extremely important that you never overfeed a baby goat, as it can have lasting health consequences. A baby goat that overeats can develop dangerous bloating, which can cause diarrhea and in worse cases death. This is because the baby goat’s digestive system is not able to process and break down large amounts of sugar.
