Milking Lilly aka Lilliana

I wanted to get a better video of the homemade hand pump milker as I was so excited when I made the first one.  I also wanted to capture the entertainment of Lilly heading down to the barn.  She gets very excited.  As a matter of fact she was 1/2 down to the barn before I ever got started down there after letting her out of the gate.


Here is Lilly heading to the barn yesterday morning for the AM milking.

There is our favorite lamancha helping us demonstrate our homemade hand pump milker.  She is such a good goat.  She gives about 1 quart a milk each milking.  We milk Lilly twice a day and sometimes three times.

Lilly's AM Milking
February 10, 2012

As for our Pygmy/Nigerian cross goats.  They all are not quite as good about the milking.  I don't think they are doing to bad for having never been milked before.  If we can have them free range all day then milk them before we reunite them with their babies for the night then we can get 1 quart from 5 goats.  We do not milk them all out as they are still nursing their babies and we only milk them once a day.

Pygmy/Nigerian Dwarf Cross PM Milking
February 10, 2012

Milking Update - Day Three & Hawk

This is day three of milking.  Today we used the new hand pump milker that I made.  We used a 10 ml syringe.  (It is the kind you can purchase at the store to administer medication to children with.)  The tip is larger so it fit more securely on the tubing.  The syringe it's self is also smaller than the ones we tried using yesterday.


The result was a better seal on the teat.  We did have a problem with the JB Weld holding.  Who would have thought that?  I thought JB Weld held EVERYTHING.  We didn't give up and with some modifications to our procedure we made it work and got over a pint of milk from our five girls.  We need to figure out how to get the tubing to seal better to the jar lid.

We are very excited about our progress.  The goats have started to identify the milk stand with food.  I caught them a couple times today around and on it looking for food.  They all were eager to jump right up there (at once) when it came time.  It is good that there are two of us to milk because one person couldn't do it with all that we go through.  I am sure things will level out once well all get into a routine.

On another note, I have had  a pair of hawks checking out my fowl.  Today I was outside and heard this sound that just wasn't right.  I headed in the direction of the sound (which did sound like one of my girls) about 100 yards, around the Grandma Post Oak Tree and came within 8 to 10 foot from a redtail hawk.  Needless to say I was less than pleased.  They are beautiful and majestic when they are feeding on wildlife but eying my girls and trying to have them for dinner is another thing.  

The good news is the chicken got away.  I am sure it was due to timing with me running in that direction with the GP as well as the immaturity of the bird.  We believe it is a young bird that isn't very skilled in hunting yet as it dove into thick underbrush to get to said chicken.  The other good news it the fowl stayed closer together for the rest of the day instead of their usual running off on their own.