BEHAVIORAL AND MATING HABITS OF GOATS

"Competition" is the name of the game in the goat world. From a few minutes after being born, kids fight their siblings first for colostrum and then for their mother's milk. As they begin to eat solids, kids challenge other kids for food. Among adult goats, moms shove other moms for the best location at the feed trough or for the most desirable forage/browse, deferring only to the larger and more naturally aggressive males. In the world of goats, if something isn't worth fighting for, it isn't worth having. The strong survive and flourish; the weak subsist and sometimes die.

Mating rituals begin early in life. Kids as young as 7-10 days old can be seen instinctively mounting other kids. Bucklings especially will mimic breeding habits. Young males will approach doelings, put their noses in the doeling's urine stream, and curl their lips to determine if the females are in heat. To a lesser extent, doelings will follow the same pattern of behavior. Put a newly-weaned buck into an all boys' pen and watch what happens. The new kid will be harassed and mounted for hours, until the herd accepts him. When around other does that are in heat and no buck is present, mature does will assume the buck's role, go through the courting rituals, and actually mount the receptive doe.

Sexually-mature bucks establish a pecking order, with the most dominant (often but not necessarily the oldest) buck assuming leadership of the herd. Within a group of sexually-mature does, the same procedure will take place if no buck is present. Occasionally, a buck and a doe will develop a dislike for each other; under these circumstances, it is not unusual for the dominant buck to prevent other bucks from mating with her while he also declines to breed her.

It is a wise management decision to select a single buck to breed selected does and run only that buck with the females chosen. A healthy sexually-mature buck can easily breed 40-50 does. Does cycle into heat approximately every 21 days. Some breeds are aseasonal (breed year-round), while others only breed when the days begin to shorten. Tennessee Meat Goats™, for example, are year-round breeders; only occasionally do the does not cycle. As a general rule, breeds containing dairy influence (including Boers) tend to be more seasonal breeders, beginning to show interest in mating as fall arrives. Extreme climatic conditions in some localities, either hot or cold, may produce exceptions to this statement.

A doe in season (in heat) will indicate her interest in breeding by wagging her tail rapidly for the buck ("flagging"). Her urine contains chemicals which tell the buck that she is ready to breed. The buck will urinate upon his face, beard, and front legs. He will approach the flagging doe, she will squat and urinate, and he will place his nose in the urine stream. Raising his head high, the buck will curl his upper lip to detect the pheromones which tell him that the doe is receptive to being bred. Intermittently with this activity, the buck will walk/run beside the doe as she leads him around the pasture/pen, placing his head beside her head, kicking one of his front legs forward, and hollering "wup," "wup," "wup" and other assorted raucous clucking noises.

Does experience ascending, cresting, and descending levels of heat. The cresting level is when she is most receptive to conception. This mating ritual described above continues for as long as a day and one-half. The doe must be in a standing heat before successful insemination can occur. Until that time arrives, she will continue to run from him, all the while flagging her tail. Sometimes the doe will make sounds similar to those of the buck. During standing heat, some does cry out as if in pain. When successful copulation occurs, the buck will throw his head back as he ejaculates his semen. Mating activity will actually bring other does into heat. Particularly in hot climates, nighttime breeding is common because the nights are cooler. Breeding takes a great deal of energy by both buck and doe.

Breeding bucks need to be in sound physical condition, because during mating season they go 'off feed' and may lose as much as 50 pounds. It is important to offer the bucks quality rations during breeding season in order to keep them in good shape. A normally aggressive-at-the-feed-trough male may lose all interest in food while his does are in heat. Females do not usually go 'off feed' during breeding to the extent that bucks do, but it is important that their nutritional needs are addressed prior to breeding. The condition of the doe at breeding time has a huge impact on the resulting offspring. That said, do not get them fat; fat does may not breed at all. Remember that a doe can short-cycle or have false heats, particularly if breeding is attempted while she is still nursing kids. The doe's age and general health can also affect her breeding ability. Consult a nutritionist for more information or read the relevant articles on my website.

A good breeding schedule involves placing a single mature buck with up to 50 does and leaving them together through two heat cycles. Forty-five (45) days in the breeding pen will cover two heat cycles of approximately 21 days each, generally assuring that any doe who missed the first cycle will get bred on the second round. Then take the buck back to the buck pen. When raising breeding stock, it is important to know who sired whom.

Leaving the buck with does for over 60 days sometimes results in a loss of interest in breeding. If this occurs, stimulate the buck's interest by placing a teaser buck with him. A teaser buck is a male who has been vasectomized; he thinks he can breed, his hormones still rage, but he fires 'blanks.' If a teaser buck is not available, choose another breeding buck and place him across the fence from your chosen sire to induce competition and heighten interest.

Permit virgin does time to grow before breeding them. Does can breed as young as five months of age, and sometimes younger, but inferior offspring oftentimes result from a very young doe. Think of this in human terms . . . a 12-year-old human female may be able to conceive a child, but it is inadvisable and may be fraught with medical complications. They are simply too young and too small to comfortably and successfully carry a baby to term.

Wait until the doe is 10-12 months old before breeding her. A first-time breeding should be with a buck of her breed or similarly-sized breed. Cattle producers mate heifers (virgin females) to small-breed bulls to avoid complications in delivery. Give your does the same consideration. It is in your long-term best interest to preserve the reproductive abilities of your does.

If breeding pastures or pens are used, separate them by six- to eight-foot-wide alleyways to keep bucks from fighting through the fencing. At the very least, you can expect extensive fence damage if you don't follow this course of action. The does on the other side of the fence always look better to the buck!

Don't assume that younger, smaller bucks are unlikely to breed sexually-mature does. A doe in heat will accommodate any buck that is near her. The instinctive drive to reproduce her species is overwhelming. She will drop to the ground and go through all sort of contortions to mate with him. Pygmy bucks have been known to breed Boer does. Keep all does over three months of age away from bucks . . . even young bucks of a similar age.

Insure quality offspring by breeding only well-conditioned (but not over-fed), healthy animals. De-worm and vaccinate all animals prior to breeding. If confined to small areas, the pasture/pen must be kept clean so that they and their offspring to be born five months hence are in good shape. Combining sound management techniques with common sense and quality breeding stock will bring profits to your bottom line.

The author, Suzanne Gasparotto, hereby grants to local goat publications and club newsletters, permission to reprint articles published on the Onion Creek Ranch website under these conditions: THE ARTICLE MUST BE REPRODUCED IN ITS ENTIRETY AND THE AUTHOR'S NAME, ADDRESS, AND CONTACT INFORMATION MUST BE INCLUDED AT THE BEGINNING OF THE REPRINT. Acknowledgement must also be made that the articles were first published in GOAT RANCHER Magazine, for which Suzanne Gasparotto writes exclusively. We would appreciate notification from any clubs or publications when the articles are used. (A copy of the newsletter or publication would also be a welcome addition to our growing library of goat related information!)

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