For the last couple of weeks, we’ve noticed Abigail’s udder getting bigger and bigger. We wondered if it’s possible for a doe to start filling her udder and making milk without ever being pregnant. (Abigail has never been pregnant.)
As much as I wanted to show you the size of her udder, Abigail was very shy about letting me take photos.
Turns out, the answer to our question is yes. If a doe starts making milk without ever being pregnant, it’s called being “precocious” and is actually not uncommon.
Here’s Don seeing if Abigail was making milk. If we had captured the audio, you’d hear Don saying something like, “I can’t believe I’m milking a goat.”
Yup, Abigail’s got milk. More research showed us that it’s best to just let her be and not milk her; she will eventually reabsorb the milk.
Thanks for trying, Abby. ♥
November 21, 2011 at 5:16 am
🙂
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November 21, 2011 at 5:17 am
Hunh. Is it like hysterical pregnancy???
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November 21, 2011 at 6:12 am
Poor Abigail! Having a full udder for no reason at all is just a drag–probably painful too.
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November 21, 2011 at 6:34 am
Well Don, I’ll be really impressed to see you milking a donkey! 😉
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November 21, 2011 at 6:51 am
Awwwww! Poor Abigail probably wants a BABY!
She sure is a pretty little thing…
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November 21, 2011 at 8:05 am
Poor angel! And to have your story told to the world. She is like – MOM! How embarassing! 🙂
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November 21, 2011 at 8:14 am
Looks like I have so much to learn from you both and my furry grandchildren upon my arrival soon! 😀
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November 21, 2011 at 8:39 am
Well, I’ll be. Who woulda thunked it.
I always learn something here at MBF. Thanks.
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November 21, 2011 at 8:40 am
I discovered that goats can also have what is known as cloudburst pregnancy. My old boer cross started getting fatter, and fatter….. no way for her to be pregnant so I started thinking the worst, that she had a tumor or something, even though she acted normal in every other way. Went out one morning and her entire backside is covered in oily looking goo and she is slim and trim again. There was also a watery mucus like stuff in her pen. Went searching and asking online and came up with the cloudburst pregnancy!
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November 21, 2011 at 10:43 am
Modest Abby and no milk mustache photo?
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November 21, 2011 at 11:51 am
Maybe she was just going for a goat version of cleavage? That is the one thing I miss (okay, technically two things) about having babies who one has to feed *that* way.
Hang in there Abby. This too shall… pass.
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November 21, 2011 at 12:03 pm
Wow, who knew?
Sure wish we’d seen/heard the video portion of that MBF scenario!
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November 21, 2011 at 5:23 pm
I’m glad she’s healthy, though I absolutely love goat’s milk. It’s so delicious and is great for folks who can’t digest cow’s milk. She’s a beautiful little goat.
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November 29, 2011 at 11:56 am
I’m learning so much here.
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