# Bottle Feeding: How much, how often?



## TSYORK (Mar 16, 2006)

I'm purchasing a 3-4 week old Alpine doeling this weekend. Of course, I know she will still have to be bottle fed, even though she's eating some grain and hay. The question is, how much do I feed at a time, and what should be a target daily consumption?

I will be feeding store-bought cow's milk.


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## LoneStrChic23 (Jul 30, 2010)

I got my Alpine bottle buck at 2 weeks old.

Made a bottle when he got home, fed him until his tummy felt full but not uncomfortably tight and used that as my base amount... Ended up being about 16 oz each feeding and I gave 4-5 bottles a day. 

He is 6 weeks old now, 48lbs and gets at least three 20oz bottles a day, plus unlimited N-Timidator meat goat pellets (medicated for coccidia and are alfalfa based), unlimited grass hay and free choice Right Now Onyx Minerals. I am also doing coccidia prevention with Sulfadimethoxine (Dimethox) 5 days in a row, every 21 days. I do this because he can not consume enough of the medicated feed yet 3to get enough of the coccidia meds in it.

I know lots of people are doing 2 bottles a day at this age, but I want him to reach his full potential....plus when he begs for a bottle he's just too stinking cute to resist. 

He is in great shape, very robust and I'm thrilled with his growth so I'm not changing a thing...Plan on keeping him on the bottle until 12 weeks old at least....


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## Cyngbaeld (May 20, 2004)

I feed my doelings at that age 16 oz, 3x/day. You don't want to over feed them. They are out on grass so I don't supplement with anything else. When they are a little bigger I give them 20 oz 2x/day. At 10 wks I start cutting the milk 3 parts milk 1 part water. At 11 wks half milk, half water. At 12 wks 1/4 milk 3/4 water and weaned at 13 wks. If they don't have good grazing offer hay free choice.


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## LittleRedHen (Apr 26, 2006)

was she being bottlefed previously? i'd keep giving her whatever she is used to. I only feed three bottles a day to my alpine doelings. 8-12 oz but finances dictate that I cannot give more. If i could afford it I would be giving them 16 oz per feeding. they are still growing well and i am happy with their sizes. They eat some grain and hay and do well drinking the water. I am getting a buckling too but he woudl cost me the same now or fully weaned so I am leaving him on his mama so i know he will be fed better than i could feed him


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## thaiblue12 (Feb 14, 2007)

Ask the breeder what they are currently doing, how many times, how much etc. But i do about the same as Cyng 16 oz three to four times a day. Except I never add water. 

Any changes should be made slowly, if she is on goat's milk you need to change her over to cow's slowly. 

I read your other post aobut you getting a La Mancha. An adult and a bottle kid are not going to bond. Bottle kids do better in pairs. Plus the La mancha is not coming for a month and she will have her own kids and butt and keep this bottle kid away from her. 

If you have a single alone you will end up with a screamer. That you bring into the house to make it stop that you train to pee on pee pads, sweep up goat berriers and find that the goat sleeps with you until you finally get so tired that within a week you buy a Nubian wether bottle kid who turns into a moose  After that first bottle kid I always have them in pairs now, so much easier for me and less stressful for them. They like ot bounce play and sleep with goats close to their own age. any any you bottle together are best friends. 
Or if you can hold out and ignore the yelling you will have a miserable hoarse kid by the end of the week.


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## LittleRedHen (Apr 26, 2006)

thai- I have 3 bottle babies and one doe. It took 5 minutes and the doe accepted them as her buddies. They all live together. They eat hay at the same time and even stick their heads in the water bucket with her. Perhaps my doe is rare?


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## Cyngbaeld (May 20, 2004)

LRH, you can stretch the milk some with water and a whole egg. I've done that when I didn't have enough milk for the kids. Don't cut back on the milk any more though.


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## LoneStrChic23 (Jul 30, 2010)

I didn't have my pen or a buddy set up for my bottle baby..... he lived in the house for a few days and slept in a puppy kennel by my bed at night....During the day he wore a diaper and played in the front yard with the kids...... *I* didn't mind at all.....he even cozied up on the couch next to me for nap a few times 

However, hubby was not thrilled (story to that is in this thread):

http://www.homesteadingtoday.com/showthread.php?t=385087

Do I recomend this as ideal? Well, no. But, it worked as a temporary fix and kept Sam happy and stress free until I finished getting his pen set up and a buddy for him...

Also, at this point my mini alpine is giving 5lbs of milk a day (lil over 1/2 gallon) so I can feed as much as I want to.....In the begining I had to feed cows milk... I switched him to it gradually by mixing it with the goats milk his breeder was kind enough to pack with him. I put a pinch of baking soda in one bottle a day and always make sure I fed the same temp of milk (no warm bottles at one feeding and cold milk later...this will cause problems)

I know my bottle amounts sound like alot, but this chunk is a hair shy of 50lbs at 6 weeks old.....he dwarfs my friends boer baby who is 10 days older than him....So what I feed is enough to fill him up, but I NEVER feed to the point of a bulging, tight belly. If it were up to Sam he'd have 3 gallons a day, lol


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## thaiblue12 (Feb 14, 2007)

Little Red I have a herd of 33 goats right now, some are more accepting of new goats and kids then others. I also have hormonal pregnant does who would not be not thrilled if small lonely kid was hopping all over her. The bottle baby TS is getting will also be alone for a month, so not ideal for a herd animal. 
Even my accepting does do not sleep with kids that are not their own. They allow their kids to climb all over them but will toss their heads at other kids or get up and walk away. Actually my kids after they get to be about 2-3 weeks old all like to sleep together instead of with their moms. 
I have had over a dozen bottle kids, seven alone last year and they do so much better in pairs. Now I try to do them in doe pairs since I do not have to buy a friend and can just pull one. When I had to buy a friend if money was an issue I would get a wether bottle kid, they are pretty cheap


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

I would **not** give eggs to goats. Buy whole milk at the store to bottle feed.


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