Goat Milking Area and Cleanliness

Goat milk is sterile, and we can easily contaminate it coming out of the udder.  Make sure your hands, yourself, and the udders are clean before you begin.  Keep the udder trimmed.  Udder, back legs, hooves trimmed to keep things from coming into the milking area.  However, it is best to minimize what your doe is bringing into the housing area.  Make sure it is clean where they live.  Are you re-bedding and cleaning the area your goat lives?

Milking in the backcountry and what can you get from a non-sterile environment? We have learned a lot from the past.  Because of the basic principles of hand washing and cleanliness.

Goat milk is healthy.  Once pasteurized, you kill everything in it that helps immunity.

Stripping…visual inspection:  One of the most common problems in does is mastitis.  It is important to pre-strip the udder into a wipe before you start.  Look for blood, milk clumps, and/or stringy milk.  Another sign of mastitis is the udder will feel hot and hard and your goat not feeling well.  Some goats may have a little plug.

Three Forms of Milking Goats

One way to milk your goat is with your hands which is much harder to learn. Not ideal for hands with arthritis or carpel-tunnel. Small scale milkers cost $80-$300 dollars because they are cheap. The cheaper machines cost more in the long run because they will hurt the goat’s udders. They pull the orifice longer at a time. The Simple Pulse has a pulsator which simulates a baby sucking. With the Simple Pulse, the pulsator creates the on and off action so the teat open and close over and over. The Simple Pulse was created with the homesteader in mind. It is great for milking and affordable for families. This video shares the process with the Simple Pulse machine.

Key Facts

• Wash your hands and have clean hands at all times while touching milk and machine parts.
• The milking area is free of flies, feces, and dirt.
• The udders and legs are shaved, clean, and free of feces and debris.
• Hooves are kept trimmed regularly.
• Minimizing filth from the housing area to the milking area. Especially winter wet months.

The importance of the goat milking area and cleanliness matters for the milk. Know and practice the factors to healthy goats and milk. Consider setting up your goat milking area and go for it. Take on the adventure of milking with the right tools, so it can be an enjoyable happy everyday task. Get the A-Z Milk Goat Course to make your life easier to quickly learn more tips. This course can short-cut your time to be a successful steward of goats. Whether you are a first-time milker or you’re experienced but looking for the finer points; this course will help you.

At packgoats.com our mission is to become a leading resource on all things for owning your goats. In addition, help you feel confident about the information and be successful in caring for your goats.

Check out the Pack Goat Gift Card for that special goat lover in your life. Whether it’s a holiday, birthday, no matter the occasion, they will not be disappointed! Gift cards are valid for any products on packgoats.com!