Shantara Acres Farm

The number one rule I learned, and a hard one to follow with such nice kids born each year, is keeping the herd small so as to be manageable.  We put the best feeds we can get, and plenty of em into our small group of does for maximum milk production, which equals twice as much milk, with half the work and expense of meds. wormers, monthly hoof trimming, time spent milking etc. of a larger herd. I consider ease of hand milking an extremely important trait to breed for, along with udder attachment, mammary system, teat attachment and placement, width through the escution, milk production and long lactations. All of our first freshning does have produced at least one gallon a day the very first year. A will to milk, along with style, grace and beauty are also traits I look for in a doe. Of course, all these attributes are moot if the doe has a bad attitude, so that is also of prime importance. I believe you will be truly satisfied with a Shantara Acres doe kid and future milker. We also have some terrific bucks at fantastic prices available this year.

Management: Herd management is extremely important when considering a goat purchase. Our herd is managed as I have learned from the folks on the great forum, at www.dairygoatinfo.com Having bought all kinds of books, and seen a lot of somewhat questionable information out there on dairy goat management, I was so happy when a friend recommended the dairy goat info forum to me. There is a wealth of information in the files, all up to date, that really works for increasing health and milk production. Try it, you'll be hooked!

Our herd management starts at birth. All births are attended, and all reserved kids are bottlefed heat treated colostrum and pasturized milk. They have navels dipped and bo-se shots are given. They also get a vit. e capsule. The babies are kept warm for several hours until they can keep their own body temp. up. The dam's are wormed at birth, milked out, cleaned up, blanketed if cold, and bedded in deep straw with warm, fresh water, alfalfa pellets, grain and hay available. They are returned to the herd just as soon as possible after the birth.

Our herd has tested negative for CAE from the beginning. We've never had an abcess.  CMT's are done regularly to monitor milk quality and doe health. Kids are fed milk  on a free choice basis from a lambar. Kids are started on coccidiosis prevention at day 20 and recieve corid for 5 days every 20 days until they are eating at least one pound per day of their medicated feed. They are wormed monthly, and fecal checked periodically.
Kids are given medicated grain, hay, alfalfa pellets, minerals and water at starting at about one week. Once they are eating well, their feeders are kept full. They are kept seperate from adults.

Our milking does get grain on the milkstand, as much as they want. They also have alfalfa pellets or alfalfa hay available along with grass hay all the time. Currently we are using orchard grass hay and they also have 24 hour access to a pasture with lots and lots of browse, clover, varied grasses, etc.

Does are milked twice a day on a somewhat regular schedule. (Sometimes during peak production times or when I need more milk for kids, I milk three times per day.)  (I do try to be punctual...but then there is life). Bo-se is given four times per year, or more if needed. (for our selenium deficient soils). They have  free choice minerals available all the time and baking soda as needed for rumen health, especially in the spring when the lush grass starts to come in. We also copper-bolus and have seen dramatic improvements in milk production, weights, skin and coats, resistance to some parisites, and general overall health since we started bolusing. Copper-bolusing is done 3 time per year. The girls are given regular vaccination boosters before kidding. Feet are trimmed once a month.

Bucks: Bucks receive the same care as the does, including 4X yearly bo-se, copper bolus, hoof trimming, yearly vaccinations, etc. Bucks do not receive additional feeds as long as the pasture is in good condition in the non-breeding season once they have gained their weight back from winter ruts. They are on pasture with browse all summer, and graining starts again in August to give them a little extra weight going into the breeding season.