When bottle feeding goats, it's highly recommended to use raw whole goat milk (preferably from its momma) or the formula listed below. DO NOT USE STORE BOUGHT/COMMERCIAL MILK REPLACERS AS THESE TEND TO UPSET THEIR STOMACHS AND CAUSE SCOURS
Bottle Baby Formula Recipe
1 Gallon Whole Milk
1 Can Evaporated Milk
1 Cup Buttermilk
Pour out approximately 1 quart of the whole milk and set to the side. Add the evaporated milk and buttermilk to the remaining 3/4 gallon. Fill the gallon jug with the mixed milk back up with milk that was set to the side. Shake well and store in the refrigerator until needed. It will be good until the expiration date on the milk. Only heat what you need when you need it, and don't pour any heated milk back into the jug.
Also, keep in mind, miniature goats and standard sized goats have different feeding requirements. To figure out how much to feed a standard sized kid, you would use this formula: (weight) x 16 x 0.2 = ounces fed in 24 hours; which you would divide into required feedings. For example, a 10 pound standard sized kid: 10 x 16 = 160, 160 x 0.2 = 32. 32 ounces should be fed to a 10 pound standard sized kid in a 24 hour period.
Miniature kids are fed a bit differently than standard kids. The first 6 weeks, you go by the weight formula given above. Kids should be weighed weekly and have their milk increased accordingly during this time. After 7 weeks, if the kid is over 8 pounds, you can keep them at the same quantity of milk as their weight at 6 weeks. A miniature kid feeding schedule should look similar to the chart below, but each kids needs are different. NEVER feed more than 32 ounces to a miniature kid in 24 hours, no matter how much they weigh. From 9-12 weeks, you can go down to once a day feedings - keeping the amount of milk per bottle the same. For example, if the kid was getting two 10oz bottles for weeks 7 and 8, they would now receive one 10oz bottle per day. This mimics the weaning that does typically would do around this time.
NEVER feed a cold kid. Rectal temperature must be 101 degrees or higher to digest food.
ALWAYS feed milk in an upward position (like how it would naturally feed from its momma).
NEVER feed to a tight belly - which indicates overfeeding and can be deadly to a baby goat. If it was feeding naturally from its mother, the mother would feed it several times a day for a short amount of time to prevent overfeeding. They will always act like they're starving (even as adults!). Don't fall for it.
Cleaning your bottles and nipples are VERY important - do this daily and prior to feeding. We use the Parent's Choice bottles and nipples from Wal-Mart to feed our bottle babies. Sometimes goat kids prefer Pritchard nipples, so we have those on hand just in case. The Pritchard nipples typically fit well on standard water or pop bottles (which we clean out and recycle for this purpose).
Weigh your kid weekly to ensure proper weight gain. Write the weight down in your log book. Most will double their weight by 6 weeks and then again at 10-12 weeks. As a general rule of thumb, if food is going in and pee/poop is coming out, they are good to go. It's usually pretty simple and straight forward.
Quality clean hay and loose minerals (freshened daily) should be provided free choice starting at the end of week 2. Never ground feed hay (this is an invitation for coccidia) and clean bowls are a must. Raised feeders are recommended over feed pans on the ground.
Water should be offered free choice during week 2-3 in a safe water bowl (that they can't jump in and drown). The water and water bowl should always be clean. Never give water from a bottle. It needs to be drunk from a downward position to avoid organ damage. If you're struggling to get the kid to drink from a bowl, try floating a nipple in it to attract them to drink.
Kids should be eating hay as their main diet at 8-12 weeks. The most important aspect to know about feeding your goat is the proper ratio for calcium to phosphorus, which is 2:1 up to 4:1. Everything your goat eats should be factored in: hay, loose minerals, and feed. If you want to know more about what to feed your goat, visit our post here.
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