Signs Your Doe is in Heat

Are you planning your breeding season? Or want to learn more about goats and their antics during breeding season? While we may plan breeding it is truly left up to the goats if done naturally. We let our goats breed naturally. We put our buck in with the herd in mid July and pull him out after about 2 months. We like all of our kiddings to happen close together and not spread out over months and months.

Some breeds of goats are seasonal breeders. This means they will normally only breed in late August to January. It has to do with the decreasing daylight that sends them into heat or the breeding mindset. Other breeds of goats can breed any time of the year. I will not go into the different breeds and and if they are seasonal or not in this blog.

The more technical term for your doe in heat is estrus. This is the time that your doe will stand still for a buck to breed her. Estrus will normally last 12-36 hours. This is the time frame that the buck must get her or else he will have to wait until she cycles again. Goats typically cycle ever 18-24 days. This is why we let our buck in with the girls for about 2 months so that he will have a second chance with any that he missed in their first heat or estrus.

Here are some signs to look for that might indicated your doe is in heat. Each goat is different and some may not show signs as clearly as others. Some may not show any signs. This is called a silent heat.

1. Tail wagging or tail flagging. Basically she will wag her tail more then normal.

2. Mounting other goats. Yes, does will sometimes act similar to bucks when they are in heat and they do not have a buck in with them.

3. Swollen vulva. Just a little bit and it might be redder then normal.

4. Abnormal behavior. A normally sweet goat may be more aggressive or grumpy or want nothing to do with human interaction. If you really know your does you will be able to tell when they are in heat.

5. Noise. Does may even do the blubbering buck noises when they are in heat.

6. Standing still for the buck. She may also rub her face and neck on him enjoying the stinky smell of him.

Sometimes hot weather will make them less eager to breed. It seems like in the cool of the morning and evening are when we see more action from the buck. About 5 months after they are bred the does will kid. It does depend on the breed of goat. In general smaller breeds are closer to145 days and larger breeds are around 150 days.