A Kid's Introduction to Goats & Sheep

Hi! My name is Loki. I'm a Nigerian Dwarf goat. My sheepy friend Eustace and I are going to tell you some interesting things about goats and sheep today.

This is Anna, one of the female goats in our herd. A female goat is called a doe or a nanny. A male goat is called a buck or a billy. A male goat who can't be a daddy is called a wether. A baby goat is called a kid.

Mama goats usually have more than one baby at a time. Twins are most common, although some mothers regularly have triplets. Sometimes a goat will have four or five babies, but often these babies are very small and not healthy. Goat siblings are usually very close and like to sleep and play together. If separated, they bleat loudly. Kids play a LOT! They bounce, kick, twist and caper. They love to jump on anything high and play king of the mountain. When they are tired, they try to find a safe place to rest.

It takes only 5 months for  baby goats to be big enough to leave their mother's body and come into the world. Kids aren't like helpless human babies. Goat kids can stand up and drink milk a few minutes after they are born. By the next day, some kids are trying to bounce and play.

After the babies are born, the mama goat's body makes a special milk called colostrum for a few days. The colostrum helps protect the baby goat from getting sick. Baby goats usually drink milk for between 2 and 3 months. Little doelings usually stay with their mothers longer than little bucklings do. Milk goats, like the does in my herd, sometimes make more milk than their babies can drink.  Our owner sometimes takes some of this milk for her family.

GOAT TALK Goats bleat with "MAAAH" sound to call to one another. Mama goats make low, soft grunting sounds to their babies and the babies have a high, loud bleat. Male goats sometimes make very human-like sounds  "Whuuuuut? when they talk. Sometimes they make a sneezing noise at a lady goat.

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