# Blood in milk



## Theresa (Oct 26, 2007)

Ok, I have a doe that is 1 week freshen. She at first her milk was fine. Yesterday I noticed some pink in the milk. Today there is blood in the milk. So, do I need to treat her and if so with what? She acts fine, eats, drinks, and comes to the milkstand. Her udder is not hard, hot, or lopsided, although I think that only one side of the udder is giving the blood in the milk.
Thanks, Theresa


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## Truly (Oct 26, 2007)

Is she a first freshener?

Especially on a first freshener you need to be gentle on the udder. Squeezing to high on the teat can cause injury. Also, just the fact that a new udder is growing can cause a little blood in the milk.

It's not necessarily uncommon to have a bit of blood in the milk shortly after freshening. 

Be gentle and see how this goes.


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## Ashley (Oct 25, 2007)

My grandpa's doe did this when she freshened the first time, in the bottom of the milk bottle, you could see brownish pink, EW. But it was just from her udder stretching out.


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## Sheryl (Oct 27, 2007)

I had a doe that gave a lot of milk had a horrible long baggy teat udder, but she was a sweet heart, finally got rid of her. It is usually a first freshener that does this, but older does can do it to. Usually if you give vit. C and calcium tablets in the feed (or if they will eat it out of your hand) it will go away. 

My doe was so calcium defecient, she passed blood in her milk to the point we could hardly stand to milk her. We just poured it out. She was about a 4th or 5th freshener. She would pass pieces of blood vessel. first time it happend I was milking by hand and it squired out yucky! But she was definitely deficient and they can pass this on to their offspring (I think she was one of those really weird cases) Most does that do this will only do it for a week or so after they first come into the milk. But the vitamin C and the calcium help. 

Sheryl


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## goatkid (Oct 26, 2007)

What is going on with your goat sounds entirely normal. When a doe first kids, her production isn't up there yet. At a week fresh, she's started to come in to her milk and what is causing the pink milk is broken capillaries. This happens with a couple of my does when they freshen and usually resolves itself within a week. I don't do anything special to treat it.


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## Sondra (Oct 25, 2007)

Milking more often helps with this Theresa it is just as said above borken capillaries. So when possible milk her 3 times a day. Know that isn't possible everyday but.....


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## Theresa (Oct 26, 2007)

Thanks everyone!! She is a second freshener, but last year I let her raise her babies and this year she will have nothing to do with them! So, it is possible that it happened last year and I did not notice it because I would only empty her once a day with whatever milk was left. I just wanted to be sure that it was not something that I needed to be concerned about. I will try the calcium and vitamin C and just watch to see what happens.


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