The kids are born and will soon be weaned so if you intend to milk the does, it’s time to make sure you have a stanchion. While some goats will stand peacefully anywhere while you milk them, the majority will need to be put into a stanchion (milking stand).

Stanchions are a must-have in the cow world but you can’t put a goat in a cow stanchion. There are a number of stanchions on the market and while there are differences, they all have things in common.

Goat stanchions generally have a raised platform for the goat to stand on. The head section will have a stationary bar and another bar that pivots so once the goat’s head is in it, the bar can be closed to hold the goat. Some stands have one side to keep the goat from trying to get off, most are open on both sides. Some have a feed bowl to keep the doe occupied while you milk.

The thing about stanchions is most goats with horns won’t fit in the head piece. That’s why does are normally dehorned. In order to put a horned goat in a stanchion, the stanchion will have to be made or modified to have a wider opening so the horns can fit through.

Naimhe got her stanchion from a guy on eBay. Here’s one of his currently for sale.  Hoegger Goat Supply offers single and double stanchions in multiple styles, Hamby Dairy Supply has a bolt on head piece in two styles. eNasco has a simple stanchion like one offered by Hoegger but for about half the price. Photos of several of these stanchions can be found in one place here. Keep in mind when buying stanchions that your largest goat should fit. If the platform isn’t long enough, the goat will fall off and choke. Yes, I know this from personal experience.

For the do-it-yourselfer, this article at Grit Magazine provides directions for building your own but you’ll need some carpentry skills and there’s no photograph of the finished project.  Easy Living the Hard Way has photos of a homemade stanchion that looks relatively easy to construct. eHow also has plans for a stanchion but, again, no photo.

Remember to always monitor your goats when they’re in a stanchion. A little bit of fussing can result in the goat falling off or knocking the stand over and injuring herself.

Related Posts

1. Adventures in Bottle Feeding
2. Disbudding and Pain Control
3. To horn or not …
4. Got Milk?
5. Goat’s Milk: A Healthy Choice

This entry was posted on Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010 at 11:51 am and is filed under So you want to raise goats.... You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.