Doe Unable to Settle

MellonFriend · 2025-10-11T12:17:25-0400

As some of you know, I have been trying to get my doe, Louise bred for over a year now. Month after month during the breeding season, she comes back into heat, without any success. At this point I've tried three different bucks on her. I'll be trying a fourth today. I'm trying to figure out if there is anything I haven't tried at this point. Just to review Louise's history, I bought her when she was around six or seven months old from someone who I had sold a kid to. I know based on things they said that they did not feed the best quality hay. Louise was clearly undersized for her age and had poor coat condition when I got her. The other fact was that she had been running with an intact buck for about a month and she did not get pregnant.

Now fast forward to today, she is two and a half years old and I still have not been able to get her to settle. She's had four attempts this year and at least five attempts last year. She gets free choice first cutting hay, I do not feed her any pelleted feed because she keeps her condition well. Starting in mid-July I got her on kelp. She got a 1/4 cup a day for about the first two months to give her a real boost and now I have her down to two tablespoons a day, sometimes she doesn't even finish that. She gets copper bolused as well as Replamin Plus gel and two 50g Zinc pills every three months. I have CO-OP Supreme Goat minerals out free choice. Her coat is still not to the level of shine I see on my other does. But could that just be her coat type?

I just don't know what there is left to try. What could I be missing? Or what defects could she possibly have that is causing her to not get bred? I'd be happy to hear from anyone who has experienced similar issues.

Here she is with this month's boy friend, Dillon.

happybleats · 2025-10-11T12:43:25-0400

Is she over weight? The picture is hard to tell but looks to have pretty flat back? I ask because i had a saanen the same way. Kept weight on and some...kept her 4 years and never would settle. I did some natural stuff...trued hars to reduce hee weight..tried different bucks..nothing. prettt sure she had cystic ovaries preventing pregancy and i didnt have time or moola to go through treatment every time i wanted her bred. After 4 years of trying....i sold her as a pet to a lady who had a handful of pet goats to help clean around her place and to enjoy. She had Bell for a few years running with her buck who was a rescue..under sized and didnt get anyone bred...she thought they were good together but after a few years they were suprised to come out one morning and find a single little buckling nursing off Bell. She was nearly 8 at least lol. You never know. BUT, lol..my point is...maybe cystic ovaries is your girls problem.

happybleats · 2025-10-11T12:45:21-0400

Goat Reproductive Failure Physiological Factors – Goats Goat Reproductive Failure Physiological Factors – Goats

Boer Mama · 2025-10-11T12:48:14-0400

@MellonFriend have you tried 2 shots of lute?
@Jessica84 had experience with treating cystic ovaries

@happybleats that’s crazy that she settled and had a baby finally at 8yo!

MellonFriend · 2025-10-11T13:10:03-0400

happybleats said:
Is she over weight? The picture is hard to tell but looks to have pretty flat back? I ask because i had a saanen the same way. Kept weight on and some...kept her 4 years and never would settle. I did some natural stuff...trued hars to reduce hee weight..tried different bucks..nothing. prettt sure she had cystic ovaries preventing pregancy and i didnt have time or moola to go through treatment every time i wanted her bred. After 4 years of trying....i sold her as a pet to a lady who had a handful of pet goats to help clean around her place and to enjoy. She had Bell for a few years running with her buck who was a rescue..under sized and didnt get anyone bred...she thought they were good together but after a few years they were suprised to come out one morning and find a single little buckling nursing off Bell. She was nearly 8 at least lol. You never know. BUT, lol..my point is...maybe cystic ovaries is your girls problem.

She is not overweight. I'd say she's about a three BCS. That is a crazy story! Gives me some hope at least.

Boer Mama said:
@MellonFriend have you tried 2 shots of lute?
@Jessica84 had experience with treating cystic ovaries

@happybleats that’s crazy that she settled and had a baby finally at 8yo!

I have not tried lute. Would she really be cystic if she doesn't short cycle? She regularly cycles at around 21 days.

ksalvagno · 2025-10-11T16:46:31-0400

I would do 7 days of penicillin. On the 6th and 7th days, do a shot of lute. That cleans up any mild infection and forces them to cycle.

MellonFriend · 2025-10-11T21:02:50-0400

Just to be clear, you would still suspect her of being cystic and try this even if she is cycling normally?

Dews · 2025-10-11T18:15:12-0400

Do you hand breed or have you tried putting her with a buck for two cycles? I had a doe named Sugar that cycled regularly and I tried to breed her for 4 years but she never took so I decided she couldn't get pregnant. Then one year I decided to put my does with the bucks instead of hand breeding and I had one group that was too small so those goats were scared. So I put Sugar who was 6 at the time, with them because I knew she wouldn't get pregnant, well 5 months later she surprised me with a beautiful doeling! I think she must have ovulated very early in her cycle so I was always too late putting her with the buck. I hope something works for Louise, she sure is a pretty girl!

MellonFriend · 2025-10-11T21:02:04-0400

What I've been doing is I check out my herd for signs of heat in the morning and then put in a buck for the day based on who is in heat. If no one is in heat, I still put a buck in to try and catch these weird situations like I've been dealing with. Then the buck goes back to sleep with the other bucks at night. So I'll have to look at my notes and see if I for sure had a buck in with her the day before she cycled.

Jordin · 2025-10-11T19:16:11-0400

Do you know if she had a really small brother? One of my does is sterile I think what happened is she and her brothers umbilical cord where so close together that she was taking food and hormones from him. But she has never gone into heat. Weedem and reep on YouTube had a great video explaining it.

MellonFriend · 2025-10-11T20:57:47-0400

Nope, she did not have a brother. I'm actually lucky enough (not) to have one of those types of sterile does in my herd, so I know all about them. They are called Freemartins and it happens when the placentas of two different sexes fuse. Freemartins do not go into heat, so that's another reason I know Louise is not one of those. 😉

ksalvagno · 2025-10-11T23:50:14-0400

Yes. If there is any infection, that should kick it out. If she keeps cycling but never gets pregnant, something is going on.

toth boer goats · 2025-10-12T12:43:22-0400

☝👍

Jessica84 · 2025-10-12T13:05:30-0400

My doe never short cycled, if anything it was longer then normal. The thing with treating cystic ovaries is if that’s not the issue it will not harm her, I made sure of that before I treated my doe since everyone was saying short cycle = cystic.

goats-n-oats · 2025-10-13T08:33:02-0400

Once you have ruled out infection.
I had a doe who aborted late term three years in a row, from three different bucks. She was a good milker tho. The vet said she just wasn't meant to be a momma.

toth boer goats · 2025-10-13T12:51:33-0400

☝😉

MellonFriend · 2025-10-13T15:23:52-0400

Alright, thank you everyone for your suggestion! Since I had Dillon in with her this last heat cycle, I'm going to wait another 21 days to be sure she didn't miraculously take this time. If she goes into heat again, then I'll have to start talking to the vet to get some Lute. I'll keep you all updated!

toth boer goats · 2025-10-14T13:18:17-0400

Doe Unable to Settle

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