Hand cramps

I do as Stacey does....but it's a bit more difficult for me and took awhile to get used to it because I don't have what you would call dainty, ladylike hands! They are big and milking those little teats can be a chore....I use those clamp looking spring loaded hand strengtheners for the "time off" or as I do now....keep a girl in milk, so your hands stay strong. :greengrin:

 

You should see my forearms!!! LOL More muscle there than any female I know :ROFL: It takes time to get built up to the point that it doesn't cause your hands to cramp.

 

Yeah it just takes time...when I first started milking my hands would cramp so bad, it was painful. They'll get stronger with time.

 

I agree, it takes me a month of milking for the camps in my hands to ease up, by they do.

I've always wanted to try the Maggidans Milker, it's supposed to be great for teeny weeny teats. http://www.maggidans.com/milker.htm If you have little extra cash rolling around, hee hee, it might be worth a shot.

 

IF you have a few dollars you can make one. Its not that hard either. I have made one based on someone elses but have not tried it.

 

I've thought about making one myself, Crocee. It's basically, a cattle drench gun, IV tubing, and the barrel of a syringe. I'ld like to know how yours works out.

 

I tried the one I made....didn't care for it, took too long and you still need to hand strip the doe.

 

Well I may find out tomorrow. I am going to attempt to milk the doe who freshened on Wednesday. Shes got milk and I want some of it. I am going to lock the babies up and steal me some milk. If I don't milk her, her udder is never going to get bigger and I will always have to supplement those kids.

 

I really just like the fact that the doe cant get her feet near the bucket, that would be nice on my first freshners :roll: Of course knowing my does, they would just step on the tubing or crush the cup. I attempted to milk Glitz when she freshened this year, she would be sweetly chewing eating dinner, I'ld get her almost milked out and then CLANK, she's knocked over the entire pail and refuse for me to touch her, I cant tell you the bruises I have from that darn goat. I just know she was watching me cry over spilt milk snickering. :GAAH:

 

My sister and myself were the only ones who could milk the Nigerians, I had to rest my hands after a little while and milk again but that is one reason we went with the Mini-Nubians though.

 

You need does with bigger teats. I have been there and done that. Had some that my hands would cramp up horribly. Used the Maggidan milker for them. Then they were gone. I couldn't deal with that long so I've weeded those lines out of my herd.

Does with good teats are so much easier to milk and my hands don't cramp up at all. The maggidan milker is saved for FF who have smaller teats now, or if I can I avoid using it because its been more trouble than its worth.

 

I just wish I could milk a little faster. It took me almost 20mins start to finish to milk Bella today. She doesn't have big teats since she is a mini, but they aren't horribly small either. Her orafice size seems ok to me (not that I have much frame of reference), she just has so much milk on one side that it takes forever to get it all. Even when I quit, I'm sure I could have gotten more... I just didn't have the time! I don't know how much milk is a decent amount, but I am getting almost a quart from one side and much less than that from the other side that her doeling is nursing on.