When should I breed goats for spring kids?

Short answer

150 days back from the first kid you want — breed October 1 for kids from the end of February

Goat gestation is about 150 days, 146 to 155 (Oklahoma State), so count 150 days back from the date you want the first kid: a buck in on October 1 gives kids from about February 28. Then work forward: the doe's needs nearly double in the last 4–6 weeks (Kentucky State), her CD&T booster goes in 2–4 weeks before kidding, and you leave her alone for the last 3. A newborn kid should get colostrum in its first hour and 10% of its body weight in the first day, and a kid reading 100–101°F is already hypothermic (NC A&T).

The arithmetic

Breed date = the first kid you want − 150 days. October 1 → February 28; November 1 → March 31.
Kidding runs as long as the buck stays in. A 45-day breeding season is a 45-day kidding; a buck left in all winter is kids until summer.
Feed goes up about 6 weeks out: a 110-lb doe goes from 2.2 lb of dry matter a day dry to 2.9 in her last trimester and 3.4 in milk (Arkansas) — about +30%, then +55%.
Colostrum = 10% of birth weight in the first 24 hours (Oklahoma State). An 8-lb kid needs about 13 oz, the first of it within an hour.

How much colostrum does a newborn kid need, and by when?

Four extension sources, four ways of saying it — and the range is wider than it looks.

Oklahoma State: 10% of body weight in the first 24 hours; the first within an hour of birth and certainly within six
NC A&T: 10% of body weight within the first 18 hours, half of it by 8 hours; tube-feed if it hasn't nursed by 4 hours
Kentucky State: 2 oz within 6 hours and 4–6 oz within 24 hours
Oregon State EC 1427 (lambs reared by bottle): 3 oz per pound of body weight in the first 18 hours, in four feedings — close to 19%

Kentucky State's 4–6 oz is the minimum to get antibodies into a kid; 10% is the planning target for a kid that also needs the energy to stay warm; Oregon State's figure is for lambs fed everything by bottle with no dam. They agree on the clock — the gut stops absorbing antibodies around 24 hours — and that is the part that matters most.

Plan on 10% of birth weight in the first day, get the first feeding in within an hour or two, and tube any kid that is weak or hasn't nursed by four hours.

What changes your number

Doe kids vs. mature does. First fresheners take longer: stage one runs 6–12 hours instead of 4–8, and delivery up to 4 hours instead of under 1 (Oklahoma State).
When to step in. Don't let a doe strain hard for more than 30 minutes without progress; if repositioning or pulling hasn't worked in 30 minutes, call for help (Oklahoma State). Kentucky State: a kid should follow within an hour of the water sack.
Cold weather checks. Check does every 2–3 hours in cold weather, every 4–6 in warm (Kentucky State). A kid born wet at 20°F has minutes, not hours.
Body condition. Keep does at 2–3 on a 5-point scale through late pregnancy (Kentucky State). Too thin and the kids are weak; too fat and kidding is harder.
Feeding time. Feeding hay or concentrate at night tends to move births into the early morning (Oklahoma State) — more kids born when you're up.
Pasture. Rest the kidding pasture 60 days or as long as you can before the does go back on it (Kentucky State) — fewer worm larvae waiting for the kids.

A number we won't give you

A kidding-pen size for goats. Penn State gives 4×4 or 5×5 ft jugs for ewes and we use that on the sheep page, but we did not find an extension figure written for goats, so we won't print one here.

Newborn kid — numbers to have on the barn wall

Check	Number	Source
Normal temperature	102–103°F	NC A&T
Hypothermic — warm it	100–101°F	NC A&T
Severe — warm to 99°F before tube-feeding	below 99°F	NC A&T
Colostrum, first day	10% of birth weight	Oklahoma State
First colostrum	within 1 hour; certainly within 6	Oklahoma State
Tube-feed if not nursed	by 4 hours, or weak / not standing at 1 hour	NC A&T · Kentucky State
Navel	iodine shortly after birth (7%)	Kentucky State · NC A&T

Take the temperature rectally. A cold kid can't digest colostrum — warm it first.

Labor — how long is normal

Stage	Mature doe	Doe kid (first freshener)
1 — getting ready	4–8 hours	6–12 hours
2 — delivery	under 1 hour	up to 4 hours
3 — afterbirth	1–8 hours	1–8 hours

Oklahoma State. Kentucky State puts the whole process at 12–14 hours. Hard straining for 30 minutes with no progress is the line for helping.

Kidding kit

Item	Why
Thermometer	Every weak kid gets its temperature taken before anything else
7% iodine and a cup	Navel dip
Feeding tube and 60 cc syringe	Colostrum for a kid that can't suck
Frozen colostrum or colostrum replacer	For a doe with none, or triplets
Latex or OB gloves, lube	Checking position, helping a pull
Kid puller	Kentucky State lists one
Towels	Drying a kid is the first warming
Selenium (if your area is deficient — ask your vet)	Kentucky State lists a selenium shot
Ear tags, record sheet, scale	Birth weights are the first records you'll want later
Vet's phone number	Written down, not just in a phone that's charging in the house

From Kentucky State's and NC A&T's kit lists.

Run your own numbers

Pick the date you want the first kid and it dates every job back to breeding.

SpeciesFirst kid wanted onBreeding season (days)

150 days before
Buck in — breeding for the first kidsOklahoma State: about 150 days (146–155)
105 days before
Buck out after a 45-day seasonYour choice; a short season means a short kidding
42 days before
Start raising the ration — needs nearly double in the last 4–6 weeksKentucky State
28 days before
CD&T booster for the doesKentucky State (4 weeks); Oklahoma State (2–4 weeks)
21 days before
Stop handling does unless one is sickKentucky State (last 3 weeks)
10 days before
Kidding pens and kit ready; start watching closelyNC A&T (watch from day 140)
Day 0
First kids due
45 days after
Last kids from the breeding season due

Gestation is an average; individual animals run a few days either side. Vaccine timing is the extension guidance — your vet’s plan for your herd comes first.

What late winter costs in feed

The kidding months are the expensive end of the hay pile: a doe in her last trimester eats about 30% more than a dry doe and about 55% more in milk (Arkansas). Kid in late February and those are the coldest, priciest weeks of the year. The goats hay page has the per-doe table, and the feed-cost page puts a dollar figure on it.

Then stop planning from averages

The planner gives you the calendar. In Homestead Paradise you log each breeding and the app works out the due date and counts down to it, keeps the kidding records, birth weights and the doe's history in one place, and the herd's feed and vet costs land on the books. 14-day free trial, no card.

Start your 14-day trial — no card

Keep planning

How much hay do goats need for winter?How much hay do sheep need for winter?How much hay does a cow need for winter?How many bales of hay do I need for winter?What does it cost to feed livestock through winter, per head?How much water do livestock drink in winter?

Sources

Every figure on this page comes from a land-grant university extension service, a government agriculture or energy agency, or a breed registry — never from another blog.