FAQ:  Is She Too Young to Breed?
Maxine Kinne

Q.  I bought a Pygmy doe kid. At what age can I breed her?

Pygmy does can start cycling as early as six weeks of age, and they are fertile when they come into heat. Pregnancies this young very often end up in surgical removal of the fetus. Pygmy bucks may also be fertile as early as six weeks of age.

Age at first breeding is far less important than size and growth. The young doe should ideally be a minimum of either 40 pounds or 3/4 of her expected adult weight. Some does may reach breeding size as early as 9-10 months. Most people feel that it is safer to wait until 15-18 months.

Pygmy breeders sometimes continually wait for "late bloomers" to get large enough and don't feel it is safe to breed them until they are about two years old. The type of goat that matures that  late is reproductively inefficient. When waiting this long for first time breeding, does should be monitored and managed for body condition or they can gain too much weight to conceive easily, deliver easily or produce milk efficiently. 

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