I read that goat's milk is the closest to human milk...

[PentecostalMom]

if this is so, then why do babies not get goat's milk instead of formula? now, I am a baby-wearing, extended nursing mama. Just wondering.

[~Amanda~]

I once read an excellent alternative to formula was raw goats milk.

[happypamama]

I once read an excellent alternative to formula was raw goats milk.

 

I believe so, but even raw goat's milk needs extra things added to it. It may be the closest actual milk to human milk, but since it's designed for baby goats, it doesn't have everything that a human baby needs, and in the right proportions.

 

Why do we use cow's milk to create most formula, instead of goat's milk? I assume because it's less expensive and more readily found.

 

I am a nursing mama too, but if I couldn't nurse, I'd probably look into making my own formula with either raw goat's milk or raw cow's milk.

[Mergath]

I would imagine that part of the problem is the bacteria that can be present in raw milk of any kind is much more of a risk to a newborn with an undeveloped immune system than to an adult, and obviously the pasteurized milk isn't going to contain enough of the good stuff to be a suitable replacement for breastmilk or formula.

[amy g.]

when my

 

youngest did not gain enough weight, I tried formula, but she was allergic to it.

 

Out of desperation, I tried a couple of ounces of goat milk a day.S he gained 8 oz the first 3 days o f taking it.

 

I quit giving her bottles as soon as her weight evened out, and she still nurses now at 14 months.

 

Goat milk got her over the crisis when we were afraid I would have to stop breastfeeding.

 

I'm sure that giving goat milk to infants is common practice in some cultures.

[Mom-ninja.]

Isn't that what they mostly used before formula?

[Tiffnkids]

The U.S. has a lot more cows around than goats . . . who eats goat meat?

 

That's probably why infant formula is derived from cow milk . . .

 

When the cow gets too old for milk, it's off to the slaughterhouse.

 

So, goat milk derived formula might be better for infants, but what do you do with the goat when it gets old? Cows are more profitable:glare:

[Ibbygirl]

. . who eats goat meat?

 

I do. :) It's yummy. There are lots of people who eat goat meat in my neck of the woods. They sell it in the latin grocery stores here. It's a very common food in the Caribbean.

[Ravin]

Before formula, formula recipes mostly involving milk plus karo syrup were used. THen they started adding vitamins, then the recipe got complicated and someone marketed it as already mixed/powdered....

 

Goat's has better-tolerated proteins than cows milk, but its still quite different from human milk.

[Remudamom]

I used to sell goat's milk to a local mama for her baby. I think he did well on it.

[Ellie]

It isn't readily available everywhere.

 

And personally, I think it tastes nasty. I don't know if I could give it to my babies, lol.

[Mom-ninja.]

I can't remember where I read this, perhaps The Politics of Breastfeeding or Milk, Money and Madness , that diary farmers had this by-product called whey and they didn't know what to do with it. So they decided to stop throwing it out and wanted to find a way to use it. That is how formula became to be made from cow milk. It was a way to use the by-product of dairy products. There are a lot of cows.

[v-girl]

When my son weaned, he wouldn't drink cow milk. Our ped suggested giving him goat milk and then gradually mixing the two until he was switched to cow milk (goat milk is very very expensive). Worked great!

[Hockey Mom]

I used to sell goat's milk to a local mama for her baby. I think he did well on it.

 

As a mom who gave her oldest goat milk in an effort to battle eczema, I thank God there were people like you who sold it. :)

 

BTW, goat milk was the ONLY thing that cleared up the eczema.

[amey311]

There are some studies that think that camel milk is closest to human milk. Others that say donkey milk. Good luck being able to obtain either here in the US. There is a camel dairy farm somewhere in California, I think, but it takes a while to get FDA/USDA (i forget which) approval before you can sell it to drink.

 

Found it: http://www.cameldairy.com/Home_Page.html - they do public tours monthly for those of you in the Ramona area.

[WiseOwlKnits]

Isn't that what they mostly used before formula?

 

:iagree:

 

Great-grandma has told me many times how she fed all 4 of her kids on goat's milk because the doctor said that goat's milk is better than breast milk.

[Vida Winter]

Formula was popular when I was born; unfortunately I couldn't tolerate it. So it was goat's milk for me; at least that's what I was told.

[Nakia]

I do. :) It's yummy. There are lots of people who eat goat meat in my neck of the woods. They sell it in the latin grocery stores here. It's a very common food in the Caribbean.

 

Now, I know why you want to see my little does. You are gonna try to eat them, aren't you?? ;)

Edited February 11, 2011 by Nakia

[Ibbygirl]

Now, I know why you want to see my little does. You are gonna try to eat them, aren't you?? ;)

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!! :lol::lol: No! I wouldn't dare eat your cute little goats. hehehe I tell my husband all the time that if I had to actually slaughter the animals for the meat we eat I would be a vegetarian. I just couldn't do it.

Actually I'd love to have goats for the milk to make cheese. I love goat cheese. I make this thin crust pizza that has garlic and olive oil for its "sauce" and goat cheese, red onions and yellow, red and green bell peppers for it's topping and it is SOOOOO GOOOOD! :drool5:

[Peela]

I got pregnant with ds when my dd was only 8 months old. I desperately wanted to continue to breastfeed her- and did for another 4 years- but I supplemented with bottles of raw goats milk. So she got both breastmilk and goats milk.

Yes, it is easier to digest and much less likely to cause allergies- think of the size of a calf compared to the size of a goat kid, and the size of a human baby. Much more similar.

 

ETA- pasteurised goats milk has a bit of a strange flavour that many dont like- but raw goats milk doesn't have that flavour and tastes very similar to cows milk.

[Amy Jo]

I assume that's raw goats milk. For me, even though it was my goat, healthy & clean, I couldn't take the risk of something in the milk getting into my baby's system.

 

It was good milk though.

[Alphabetika]

My mom didn't nurse me because I was adopted. So, when she found I had trouble with cow's milk, she fed me goat's milk and I was fine. As for me and my babies, it's nursing or nothin'. And we eat goat's meat, too, at our favorite Indian restaurant. Goat curry....mmmm......

[Mom in High Heels]

I was given goat milk because I was allergic to cow milk, and I don't think there was soy formula readily available in the early 70's. My dad's aunt had a small farm and raised goats. My parents got fresh milk from there. I didn't have any problems on goat milk. It's available in stores here in Germany.

[amy g.]

I agree that pasteurized milk has an off flavor, but I did pasteurize it for my daughter because she was an infant.

 

I didn't add anything to it because she was nursing and did not need a complete formula, just extra calories that didn't also make her sick.

 

My family drinks raw goat milk. They have become so spoiled by it that they won't even drink the fresh milk from our cow.

 

Whey is what you have left over when you make cheese. It is full of B vitamins and easily digested protein. If you have dairy goats, and you make cheese, you can raise a raise a pig for your family's freezer with just whey and pasture or a little bit of hay and whey.

[Ibbygirl]

And we eat goat's meat, too, at our favorite Indian restaurant. Goat curry....mmmm......

 

mmmmmm yummy! I'll go out to eat with you anytime. :) I love Indian food. :)

[Barry Goldwater]

that can be fed to ALL mammals...orphaned puppy? give it goat milk...orphaned sheep? give it goat milk.

 

Funny, the dairyman up the road for me gives his children...goat milk (they're allergic to holstein cow milk). He bought a buck from my DDs a few years ago.

 

My DW, who has raised many, many lil' orphans since her youth, has proven this out :)

 

BTW, there is a varied difference in taste of goat milk between breeds. E.G. our boer/nubian cross goat milk tastes very different then our alpine nanny, whose is different from our lamancha nanny. So you don't want to generalize if you say you don't like it...if you care to, try different breeds and you could find one to your liking. :001_smile:

 

And raw goat milk tastes different from pasteurized goat milk as well.

[brasilmom]

I have been giving raw goat milk to my dd for 4 years now. She will drink nothing else. Even pasteurized goat milk she refuses. She says it tastes funny. My younger one seems to have a problem with milk, so I will wait to give him any until he can be tested for allergy. Our dd is severely allergic to many foods, but she outgrew milk. Actually, I think and believe that the goat milk has helped her allergy as each year she makes improvement. I am happy that she is healthy and a happy child.

Now, its composition is closer to human's milk and therefore is much easier to digest. Of course the raw version gives extra benefit.

[fairfarmhand]

a dairy cow can give 8-10 gallons of milk a day.

 

a goat gives less than a gallon...typically 3 quarts or so.

 

I think that would be the main issue.

 

My family has weird allergy issues. I have a dd who was allergic to breast milk (rare, but true) Told my grandma about it and she told me that my aunt had the same issue and was raised on goats milk!

[Mommee & Baba]

I was curious about this as well.

 

Having nursed all my children and still nursing..if I had to branch out I would've dug into the goats milk research alot more.

[vettechmomof2]

because not all "kids" are created equal!

 

:D:D:D

[Heatherwith4]

Now you guys have me wanting to beg my poor dh for some goats! ;)

[Alphabetika]

mmmmmm yummy! I'll go out to eat with you anytime. :) I love Indian food. :)

 

Come on over! We can get you in to Disneyland (though it hardly compares with Magic Kingdom - still, dh works for Disney so it's all good) and eat goat curry and palak paneer all in the same day!

[KidsHappen]

It isn't readily available everywhere.

 

And personally, I think it tastes nasty. I don't know if I could give it to my babies, lol.

 

Have you ever tasted formula? :ack2:

[LittleIzumi]

I think it can work well as a base for an infant formula. I would personally not feel comfortable with it without looking up the stats on it & adding whatever vitamins/fats we currently know are missing in it that babies need. I don't see any issue with using goat's milk instead of cow's milk as a formula base though. (Except that the protein *is* similar to cow's milk, so for instance if I had tried that with milk-allergic dd, it would not have helped much. Goat's milk gives her problems, too.)

[KidsHappen]

Before formula, formula recipes mostly involving milk plus karo syrup were used. THen they started adding vitamins, then the recipe got complicated and someone marketed it as already mixed/powdered....

 

Goat's has better-tolerated proteins than cows milk, but its still quite different from human milk.

 

I came along before formulas. My mom said she mixed Carnation Evaporated Milk half and half with water and then a tiny bit of caro syrup to make my formula. My guess is that it was probably low in fats, calories and maybe proteins, not to mention vitmains, minerals and other essential elements. Definitely not healthy but probably not any worse than the commercial formulas made today and I am sure it tasted better. I was always a very thin childbut otherwise grew up fairfly healthy.

 

If I was still breatfeeding and found that I could not longer do it, I would be doing my very best to find a mother or more than one who could help with feeding my baby and trying to get milk from milk banks as well.

[Nakia]

Have you ever tasted formula? :ack2:

 

My thoughts exactly. It is yuck!

[Ravin]

Actually, the modern formulas are a LOT better than the early milk and karo syrup homemade formulas. They have the proteins broken down, nutrients balanced and the vitamins added to make them much closer to human needs. They still are far and away not as good as actual human milk, esp. fresh, live human milk.

 

Whey is the milk byproduct that got the formula industry going, btw. I read Milk, Money, and Madness years ago...

[fairfarmhand]

I came along before formulas. My mom said she mixed Carnation Evaporated Milk half and half with water and then a tiny bit of caro syrup to make my formula. My guess is that it was probably low in fats, calories and maybe proteins, not to mention vitmains, minerals and other essential elements. Definitely not healthy but probably not any worse than the commercial formulas made today and I am sure it tasted better. I was always a very thin childbut otherwise grew up fairfly healthy.

 

If I was still breatfeeding and found that I could not longer do it, I would be doing my very best to find a mother or more than one who could help with feeding my baby and trying to get milk from milk banks as well.

 

 

yep. my mil did this for my dh. Then she says things like..."We never could get him to poop though..."

[Ibbygirl]

Come on over! We can get you in to Disneyland (though it hardly compares with Magic Kingdom - still, dh works for Disney so it's all good) and eat goat curry and palak paneer all in the same day!

 

Sounds like fun. :) I've never been to California. My mom went once and she loved it. She said it's beautiful out west. :)

[HS Mom in NC]

My Bradley birthing, LLL mother put me on goat milk when she weaned me. We lived on a farm next door to a goat farm. My mother bought 1/2 a goat (the farm owned the other half meaning they had morning milkings and mom had afternoon milkings.) My parents separated when I was 7 days old and my brother was 11 months old, so milking twice a day when she stared working again was too hard a schedule to maintain.

 

Goat milk is FAAAR sronger a smell and taste than most people would be willing to tolerate if they aren't accustomed to it. When we switched to cow's milk it tasted like water to me. Even I cannot tolerate the smell of store bought goat milk now. I loved goat cheese, but the milk is too overwhelming and no one else in the house can tolerate the smell of the open container.

 

I don't know if processed goat milk for sale in stores is the same as the fresh raw goat milk we drank as kids. I assume processing it can affect molecular structure.

 

If you think you want a goat-talk to people who have had one. Goats are incredibly smart. They are natural born Houdinis and usual leave a path of mischief and destruction in their wake.

[fairfarmhand]

 

If you think you want a goat-talk to people who have had one. Goats are incredibly smart. They are natural born Houdinis and usual leave a path of mischief and destruction in their wake.

 

 

and this is why we don't have goats!!!

 

(if they got out and destroyed my dh's 24 pampered little fruit trees I bet he'd shoot them!)

[keptwoman]

Both C and M were/are allergic to cows milk. I tried C on goats milk formula as a baby when he reacted to cows milk formula and since there was no reaction we carried on. He was weaned from formula to goats milk and continued to have that until he stopped reaction to cows milk at about 2 years old.

M never had formula as she was fully breastfed but she did and does have goats milk instead of cows milk. She still reacts to cows milk.

[Guest laurahill]

I love to drink goat milk..taste is much better than cow milk..goat milk is good for health,it contain vitamin A and B.It improve the function of digestive system.

[DarlaS]

The flavor of goat milk is very much tied to what the animal eats. This is a big deal in a herd of a few vs hundreds. If you have three milkers, and someone gets into some wild onions, you're going to know it. ;) Cattle are also not usually allowed any variety in their diet, hence the very uniform flavor. People let their goats graze. It's better for them to have some pasture, but if you don't want the milk to taste like weeds, you have to control the diet.

 

We used to buy 2nd cutting alfalfa hay of VERY good quality for our goats. Farmers were always trying to sell us cruddy hay since goat will eat anything right? :glare: This is not true. Mine were pretty picky. They appreciate decent feed as much as any animal (and less ends up on the ground that way). Keeping them in clean good hay, fresh water and a feed mixed with molasses helped give a nice sweet flavor to the milk.

 

I miss my goats. Maybe someday...

[RayDad]

I was on goats milk for a while as a infant. I cant recall the reason but hey, here I am.

[RoughCollie]

I once knew a back-to-the-land hippie family. They were former engineers and they had a baby. They drank goat's milk only. I tried it and it was good. It didn't hurt the baby at all, and they were convinced it was better for him than cow's milk. Plus, they had goats but no cow. The baby thrived on it.

 

The goats that belonged to the various hippie families all ate grass -- they were used as lawnmowers and milk givers. They had pretty names. If any of them had to go to the vet or anywhere else, the hippies would load them (transporting them one at a time) in the back of someone's VW Rabbit hatchback. No one ate the goats (at least they didn't admit to it.)

 

They had chickens, too. That's when I found out that eggs do not come out of the chicken all clean like they are in the store.