Posture for milking the goats

Hi momof8,
If you go the the theatre, there is a 5-10 video of Christine discussing the ins and outs of squatting....sounds like it is just what you need! Good luck

do you drink raw goats milk? If so, you are so lucky Momof8!

I eat a lot of goats yogurt with honey, and that is so good, but would love to drink raw goats milk too!

Trick is to find a source, as it is illegal where I live.

maybe you need a goat? then you have your own fabulous source!
;-)

I would love to have a goat, perhaps sometime in the future?

Thanks for the laugh ;)

Parallel squatting is great as long as you keep as much lumbar curve as possible. Don’t try to flatten your feet on the ground, but build strong metatarsals by staying up on the balls of your feet. All women who wear high heels should spend time squatting in this way! We lift and throw all the time in WW posture.

Hi Momof8

I am glad you are now considering keeping the goats.

I googled ""milking goat" africa" and pulled up some images of different primitive people milking goats without a stand. Some were sitting on the ground, legs apart; some straight squatting, which you cannot really do unless you have been doing it from birth, because the bones in your feet and legs develop differently, with more range of movement in a squat; some while bending deeply from the hips; some squatting, legs apart, and some sitting on a low seat. There is no universal way. I would be looking at supported squatting with your bottom on a low support (toddler chair, low milking stool, lump of wood, the bottom stair, or whatever). Just find whatever works for you. Nothing is wrong if it gets the goats milked. You will feel vulval pressure when you are in the wrong position. It will go away when you have it right. It is funny how POP pressure starts off being *the* problem and ends up being a useful signal for the need to change how we are doing a task or activity. Your brain becomes a very important tool.

I guess the rationale behind the three legged milking stool with a wide base is that it is light enough to reposition with one hand, and is stable wherever you put it.

Maybe look at breeding longer legs on your goats over twenty or so generations, or switch to deer as you get older? ;-)

I like your attitude, Momof 8, and I am inspired by what you manage to do.

BTW, don't worry about the lifting for now. Get your goat milking sorted out first. I do quite a bit of load shifting myself. My two main techniques are to stick my butt out as far as possible and use my thigh muscles when lifting from the ground, and never lift so high that I have to lean back to dump the load. Preferably break down big loads into small loads, and use mechanical advantage, eg ramps to get loads lower, and bag trolleys to shift heavy stuff, and putting things in their final position in the first place so I don't have to lift them again. Heavy furniture can sometimes be walked on two corners. Other heavy objects or boxes can be rolled end over end. A block and tackle is another ace to have up your sleeve. The last resort is to wait for DH to lift it, but that doesn't happen often. I can usually think my way around lifting. Sometimes the answer is to leave it where it is.

Louise :-)

Maybe I am too brave now, that I rarely remember my POP, but I do everything I want, I just pay attention to keep a nice lumbar curve and never let my chest to collapse, forcing my shoulders down.

But milking goats...wow, have no useful idea. Proper squatting for long minutes is exhausting I guess.

Anyway, goat milk must be a blessing for you and your family! :)

Liv