A few weeks ago, a friend who I shall not name, called me and said, “Is it true that if a buck is kept with a goat that is giving milk, his buck odor taints the milk with his scent?”
Me: “Yes, I’ve heard that can happen.”
My friend: “WHY did you never tell me this?!”
Me: “I didn’t know it was that fascinating!”
My friend: “Of course it’s fascinating!” And then he had another question: “What if a nursing mother, human, is around a buck? Will it taint her milk with a buck scent?”
Ummmmm….. I had to admit that I didn’t know the answer to this question. Nor did I ponder it for long as a fascinating one (or pertinent to my life). A few weeks later, he called me again, said he needed to ask me a question from my expert knowledge.
Me: “I’m not an expert on anything.”
My friend: “Of course you are!”
Me: “You’re not still thinking about whether or not buck scent taints human mother’s milk, are you?”
My friend: “Of course I am!”
Dear readers, please help my friend. If any among you has had experience, as a nursing mother, around a buck, did it taint your milk?
THIS QUESTION MUST BE RESOLVED.
littlekaren says:
This had me laughing so hard I had tears streaming. The only connection of smell from buck to human would be your hands if you had a little stinker. I just let the buck duties fall to someone else. :woof:
On April 16, 2014 at 8:20 am
VGibs says:
YES!!!! I’ve nursed 3 children! The first one was during umm…”spring fever” for the goats. My uncle who also raises goats told me to make sure that my daughter wasn’t being fussy and if she had breast refusal. Which did actually happen. He said he learned from the swiss woman who sold him his lamanchas that a nursing Mom should not be near a fertile buck because the scent sticks to the fat in human milk. So for my other two daughters I stayed far away from my handsome buck. Except for one instance when he got tangled in some wire. I had issues feeding baby that night, even after I had a shower. I think this isone of those old wives tales that has validity.
On April 16, 2014 at 8:54 am
brookdale says:
Sounds plausible…
When I saw the title I immediately thought, she’s got RAMPS! Do you, by the way?
On April 16, 2014 at 9:51 am
WvSky says:
OK.. it was me. :wave: I find all of this fascinating. But my question was: If a male goat can have that effect on a female goat, can a male human have the same effect on a female human? Here’s something interesting I just found:
“Researchers also found that when 4-ethyloctanal reacts with oxygen, it converts to a related compound called 4-ethyloctanoic acid, which is the main ingredient of the goaty odor that plays a crucial role in attracting females to males.
The research may have implications for species other than goats, he said. “When there is a pheromone in one species, what we are learning is that it often has effects on other species.”
For instance, there is a pig pheromone that stops dogs from barking, McGlone said.
The new goat pheromone could even have an effect on humans, he said, but he noted the olfactory systems of different species can respond differently to the same pheromone.”
https://www.livescience.com/43725-pheromone-female-goats-reproduction.html
On April 16, 2014 at 10:12 am
jean in virginia says:
The years I didn’t have a buck, my does would follow my husband around. It creeped him out. They totally ignored him the rest of the year.
On April 16, 2014 at 10:32 am
nursemary says:
Just when you think things can’t get any stranger than having a goat dating an emu, something like this comes up. 😕
The funniest thing about this is WvSky’s outing himself! The wave is hilarious. :wave:
On April 16, 2014 at 11:02 am
cabynfevr says:
Fascinating indeed! :yes:
I would think the lactating mom would have to spend an awful lot of time in the buck yard.
On April 16, 2014 at 11:22 am
Joell says:
Very intersting, I try to learn something new every day, not that I will ever use this information, but it is interesting.
On April 16, 2014 at 1:17 pm
yvonnem says:
Funny! I knew it had to be Jerry that asked!
On April 16, 2014 at 4:28 pm
lesliedgray says:
I would tend to think not..
On April 17, 2014 at 8:44 am
holstein woman says:
I don’t know,I don’t have goats and I don’t think I want to the more I read and think about them.
On April 17, 2014 at 11:38 pm
amyg says:
Thank you, thank you, thank you!! My insomnia has been awful the last few days and has been making me a bit cranky. The question and all of your post just may have cured my crankiness!
:snoopy:
On April 18, 2014 at 3:49 am
Dana says:
This could become a movie ….:)
On April 22, 2014 at 11:48 pm
Spring Peeper says:
Ok, well I’ve had to board my does with my buck for an entire winter once and the milk never smelled like buck and I’ll tell you my son would have noticed!!! 😆
Now as far as a woman’s breast milk that’s a whole “udder” can of worms! 😉 I think you’d have to be in direct contact with the buck for a long time. :ladybug:
On April 30, 2014 at 11:52 am