Lactation period of cow and goat?

Answer 1

A dairy cow will lactate for about 10 months (~305 days) each year before having to be dried up prior to giving birth to her next calf, or until she loses productivity or dies of illness or natural causes. Dairy cows will typically be lactating for 10 months out of the year; some may go longer if they are continuously milked.

Beef cows, on the other hand, typically will lactate or give milk for 6 to 8 months (~205 to 265 days), sometimes up to 10, before they are weaned from their calves, or when the cows themselves decide to kick their calves off before giving birth to their next calf. For those producers who would rather let the cows wean their calves naturally (called natural weaning), the lactation or milking period typically lasts for around 10 months.

Of course lactation period for cows also depends on forage availability. Beef producers will wean calves early (often at around 3 to 4 months of age) if there's not enough feed or feed quality is too low to support lactating cows. This is a practice that is done often during periods of moderate to severe drought, when there often isn't enough grass or fodder to support the lactating beef herd. At this rate, calves are sold a bit earlier, or kept in a separate area to be fed until the actual sale time, allowing cows to dry up earlier and enabling them to be able to eat lower-quality feeds without compromising milking ability and the calves' reliance on their mothers' milk.

Answer 2

Cattle will lactate for an average of 300 days, goats will lactate for about 10 months. This period of time may differ between each animal according to genetics, milking ability and longevity.