Effective colostrum management in the first hours of a dairy goat kid's life is critical for passive immunity transfer and determines long-term health and welfare outcomes.
Kids that fail to receive adequate colostrum are immunocompromised from birth, making them highly susceptible to neonatal diarrhoea, pneumonia, and other infections causing significant suffering. Artificially reared kids on dairy farms face additional welfare challenges from reduced social contact and the stress of early separation. Effective colostrum management is the single most important welfare intervention in the neonatal period for dairy goat kids.