The objective of this study was to investigate the use of K₂CO₃ as a treatment to prevent or recover from milk fat depression when early-lactating dairy goats are fed an acidogenic diet. Thirty Alpine goats were housed in pens with Calan gate feeders at kidding, and received a total mixed ration with a forage-to-concentrate ratio of 55:45 on a dry matter (DM) basis for a pretreatment period of 27 ± 4 d. Data collected during the last 5 d were used as covariates. Goats were then sorted into 10 blocks according to milk fat concentration. The experimental phase was divided into 2 periods of 28 d where goats were fed an acidogenic diet containing 45% forages and 55% concentrates on a DM basis. Treatments consisted of: A) unsupplemented diet fed throughout the 2 periods, used as control; B) diet supplemented with K₂CO₃ (1.6% of DM) for both periods, identified as preventive treatment; and C) unsupplemented diet during period 1 (P1) and diet supplemented with K₂CO₃ (1.6% of DM) during period 2 (P2), identified as recovery treatment. Pre-planned contrasts were used at the end of P1 to evaluate the preventive effect of K₂CO₃ (A and C vs. B), and at the end of P2 to assess the potential of K₂CO₃ to alleviate an already existing state of milk fat depression (A vs. C and B vs. C). Average milk fat concentration and yield decreased from 4.27% and 173 g/d in pretreatment period to 3.61% and 151 g/d, then 3.36% and 125 g/d at the end of P1 and P2, respectively. There were no significant differences in milk yield (4.15 and 3.71 kg/d on average at the end of P1 and P2, respectively) for any of tested contrasts (P > 0.11). At the end of P1, milk fat did not differ (P > 0.47) between goats fed the unsupplemented diet (3.58% and 151 g/d) and K₂CO₃ supplemented diet (3.67% and 148 g/d). At the end of P2, milk fat did not differ (P > 0.13) between goats receiving the control diet (3.38% and 137 g/d) and diets where K₂CO₃ was used as preventive (3.44% and 126 g/d) or recovery treatment (3.25% and 113 g/d). Under the conditions of the current experiment, feeding K₂CO₃ was not effective in either preventing or in suppressing already existing conditions of milk fat depression in dairy goats receiving a high-concentrate diet.