Goat Care Basics~ feeding & "browse rotations"

Goats will both graze pasture and browse woodland. We believe it is healthier for the goats to be allowed access to browse. We also believe it can have a positive impact on the humans who consume the milk (& cheese) from goats who browse the native/local flora.  The added bonus is that it will cost less to feed them. 

The one thing we have learned, however, is that giving them access to as much property as you have available for them, at all times, is not the best land practice. Either one of two things will happen. First is that the land they travel often will be denuded. Most goat pens, just like horse paddocks, are pretty much barren ground. It does not matter how big the area is, it will be trampled & bare.  Or, if they have access to a very large area, they will eat all their favorite things first, usually to the point where they no longer grow/set seed/recover. This will eventually lead to an area that has nothing but things that goats do not like to eat; because those are the only plants that go to seed & therefor come back. (BTW, goats can do a great job at clearing that defensible space for you, all you have to do is fence them in the right amount of space for the right amount of time.)

We can not really call what we do "pasture rotation" because it is really oak woodland not pasture, but the same principle applies. The goat barn is in a rather central location with a pen area that the girls have access to all the time. Around the barn, we have fenced off several areas of various sizes that we allow them access to on a rotation. How we rotate & the timing of it is not done by the calendar but by the condition of the plants. We keep the goats out long enough for the plants to recover from being browsed. We allow the girls access for enough days that they are "forced" to eat the not-so-favorite plants, too. Not sure how well these pics will come through, but this grass is about 8-10 inches tall before and about 3-4 inches after. 

  

Before. The girls have not been in this area for 

about a week.  

  

After a day of grazing. We will let them out here for a few more days, then shut them out again.

     

This is a great way to supplement feed, and it can even be the main source of fiber if you have enough room &/or enough water to irrigate. But if you want your girls to really put the milk in the bucket, or if you only have the minimum space, you are going to have to feed them.

So what do we feed? Well, first of all, we are in a mediterranean climate here in California; we do not stock up hay for the winter, we stock up hay for the dry season. There is usually enough to meet their fiber requirements during the rainy season (roughly October to May) but we do keep a few bales around just in case. In the winter, when they are getting mostly browse & little hay, we also feed them a concentrated ration just to assure they are getting good quality protein & vitamins. This is when they are all pregnant so we need to make sure they have adequate nutrition not just for themselves but for growing kids.

In the late spring/early summer, when the local growers have good grain hay available (usually triple mix) I try to buy enough hay to get me through the dry months.

So, that is what we feed. Local browse, triple mix hay as needed, and Elk grove Milling's Goat mix. How much do we feed? That is hard to say because it varies so much. In the winter the 14 does (11 minis and 3 Nubians) get about 2 flakes of hay in the morning and about 12 pounds of EGM Goat mix. In the evening, if they have eaten all the hay, they get another flake or 2, and another 12-18 pounds (depending on how fat they are looking :) of EGM. In the summer, when the forage is just about gone, they get as much hay as they want, one to 2 full bales some days. The EGM is given on the milk stand, so only milkers get it this time of year.


So back to the question I get asked most often: How much does it cost to feed a mini Nubian? The bales I buy vary between 100-120 lbs. The cost varies from $4 to $11 a bale depending on the time of year & quantity I buy. If you are only feeding 2 goats ( you should never keep one goat alone) I am guessing they would not eat more than the smallest flake you could get off a bale. So way less than $1 a day in hay. If they are milking you should also give them a concentrated feed. The EGM Goat mix I buy in a 250 lb barrel. It cost about 16 cents per pound and each milking goat gets 1-2 lbs depending on her weight & how much milk she is giving. So still, probably less than $1 a day for the 1/2 to 3/4 of a gallon of milk you will get. Plus all the love & entertainment Minis provide. Priceless. :)

Goat Care Basics~ start with good fences & dry shelter

You can ask a dozen different goat owners what the best way is to care for their herd & you will get twelve different answers. I highly recommend you do a LOT of reading before you bring your first goats home. Even different authors will have different opinions about what is “right”. All I am presenting here is a brief summary of the way I do things based on my goats, my location, my water (yes, it can make a difference) and my experiences.

First, goats are herd animals. They need the company of other goats, so you'll need room and shelter for at least two. If you get goats for milk, you will most likely breed them every year (but oyu dont have to breed them every year, more on that later). If , like me, you can't resist keeping some of the kids, your herd will quickly grow larger than you initially planned. It might be wise to consider this when planning your pens & shelters.

When you are ready to bring them home, Mini Nubians are not only easy to handle, they are also easy to transport. Even my adult Minis can fit in a large dog crate in the back of my Subaru wagon. No trucks or trailers involved. Try doing that with a full size Nubian :)

Shelter and Fences

The first thing you need to have lined up & ready before you bring your first goats home is a safe place for them to call home. Goats do not need elaborate housing but they do need good fences. Please keep in mind that the fence is not just to keep your goats in, but to keep predators out, not just wild ones but domestic predators too. Dog attacks can be both tragic and expensive. You never know when they might happen. Be prepared. Good fences do not have to be fancy fences. My fences are quite a hodge podge of recycled materials. They might not be pretty but they work. One piece of advice for anyone using t-posts & field fencing, make sure the the wire is on the INSIDE of the t-post. I know conventional installation is with the t-posts to the inside & the wire on the outside. But goats are going to stand on the fence whenever something on the other side looks tasty or interesting, or rub & push against it just cuz its fun.  Having the wire on the inside gives a larger surface area of resistance & the fences will last longer.

Mini Nubians do not need fancy shelters, either. Although doll house barns can be cute & fun :). All they need is a shelter that is well ventilated but not drafty, to protect them from the elements: sun, wind, rain, and snow. I have a nice little goat barn that I designed myself & a friend built for me from cedar timbers from my parents property, recycled tin roofing, and recycled redwood fence. 

When I have to keep the bucks separated during the breeding season (do not want to play "who's your daddy here :) the bucks use an X-large Dogloo for their shelter. I give them straw to bed down in & even in the worst of storms, they snuggle right down. Always dry & warm & happy when the sun comes back out. I think just about any larg dog house would work just fine. 

For any three sided shelter, or even a dog house with a large entrance, you need to make sure that the open section faces AWAY from the prevailing wind, or you will end up with cold & wet & unhappy goats. Cold & wet goats can lead to sick goats, so do what you need to do to prevent that form happening. Most goat books will tell you that a miniature goat needs at least 10 square feet under shelter and a minimum of 130 square feet outdoors. I have the luxury of having more than that, so I cannot say from experience if this is wise & healthy for the goats; It does seem like a good guideline. 

Goats love to have things to jump & lounge on. I have a “platform” in my goat pen built from plywood. They love to play queen of the castle. They also love to sleep in the sun on it, which can also lead to more Queen of the castle antics....just not enough room for the whole herd :) Utility spools make great goat toys, as do log rounds or cinder blocks & planks. The more play structure they have the less room they need for exercise. Plus they are just so danged cute to watch.  

Why Mini Nubians??

This is the question I get asked most often. Followed quickly by: Can you milk them? How much milk do you get? How much does it cost to feed them?  Well the answers to the three follow up questions is the answer to the first one.


YES, you can milk them. I have found my first fresheners give about 3-5 lbs of milk a day. But keep in mind that first time milkers of any breed will always give less than experienced does. Senior does average around 5-6 lbs of milk per day. Not bad when you compare that to what ADGA says is average for Nubians.


As to cost of feeding, that is hard for me to tell you because my girls get lots of supplement browse. I will post on that later.