| GOAT THOUGHTS: Goats are friendly, loving, even protective animals. When purchasing your first Goat & discovering what a smart, playful animal it is, one can easily forget it is still �Livestock� & as such has special fencing & handling needs. Goats love to climb so they will play sliding games on your car or dance around on decks or any other kind of object they can access. When kids (human) wish to play with a Goat kid & run around outside it is a good idea to put a leash & collar on the Goat. Another word of caution, older children can be taught the rules of playing with Goats in a proper fashion. Younger children need to be watched & taught by a parent. Play should not be wild & rough, allowing the Goat kids to jump on them, getting �down� & butting heads. This is real cute when the kids are small but not so cute when they are 150 lb animal! Use common sense in this area. Play can also be a learning process preparing the young Goat to be well mannered. Being super intelligent they can learn to lead, stack for the show ring, and stand still. Proper �play� can teach them not to jump on people or be royal pests. Children can train them to pull a cart, carry a pack & be obedient. Goats love to go on walks with people. The Library has books on Goat keeping that will give you the experiences of different Goat keepers. Purchasing a good book on goat care & illness is a great idea. I will include a list of items to keep on hand. I love 4H, which prepares parents to participate with their children with the care, feeding & fun with the animal they have chosen. Parents who go in the house & do not supervise their children are the ones who call me to complain about the Goats. I will add another thought. If you keep track of your Child�s participation in shows, 4H activities & etc. it can play a role in job placement if they choose to become a Veterinarian or participate in some other type of animal training. This can especially make a difference if there is competition for a job or training. A friend of mine was chosen from hundreds of applicants for dog training in the Military Service. She had kept a journal of her dog training, showing, & 4H activities. Goats are from the deer family & as such love brushes more than grass, which they will also eat from time to time. Brush interprets by a Goat to mean all your lovely roses, ornamentals, flowers, trees etc. If your Goat eats your favorite bush it is unfair to chase it around for being a Goat! Goats are not the only culprits! I let my mare out to eat grass around my house & she �honed� right in on my roses & gave them a great trim job! If you want large amounts of grass eaten down Sheep are the perfect �grazers.� |
| FENCING: To save your special plants, you must install antiquate fencing. I prefer the 16-ft. panels for small areas as they are heavy-duty and can withstand the onslaught of Goat leaning, scratching & reaching through when the grass appears greener on the other side of the fence. They also can be moved around. Field fence with two strands of electric wire will also take care of the problem; however it does require more maintenance. |
| FEEDING & WATERING: A good sized tub of fresh water should be provided at all times. Milk Goats can drink an astonishing amount of water in order to produce milk. In hot weather it is a good idea to run fresh clean water morning & night. Just like Sheep, Goats are wasters of food. It can be a constant mind bending battle to outsmart Goats in building feeders they do not climb in. In spite of what you have heard, Goats are picky eaters. The tin can theory has to be one of the most stupid myths that have ever been perpetuated! Now a Goat might eat the label off of a can or swing it around but that's about it. Once the food has been stepped on, scattered & mixed with dirt or goat pellets they well not eat it, unless starved. If overfed they well only select the fine leafy alfalfa to eat & leave the stem. It pays to visit Goat farms & look at Goat book suggestions before you start. Goats are like all the rest of barnyard animals. They well try to convince you they must have the fine leaf of alfalfa hay & leave the stems. However they well go out in the brush & eat all kinds of weird tough branches & etc. So ignore their pleas of �We're all starving� while they stand in perfectly good nutritious stems. They are trying to train you. I like to see just a little hay left at the next feeding time. Then I know I am feeding enough. Skinny goats are not beautiful. A good routine if you also raise Cows, chickens or Pigs is to clean out the Goat feeders from time to time & give it to them. Goats eat approximately 7 lbs of alfalfa hay & 5 lbs of grain per day when lactating. If you try to cut corners on food �you well indeed reap what you sow.� It takes good quality alfalfa hay & C.O.B. to obtain great milk production and good tasting milk. There is a proverb that says �the eye of the master fatteneth the cattle.� Look at your animal carefully to assess its condition, weight & see it has no bites or cuts to treat. Its eyes should be bright & of course it well usually be begging you for food. I give my goats 1/4 cup black sunflower seeds at milking (can be purchased at Wal-Mart in the bird section cheaper.) Also 1/4 cup Red Wheat Bran. This keeps them in shiny condition. Years ago when I lived in the Palouse wheat growing area in Wash. State I kept milking records in the barn. I noticed milk production increased when I added � cup whole grain wheat. Could it be that because the natural whole grain contains the germ it provided more nutrition? All these additions can be rotated. It�s fun to keep track of each additions results. Shiny coats, more milk etc. If a particular animal has a dry rough coat an addition of one tablespoon of olive or corn oil over the grain well help. If milk is off flavored or before kidding time I start giving the does a Vitamin E pill. 200 to 400 units well do fine. Just poke a hole in the pill and put in the side of mouth and squeeze. Leave the pill in there. Goats need to be provided a free choice feeder to supply goat mineral salt. I also provide free choice baking soda as this keeps their digestion in better shape. One very important warning - make sure it impossible for your Goats to get into grain & gorge. Especially with young children opening gates to visit them, feed should be in a place where it is impossible for the Goats to access. Goats who over eat become bloated & toxic. They require fast, knowledgeable treatment & even then can die extremely fast. If you decide to chain out your Goat to eat down an area be sure to use a chain with swivel snaps. Provide plenty of shade & water. Avoid areas where the Goat can jump over a low fence or obstacle & choke to death. Another common occurrence that will send you into a panic is a Goat who bloats. Eating fresh new alfalfa hay or some other �goodie� can cause this to happen. The cure is simple & fast acting. When the stomach bloats out & starts to rise above the backbone act quickly. Take a large syringe, fill it with any kind of vegetable oil (1/2 cup) & slowly let her drink it. Within minutes you can almost see the extended stomach go down! Some goats will drink the oil out of a bowl; others have to be forced with a syringe. |
| KIDDING: Before kidding it helps to trim the hair off of the tail & surrounding area. I also like to clip the udder & part of the stomach for cleaner milking. Please be kind to your doe after kidding. You can offer her a nice drink of warm water with molasses mixed in. Wash off her behind with warm water when the afterbirth has passed. Sometimes the Doe is torn or swollen. We smear on Anti-biotic cream with a painkiller. I buy the �Equate� brand at WalMart. Another product that is great is Desitin found in the Baby section of the store. I use it on Horses & Goat�s cuts & scrapes. It stays on really well. If you sense your animals are in discomfort or depressed you can give an Aspirin according to weight. Kids get baby Aspirin. Never give your Goats Bute. |
| GOAT LORE... |
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