Infrastructure
Good infrastructure is often one of the most neglected areas of goat husbandry. Many even make the mistake of getting animals and THEN building the fence and shelter to contain and house them... Don't laugh, this happens more than you would think; and it usually doesn't end well for the people or the goats... Which is why I am sharing this so that you can get started on the right foot! :)
Fencing- I know electric fence is a very popular system these days...and I do believe the system is an excellent one, however, a common mistake I see folks making is not asking themselves the right questions before deciding to go this route. This system of electric fence is heavily dependent on your consistency and schedule to maintain it. For the electric fence system to work you MUST move the fence weekly at least, if not daily, to keep your animals on the move or else they will get bored. Trust me; bored goats WILL get out of an electric fence. However, if you feel good about having the time and motivation to keep up with an electric system; go for it. But I recommend the netting style fence, not the single strands.
Personally, I like solid woven wire or welded wire rolls (not the same as the heavy welded wire panels) for my goats. Make sure it is the fence with 2 inch by 4 inch holes. Any bigger and heads can get stuck or Nigerian goat kids can get out. I recommend 5 foot tall for bucks, and 4 foot tall for the does and wethers. Often for the does I switch back to 5 foot tall around the outskirts of the pasture for better predator protection. Stray dogs are the #1 predator of goats, and some dogs can easily clear a 4 foot fence if they really want to.
My advice to brand new goat herders is to start with something temporary; just for the first 3 years. To me, temporary means the lighter weight wire rolls, heavier than chicken wire, but not as heavy as the heavy weight woven wire fence. With the lighter gauge fence you can usually get away without any wood posts at the corners, but it doesn't hurt at all to have them (actually you should probably have wood posts at the corners of a temporary buck fence; they are especially tough on their pens). For temporary fence I usually just use the standard iron T posts. The reason I suggest something temporary for the first 3 years is that you are probably going to rearrange things multiple times when you are getting started. Things just grow and change a lot the first few years, and being able to move your fence if you need to will be very helpful. Once you find the arrangement where you feel confident your fence is going to stay put for more then 3 years you can invest the money and time into the really pretty permanent fence you have been dreaming about.
Fencing- I know electric fence is a very popular system these days...and I do believe the system is an excellent one, however, a common mistake I see folks making is not asking themselves the right questions before deciding to go this route. This system of electric fence is heavily dependent on your consistency and schedule to maintain it. For the electric fence system to work you MUST move the fence weekly at least, if not daily, to keep your animals on the move or else they will get bored. Trust me; bored goats WILL get out of an electric fence. However, if you feel good about having the time and motivation to keep up with an electric system; go for it. But I recommend the netting style fence, not the single strands.
Personally, I like solid woven wire or welded wire rolls (not the same as the heavy welded wire panels) for my goats. Make sure it is the fence with 2 inch by 4 inch holes. Any bigger and heads can get stuck or Nigerian goat kids can get out. I recommend 5 foot tall for bucks, and 4 foot tall for the does and wethers. Often for the does I switch back to 5 foot tall around the outskirts of the pasture for better predator protection. Stray dogs are the #1 predator of goats, and some dogs can easily clear a 4 foot fence if they really want to.
My advice to brand new goat herders is to start with something temporary; just for the first 3 years. To me, temporary means the lighter weight wire rolls, heavier than chicken wire, but not as heavy as the heavy weight woven wire fence. With the lighter gauge fence you can usually get away without any wood posts at the corners, but it doesn't hurt at all to have them (actually you should probably have wood posts at the corners of a temporary buck fence; they are especially tough on their pens). For temporary fence I usually just use the standard iron T posts. The reason I suggest something temporary for the first 3 years is that you are probably going to rearrange things multiple times when you are getting started. Things just grow and change a lot the first few years, and being able to move your fence if you need to will be very helpful. Once you find the arrangement where you feel confident your fence is going to stay put for more then 3 years you can invest the money and time into the really pretty permanent fence you have been dreaming about.
A typical 100 foot long role of 5 foot tall fence with 2 inch by 4 inch holes. This is the type of fence we use and recommend.
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In contrast, here is a roll of lightweight welded wire fencing in the top of the picture and the heavyweight woven wire in the bottom of the picture.
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Remember to get the fence with 2 inch by 4 inch holes so that the goats can't get their heads stuck and so the babies can't get through.
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Here is an example of temporary fence with T posts only and the lighter weight wire.
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For permanent fence I highly recommend bracing the wooden end and corner posts with a diagonal post. That way you can stretch the fence nice and tight without it leaning the posts over in time.
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While the wooden rails are unnecessary, we like the way they look up around the front of our barn and they do keep the fence in nicer shape from goats rubbing on it. We only build pretty fence like this after we know for sure that the layout isn't going to change.
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Shelter- It doesn't need to be big or fancy, it just needs to keep your goats warm, out of the wind, safe from predators, and most importantly completely dry. Our first shelter was a very humble thing but it was effective. Just a 4x4x8 foot solid wooden crate that a bathtub had been shipped in. But, it was solid and had thick, tightly spaced lumber on all the sides and the top to give the goats some insulation. And, since it was small they could warm it up pretty easily with their own body heat. We put a roof on it and cut a door into it and it worked well for the first few years (when we only had a few goats) before we built a barn once we knew we wanted to keep raising goats. If you would rather not build something, then the fiberglass calf sheds from your local farm store can also work well. We often use these for temporary breeding pens and other short term setups, so they are a good investment even if you build a barn down the road and don't use them all the time. Plus they stack!! Here are some pictures of simple but effective shelters for ideas.
This is just a simple fiberglass calf shed from the farm store that can house 3-4 Nigerians comfortably.
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This is a larger 12 foot by 15 foot 3 sided shed that has removable front panels that I put on in the winter to keep the goats warmer and take off in the summer for better air flow.
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This 3 sided shed that is 8 feet by 8 feet also has the removable front panel like the other larger one. This one is big enough for up to 6 or 7 Nigerians.
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Feeding
Grain- I don't recommend grain for goats under 1 year old. They shouldn't need it and it isn't good for their rumen at this stage of their life. I will make an exception to this with a buck kid if I am going to use him for breeding during his first year.
For does I usually wait until they are 4-6 weeks away from their first kidding to start grain if I think they need it based on their body condition. After that, I give the milkers grain if they need it and if they don't then I take them off grain until they need it again. I can teach you body condition scoring when you come pick up your goat. Does get 1 to 3 cups of grain 2x per day based on body condition.
Bucks get grain while they are in rut (September through January). I usually give 3 cups to each buck 2x per day.
Wethers don't need any grain.
As for what kind of grain...I don't recommend anything medicated. Personally, I use a homemade recipe of 3 parts oats, 3 parts barley, and 1/2 part black oil sunflower seeds (BOSS). Be sure to store the grain in a dry place so that it doesn't start to mold.
For does I usually wait until they are 4-6 weeks away from their first kidding to start grain if I think they need it based on their body condition. After that, I give the milkers grain if they need it and if they don't then I take them off grain until they need it again. I can teach you body condition scoring when you come pick up your goat. Does get 1 to 3 cups of grain 2x per day based on body condition.
Bucks get grain while they are in rut (September through January). I usually give 3 cups to each buck 2x per day.
Wethers don't need any grain.
As for what kind of grain...I don't recommend anything medicated. Personally, I use a homemade recipe of 3 parts oats, 3 parts barley, and 1/2 part black oil sunflower seeds (BOSS). Be sure to store the grain in a dry place so that it doesn't start to mold.
Hay- Finding good hay from an individual hay grower is very important. I feed alfalfa and brome. Depending on your location, you may have to find something other then brome for your grass hay.
Kids can have an alfalfa and brome/grass hay split of 50/50 for their diet while they are growing but I usually switch to grass hay only by the time they are a year old or they can start getting too heavy.
Once (first freshening) does are bred and about 2 months away from having their first set of kids, I will start giving them alfalfa. I will slowly increase the alfalfa over the course of 1-2 weeks until it is 1/3 of their diet with the other 2/3 of their diet in brome hay until they freshen (give birth). Once the bulk of my does freshen, I up the alfalfa to 2/3 or even 3/4 of the diet with the rest being brome hay. In the fall, I usually go down to about half and half of alfalfa and brome. In the winter I usually am back down to 1/3 alfalfa and 2/3 brome until about a month before they are due to kid again. This is where learning to check the condition of your does is very important in managing their diet.
Bucks are similar to does with their hay ration except that the season is totally opposite. Fall and winter they get 2/3 alfalfa and 1/3 brome while they are in rut and in the spring and summer I drop alfalfa to 1/3 of the diet and brome goes back up to 2/3.
Wethers just get brome hay only. Alfalfa makes them get too heavy and honestly, as non-producers, they don't need it.
As for how much to give them all together, you just want to make sure that there is a little bit left when you come back to feed again. Not so much that it is getting wasted, but enough that the feeders aren't being completely emptied and they are calling quite a bit.
It is also very important to keep your hay dry and elevated from the dirt. Any hay that gets damp will mold which is very dangerous for a goat. A lady I know that has raised goats for many years lost several of her goats when she accidentally fed hay that had just a tiny bit of mold in it because the hay had been stacked on the dirt in a barn. Even though the barn was dry their is always enough moisture in a dirt floor to absorb into the hay if you stack it directly on the ground, which is why it is best to keep it up on pallets. Goats also won't eat hay that got rained on in their feeder, so make sure you keep the feeder covered (if your hay feeder is outside that is), or bring the hay inside when you see rain coming.
Kids can have an alfalfa and brome/grass hay split of 50/50 for their diet while they are growing but I usually switch to grass hay only by the time they are a year old or they can start getting too heavy.
Once (first freshening) does are bred and about 2 months away from having their first set of kids, I will start giving them alfalfa. I will slowly increase the alfalfa over the course of 1-2 weeks until it is 1/3 of their diet with the other 2/3 of their diet in brome hay until they freshen (give birth). Once the bulk of my does freshen, I up the alfalfa to 2/3 or even 3/4 of the diet with the rest being brome hay. In the fall, I usually go down to about half and half of alfalfa and brome. In the winter I usually am back down to 1/3 alfalfa and 2/3 brome until about a month before they are due to kid again. This is where learning to check the condition of your does is very important in managing their diet.
Bucks are similar to does with their hay ration except that the season is totally opposite. Fall and winter they get 2/3 alfalfa and 1/3 brome while they are in rut and in the spring and summer I drop alfalfa to 1/3 of the diet and brome goes back up to 2/3.
Wethers just get brome hay only. Alfalfa makes them get too heavy and honestly, as non-producers, they don't need it.
As for how much to give them all together, you just want to make sure that there is a little bit left when you come back to feed again. Not so much that it is getting wasted, but enough that the feeders aren't being completely emptied and they are calling quite a bit.
It is also very important to keep your hay dry and elevated from the dirt. Any hay that gets damp will mold which is very dangerous for a goat. A lady I know that has raised goats for many years lost several of her goats when she accidentally fed hay that had just a tiny bit of mold in it because the hay had been stacked on the dirt in a barn. Even though the barn was dry their is always enough moisture in a dirt floor to absorb into the hay if you stack it directly on the ground, which is why it is best to keep it up on pallets. Goats also won't eat hay that got rained on in their feeder, so make sure you keep the feeder covered (if your hay feeder is outside that is), or bring the hay inside when you see rain coming.
Basic Supplies
Hay Feeder- You will need something that keeps the hay off of the ground. For a pen with just a couple of goats I use a plastic milk crate with a brick or two in the bottom so that the goats can't tip it over and waste the hay. If you would like something for more then a couple of goats you can send me a message about the ones I make and sell, and I'll send you the current price I charge to build them.
Bedding- I do a triple pack method in my main doe barn (thanks D and L Meadows for this tip!). After cleaning out the old bedding I sprinkle a layer of barn lime, then about 3-4 inches of wood chips that I get for free from the tree trimming services, and then top that off with straw. If you will just have a few goats then you can just use straw on its own, but remember the triple pack method for the future when you have more goats. It works really well!
Water- Fresh water at least twice per day is very important. Goats are PICKY about their water and won't drink it if there is anything floating in it or your bucket is getting yucky and mossy/slimy. An 8 quart bucket is fine for up to 3 adults if you are refilling it twice a day. If you are on city water then please bring a bucket with a lid when you come to pick up your new goat friend so that we can send some of our water with you to transition them with. We are on well water and the switch can be problematic because they will know that city water doesn't smell right and they won't want to drink it at first. You don't want them to get dehydrated while they are stressed so having some of our water will help smooth the transition.
Dewormer- There is many different opinions out there about dewormer, so I will tell you what I use and you can decide if you would like to do it this way. If you are more comfortable with chemical dewormers that is just fine, but you will have to talk to your vet about a program as I have never used them and don't have any advice for going that route. For my herd, I use the DWA and GI Soother from Fir Meadows. I mix them half and half with the label amount of each one for each animal. Here is a recipe for herb balls that they will usually gobble right up. Or, you can drench them which is how I do it because it is fast and easy. The draw back to natural dewormers is that you have to use them weekly to be effective. However, there doesn't seem to be the same issues with parasite resistance and I have used the same herbal dewormer for 7 years now without a failure...much to the chagrin of my vet :) You can read more about my natural deworming program here.
Drench Gun- A 20ml/cc drench gun is a good size to have around. Sometimes when an animal is sick it won't take the herb balls, so this can be really helpful when you need to make them take their medicine.
Collars- These are optional, but if you want a collar for your goats then please don't use the standard dog collars. I know they look nicer but too many times I have had goats get stuck on the fence or a tree branch. Fortunately I never lost any, but since then I am not taking any chances. I recommend using breakaway collars instead.
Mineral- Goats must have a good quality goat mineral available at all times. It needs to be fed in a container under a roof so that it doesn't get wet. I recommend Dura-Firm goat mineral or Sweetlix goat mineral. You may have to use whatever is locally available though. I also recommend keeping a separate container of salt out. I really like Redmond salt.
Hoof Trimmers- Hoofs need to be trimmed every 6-8 weeks to keep them in good shape. I can show you how when you come to pick up your goat. You can usually pick up a pair of these at your farm store.
Molasses- This is a great supplement to use that the goats absolutely LOVE! It is full of minerals and vitamins plus the natural sugar gives the goats a little energy boost. We mix a little in hot water and give it to does that have just kidded, or use it to help get them to drink water that is different then what they normally get. Just make sure that you get the blackstrap and un-sulphered version.
Bedding- I do a triple pack method in my main doe barn (thanks D and L Meadows for this tip!). After cleaning out the old bedding I sprinkle a layer of barn lime, then about 3-4 inches of wood chips that I get for free from the tree trimming services, and then top that off with straw. If you will just have a few goats then you can just use straw on its own, but remember the triple pack method for the future when you have more goats. It works really well!
Water- Fresh water at least twice per day is very important. Goats are PICKY about their water and won't drink it if there is anything floating in it or your bucket is getting yucky and mossy/slimy. An 8 quart bucket is fine for up to 3 adults if you are refilling it twice a day. If you are on city water then please bring a bucket with a lid when you come to pick up your new goat friend so that we can send some of our water with you to transition them with. We are on well water and the switch can be problematic because they will know that city water doesn't smell right and they won't want to drink it at first. You don't want them to get dehydrated while they are stressed so having some of our water will help smooth the transition.
Dewormer- There is many different opinions out there about dewormer, so I will tell you what I use and you can decide if you would like to do it this way. If you are more comfortable with chemical dewormers that is just fine, but you will have to talk to your vet about a program as I have never used them and don't have any advice for going that route. For my herd, I use the DWA and GI Soother from Fir Meadows. I mix them half and half with the label amount of each one for each animal. Here is a recipe for herb balls that they will usually gobble right up. Or, you can drench them which is how I do it because it is fast and easy. The draw back to natural dewormers is that you have to use them weekly to be effective. However, there doesn't seem to be the same issues with parasite resistance and I have used the same herbal dewormer for 7 years now without a failure...much to the chagrin of my vet :) You can read more about my natural deworming program here.
Drench Gun- A 20ml/cc drench gun is a good size to have around. Sometimes when an animal is sick it won't take the herb balls, so this can be really helpful when you need to make them take their medicine.
Collars- These are optional, but if you want a collar for your goats then please don't use the standard dog collars. I know they look nicer but too many times I have had goats get stuck on the fence or a tree branch. Fortunately I never lost any, but since then I am not taking any chances. I recommend using breakaway collars instead.
Mineral- Goats must have a good quality goat mineral available at all times. It needs to be fed in a container under a roof so that it doesn't get wet. I recommend Dura-Firm goat mineral or Sweetlix goat mineral. You may have to use whatever is locally available though. I also recommend keeping a separate container of salt out. I really like Redmond salt.
Hoof Trimmers- Hoofs need to be trimmed every 6-8 weeks to keep them in good shape. I can show you how when you come to pick up your goat. You can usually pick up a pair of these at your farm store.
Molasses- This is a great supplement to use that the goats absolutely LOVE! It is full of minerals and vitamins plus the natural sugar gives the goats a little energy boost. We mix a little in hot water and give it to does that have just kidded, or use it to help get them to drink water that is different then what they normally get. Just make sure that you get the blackstrap and un-sulphered version.
A simple milk crate with a brick in the bottom so that the goats cannot knock it over works well if you only have a couple goats to feed.
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This is a really simple DIY feeder that you can hang from the fence or screw to a wall. It holds enough hay for 2 goats.
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If you have more than a couple goats then this is my favorite design I have tried. It is very sturdy and can't be tipped over by rowdy goats, but it is still light enough to move easily with a dolly. It can hold a whole 70lb. square bale of hay and can fit 8 goats around it comfortably but 2 more if necessary. I build and sell these feeders, so if you are interested feel free to ask me about current pricing.
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Medicine
This is just a few basics to have on hand.
I highly recommend (would not have goats without these) having these herbs for emergencies.
GI Soother- I give it to my goats for tummy upsets and diarrhea.
Cinnamon and Charcoal powder- I mix these half and half to use for coccidiosis.
Wonderful!- Really love this salve for wounds, skin issues, burns, and other injuries.
Terramycin- This works really well if one of your goats gets an eye infection which happens occasionally when they get a piece of hay stuck in there.
Beyond these few basics it's a good idea to have a relationship with your vet as anti-biotics and such require a prescription if ever you should need them.
Also, note that I'm not a veterinarian, so anything I mentioned is only inteded as a way to give extra support alongside the guidence of your local vet if one of your animals has a health condition.
I highly recommend (would not have goats without these) having these herbs for emergencies.
GI Soother- I give it to my goats for tummy upsets and diarrhea.
Cinnamon and Charcoal powder- I mix these half and half to use for coccidiosis.
Wonderful!- Really love this salve for wounds, skin issues, burns, and other injuries.
Terramycin- This works really well if one of your goats gets an eye infection which happens occasionally when they get a piece of hay stuck in there.
Beyond these few basics it's a good idea to have a relationship with your vet as anti-biotics and such require a prescription if ever you should need them.
Also, note that I'm not a veterinarian, so anything I mentioned is only inteded as a way to give extra support alongside the guidence of your local vet if one of your animals has a health condition.
Further Info:
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