# Wethers & Pellets/grain



## norcal (Aug 22, 2009)

We are about done w/ the pro calf manna I've been giving our little wethers.   They are 12 & 13 weeks old.   The alfalfa pellets at the store seemed rather large (though I was just feeling through the bag).   Is there something else I can/should give them - that might be more "their size".   They only get about a cup a piece at bed time.   And are currently on alfalfa hay & browse.  

Thanks!


----------



## lupinfarm (Aug 22, 2009)

I believe if you get alfalfa pellets geared towards horses they are a lot smaller. You could also try soaking them a little in some water to soften them up for them until they can cope with the large grain/pellets.


----------



## currycomb (Aug 23, 2009)

our goat pellets with medication for coccidia is nice and small. even thr baby goats eat them along with mom.


----------



## lupinfarm (Aug 23, 2009)

Jealous currycomb, The only goat feed that is pelleted (at least I think it is LOL) that I have found is Goat Maximizer and my local mill has to order it in as they dont usually carry it because most goat owners just feed sweetfeed!!!!


----------



## norcal (Aug 23, 2009)

We are trying to support our locally owned small businesses, but one problem I run into is that they have all the stuff in the warehouses.   Where you can't really look at it. 
I ended up getting alfalfa pellets (haven't tried them yet), they are quite a bit bigger, but we'll see how they like them.  

Should they get other grain on top of the alfalfa pellets (they are wethers)?


----------



## lupinfarm (Aug 23, 2009)

Me too norcal! ... We have a local Farm Supply, but they don't carry feeds that I'd want to feed, rather I get all my electric fence supplies there, and the like. Our local Purina mill doesn't carry most Purina products for some reason, like Purina Goat Chow, or Noble Goat. Very frustrating when you can't see the things or if they don't carry them!


----------



## cmjust0 (Aug 24, 2009)

Whatever grain you end up feeding your wethers, make sure it's formulated either 2:1 or 2.5:1, Calcium to Phosphorus, and that ammonium chloride is one of the ingredients on the tag.

Helps prevent urinary calculi...doesn't always prevent it, but it helps.


----------



## norcal (Aug 24, 2009)

They don't seem to care for the alfalfa pellets.  
They did eat some, but there was a bunch left this morning (there never was w/ the calf-manna).   Oh dear.


----------



## helmstead (Aug 24, 2009)

Give it time, any feed change usually happens slowly, esp with our picky goats.

Also, it is often easier to find loose minerals containing AC than to find feed containing it - or to order bulk AC from Hoegger's Supply.


----------



## norcal (Aug 24, 2009)

They did get both the pellets & calf manna last night.   I am trying to do it slowly, but don't have much of the calf manna left - probably another 3 days.


----------



## ksalvagno (Aug 24, 2009)

It is very interesting to me that on the forum most people don't like the goat sweet feed. In my area, I have talked to many dairy goat owners and everyone around me loves the sweet feed type goat feed. They like to see the grains and feel it is better for them. Several get a special mix for their milking goats. Right now I"m using Purina Goat Chow since that is what my girls were originally on. I have been going to the local feed stores around me and gathering tags from the goat feeds to see what I want to finally use. Can't say that anything is standing out when I'm comparing labels, pellet or sweet feed. My problem with the Purina Goat Chow is that I have to travel about 40 minutes to get it when I have 4 local feed stores within 15 minutes of me.


----------



## cmjust0 (Aug 24, 2009)

Kent Feeds makes quite a few different goat products...everything from maintenance feed to really $pendy show feeds.  I know they make two different 16%'s, each with 2:1, Ca ratio feed with Ammonium Chloride added.  The reason there are two is because they come in a Rumensin version and a Deccox version.

Kent also has a goat mineral I've been looking at closely of late..  It's formulated 2:1, Ca with 1000ppm Copper as Copper _sulfate_ -- not copper oxide.  Contains ferrous sulfate and zinc sulfate, also, which means there's some good bioavailability there.  Clearly, whoever put this mineral together did so for the sake of quality, not necessarily just so they could put the words "Copper," "Iron," "Zinc," and so forth on the label with no regard to putting those things _in the goat_.  

I like that.

Anyway. I wouldn't doubt that at least one of those four feed stores nearby already get a Kent truck periodically, so you might call around and see if they can order what you need..

I'm thinking about switching to Kent products myself, frankly.  They seem to be putting more research time and money into goats than any other feed producer I've run across.


----------



## norcal (Aug 24, 2009)

ksalvagno said:
			
		

> It is very interesting to me that on the forum most people don't like the goat sweet feed.


When I was growing up, and milking the neighbors goats, that's what they fed them -  sweet molasses corn grain (whatever it was called).


----------



## trestlecreek (Aug 24, 2009)

Can you get Noble Goat or Purina Show Goat? Both are pelleted(and have alfalfa hay in the pellet) and are excellent feeds.


----------



## lupinfarm (Aug 24, 2009)

I wish so bad I could get Purina Goat, or the Show goat... I want a pelleted feed so badly, I ordered a bag of something called Goat Maximizer to try it out, and I'm told its a pellet... We will see. I hate feeding sweet feed EVER. Not because its not particularly great for them, but because the wasps are addicted to it in the summer, its sticky, gross, and you have to feed twice as much because it has no real nutritional content. It also makes my mare hot as hell.


----------



## cmjust0 (Aug 25, 2009)

I don't like textured feed because some goats tend to get picky with it..  They'll eat all the stuff they like, but leave the rest..

If a wether decided he liked the cracked corn and ate a disproportionate amount of that while leaving the rest, it could be deadly.  Afterall, cracked corn has a ghastly Ca ratio of about 1:4.



With pellets, they're getting correct proportions in every swipe.


----------

