# Building a Goat Stall in a Garage-Suggestions Please



## glbedrosian (Sep 4, 2011)

Hello,

I am planning on buying two kid wethers in the spring to help browse back invasive sumac and blackberries on my small lot.

I do not have a barn nor do I have the space to put one up on my lot, so I plan on building a stall in my garage for the two Nigerian Dwarf boys.  

They will use the stall in the winter and in extended periods of rain in other seasons. They will also have a 3-sided shelter in their pasture to take shelter from brief storms. (Located in New England, so four distinct seasons and various weather.)

So - I am looking for suggestions from any of you given my plan for the stall below:

- the stall will be 10 ' x 10' x 6' high; it will have a door, food and water set up in the stall, also a door to the outside fenced in area
- the floor of the stall will be wood; essentially a platform elevated off the cement garage floor; beams and cement blocks underneath for strength
- thinking about laying a few inches of dirt on top of the wood - not sure how many inches deep this should be - maybe 3 or 4 inches deep?
- then shavings on top of the dirt

Suggestions? Concerns? Things to beware of?

Thanks in advance for any posts with your suggestions.


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## Goatherd (Sep 4, 2011)

Is this an integral garage?  If so, be prepared for odor.  Granted, the feces of goats has virtually little if no odor, but urine is another thing.  

The concrete floor without the addition of wood or soil would be a better way to go so you could hose/wash the floor as needed.  To make the goats more comfortable and not have them have to lay on concrete, a smaller wooden platform would certainly be helpful as it would be able to be moved and cleaned as needed.  Straw or wood shavings would serve as an appropriate bedding and could be replaced as needed.
You could even put in a large dog kennel or igloo type dog house for them to sleep in, again, making cleaning much easier.

Good luck with your new goats and I'm sure others will be along to give you their opinions.


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## glbedrosian (Sep 4, 2011)

The garage is not connected to my house, and while i am not hugely concerned about oder, i am trying to avoid having the smell of urine and feces permeate the basic garage structure.

Your comment about hosing/washing the floor is on target though.  I am indeed trying to include that option in my design by covering the wood floor with cheap vinyl flooring underneath the dirt.  (Sorry, i should have mentioned that.)

Then periodically (not sure how often....every couple of years maybe) removing the dirt from the stall, washing the floor, and starting over with fresh dirt. (liming in between complete dirt changes)

Please keep the comments coming; i need all the help i can get to make sure this 'outside the box' stall option will work.

Thank you!


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## SuburbanFarmChic (Sep 4, 2011)

Urine will soak the concrete and the wood anywhere it touches.  I would be tempted to enclose the run in shed a little more and just avoid the garage entirely.   A 4 x 6 x 6 shed w/ bedding is enough to keep two nigerians warm in the winter.


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## jmsim93 (Sep 4, 2011)

glbedrosian said:
			
		

> Hello,
> 
> I am planning on buying two kid wethers in the spring to help browse back invasive sumac and blackberries on my small lot.


Good luck with that!!!!    I am so glad that my "primary" objective with having goats was to get milk...because my secondary excitement was that they would eat up all of the poison ivy that is overtaking our property!!!!  They will not touch the stuff.  lol


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## glbedrosian (Sep 4, 2011)

SuburbanFarmChic, your point is well taken.  Question - given that goats don't like the rain, do any of you find that your goats 'prefer' to have a bigger indoor space to hang out in during the rainy weather?  And I'm not sure how they like the snow......

Thank you all again for your feedback; the "pro's and con's" are really helping me.


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## Goatherd (Sep 4, 2011)

Can't speak for all, but my girls enjoy the snow in moderation.


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## foreverblu (Sep 4, 2011)

Goatherd said:
			
		

> Can't speak for all, but my girls enjoy the snow in moderation.
> 
> 
> http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y111/Michael3215/PictureorVideo962.jpg


Beautiful Girls ..... Love photos, I think I am becoming a BYH addict


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## SuburbanFarmChic (Sep 4, 2011)

Ours will go out in the snow to some extent. I've found that they take to being indoors pretty well.   We happen to have a 10 x 18 shed for our goats but we have 8 of them.  When I go out there in the winter they are all piled into the kidding stalls snuggled up together.  Usually about 4 goats to a stall unless I have a mama/baby locked in one.  

Ours don't seem to get too crazy jumpy active during the winter. Might just be my goats though.


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## freemotion (Sep 4, 2011)

I'd skip the wood/vinyl/dirt floor and work with the concrete.  You could seal it first if this is a big concern.  When I managed a small family breeding and show stable, we would put a thick layer of lime on the cement and cover that with heavy rubber mats (available at places like TSC for about $40 for a 4x6' mat).  We'd remove the mats and replace the lime every year or two.  Even with horses that pee a LOT more than two Nigerian wethers could ever think about peeing....there was NO urine smell in that barn.  None.  After years and years.  The owner was a clean freak but not unreasonably so.  Everything was scrubbed floor to ceiling yearly, including beams and light fixtures.  I used a crew.  It was great.

If your snow gets deep in your area, you can do what my dh does and snowblow paths for the critters, big loops in their areas.  You have to remember to pick up all fallen branches and stuff before the first snowfall, though.


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## genuck (Sep 5, 2011)

I would say go with freemotion and do the rubber mats. I have a 'stall' in my garage but I have a dirt floor. I've done deep bedding just to keep it dry in the spring. I would like to take it all out and put down some gravel and then mats and straw. Someday!


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