# How much should I expect to pay for a goat upkeep?



## Sunny & the 5 egg layers

How much will my goat cost me yearly, monthly or weekly? This includes either (2) Alpines *OR* (2) Nigerian dwarfs? I do not live on a farm therefore do not have pasture for them. They would be producing does and be used as producing my family of four with milk.
So roughly how much could I expect them to cost me? Either two alpine does OR two nigerian dwarfs does?
Thank you.
Edited for grammer errors.


----------



## 20kidsonhill

We are all afraid to admit how much we spend.  Since I have a large breed, I didn't want to answer. 

If you figure, a 50lb bag of feed costs $12, and you feed your  two goats a total of 1 lb of feed a day, (3 cups total), you would spend $12 every 50days. When you are milking you would be using more feed, Let's say 2 lbs per doe per day, alfalfa pellets cost closer to $20 a 50lb bag. So your grain cost would go way up while you are milking. 

2 does x 2 lbs  per day = 4lbs per day at $16 per 50lbs( I just averaged pelleted goat feed and some alfalfa pellets), so more like  every 12 days it would cost you $16 dollars.  just in grain while they are milking, plus the hay. 

 You would go through around 3 to 5 lbs a hay a day per goat. 

a 50lb bale of hay is costing around $5 in our area. so you would maybe go through a bale a hay a week with two does. 

then you have a few supplies, that are  one time expenses,

And occasional costs of medicine or a vet bill, fecal test.   

Hope that wasn't too confussing.


----------



## that's*satyrical

True about not wanting to admit what we spend lol. But also it varies by area and by what you choose to feed. A 12% all stock pellet will be cheaper than a bag of good goat feed. Show goat feed has even more extras & is more expensive. I choose to feed alfalfa hay at $12 per square bale but there are less expensive options. For one, if you have a lot of browse/pasture you won't spend as much if anything on hay. You said you didn't have pasture but goats really prefer leaves & browse anyway. You also have supplement costs depending on where you live. You may need to supplement with selenium if your area is a low source & most people supplement for copper and B vitamins at some point. You definitely will need to provide a loose mineral I use manna pro goat it's $10 for 8lbs at Tractor Supply. You also want to have basic medical/first aid supplies on hand (hoof trimmers, brushes, collars, electrolytes, urine acidifiers, wormers etc). If you're going to be breeding or milking you run into another whole lot of expenses.  The good news is once you get through the initial expense for most of the items (besides food) there is not a whole lot of cost for upkeep for just a few goats. My 5 goats (Nigies) go thru 2-3 flakes a day or about a square bale every 5-7 days. And a 50lb bag of pellets lasts a few weeks.  Don't forget you need to spring for fencing, shelter, food tubs, water buckets, a hay feeder if you want to avoid waste, climbing apparatus & toys when you're starting out too. Nigerian Dwarfs will be cheaper than Alpines because they are minis & will eat less. Shelter is a must have they really hate rain.


----------



## sawfish99

I'm in CT.  We feed Purina Goat Chow and it is $17 per 50lbs.  Our does in milk get 4lbs a day, and when dry still get about 1.5 lbs per day.  A 40lb bale of hay is $6 and we go through about 2 bales per goat per month.  I have budgeted about $180 per year for vet expense PER GOAT.  

Add in bedding, worming, feed, misc expenses and vet, I owuld say we spend roughly $60/month/goat.


----------



## pridegoethb4thefall

I dont know where you live, but here in Northern Ca, a bale of good/high quality hay is no less than 20.00 for a 100 pound bale. Goat chow (the kinda sweet kind, 50 lbs) goes for 20 as well.

You do have to consider the level of care you plan to give. Do you plan on regular supllements? What are your fencing needs? Yearly vaccinations, vet costs, wormers- some of those you may not do, its up to you and your managment choices, but they do affect your bottom line.

Its good you are looking into these things. I would say, after doing your reseach here, you might want to get a list of items like food and supplements you plan to give on a regular basis and go to the feed store you plan to frequent, and price things out. What each person pays may be different for you, depending on your location. 

For me, my location means 20 dollars a bale for hay versus some others only paying between 5 and 12 a bale. Makes a BIG difference. I would have at least 2 more goats if hay was that cheap around here!!  

Really, the best thing after researching here on BYC is to go out and find out in a real store what things will really cost you BEFORE you get your goats. Or call the stores and ask for prices AND availability- some places run out of stuff fast or dont sell much so their hay or feed gets stale. You do want your store to keep what you need in stock so you arent driving around like crazy looking for a supplier and/or paying too much.


----------



## Teeah3612

pridegoethb4thefall said:
			
		

> I dont know where you live, but here in Northern Ca, a bale of good/high quality hay is no less than 20.00 for a 100 pound bale. Goat chow (the kinda sweet kind, 50 lbs) goes for 20 as well.


$20 per bale!  Sure makes me glad I live in WV. I pay $3 a bale and the farm I get it from is less than a mile from my home. The farmer even loads it for me. Gotta love those older gentleman farmers.


----------



## that's*satyrical

Just for info's sake my hay is not really cheaper.  The bale is only a 50lb square bale   I could get it cheaper probably if I shopped around for a farmer & went to get it myself I pick mine up from a feed store. Growing your own hay is a great option if you can. You'd be surprised how much you could get from a pretty small area.


----------



## KinderKorner

It really depends on your area and how you choose to feed.

This is all estimates. But I have medium sized goats.

My bales of hay are $3.50-$4 for 45 pounds. One bale of hay would last one of my goats average 20 days.

So thats .18 a day for hay for each goat. I don't grain my dry does but if you have kids or milking does I'd say I feed mine 1 - 3 pounds a day. We'll say 2. And a 50 pound bag of good goat food is $10 in my area. So thats .40 a day for milking does, bucks, and growing kids for grain a day.

Then I test at least once a year for CAE and CL which for the needles and testing it around $18 a goat.

Then you add in other shots your adding probably another $2 a year. Plus wormer which is $50 and is enough for 30 doses. And your probably adding another $4-$5 a year. 

So minimum for me would be around $240 a goat.  Holy crap. I didn't realize it cost that much. Hmm. I hope my math is off.

Thats not counting any vet work, or medicines which you WILL need. And those are expensive. 

I'm thinking $250 - $300 is probably a fair number for the total cost of a goat per year. If my math was right. Geez. And here I thought they were cheap. 

I don't feed mine that much grain though. Mine all stay fat without it. So my price is quite a bit cheaper. I hope... haha


----------



## Sunny & the 5 egg layers

What type of hay should you feed? I really like Alpines but I also like Nigerian Dwarfs. I think that since they don't need as much space, don't eat as much, and throw a lot more kids I will end up with Nigerians. The only downside to them is they are too small to pull a cart. :/ But I have a dog for that. 
Thanks for all your input so far guys. I live in Massachusetts by the way. If that helps.


----------



## mama24

I think feeding my goats is pretty cheap. It was the fencjing that was expensive! I also have chickens, about 60 chickens (but chickens are very small! They average probably 5lbs each!) and they go through a bag of feed in less than a week. My 2 goats eat very little feed and only go through a bale of hay about every 3-4 weeks. Used to be even less, but one is pregnant. I also have 4 rabbits that help eat that hay. My goats do also eat a lot of oak leaves. There was a ton in their pen just from it being near a bunch of trees, but those are almost gone. We have been throwing in branches with leaves in to supplement, though. They love them!


----------



## SmallFarmGirl

Hmmm... For a monthI've got nigis) 
Feed: $14 
Hay: (here for a bale its $8) 
Alfalfa: $14 (this lasts MORE than a month for me) 
Total: $36 

Hope this helps!!!


----------



## KinderKorner

Sunny & the 5 egg layers said:
			
		

> What type of hay should you feed? I really like Alpines but I also like Nigerian Dwarfs. I think that since they don't need as much space, don't eat as much, and throw a lot more kids I will end up with Nigerians. The only downside to them is they are too small to pull a cart. :/ But I have a dog for that.
> Thanks for all your input so far guys. I live in Massachusetts by the way. If that helps.


Try KINDERS! 

They are a little bigger than Nigis, they eat about the same, need the same amount of space. Have bigger teats and udders, more meat, and they can pull carts! I have a goat cart for my kinders.  Kinders commonly have triplets or quads. I know of several that had 6 at one time! 

I feed mostly grass, or a grass alfalfa mix here.


----------



## Sunny & the 5 egg layers

SmallFarmGirl said:
			
		

> Hmmm... For a monthI've got nigis)
> Feed: $14
> Hay: (here for a bale its $8)
> Alfalfa: $14 (this lasts MORE than a month for me)
> Total: $36
> 
> Hope this helps!!!


Isn't Alalfa Hay? Just wondering. Thanks for your input by the way.


----------



## Sunny & the 5 egg layers

KinderKorner said:
			
		

> Sunny & the 5 egg layers said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> What type of hay should you feed? I really like Alpines but I also like Nigerian Dwarfs. I think that since they don't need as much space, don't eat as much, and throw a lot more kids I will end up with Nigerians. The only downside to them is they are too small to pull a cart. :/ But I have a dog for that.
> Thanks for all your input so far guys. I live in Massachusetts by the way. If that helps.
> 
> 
> 
> Try KINDERS!
> 
> They are a little bigger than Nigis, they eat about the same, need the same amount of space. Have bigger teats and udders, more meat, and they can pull carts! I have a goat cart for my kinders.  Kinders commonly have triplets or quads. I know of several that had 6 at one time!
> 
> I feed mostly grass, or a grass alfalfa mix here.
Click to expand...

I have no breeders around here. Not even the surounding states. :/


----------



## Stacykins

Sunny & the 5 egg layers said:
			
		

> SmallFarmGirl said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Hmmm... For a monthI've got nigis)
> Feed: $14
> Hay: (here for a bale its $8)
> Alfalfa: $14 (this lasts MORE than a month for me)
> Total: $36
> 
> Hope this helps!!!
> 
> 
> 
> Isn't Alalfa Hay? Just wondering. Thanks for your input by the way.
Click to expand...

Alfalfa is a type of hay, but maybe SmallFarmGirl was talking about alfalfa pellets or cubes, not in baled form? If you can't get alfalfa hay, it seems supplementing it in a different form is good for goats. 

There are many types of hay (grass hay, alfalfa hay, timothy hay, grass/alfalfa mixed, etc.), and different qualities and nutrition levels, too. It really varies from place to place, and from cutting to cutting. Leafier hay is better, stemmy hay doesn't have much that they'll eat. Hay is something you learn from experience with it, the more you handle it the more you know. Sticking your nose into a bale to smell the sweetness (or to detect moldy/mustiness), whether it is leafy or stemmy or seedy, if it is crumbly or dusty (can mean old hay), color, and so much more.


----------



## ksalvagno

The cost will make a huge difference if they have pasture or browse to eat or if you have to supply most of it. Also depends on how many  months they are out on pasture.


----------



## SmallFarmGirl

I Have a bale of Alfalfa that I got from TSC. 
It's smaller than my BIG hay bale about 1/2.


----------

