# Nigerian Dwarf goat house questions... Complete Newbie, advice please!



## Sunny & the 5 egg layers (Jul 6, 2011)

I eventually would like to get 2 Nigerian Dwarf Wethers and I was wondering what exactly do they need for a shelter? I have a 10 by 10 run in shed made for a horse and I am planning on that being their goat house. Would I need to insulate it? And also, I heard that it is a good idea to make stall for your goats in case one is sick, you can seperate them, how many stalls would you make for 2 goats? Do they sleep in the same stall at night? How much room do Nigerian dwarfs need? 
Thanks in advance.


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## AlaskanShepherdess (Jul 7, 2011)

It will depend on where you live etc. I live in Central Alaska and m,y goats did great in a small insulated house, and it gets REALLY cold here.


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## Sunny & the 5 egg layers (Jul 7, 2011)

Oops, sorry! I am in Massachusetts.


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## Fluffygal (Nov 28, 2011)

Hi Sunny,

I am a new goat owner with 1 pygmy doe named Bella and 1 nigerian dwarf wether named Rufus. I live in Texas where we do not get that many super cold days. 
Both of my goats live in a 10 ft x 30 ft kennel (we put together 2 10ft x 10ft dog kennels to make it). Recently I rearranged the pen to were the north side has the cover and got help in wrapping the north side with one huge tarp to keep out rain and wind from the North, west, and east side. I put down some pine shavings to make the area under the covered end warmer and comfy. Shavings are pretty easy to clean up n replace as needed. 

I did recycle an old large dog house that both goats easily fit into and can snuggle up together in. I have 2 hay bags hanging (one with alfalfa hay and 1 with regular type hay). I have added rocks, sand, concrete blocks, and made a balance beam in the pen for them to play on. 

Your area will most likely get colder then mine but I just wanted to post in case it helps with ideas. I do not have an updated pick after rearranging the pen but here are a couple of older pics. As I am learning more and getting tips I have been making improvements for them.


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## Ownedby3alpacas (Nov 28, 2011)

My sister has a ND wether and a doe and they have a large pen that (for winter) is attached to a chicken coop...it's like 8X8 and they are fine even without insolation.
In the summer we move their pen every couple weeks and they just have a dog igloo for a shelter. I'm in NY, so the weather is the same as yours.


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## vermillionoaks (Feb 7, 2012)

I know this post is a little old but I'm new here!  I live in Louisiana so we are quite a bit warmer here.  Our main problem is helping them deal with the heat!

I found it was really helpful to go visit a few Nigerian breeders before we even built their houses and runs.  It also helped us learn about the breeders and how friendly the goats were.  Having friendly, pet-like goats was pretty important to us!  That would help you see what the goats would need differently in your area.

I figured I'd send some pictures of the construction process and one of our current pics.  We do have a separate "run" that can be closed off but it usually stays open to the main run.  There is a "pen" inside the house with a larger chicken-type pop-door to access that separate run.  

The two 8x12 houses.  About 20x25 run each.






See the extra run in the background:






This does mean we have to take our goats on regular walks like a dog that is kept in a backyard.  They need their exercise to stay healthy!


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## Queen Mum (Feb 7, 2012)

Wow, nice goat house!


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## hcppam (Feb 7, 2012)

Queen Mum said:
			
		

> Wow, nice goat house!


Agree, haven't figured out mine yet.


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## vermillionoaks (Feb 8, 2012)

Thanks but the credit all goes to my hubby.  He really picked our breeder's brain about everything when it came to the house and run.  We snagged all those 2x6's used so they were cheap and really added some character to the houses!


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