# Feeding goats?



## AClark (Jan 11, 2017)

I had a goat as a teenager, and we fed him alfalfa hay mostly and he would eat the leftover horse pellets (also alfalfa). Now that I'm getting two Nubian does, I'm not sure what to feed, as alfalfa is a bit more rare where I am. I talked to the hay farm close to me and bought some alfalfa cubes (they're a mix with grass hay, but about 20% protein is what they run) they suggested those because it won't blow away when it's windy and said they are great for cattle and all. I don't think they'd have any reason to tell me differently, because they sell all kinds of hay and other products. 
I have pasture for them to nip down, lots of weeds and downed trees. Will alfalfa cubes be sufficient? Here's the breakdown for them:
*Sample Nutritional Analysis* 
*Crude Protein* *16% (Minimum)
Dry Matter* *88% (Minimum)
Fat* *1% (Minimum)
Crude Fibre* *30% (Maximum)
Ash* *12% (Maximum)
*


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## OneFineAcre (Jan 11, 2017)

If you are going to use alfalfa pellets or cubes, you should also feed them some type of grass hay in that they need the long fiber.

We feed ours mostly coastal Bermuda hay.  But, we supplement ours with alfalfa pellets.

We also feed ours a local mixed feed that's 14% protein.

That's just what we do with our Nigerians.


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## AClark (Jan 11, 2017)

That's easy enough, I live behind the hay farm and they said I don't even need to haul it, that they can use their fork to dump it over my fence, but that my pasture area needed to be mowed down and I probably wouldn't need it right off. It's "prarie hay" whatever that is. I can get coastal bermuda, prarie hay, alfalfa (but the cost, ouch!). I also picked up some smaller pelleted goat feed from A&M that is 14% and some sweet feed to get them used to me. I don't expect to feed sweet feed regularly, but just as a treat for learning things.


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## OneFineAcre (Jan 11, 2017)

Nubians are kind of like Nigerians in that they seem to maintain condition well.
I think some of the other standard breeds take a little more effort to keep conditioned.
That's just my personal observation.


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## AClark (Jan 11, 2017)

These two are definitely in good condition, maybe a bit overweight even. I know ruminants need quite a bit of fiber in the form of grass and hay. I'm curious, can goats eat "cow" hay? I know cattle can eat about anything in the way of hay, even poorer quality or molded, but didn't think that went over as well with goats. I know it doesn't with horses and horse quality hay is important there, stored and dry. I can get either quality, dry and stored or field stored.


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## OneFineAcre (Jan 11, 2017)

AClark said:


> These two are definitely in good condition, maybe a bit overweight even. I know ruminants need quite a bit of fiber in the form of grass and hay. I'm curious, can goats eat "cow" hay? I know cattle can eat about anything in the way of hay, even poorer quality or molded, but didn't think that went over as well with goats. I know it doesn't with horses and horse quality hay is important there, stored and dry. I can get either quality, dry and stored or field stored.



I would get dry and stored.
I would not get field stored.
In my area "cow hay" can mean a couple of things.
It can just not be the quality that some would want to feed to a horse.  Sometimes for example it may have more weed content.
But, if it means that it has been left out and rained on and potentially moldy, I would leave it alone.


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## babsbag (Jan 11, 2017)

I have a friend that feeds his Boer herd 100% cubes and they are on dry lot so no browse. He has CLEAN pens as no wasted hay, he loves the cubes. I was told that 2" fiber is all they need. IDK, but if grass hay is available I would feed it too. Some goats take a while to get used to cubes, some refuse them at first, especially if the cubes are very hard.


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## AClark (Jan 11, 2017)

Yes, cow hay can be moldy here, mostly kept outside in the rain and whatnot. I can easily get a round bale of dry stored bermuda. The cubes are about the size of my palm, they are just chopped and compressed, though I wondered if they'd be too hard too. I know a horse could chomp them down no problem, but figured I might have to break them up more for the goats. They will customize it for me if I ask though, so that is simple enough. They're nice folks, even let me know I had a hole in my fence, but I had already taken care of it. 
The pasture is about ankle deep in weeds and grass right now. It'll be nice for them to pick the weeds out. I also have a bag of alfalfa to spread on it when it warms up to give it some new life. 
I'm trying to figure out what is considered cow hay here too. Cow hay where I came from could be wet and moldy, weedy, or anything past 2nd cutting alfalfa. Horse hay is dry, stored out of the weather, and way better quality. 

Funny thing is, they ship their alfalfa from out of state. The lady was trying to think of the place and when I came back in from the grand tour, she named it and it's my hometown which is tiny and nobody has ever heard of. Small world.


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## Southern by choice (Jan 11, 2017)

We have had cubes but never feed them as part of their diet.  I know we have to break up those large cubes because the goats choke on them. If they are the typical cubes they are made for horse mouths.  I'd opt for grass hay and alfalfa pellets or regular goat feed and do alfalfa pellets during lactation if alfalfa hay is too pricey where you are.


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## NH homesteader (Jan 11, 2017)

Side question- how much alfalfa pellets do you recommend feeding? Alfalfa hay does not exist here. Apparently it doesn't like the cold either!


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## AClark (Jan 11, 2017)

They told me on the cubes to feed around 5 lbs to start with and adjust from there, but it would probably be less as his cattle get 10 lbs per day.
The pellet bag has recommended feeding but I didn't look too closely at it - so much per 100 lbs.


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## OneFineAcre (Jan 11, 2017)

We use alfalfa pellets.
The goats can chew those easily.
And really, you can just feed the Bermuda, or Bermuda supplemented with feed, or during lactation Bermuda, feed and alfalfa pellets.  That's a lot of what we did this year.
I have fed alfalfa hay in the past, but all of the local grown was really crappy this year.  And, I can't stand $17-$20 for a square bale.

@AClark 
How much are round bales of Bermuda there?


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## OneFineAcre (Jan 11, 2017)

Are you getting mature does or doe kids?


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## AClark (Jan 11, 2017)

Round bales of bermuda are $40. I'm getting 2 2 year old does, never been bred. They were a teenaged girls pets and she stopped showing interest in them. They wanted to throw in a LGD to go with them but I don't need another dog.

They also had 65# bales of alfalfa for $7 each, but they are outside and it snowed here last week, so I figured dry stored grass was probably better.


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## AClark (Jan 12, 2017)

Our new little goat friends


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## OneFineAcre (Jan 12, 2017)

They look very nice.

Congratulations 

I thought of another question.

What kind of hay were they being fed at their old home?


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## AClark (Jan 12, 2017)

I'm not sure if they were feeding hay at all. He brought me the rest of their bag of feed, which was 12% pelleted sweet feed. Whatever they were feeding must have been enough as they are a good weight. I'm going to give them some alfalfa pellets tonight and start some cubes in the morning - pretty sure they're going to turn their noses up at the pellets, they've been picking at old dried up weeds in their pasture all day.


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