# How to raise goats on 1/5 acre?



## swmalone (Oct 3, 2011)

I live in a rural town on a 1/5 acre lot.  The ordinances allow for having some livestock as long as it is humanely treated and properly contained.  I have a few chickens, but my wife and I have been thinking of getting a couple of mini-milk goats.  I am just not sure how much space we would have to use as a barn and fenced area.  I have a lot of the yard in gardens with a small greenhouse.  I was just hoping for some feedback from people wondering if I should just just get rid of this idea, or if there are people on here that have experience with goats on such a small plot.

Any help would be great.


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## BetterHensandGardens (Oct 3, 2011)

You might be able to do it with a couple of Nigerian Dwarf does - they don't have to take much room, there's some basic info on them here:  http://www.betterhensandgardens.com/2010/09/15/nigerian-dwarf-goats/  I don't have any personal experience keeping them in a very small area however................. ours three does currently share a 10' x 10' stall, and have a large outside pasture - which they won't step foot in if it's raining out


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## swmalone (Oct 3, 2011)

Thanks, I will do some research on that site you posted.  So how much milk do you get from the Nigerian Dwarf does?  I just wasn't sure if they were considered dairy goats.


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## BetterHensandGardens (Oct 3, 2011)

Nigerian Dwarves are miniature dairy goats, and it depends on how old the doe is (how many times she's freshened), how big the doe is, and how good of milkers her ancestors were.  It also depends on where in the lactation cycle she is, but between a quart to a 1/2 gallon a day depending on the above variables.


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## SheepGirl (Oct 3, 2011)

In all honesty, you can have as many animals as you want. You will just need to buy stored feeds (hay, grain, etc) in order to maintain them because your land will not be able to support too many animals.


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## swmalone (Oct 3, 2011)

I was planning on two at most, and the only reason for two is so they aren't alone.  Let me run this past you guys and see if you have some suggestions and upgrades.  I have a 6' x 10' dog run that is on grass.  I was thinking I could build a small goat house in the back and the goat house/run could be where I put them for the night or if we are going to be gone for a while.  I have a fenced back yard, but I am positive that the portion that connects to my driveway is not goat proof since it is only about 3 feet high, the rest is 6' vinyl.  The only problem then is keeping them from trees and plants that I don't want consumed.  I was thinking I would try to come up with a portable type fence so I could move it around different parts of the yard, but the problem with portable always seems to be less than durable.

You know I hated it when I was younger living out in the country, and now it seems that I would trade living in town for that any day.  That's hindsight for you.


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## SuburbanFarmChic (Oct 4, 2011)

As someone who does goats on a very small property, I'll chime in.  Go for it!   We have about 1/5 acre total fenced area for our livestock and we currently have 9. We prefer to have closer to 5 but it's a high number month right now.  

I would fence off an area for the goats and not try and rotate them around the yard. It's easier to let part of the yard grow up and bring them a couple armfuls of grass every day than to move portable fencing around the yard.  Just my .02 though. 


You will need good hay storage as you WILL be feeding hay year round. Also good feed storage. Metal trash cans are the best. 

I have a friend that pulls 2qts off of her Nigerian Pygmy cross on her third lacation.


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## swmalone (Oct 4, 2011)

I appreciate all the input.  My total lot is 1/5 acre so I would have much smaller than that fenced in.  You pointed out another concern I have.  I only want two goats but in order to get the milk I have to breed them.  I am a little concerned about what to do with the kids until they are old enough to be sold, and then home that I'm actually able to sell them.  I do have a nephew that is getting into 4-H and that kind of stuff that might be interested in them, but he lived 400 miles away, so not the most convenient.

I would love to see pictures of small yard setups, pictures of the shed, feed & hay storage, and fenced areas.  The visual might give me an image I can use to determine if this is something we can actually do.

Thanks again.


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## cjulian214 (Oct 4, 2011)




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## SuburbanFarmChic (Oct 4, 2011)

I will do some pictures later this weekend. Right now everything is a disaster because we had the dropped off pigs in our hay storage area so the hay is just on pallets and under tarps and the fence is a mess because someone drove through it earlier in the week.


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## RareBreedFancier (Oct 4, 2011)

Yes, you can do it but you have to feed them year round.

I kept 2 sheep in my backyard when I lived in town on a block smaller than that and during severe drought. I made a yard for them beside the chicken runs and aviaries, pretty much the back 1/4 of the block. I had a huge shed (small barn sized, huge for the block) and stored their hay in there. I also stored their pellet feed in there. They got as much hay as they could eat and pellets morning and night. I moved before I bred them but it would have been the same situation with feeding the lambs. Mini milkers would be much smaller than large breed sheep so I'd say if you can afford to buy the feed for them year round go for it.

I also let friends and neighbors know I'd be interested in their garden prunings and excess veg. Gave them a more varied diet. Just made sure to go through and check there was nothing poisonous. I often came home to boxes of rose prunings, 3' long cucumbers, lettuce going to seed, all sorts of goodies. I'd sort it out into sheep feed, chicken feed and compost material.


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## swmalone (Oct 4, 2011)

That is almost what I was thinking, about a 1/4 of the lot.  I already have over a quarter of it taken up with gardens and a greenhouse, then I have a shed for all the yard and garden tools.  I have 3 chickens that I have in a chicken ark that I move around the yard.  I may have to just give up the little portion of yard that I actually have in the back, not that big a loss I guess.  I can just have BBQ's in with the goats and chickens.

More land is at the top of my wish list too, but that is not likely to happen anytime soon.

Thanks for all of the input.  I am sure if we decide to get the goats I will be back on here asking all kinds of questions about shelter, feed, milking, etc, etc....


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