# Do you close your goats in the barn at night?



## ChksontheRun

Total goat newb here.  We have had a small herd of 7 mini nubians, now down to 5 (2 adult does - one in milk, one 9 mo old buckling, one 9 mo old doeling, and a 3 month old whether).  We have a 1 acre fenced area and a 12 x 12 foot barn with a gate that separates the barn and a very small yard area from the rest of the fenced area.  We have been closing the goats inside the barn at night thinking they would be safer in there.  We know we have foxes and coyotes in our area, and although we have gotten 2 LGDs they are young and I think they would bark for danger, but are not really old enough to fight anything off.  

My question.... Do we really need to close them in at night?  Or are we being over protective?

And for those of you wondering about the 9 mo old buckling running with the does.....  We got this little herd from a woman whose husband was sick and died, and she had them all together for the last 9 months, so the damage has been done.  We have given them a loving home and will sort it all out when the vet comes out for a check next week.


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## PJisaMom

I have been leaving my barn door open for the past few months, just enough so they could get out if they needed to.  (Why they would _NEED_ to is beyond me!)

But...

I heard the coyotes last night.  I heard them coming... closer!  

So, at midnight, my husband arms me with the shotgun.  

Uh... wouldn't it just be easier to lock them _IN_?  

Out to the barn, screw gun in hand, we board up the one totally open entry and pull the door on the other side entry and lock it.  

So... 

I say now, YES I DO!  I was so freaking out last night about the coyotes... I heard them all night... drove me insane.  

So... been looking at this 2 year old LGD that some lady listed on CL... but she doesn't REALLY want to get rid of her.  But because I told her my husband has pet allergies, she is averse to my even seeing the dog.... I don't have time to wait for a puppy to grow if the coyotes are here NOW... so... going to go look at a llama tomorrow.  

Yep.  Have no idea what I'm doing... but you know... what's life without a little animal adventure?


~P


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## ThornyRidge

To each their own on this but I personally close my goats up every night in the barn and lock the doors ( have little hooks that latch the sliding doors to keep them in when they bang into them.. this is my own peace of mind.  you could look at where you live.  I hate doing it when it is really hot thinking they may want to be outside at least but for several reasons.. 1. they are confined in safe area away from night time predators and even neighborhood kids if out playing around 2. I lock my barn cats up at night  in barn to give them a chance to continue to keep all mice out of barn! 3. keeps them from screaming their heads off and disturbing the peace if I sleep in a bit longer than they do!  They like their schedule and will stand at the fence and bawl to remind you it is feeding time.  I would also suggest that yes the damage may be done with that buckling in running with all the does so be prepared for many kids in the near future and get him out of there.. get a separate area for him and send the wether over with him for company!  depending on when she came into heat I would be most concerned with the 9 month old doe being bred.. i don't consider breeding before 1.5 years of age and even that goes with a size/body conformation once over!  

If it ain;t any trouble lock up the goats.. coyotes for sure can cause much harm to goats!


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## Roll farms

I do not close our goats in....but we have 2 LGD.

If I didn't have the dogs....I probably would lock them up at night.

If the dogs think there is a 'threat', they round the goats up, run them to the barn, and then go check out the threat...the goats seem to understand this and will wait at the barn door and watch the dogs.

It is absolutely amazing to watch them work....

We used to have a guardian llama years ago, he did ok but wouldn't guard the chickens...so when I got our first LGD pup for the birds....the llama tried to kill it.


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## ()relics

I keep mine outside all the time.  They spend the day in their own pasture and at night they go into the horses pasture.  They have the option of horse stalls but usually opt for the outside, unless it is raining.  I don't worry about predators, even though we are over-run with coyotes, because I have a donkey with them and she doesn't like anyone/anything.  I wouldn't have the inside room nor the energy to put everything inside every night.  I want another dog but I am afraid it would be offended by my bird dogs running in and out of the pasture and barking at the goats and occasionally chasing them.


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## glenolam

I don't close them in the barn either.  My goats sleep inside the barn anyway, but I've gone outside a few times and seen them foraging around at some ungodly hour in the night.  I don't have any LGDs or donkey's and I did wake up at 3 am to the howling of a coyote in my back yard, but they don't seem to bother the goats.  

When my two goat kids were born, I did lock them up just because they were so small and I wanted to make sure they stayed in at night.  Now that everyone is bigger I just let them be.

Do whatever works best for you.  If you don't mind going out everynight to make sure they're locked in, go for it.


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## dianneS

I've never locked mine in at night.  They can come and go as they please.  We have nothing bigger than a fox that could be a threat.  Of course there could be free roaming dogs, but our fence is pretty dog proof.  I've heard that coyotes are on their way.  Several spotted in neighboring areas.  So we got a livestock guardian dog.

He's over a year old and we haven't even lost a chicken since we've had him.  Last night the dog was barking quite a bit and I knew there must be trouble by the sound of his barks.  Around 2 AM I figured whatever threat was out there must not be easy to scare away.  I went out with a flashlight and spotted the fox.  He's quite bold and didn't want to run off right away.  He was just eyeing up my barn and chicken coop.  I finally chased him away and turned a flood light on outside the barn.  The dog was quiet the rest of the night!  

The goats were all up and awake when I went out there, standing behind the dog, but outside the barn.  Perhaps they didn't want to get cornered by anything?  Everyone slept in late this morning though!  I thought that was cute.


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## ohiofarmgirl

locked up tight. we have coyotes too and are noticing more stray dogs.

whats wrong with being overprotective? we go with the "better safe than sorry"

but do what works for you


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## freemotion

We've never seen evidence that coyotes can get into our fence, so I don't lock up the adults at night.  My barn is pretty close to the house, too.  But I do lock up the babies when they are small.  No sense in offering such a tasty temptation for the coyotes.  Three of my does have horns, too.


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## ksalvagno

We have an overhang around 3 sides of our barn and we have fencing around all of it with gates to let the animals out. So we lock our animals out of the fields at night but they aren't actually locked in the barn either. They can be in the barn/overhang area so we don't have to close up the barn.


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## chandasue

I lock mine up at night. I used to leave it open but finding large canine prints in the first snow last fall circling their pen scared the doodoo out of me. If we had electric fencing I might chance it but we don't. We have had coyotes and stray dogs in the past and lost a lot of our freerange chickens to fox. When we move to a bigger place I will be looking into getting a herd guardian of some sort but that's a few years off.


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## Hollywood Goats

I lock mine up, we have large night hawk and raccoons, idk if either can hurt them but it is easier to just lock them in the barn.


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## apdan

Mine are pastured with 2 horses and a steer. In a complete woven wire fencing with electric on top.. I don't lock mine up, they are free range all the time!


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## mossyStone

My Girls are out with their LGD and can go in or out..How ever the birds are in lock down after dark to sunup..... My Pup is just now starting to protect the birds and ducks this week 2 racoons lost in their bid to dine at our place 
 WAY TO GO ARCHIE ( 11 Mos GP) AND JAZZ ( Blk Lab)

Mossy Stone Farm


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## Mea

We do.

  There has been quite a problem here with coydogs.  Brazen critters they are !  And a certain "farmer"  would leave his animal carcasses laying where they dropped.   Shark bait in my opinion.   Anyway... that helped encourage the varmints on our hill.

   So... our goats are closed in the barn... with sections of stock panels across the doors, so the air can circulate easily.   The babies are fenced in a chain link dog run ( 6' high)  within the main fencing.

  The sheep are closed in a "night pasture" close to the barn... with the wool coats they need to be outside when it is hot at night.  ( even in the winter, we will see them laying down outside...in the sn*w )

  The big bucks have more access to an outside pen at night... but they are pretty big and not terribly "nice".

  And i agree that closing them in.. can help with noise controll !   Does in heat do not care What time it is when they proclaim undieing luv for the buck !!!


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## warthog

When I first got my goats, not knowing any different on the first night I closed the shed door.

I thought they were going to knock the shed down, headbutting (they have horns) kicking and screaming.  I let this go on for a little while, thinking they would settle, but no.  I opened the door and out they came, been out ever since.

Now when I say out, that means in their pen with access to their shed if they need/wish it.  Most nights you can see them sleeping on the tables we have in their pen.

Their browsing area is fenced off with a gate from their pen to this area, that is closed at night.

We do have preadotrs here and lots of stray dogs, but we have had no problems our dogs keep them away, just ordinary dogs not LGD's.  these dogs do not go in with the goats.  But will bark and chase away, tear to shreds if needed anything that comes close by.

Just my story.


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## DonnaBelle

We do lock up the goats in the barn at night. It makes for me sleeping much better.

I also lock up the chickens at night.

We are big on electric fences.  We have a electric fencing around the chicken run, and around the goat lpasture area.

The only critter I can't keeped locked up and corraled at night is DH, he has a thing about going outside at 1:00 am for a wee and to survey his holdings.  It's a man thing I think.

DonnaBelle


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## jodief100

DonnaBelle said:
			
		

> The only critter I can't keeped locked up and corraled at night is DH, he has a thing about going outside at 1:00 am for a wee and to survey his holdings.  It's a man thing I think.


Just marking his territory, mine does it too.


I have three sided stalls on the lee side of the barn and a pen immediatly around it.  They are shut out of the field at night but can still go out.  Most nights they are all out under the stars.  

I also have LGD's.


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## Egg_Newton

I have to or they sleep on the deck and my boyfriend isn't happy with all the little chocolate chips they leave up there.


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## BetterHensandGardens

We hear the coyotes many nights, so lock our ND's and chickens in at night.  It seems to me they're both small enough a coyote, fox, or raccoon would try for a meal, and I'd never sleep at night if we didn't.  We have woven wire fencing with electric at the top and bottom, but no LGD or donkey though. I might consider it if we had a dependable LGD.


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