Goats in the attic?

[CntryBoy777]

Well, I use an old chicken house for our 3 pygmy goats. It was designed with 2 different sides...a roost side and a nest side with a hole in the dividing wall so on bad days they could go from side to side without going outside. Here are some pics.... the left side is their sleeping shelter, and the right is where I feed them in bad weather....it was raining when I took this. Here is the inside.... this is the lounging area.... this is the feeding side. I don't have a pic on my phone of the hole, but it isn't very big and all 3 goats can run thru it, and they aren't tiny goats, tho they are a far cry from a standard sized goat.... it is my wife in the pic and she is 5'9" with a 34" inseam, just so ya can have some perspective. Our goats have horns, too. So ya may want to put the small door up a bit with access up and away from the goats if it is small enough, like some small branches the goats probably won't climb it, but figure on them trying. We've only had ours for a yr and a half, so it wasn't too long ago we were in your shoes of Wanting, but never had. They truly are interesting and great animals, but as mischiveous as 3-5yr olds. They will certainly Amaze ya with their antics and personalities. Presently I am working to expand the fenced area so we can add a few more. Hope some of this will help ya, and tho my experience is very limited, will answer what I can for ya....all ya gotta do is ask.

 

[JoyfulGoats]

Thanks for your help Have you had any issues with the horns? I want my goats to be "productive pets", so I'm slightly worried about the horns, but overall I think it's best to keep them. I can't wait to get them.

How big in total is your goats' living space?

Do you think the goats would be able to get through a hole 5" wide by 8" high?

 

[CntryBoy777]

Probably not that small of a hole, but I'll measure it tomorrow and let ya know. I haven't measured the inside of the bldg either and will do that too. I'll have the tape out tomorrow digging post holes, so it won't be a problem.. Here is a pic of their immediate area they have now, there is a deck around the bldg, and it is the Best thing I could've ever done....just beginners luck really. They sleep on it, lounge on it, play on it, and it keeps them off of the ground.... the back area of their pen... the back of their house is just behind the cedar tree....I sow rye grass, winter peas, and crimson clover in their pen in the fall and they eat on it all winter. We get them out every day and walk them around for about an hour or so, they browse on the weeds in the field and honeysuckle on the ditch bank.

 

[Latestarter]

Really, I think maybe you're overthinking this. You don't need to spend a lot of money to make a "goat house"... A three sided shelter with a roof called a "run in" shelter would be more than adequate. You can do it with 4 pieces of 4x8 plywood or even particle board and some 2x4s... Lay three pieces as the sides and back and the 4th on top as the roof. Then get a roll of fencing and some T posts to make a round fenced in area with the ends of the fencing connecting to either side of the run-in shelter (leave one side gently attached so it can act as a gate) and you'll be more than adequate. You could even enclose the area with cattle panels wired together in a circle without many T posts, and that way the "corral" could be more easily moved to fresh grass every so often. I would be concerned about keeping the goats and chickens together in that small space for fear the chickens would get stepped on. Also it's not good for the goats to eat chicken feed.

Hope you'll share what you end up doing with us as it may help someone else down the road. Congrats on your new place and plans!

 

[JoyfulGoats]

I am considering that as well. I would want it to have a closed door though, as I want to be sure that predators can't get in. One of the reasons why I was trying to find a no build option is that the part of our lot where we currently have the chicken shed is a "buffer zone" for our neighbours who have trees. Even though our lot has been a field for over 50 years with no trees and our neighbours' lands are dry, it is apparently "a protected wetland" because when the snow melts, there is water for a tiny bit since it is clay soil . Part of our land is a buffer to the non-existent wet land (we've had the lot since spring and it's drier than our city lot). To build on it there again is a bit complicated. Doable, but a hassle. If we were to build on the opposite side of the lot, then we would have to walk the goats to the fence each day, which could be an option, but do you think they would just jump the fence trying to get back home? I will look into our options and see. We might be able to build another shed (max 10x10) about 70 ft from where the first one is, which we could build the way you described.

A new building would be my ideal solution, so I will check about this option again. Thanks

 

[CntryBoy777]

Sorry @JoyfulGoats , I got the pics but forgot to post them. The hole is 10"x16".... and the measurements of each room is about 9.5'x5.5'. This is a pic of the nest boxes my Mom used. The reason I included it, is because the 2 Boys have been getting up there since we got them at 3mnths old..... ...my Mom would separate the 2 rooms when she had a broody hen, and would then allow the hen to raise them, separate from the flock.

 

[JoyfulGoats]

Thank you for the measurements . If I'm understanding correctly, your goats use the chicken nests? Do they sleep in the nests?

For the coop, it will be possible to build a new shed (but not as elaborate as the first one). Something like this:

Kinda as Latestarter described. We are approved by the conservation group to have it 10x10, 70 ft away from the current one. We might be able to move it closer if we submit a request. It will have 2 doors of 2ft wide each, so that we can have a 4ft opening if we want. The other 3ft on each side will be fixed. One of those 3ft x10ft will be a raised sleeping area. Is that wide enough? I don't know how goats sleep. If we get more goats, the other side will also be a sleeping area.

 

[Bruce]

I'm glad you mentioned 2 doors and the solid section. I can just imagine trying to swing an 8' wide piece of plywood. Since your reason for "total enclosure" is predator protection, not weather protection I wonder if the upper half of the solid section and the doors could be made with 2x4 wire so there is a lot of light and air. Maybe even everything above shoulder height so they can see out.

That first one must be somewhere it never snows, no way I'd want to shovel everything away down to dirt from the front of it to open the door even a few feet. Unless you are going to raise it off the ground some, I think I'd make it so the bottom of the doors are a foot up, the goats and people can step over.

I don't know goats so someone else can answer whether the goats would like a sleeping platform or not.

 

[NH homesteader]

Make sure there is adequate ventilation in whatever you build for them, or they will end up with respiratory issues. What kind of predators are you trying to keep out? I don't lock my goats in at night. They are fairly close to my house though.

 

[CntryBoy777]

@JoyfulGoats no they don't get in the nests, but lay on top and on the boards in front of the nests.