Let's Look at our Different Feeding Practices *GOATS*

[Cara Peachick]

I am new, so if anyone disagrees with me, please tell me.

I am in south, middle TN. I have dairy does only.

Spring-Fall:
Our land is 3 years past clear cut, so very brushy with sassafras, ragweed, locust, sage grass, various other trees, tons of berry bushes. They get free access to very brushy land from about 6 am - 8 pm.
At night, we usually pull some weeds/clover/grass for them to snack on, but they don't eat much at night.

My lactating doe gets about 7 cups a day of our local co-op goat feed which is non-medicated and includes copper. My fat, dry doe gets grain only rarely, with her herbal wormer. Same with the 2 week old baby, so far.

Manna Pro goat mineral free choice (which they ate a lot of when we first got them and now don't touch it much)

Kelp free choice

Winter:
will supplement with hay since the leaves will be off most of the brush and will begin everyone on grain


Occasional apples, carrots, tomatoes, tortilla chips, wheat thins as snacks.

I have probios, but only fed it when the does first arrived, figuring it may help them recover from travel stress. Their poops look great, so . . . if it's not broke, don't fix it?

 

[elevan]

I am new, so if anyone disagrees with me, please tell me.

No one is wrong on this thread

It seems to me that you're doing pretty good for just starting. Hope this thread provides you with the tools to make changes as you see that they are needed.

 

[elevan]

It seems to me that by volume the Flax seed would be a great alternative for the BOSS. Even though both bags are 50#...size of the flax seed is so much smaller so that you get more volume.

And the price per 50# sounds a little better on Flax right now...



Also do you mind answering this (I'm sure that it was missed):

Mossy Stone Farm -
Would you care to share your grain mix ratios?
Do you pre-grind your flax seeds? In humans this is an important step or the seeds go in and out the same goats may do some self grinding of the seeds...idk

 

[elevan]

I get my flax seed from an Amish store about 1 hr away...$18.00 for a 50# bag of meal.

Howdy Roll! I'd love to hear your feeding program

 

[elevan]

We do have a little dairy in some of our goats, I can tell the higher boers will get over weight easier. The dairy have a tendency to put frame on faster. The judge will comment about how nice the frame is, but they always come up a little short in the muscling down in their legs.

We creep our babies (all dairy) til they're 6-8 mos old, too. 20 is spot-on that after 8 mos, you would experience over-conditioning if you continued, but it does aid the dairy goats in gaining maturity faster (which helps you both in showing juniors and getting to the breeding readiness more quickly).

Welcome helmstead Care to share your own program?

 

[helmstead]

Sure.

Location: SW Indiana (also was N GA - nothing really changed other than hay - we fed fescue/orchard hay in GA)

Raise: Nubians, Mini-Nubians and Nigerians
Purpose: dairy, showing

Seasonal changes: nope

Browse: dry lot, no browse

Hay: alfalfa/orchard/clover mix, home grown

Feed: (by group)
Herd-general (includes bucks & creep): ADM Meat Goat Power 16% pelleted (Deccox & AC)

Show Prep/Late Gestation/Lactation (can include bucks): ADM pelleted above + alfalfa pellets + 36% complete concentrate

Milk Stand: 12% semi-sweet high end horse feed with oats

Supplements: copper & selenium boluses as needed

Mineral: ADM Meat Maker loose

 

[elevan]

Helmstead - Would you tell us why you prefer to feed dry lot? I'm guessing parasite control, but would like to hear your input.

 

[helmstead]

I can control exactly what goes in...more important to me for the milkers and the bucks.

We are working on pasture land for dry does/retired does, but I never plan to pasture my bucks. There are variables with browse that could easily 'mess up' my UC prevention.

Our set up (no rotational goat pens) makes parasite control a little harder, actually...than those with grazing land would have.

 

[PattySh]

Location Northeast Vermont
herd of 17 currently, Nubian, miniNubian, Oberhasli/AlpineXs, NubianX's, Alpine/Togg and a couple of Nigis
Use the herd for family milk, cheese, playmates for the grandkids etc

Nothing fancy in our feeding program

Does have free access to pasture/browse and venture out several times per day
Does get as much non medicated sweet goat feed as they can eat on the stand
All the mixed grass hay they can eat,

Every pen has several buckets of water changed daily (heated in the winter)

Dry goats no grain unless need it for condition.

Bucks get grass hay only and limited paddock browse

kids bottlefed til 3 months, then hay and Poulin sweet goat (right now 6 month old doelings eating about 2 cups a day or so, giving the buckling no grain right now reconsidering how we are feeding bucklings! Free access to grass hay and limited browse/pasture

Winter we add vegies, squash, carrot, fruits because of no pasture/browse available. Bring them in branches to strip bark occasionally when they look bored.

baking soda given as needed( given free choice when first introduce pasture in spring)

(Been leary to try loose minerals again, goats ate it by the fistfuls and milk tasted terrible), Have been using a berry flavored goat mineral block which they eat up pretty fast

 

[Roll farms]

Location: N. Central Indiana

Raise: Nubians, Toggs, 1 Ob - Boers, Kikos, and crosses

Purpose: dairy, show, pets

Seasonal changes: yup - a lot more hay in winter, more corn in the grain mix in winter.

Browse: grass, weeds, whatever comes up in their 1 acre pasture - also what I cut for them 1x a week in the 'back 40' when I clean fence rows.

Hay: alfalfa/grass mix

Feed: bucks, kids - Purina Noble Goat w/ a little BOSS (recently started experimenting w/ flaxseed meal)

Does: 50% Goat Chow, 20% Alf. pellets, 20% corn (more in winter), 10% BOSS (again experimenting w/ flaxseed meal - just started last week, dunno if it'll last)

Milk Stand: same as above - super productive / skinnies get topdressed w/ Calf Manna (and there's that one doe who won't take ANYTHING but corn on the stand. She'll dump the pan if there's anything else in it...the heifer....)

Supplements: copper and BoSe - everyone - boys get a pinch of AC 1 or 2x a week.

Mineral: ADM Goat Power free choice 2x a week, topdressed daily