New goat owner looking for advice!

[Jake95]

Hello everyone. It a couple of days I will getting 2, 1 yr old fainting goat/Nubian crosses, and 1 2yr old Nigerian billy. I was wondering what is the best loose mineral I should give them? And by looking at this chart of my area, should I supplement anything else? Right now the guy I bought them from feeds them 1/2 pound of nobel goat feed a day, free choice hay, and he lets them graze. I hadn't asked him about what mineral he uses yet, which is why I'm asking. Any advice would be appreciated! Thank you.

ElementSymbolMeanStd. dev.MinimumMaximum
AluminumAl (wt%)0.4750.3010.0682.077
ArsenicAs (ppm)0.9800.4170.3423.319
CalciumCa (wt%)0.6791.0150.0369.223
CopperCu (ppm)2.1820.8341.0147.697
IronFe (wt%)0.2030.1070.0170.805
MercuryHg (ppm)0.0120.0030.0100.044
MagnesiumMg (wt%)0.1290.2790.0052.890
ManganeseMn (ppm)42.41424.9558.773225.251
SodiumNa (wt%)0.0080.0080.0030.058
PhosphorusP (wt%)0.0390.0480.0030.466
LeadPb (ppm)6.7432.2812.34715.959
SeleniumSe (ppm)0.1710.1530.1001.668
TitaniumTi (wt%)0.1760.0450.1010.387
ZincZn (ppm)11.4156.0162.65057.218

 

[elevan]

Welcome to the forum @Jake95 !

There are 2 important components you want in your mineral selection. First is that it have a 2 to 1 ratio of Calcium to Phosphous...meaning 2 times as much Calcium as there is Phosphorus...at least 2 times as much. A 3 to 1 ratio is even better. Second is that it contains Ammonium Chloride - this is important for your buck to help prevent urinary calculi (stones).

In addition, unless you are going to feed the exact same brand of feed and use the exact same hay supplier using the exact same hay mixture then I would suggest that you buy a little bit of feed and hay off of the breeder to mix with what you get for a few days to allow your goats to adjust to your new feed to prevent issues such as bloat.

Here are some of our articles on goats that are available on the forum for you to browse through:
http://www.backyardherds.com/resources/categories/goats.2/
In addition there are a lot of great threads / topics to read that you'll learn a great deal from.

Oh, and one more thing...when you bring those goats home you simply must post pictures so that we can see what they look like. We're quite greedy that way - we MUST have our picture fix

 

[taylorm17]

I'm not good at this stuff, but eleven knows a lot. Also I agree in the FACT that we are greedy for pictures here!!!!

 

[Jake95]

 

[OneFineAcre]

Those are right nice looking goats.

 

[elevan]

I agree, they are nice looking. I love the airplaine ears on the one

 

[goatboy1973]

Wonderful looking goats! Congrats on your new additions! Do the half Fainters actually keel over??? Interesting cross. With the Nubes being a dual purpose breed (meat/milk) and the fainter being a natural meaty animal and built like a bulldog (height=width), you have the beginnings of a good little commercial meat goat operation if you went with a fainting or Meat type buck. You also could go the other route if you were looking for a milking starter herd due to the fact that Nubes are known for the rich, high butter fat content, and large amt. of milk they produce. The Fainter's blood should add parasite resistance and trouble free hooves, while breeding them to a Nigerian will produce offspring that should milk pretty good with smaller birth weight that will help insure there's no birthing problems even in first time mommas. The male offspring could be sold as pets (Nubes are naturally the friendliest of all goat breeds) or sold as meat kids and bring a really good price if you hit the mkt. at the right time. You have chosen well and left yourself several options which is a must in the goat biz. You have a wonderful foundation to build upon. Good luck, and keep the pics Rollin'.

 

[goatboy1973]

I was so focused on the goats, I forgot to add my 2 cents worth to the mineral subject. If it were my goats, I would use a goat specific loose mineral. Sweetlix has a few different choices when it comes to goat minerals. The others are right in that there has to be a correct ratio of Ca to P. This will help prevent urinary calculi, ensure your goats have healthy teeth and bones, and structurally grow to their genetic potential. They also need the correct amt. of copper in their diet to insure they have a healthy hair coat and their body is producing enough Red Blood Cells which carry oxygen rich blood throughout the body. If you use a trusted name such as Purina or Sweetlix (there are other brands also like CO-OP) and a goat specific mineral, you don't have to bother with the correct formulation, it has already been taken care of.

 

[Jake95]

Wonderful looking goats! Congrats on your new additions! Do the half Fainters actually keel over??? Interesting cross. With the Nubes being a dual purpose breed (meat/milk) and the fainter being a natural meaty animal and built like a bulldog (height=width), you have the beginnings of a good little commercial meat goat operation if you went with a fainting or Meat type buck. You also could go the other route if you were looking for a milking starter herd due to the fact that Nubes are known for the rich, high butter fat content, and large amt. of milk they produce. The Fainter's blood should add parasite resistance and trouble free hooves, while breeding them to a Nigerian will produce offspring that should milk pretty good with smaller birth weight that will help insure there's no birthing problems even in first time mommas. The male offspring could be sold as pets (Nubes are naturally the friendliest of all goat breeds) or sold as meat kids and bring a really good price if you hit the mkt. at the right time. You have chosen well and left yourself several options which is a must in the goat biz. You have a wonderful foundation to build upon. Good luck, and keep the pics Rollin'.

Wow, thank you for all the info! I just got them because I liked the ears We are still looking at what direction we want to go in. I wont breed these girls until next year so I have time to figure everything out.

Thanks everyone for all the comments!

 

[Jake95]

And I don't know about the half fainting goats fainting, these girls are so calm nothing spooks them, and in the year the breeder has had them, they never fainted. but I don't know about the breed in general if they faint or not.