New to Goats need advice

[kstaven]

Can be done as early as 8 weeks.

A young one can be "banded" rather than having surgery done. Most experienced breeders can do it very easily and inexpensively.

 

[20kidsonhill]

I know your daughter will love the goats, having 2 or 3 would be very easy on 4 acres, they would enjoy each other and your families company as well.

Make sure if you are getting a dam raised baby(raised by mother) it has been weaned for atleast 2 or 3 weeks and is used to grain and hay/pasture. find out exactly what kind of hay/grain/milk they are feeding the babies, and offer to buy a months worth to help the baby goats with the transition. Goats get very home-sick for their herd, and do not switch over too new feeds very easily. If you live close to the people and they are getting the feed from the local store, then you can just continue using that or switch to what you feel is best over the month time period.

Get a complete record of what they have vaccinated the goats with and wormed with. Ask what kind of worms/parasites they are having the most problems with.


find a good goat vet in your area. And take the goats in for a check-up.


Learn about coccidiosis.

 

[countrygirl911]

I know your daughter will love the goats, having 2 or 3 would be very easy on 4 acres, they would enjoy each other and your families company as well.

Make sure if you are getting a dam raised baby(raised by mother) it has been weaned for atleast 2 or 3 weeks and is used to grain and hay/pasture. find out exactly what kind of hay/grain/milk they are feeding the babies, and offer to buy a months worth to help the baby goats with the transition. Goats get very home-sick for their herd, and do not switch over too new feeds very easily. If you live close to the people and they are getting the feed from the local store, then you can just continue using that or switch to what you feel is best over the month time period.

Get a complete record of what they have vaccinated the goats with and wormed with. Ask what kind of worms/parasites they are having the most problems with.


find a good goat vet in your area. And take the goats in for a check-up.


Learn about coccidiosis.

they live over 2 hours from us the one little boy lives an hour and a half away from us. i just would like to know would the little boy be ok alone for a few months until we can find him a companion he is 4 weeks old has papers and is on a bottle so i would be able to ween him off and place him on the feed i want him to eat and he has been disbudded he would be around us most of the day if not all day except for at night. the people that are over 2 hrs away from us has 2 pygmy goats that are 10 weeks old not sure if they have papers or not not sure if they have been debudded and they are females. my concern on them is that at 10 weeks old they will be to big for my daughter to hold and love on she is 9 years old i can get both for 100 together th elittle boy is 100 dollars by himself. i just wish i could find someone that has little ones that are small and to where i could get 2 right now all i can find is older ones and can get two of them no problem i really want a small one that can grow up with my daughter. i would love to get the little boy for her but i would hate for him to get lonley and cry when we are not there with him until we can find a companion another boy we do not want babies. i appreciate all the help guess it will be up to me on what to do just wish that the little boy would not get lonley. and the 2 females were younger.

 

[countrygirl911]

as long as i keep the goat away from the chicken feed and allow them to roam with each other outside together will he be ok and not to lonley until i can find another small goat for him

 

[Pearce Pastures]

as long as i keep the goat away from the chicken feed and allow them to roam with each other outside together will he be ok and not to lonley until i can find another small goat for him

I think it is wonderful that you are getting a goat as a part of your daughter's therapy-I am a teacher and know firsthand how awesome goats can be for just that! One of my former students had a few bottle-fed whethers and he talked to me about them frequently during reading time and was also able to talk about them with some of the kids who were in 4H.

If you are new to goats and need a crash course, this is a great site to get lots of help. We also bought "Goats for Dummies" and it really gave us a good foundation to build on, though there are I am sure lots of other good books out there as well you could pick up.

Question, and sorry if you said this already, but what kind of quarters do you have set up for them? Do you have a fenced in area for them?

I'd say it might be okay for maybe a week to have him be alone but we had a doeling alone for that long and she was desperate for companionship other than just us. We went on quite a hunt to find her some buddies quickly (she's a happy little girl now!).

 

[elevan]

At 9 months my pygmies are between 25-30#...about the size of a medium dog...plenty small enough for your daughter to love. Keep in mind that if they spend a lot of time in your lap they may continue to want to do so as they get older. Pygmies fully mature at around 3 years, at which time a female will weigh between 60-70#...a wether (fixed male) will weigh between 70-80#.

My goats and chickens love each other. But you have to be very careful to keep the goat(s) away from chicken feed...and they will do anything to get to it

Be cautious with the dogs though...remember that goats are a prey animal and dogs are predators...unintentional "accidents" can and do happen. I would never leave a goat alone with a dog unless it were a trained livestock guardian dog.

 

[countrygirl911]

At 9 months my pygmies are between 25-30#...about the size of a medium dog...plenty small enough for your daughter to love. Keep in mind that if they spend a lot of time in your lap they may continue to want to do so as they get older. Pygmies fully mature at around 3 years, at which time a female will weigh between 60-70#...a wether (fixed male) will weigh between 70-80#.

My goats and chickens love each other. But you have to be very careful to keep the goat(s) away from chicken feed...and they will do anything to get to it

Be cautious with the dogs though...remember that goats are a prey animal and dogs are predators...unintentional "accidents" can and do happen. I would never leave a goat alone with a dog unless it were a trained livestock guardian dog.

how big are they usually at 1o weeks old

 

[Pearce Pastures]

I am not 100 percent on the average weight of a 10 week old but our 4 week old is about 10 pounds and I would guess than in six more week, she'll be around 15 pounds, not more than 20. Full grown, she will probably be around 60 given her parents weights and size. Full grown, her mom would not easily lie in my lap but would stay by my side for petting.

 

[Hillsvale]

Have you considered a wether for a pet? No hormone issues to deal with and they do better as a single than the typical doe.

Agreed on the wether... they make very affectionate animals. I make it a point of never having just one of anything... everyone needs a friend they can play with. I have had two cross bred nubian wethers and they are lovely and friendly.

 

[20kidsonhill]

I know your daughter will love the goats, having 2 or 3 would be very easy on 4 acres, they would enjoy each other and your families company as well.

Make sure if you are getting a dam raised baby(raised by mother) it has been weaned for atleast 2 or 3 weeks and is used to grain and hay/pasture. find out exactly what kind of hay/grain/milk they are feeding the babies, and offer to buy a months worth to help the baby goats with the transition. Goats get very home-sick for their herd, and do not switch over too new feeds very easily. If you live close to the people and they are getting the feed from the local store, then you can just continue using that or switch to what you feel is best over the month time period.

Get a complete record of what they have vaccinated the goats with and wormed with. Ask what kind of worms/parasites they are having the most problems with.


find a good goat vet in your area. And take the goats in for a check-up.


Learn about coccidiosis.

they live over 2 hours from us the one little boy lives an hour and a half away from us. i just would like to know would the little boy be ok alone for a few months until we can find him a companion he is 4 weeks old has papers and is on a bottle so i would be able to ween him off and place him on the feed i want him to eat and he has been disbudded he would be around us most of the day if not all day except for at night. the people that are over 2 hrs away from us has 2 pygmy goats that are 10 weeks old not sure if they have papers or not not sure if they have been debudded and they are females. my concern on them is that at 10 weeks old they will be to big for my daughter to hold and love on she is 9 years old i can get both for 100 together th elittle boy is 100 dollars by himself. i just wish i could find someone that has little ones that are small and to where i could get 2 right now all i can find is older ones and can get two of them no problem i really want a small one that can grow up with my daughter. i would love to get the little boy for her but i would hate for him to get lonley and cry when we are not there with him until we can find a companion another boy we do not want babies. i appreciate all the help guess it will be up to me on what to do just wish that the little boy would not get lonley. and the 2 females were younger.

As far as the little boy being okay for a few months until you can find him a friend, I would guess it would work out in the end, but let me put it this way, I never buy a goat from a farm with out buying two, I never keep doelings from my own herd unless I keep two around the same age. You get the point. But have I heard of people just having one goat, yes, I have. Have I heard people say their goat seemed fine, yes I have.
I would say if you have looked and just can't find another one the right size to match up to the little boy, just get the little boy for know, set up a nice place for him to stay in, when you can't be with him. make sure it is really secure, comfortable, because when they get attached to you, they will try really hard to get out to be with you and find you.
Set a routine for the little boy and your daughter. that may help a lot, until you can find a companion, feed at the same time every day, have play time at the same time, ect..... This may help him get used to the time when he needs to be by himself, he may also bond with one of your chickens or one of the dogs, but goats and dogs are tricky, since goats are prey and dogs are preditors. And then just keep looking for another one the same age.

You did say you had chickens and a dog or two? or was i dreaming that?

As far as amount of room they need for sleeping, A pen 4x6 or 4x8 is often used as a kidding pen. so This would be minimum size in my opinion for a sleeping area or indoors area in a barn or shelter, and then he would need an outside run to play in, when he can't be out loose in the yard. I would say a good size would be 12x12 or 12x16 fenced in outside for fresh air and exercise. Ofcourse the kind of shelter would depend on your location. I would recommend a bigger indoor area if you get hard witners with a lot of snow.

I would recommend some clilmbing toys for him. I often see people set up plastic kid's slides for their goats, which your daughter may also really enjoy. Goats love ramps and climbing and then jumping off. So besides enough space in his pen for food and water and a hay rack. I highly recommend a hay rack. He should have enough space in his pen for a climbing toy for excersize and fun.



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