Problem child

[Alexz7272]

So the Nubian I picked up has become my problem child. Although she was with Nigerian Dwarfs, she HATES my babies and momma. During feeding time she is very aggressive. To the point I have to sit out there and monitor. Otherwise she will let NO ONE eat but her. Before she arrived, everyone ate in harmony together, so its frustrating. I'm thinking it might be a good idea to find her a new home but not sure how lucky I'll be in doing that. She is believed to be 8+ and was already easily given up before. Cant see why anyone would want to buy her. She is very sweet and gentle with ME and my 3 year old nephew. But not really with anyone else. Any advice? Thank you

 

[TAH]

My my that is to bad. Have you tried giving her. Her own feeder? @Southern by choice @Goat Whisperer @Latestarter got any ideas

 

[TAH]

I am sorry you having to deal with this.

 

[frustratedearthmother]

My goats eat as a group from feeders that hang on the opposite sides of the fence panels so that they have to stick their heads through to eat. It really cuts down on the fighting because they would have to pull their heads out of the feeder in order to bash anyone else. Before I had that set up I would put out more feed pans than goats...so that even if the goats got pushed away from one feed pan there was always an extra to go to. OR - tie her up when you feed... Hope you can find something that works.

 

[Mini Horses]

So you just got her & because she is causing a little upset, she goes?

Let's talk. If she was a milk doe, she may have only gotten fed at milking. Tie her up, she should be used to that. She is at a new place, no friends, no normal routine & needs some time to adjust.

At 8 she doesn't need to be shifted from place to place. Ok, that's one of the reasons I still have all these old mini horses -- I felt that I didn't want them to have to shuffle and adjust in their later years -- of course many had been with me for a long time. Not the case with the goat but, give her a little help if you can work it out.

Goats do not like change!! Just feed out of turn.......yikes!!!!!

 

[Latestarter]

I don't know, and only just throwing this out there... Since she's new to the group, I think that most/many times there are little squabbles until the new pecking order is established, then things tend to settle down. In the mean time, tying her off with her own feed bucket while the others eat might work, though I doubt that will do anything toward eliminating the issue permanently... Multiple feed areas might help till they all adjust... Sorry, I don't really know.

 

[babsbag]

She is probably trying to make her place in the herd. I would give her another place to eat, even if it is temporarily a pile on the ground elsewhere. You just want to be sure of two things...that she gets to eat, and that she doesn't hurt the smaller goats by butting them too hard. But they can take a lot so don't panic either. Give her time. Like @Mini Horses said...goats hate change, especially at her age. Poor girl, new herd, new people, new area...it's rough.

 

[Southern by choice]

It could be she is asserting her self because she is new in the herd. It could be that is why she was sold too.
A good friend had been dealing with a goat that is just a plain jerk to all the other goats... it had become very problematic. Never letting the other goats at the hay feeder.... so they modified it and it is two sided so the goat can control all sides.... the goat will try to stomp any other does kids... it was one thing after another... they separated blah blah blah... one of the goats was so terrified she would just hide. Feeding and milking became a nightmare and took twice the time because of her. They at one point had to put her in her own lot. The goat was happy and did quite well. Yep, a lone goat. She liked being a lone goat. They did try everything and 2 years of this was enough. They sold her with a wether that was just as much of a jerk as she was... the one goat she kinda got along with.
Sometimes, that one goat can cause so much tension and problem that it becomes too much. The herd needs to live in some harmony and one really bad trouble maker can cause tremendous work, tremendous stress, death, injury etc.
The people that bought her were given ALL the details and they said she'd be perfect. They only needed one milkgoat and if she was ok alone or ok with the wether that was perfect. She is doing great in her new home.
She was always people friendly just not goat friendly.

My computer is down and hard to post but on another goat group this discussion was just talked about. MANY people there have had a troublemaker and tried many things. Once the goat was gone the peace and harmony was amazing. Sometimes it is necessary for the best interest of the herd, not just the one goat, to do what is best for the herd.

Sometimes a goat like that needs a different herd with other bossy goats, then there is an even playing field and they actually do better.

I would give it some time and see how things go. Did you quarantine the goat for 30 days in an adjacent lot so they could see each other and get use to each other first? Sorry... with the computer issues I can't go back and see.... this is one method that has always worked for us.

 

[Ponker]

I have a goat that runs from pan to pan vacuuming the feed so fast others don't get a chance to eat. I tell you, this goat is a super vacuum. She looks like she's inhaling the food. So the others push her away when she approaches their pan. She even eats up food her daughter is eating (a weanling).

My solution to Bella the super vacuum - Dalilah is in milk so she trots out to the milking area and we sit together while she patiently tries to teach me to milk properly. When we're done, there is always a little bit of grain left in the stand that picky Dalilah didn't eat. So when I open the gate and let her out to the pasture, Bella pushes in and jumps up on the stand. I promptly close her head in and add a little more grain. I take the opportunity to rub her all over including her udder. When she's in pasture, she's friendly as all get out except for touching the goods. While Bella is super vacuuming the grain from the milk stand the others eat in harmony with nobody getting mad and no drama. When the crowd is almost done at the pans, I let Bella go out. She rushes to finish what's left but everyone has had their share (even Bella). I'm happy and not stressed out, the herd is happy and not stressed out, Bella is happy and not stressed out... seems like the solution presented itself and I just went with it being a total noob and all.

So while you're out there during feeding time, maybe watch for an opportunity for a solution. My goats eat fast and then bounce around playing for awhile then head for the hay feeder. I enjoy being out there during feeding time and take the opportunity to check a couple FAMACHA scores (just completed my training and have the certificate and the coveted color eye membrane chart!) and freshen their water.

My goats arrived as a new herd. I bought them from a breeder four hours away who has a herd of 49 does plus her buck herd. She had her mega herd further divided into smaller herds. I could tell that some of the herds were favored over others just by looking at the condition of the does upon arrival. Some were great others were dry with course hair and fish tails. And then I knew these goats weren't already part of a herd together so they are a new little herd. They are still pushing each other around a bit but most of the major brawling was over the first few days. There are still some disagreements and shoving but nothing I can see as vicious or with the intent to hurt more than just pride.

How long have your goats been together? Do they have stuff to do? I read a lot of goat books and get a lot of information from the books. I always cross reference and double check what I hear as advice because what works for one may not work for another. And as Southern by Choice mentioned, quarantining is a vital practice to keep your beloved animals safe from disease, and you from agonizing heartbreak.

 

[Alexz7272]

I really do not want to find her a new home, I got her specifically to avoid that from happening. (She had already been moved around so much) I got her the beginning of the month and quarantined for about 2 1/2 weeks.
I have been feeding her separately but not while restricted, maybe I will try that as she tends to run around and eat all other feed pans as well. She does sound like a super vacuum as @Ponker said!
I have a decent amount of toys for them, two cable spools with a walk way across the top, a multi-branch tree stump to climb on, my old 35 tires from my Jeep to jump around on and a horse ball to kick around. Is that maybe not enough?
My concern is not just during feeding time. I have caught her corning everyone but the Alpacas (who are bigger then her) and then ramming them into the fence. I had two limping goats just this morning
Thankfully she does not have horns at least. I hate the idea of getting rid of her but also cannot let her hurt the others. I will definitely try some of what you guys suggested. I hope it works, thank you!