URGENT!!! Really skinny dairy goat needs to gain weight

[Feo]

Well lots of people grow alfalfa but I am in a large (117 acre) farm in the middle of the city. That is why there are no farm stores or hay balers near me. So if I was to get some I would have to drive an hour away.

 

[babsbag]

Weight would help with her backbone but some dairy goats always have a prevalent spine.

 

[Feo]

I got some pictures!

 

[Southern by choice]

Well lots of people grow alfalfa but I am in a large (117 acre) farm in the middle of the city. That is why there are no farm stores or hay balers near me. So if I was to get some I would have to drive an hour away.

I know what you mean! Hay is $7.50 a bale at TSC which is 30 minutes away, the closest we can get hay. They can really take advantage of people who don't live out in the country and raise prices super high.

I know people who drive out of state to get their hay. Most people I know drive at least an hour away (one way) to get good quality hay.

TSC is not taking advantage of you. Most people have NO IDEA what it cost to ship a tractor trailer load in. It is all by weight and it is expensive. TSC needs to also make money to pay employees etc.
Companies have to pay for shipping lanes, as well as with all the new and constantly ever changing laws and rules for drivers, one their alloted time is up they MUST park the truck. It doesn't matter if they were stuck behind an accident for 3 hours and never moved... once that time is up that's it.

Hay is costly to grow, costly to cut, bale, backage add ship. AND it is also greatly affected by weather... I know many hay people... they aren't getting rich off of you -trust me.

 

[NH homesteader]

Our local feed store sells hay for over $8 a bale. It's amazingly expensive but it's really good hay and I know they have to have it trucked in and it's stored off site so it is basically trucked twice. I grimaced when I had to buy it a few times last year but that was my own fault for not stocking up! And I was thankful that they had hay when everyone else was running out!

This year... We've had a major drought and I'm stocking up asap so I don't have to pay even more if I run out in winter!

 

[Southern by choice]

An average sq of alfalfa here is $14

 

[NH homesteader]

How big of a bale is that?

 

[NH homesteader]

I would not be able to afford goats if I paid that much a bale! Or I would have to sell a lot of milk to make up for it. Yikes.

 

[Goat Whisperer]

Well.... she says in a whisper: When I was showing, my show herd had self-feeders full of grain in every pen and free choice alfalfa. I know, crazy huh? But, back then in the Pygmy world - wider was better. When one of my buck's won his last GC, he was so fat he couldn't even breed a doe.

That was one of my last shows - might have been THE last one. I took that boy home and got the weight off of him and he lived to be nearly 12.

I know quite a few folks that free-feed their standard dairy goats. I could free-feed some of the lamanchas with no issues, but my dwarfs would eat themselves to death. Same goes with milk!
I don't know if its my ND's or what, but I swear they get fat if they even look at feed Could be they are the red/tan that and most of them have the same problem. One of our other ND's is always a great weight, never fat or skinny but she is a whole different line and body structure. That is where knowing your goat is key, others need more feed than others- whether its 2 cups or 2 pounds- keeping the goat healthy is top priority .
I don't care how much (or little) someone needs to feed their goat/s, as long as the goat is a decent weight it has no affect on me whatsoever.

 

[frustratedearthmother]

Well said, GW!

Grass hay at a feed store here is minimum $10.00 for a square bale and alfalfa at least $18. On the other hand, I can get a big 1000-1200lb bale of prairie hay for $35.00 - $40.00. "Horse" hay - usually Bermuda - can be closer to $60 - 70 a round bale. Glad my herd will eat prairie hay - that's what grows in their pasture, so they're satisfied with that. But, they do appreciate Chaffhaye, and they get it when conditions call for it.