Various questions...

[JusticeFamilyFarm]

Hi all! It's been a while since I've been on here... sorry. I was having a rough time with one of my young chickens the past few weeks and had to put her down and have her necropsied this week, so I was spending lots of time over on BYC. Looks like it was Marek's, for those of you who have/know about chickens. Poor girl, only 12-13 weeks old. Anyway- back to my goats.
I have a few questions and hope this is the right place to get some answers. I know it's a lot, so bear with me.
1. Can I tie a goat up with only a collar on or is it better to use a halter? Mine wear collars all the time, is that ok also?
2. I want my husband to built me a stanchion for bathing/grooming and possibly milking in the future- any tips on what it should or should not be made of/have on it? Pictures of ones you love, etc?
3. My goats will not eat the Manna Pro Loose Mineral I ordered- so I add it to their food (sprinkle it in their grain- which right now they only get a tiny bit a day for treats or sprinkle it on their Chaffhaye), but then have not much control of who gets what... is this an ok way to give it to them?
4. How do I know if they are getting enough to eat? I guess the better question would be how do I know if they are a good weight/condition? I'll probably be posting some pics on here soon to ask you all what you think.
5. I'd like to breed my doe some day- what nutritional supplements will she need prior to breeding and during, also what medications, etc? I know I'll have to try to track her cycle/when she's in heat- but is there also a breeding season? When is the best time of year to breed/kid?
6. Worming... I've gotten so many answers and I'm sure it will be the same here, but still give me your answers- do you alternate wormers or worm them with two kinds each time you worm? Or do you only worm when diagnosed with worms or having a health issue? The person I bought them from worms about 4 times a year and alternates between one with ivermectin and one with valbazen, if I remember correctly. Is this an ok protocol?

Thank you so much for hanging in there with me! I loves reading posts on here and learning as much as I can to give my goats the best home I can. Maybe I'll even convince DH that we need another one soon...

Edited for some spelling errors

 

[elevan]

1. Can I tie a goat up with only a collar on or is it better to use a halter? Mine wear collars all the time, is that ok also?
Are you tying the goat to be able to "work" on it...hoof trimming or something? If so, then the collar is fine.
If it's to allow the goat to graze / browse somewhere, then I personally wouldn't recommend it.

2. I want my husband to built me a stanchion for bathing/grooming and possibly milking in the future- any tips on what it should or should not be made of/have on it? Pictures of ones you love, etc?
You can make a stanchion out of wood, pvc or metal (if you've got a knowledgeable welder).
Most are pretty similar in design...google milking stanchion plans and you'll get lots of ideas.
Make sure you get your dimensions right or you may have a HUGE stanchion like some folks on here have accidentally made

3. My goats will not eat the Manna Pro Loose Mineral I ordered- so I add it to their food (sprinkle it in their grain- which right now they only get a tiny bit a day for treats or sprinkle it on their Chaffhaye), but then have not much control of who gets what... is this an ok way to give it to them?
If that's the only way they'll take it...it'll work. You should know that goats will take the loose mineral as they need it though...yours may not need it right now. I would try to continue offering it loose and see if they eventually start using it.

4. How do I know if they are getting enough to eat? I guess the better question would be how do I know if they are a good weight/condition? I'll probably be posting some pics on here soon to ask you all what you think.
Do a body condition score.

5. I'd like to breed my doe some day- what nutritional supplements will she need prior to breeding and during, also what medications, etc? I know I'll have to try to track her cycle/when she's in heat- but is there also a breeding season? When is the best time of year to breed/kid?
If she's healthy she won't need any supplementation imo.
She should be UTD on CD/T vaccine, I give a BoSe shot 2 weeks prior to kidding.
If there is a breeding season depends on what breed you have.
Best time of the year to kid depends on where you are and what your setup is imo.

6. Worming... I've gotten so many answers and I'm sure it will be the same here, but still give me your answers- do you alternate wormers or worm them with two kinds each time you worm? Or do you only worm when diagnosed with worms or having a health issue? The person I bought them from worms about 4 times a year and alternates between one with ivermectin and one with valbazen, if I remember correctly. Is this an ok protocol?
Check out this thread. I think it will be informative to you.
You want to make sure you're not breeding drug resistant worms.

 

[JusticeFamilyFarm]

Thank you , Emily! And, yes- the tying up question is for hoof trimming and grooming- until I get my stanchion... someday.
I'm going to check out that BCS chart and link about worming right now.