How do you take care of goats?
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Question by browncat79: How do you take care of goats?
I want to get a pair of goats to eat the brush off my hillside. What are the basics I need to know about goats? I want to get 2 females. What shots do they need?
What do you think? Answer below!
3 Responses to How do you take care of goats?
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Well first off, they need more than just brush. If they are going to be eating brush I would feed them a flake of hay each at night and less than half a scoop of grain in the morning and at night. They will need to have their hooves trimmed about once a week or once every two weeks. I prefer once a week. You can do it yourself, you can purchase hoof trimmers online or at a TSC as well as book that you can learn more about goats from. They need their CD+T. If they have not had it at all they need 2 cc’s now (under the skin, not in muscle) and then repeat 21-28 days later. Then once a year after that. You can purchase needles and the CD+T vaccine online or at a TSC if there is one in your area. If not then you can order it from valleyvet.com.
anbymemc87
April 20, 2013 at 4:12 am
Well, first thing you need to know is that you need a fence. A very GOOD fence.
A fence is not only to keep the goats from wandering off, it’s to protect them from neighbor dogs coming over and killing the goats. If you think your neighbors dogs will not kill your goats, your wrong. The sweetest natured dogs (wouldn’t hurt a fly type) will turn into rabid wolves around sheep and goats.
You also need a solid three sided shelter, so your goats can escape the wind, rain, snow, and sun.
You should bed the shelter with straw, or wood chips.
You then need a water trough, filled with clean water for the goats to have access to 24/7.
You then need salt and mineral blocks. Make sure you provide iodized salt. You may also need to provide a selenium block, depending on where you live. Goats also have high copper needs. Make sure you provide a mineral block with copper. Copper is toxic to sheep.
When you get your two goats, you should clean each and ever hoof off with bleach, so you do not track disease onto your property.
You should also immediately worm them, and then follow a worming schedule per your Vet’s instructions. You need to give them a CD&T vaccination, with the booster about three weeks after the first one. CD&T vaccinates against Clostridium Perfringens Types C & D Tetanus Toxoid. Depending on where you live you may be REQUIRED to give more shots. I understand in New York you are required to vaccinate goats, sheep, horses and cattle against rabies. Check with your Vet.
Depending on how much brush you have, and the quality of what you have growing there, determines if you need to also provide supplemental feed. My goats actually get fat off the blackberries we have. Fat enough my Vet told me to cut back on the grain I was feeding my goats. When I informed him, not only did they receive NO grain, they received NO hay. Fat purely off the quality of browse they were able to find on my farm.
You also need to realize that goats are very good at removing brush. Are you sure your hillside will stand up to that? Meaning when the rains come, and there is no longer brush to hold hold the soil firmly in place, are you going to have a mudslide?
God to your public library and check out some books on goats, and read up on them. Go to your local fair, and chat with the goat people, and ask their advice.
~Garnet
Permaculture homesteading/farming over 20 years
Raising meat goats since 1999 (currently over 100 goats in my herd).
Bohemian_Garnet_Permaculturalist
April 20, 2013 at 5:04 am
just to add on to what garnet said
I don’t like most of the books
The book i really like is called
How to raise goats. and has the ffa emblem on it.
It is close to what i go by. so i would highly reccomend it.
I would say other things.. but it has already been covered by the other answers.
heartsnhooves
April 20, 2013 at 5:50 am