Feeding help with my goats

[Kaitie09]

So I know that we have been feeding wrong for a long time. But we need to figure out the right way for them. We have 2, 1yr old nubian/boer does and 5 yr old pygmy doe. The pygmy is fat, and the boers are healthy, but the pygmy tends to get very aggressive around food. we live in southern PA and have just been feeding grain and alfalfa everyday so they stay warm. With Spring coming we are trying to figure out the proper way to really feed them so we don't buy as much grain. Their pen does not really have any greens in it besides trees, but we are working very hard to get the boars yard trained like our pygmy. We have a farm right up the road that sells orchard hay and alfalfa, but what should we really be feeding them and how much a day?

 

[msjuris]

Hi,

I'm probably not the best person to be giving feeding advice, because, frankly, I'm a newbie and I'm convinced I overfeed my goats.

I have nigerian dwarf goats one buck, two bred does and just added a mini fainting doe. The two bred does share one 3qt scoop of goat pelleted feed each day, plus free choice hay, minerals and water. Now I have to admit, that they have had this diet from day one and I just increased the amount of grain since being bred.

The buck gets hay, free choice minerals and plenty of fresh water, as does the new goat who is running with him since she didn't get along well with the preggos.

Everyone has their own opinions on feeding. As long as your goats are healthy and in good condition, you may not want to change their diet too much. I'm in SEPA and get my hay locally. PA is not a selenium deficient state, so you should have no worries there. I'm not sure what else to consider, but hopefully this will give you a bump and someone else, more knowledgable than I, will chime in.

Marcy

 

[msjuris]

P.S.

 

[freemotion]

I personally just feed grain as needed, so if the goats are fat, you can quit feeding grain. It is the hay that keeps them warm....free choice hay, so they always have some fermenting in their rumen. That is what keeps them toasty, besides a draft-free place to sleep. You can also add some grass hay now if you'd like. Just add a bin of free-choice loose goat minerals that you change every 2-3 days (or add just enough that they finish it up and you only need to refill it every 2-3 days) and they are good to go.