First Time Goat Owner + Pregnant Doe. What to Feed?

[thailand]

Hi all,

I am about to be the proud new owner of a beautiful 4 year old Thai native/Alpine doe who is approximately 60 days pregnant.

Seriously excited.

But....I'm nervous about what I should be feeding her. I don't have anything at this stage...except a contact of where to buy bales of Pangola hay from. This is the type of hay she is used to eating at the seller's place. I've briefly checked out the local feed shops here and there is no specific goat feed available, only a dairy cattle feed at 21% protein. (There may be a smaller protein level available, I'll have to go back and check).

Also, I don't know what goat supplements (if any) might be available in Thailand. I do know I can get loose minerals and also a block of something (salt or minerals?).

But.....what I need to know is what can I get by on....and what is imperative to have?

Grains......do I need to feed these, and WHAT grains? There is no goat chow to speak of so I would have to mix something up myself. I do know where to buy BOSS, can get pearled barley, cracked corn, mung beans, rolled oats (human variety), millet seeds, and a mixed seed mix for birds that I give to my chickens! Any of that any good??

Thanks so much for all your help Unfortunately I don't have a lot of time to search through the forum (daughter in NZ just broke her arm, had surgery this morning to put in a plate, and travelling here to us in Thailand for Christmas this Thursday! I now need to go pick her up from Bangkok so everything is rush rush rush.....and have to put of delivery of our new goat till after I get back on Sunday). If there is an appropriate thread that someone could point me too that would be great too

 

[thailand]

Just heard back from a contact in Thailand who raises goats that it is possible to buy a 14%, 16% and 18% specific goat grain . Working on getting a phone number now for the company to find out where to buy in my area.

However, I still need a solid feeding plan for this girl....and to know whether I should even feed grain at this point in her pregnancy? Thanks

 

[sadieml]

Hello, again. First, I'm really sorry about your daughter, but fortunately she's getting to be with you now. (BTW - My daughter, age 13, has recently begun to call me Mum! Just because, she says.)
How long has she been separated from you? I know my Mama passed away March 2013 and I tell everyone you're NEVER old enough to lose your mother. Mama didn't lose her mother until 2 mos. before her 81st b-day and my Nanny was 101 1/2!

Anyway, about your nanny goat, there are as many different ways to feed them as there are goat moms. Lots of us only give grain to lactating does (beginning about 1 month before freshening), working bucks, and young kids, since extra calories are good for them. In wethers, in addition to fat, grain can lead to urinary calculi (kidney stones), which can be VERY serious. Grain puts on weight, and isn't strictly necessary, as it isn't a big part of their "natural" diet. You can imagine that in the wild goats would seldom knock down stalks of corn, etc.. Hay they would eat in the wild, and anything else they like that comes about chest high to them - and of course they will stretch upward and some of them even climb trees. Their build tells the story, really. Cows and sheep are stockier and it is second nature for them to have their noses on the ground. Goats have longer thin legs, and like to stretch out and up but not too much scrounging. That said, everyone must also look at what is or isn't available for them and what prices may be like. Many of us want self-sufficiency as much for value as for quality and just plain fun. I have my own mix, but since my boys got into some damp hay a few weeks back, they haven't had any. Bloat is not fun. I am planning on starting them back slowly since the cold weather has really arrived.

Instead of boring you to tears, I will try to get some of the real experts on BYH to give you some info to help you make your decisions about feed. Many of us goatie moms try to give a hay that is a blend of alfalfa and timothy (legume and grass, respectively). They need both because legume is higher in calories and grass gives the necessary roughage. @SheepGirl is great with the science of feeding (and the math). @babsbag , @goatgurl , @Goatgirl47 , @Goat Whisperer , @Latestarter , and I know I'm leaving out others, but if a few of these weigh in with their wisdom, you will probably have plenty of food for thought, maybe too much! I'm still a newbie myself, so I want to be careful not to lead you astray.

Looking forward to seeing you with your daughter and your goatie girl...and don't forget pics of the family when you can. ...9 little ones...wow...

 

[thailand]

Our daughter is 24 yrs old!! She's been back in New Zealand for 2-3 years now..but she grew up here with us and still considers Thailand 'home'. She's not married so is kinda on her own, and her boyfriend is away on business and it's just not possible for him to be with her right now. I've just booked tickets to fly down to Bangkok. Doctors in NZ have amazingly given her the all clear to fly here on Thursday. Only this morning did she have emergency surgery to have a plate put in her arm which she broke yesterday.

It's so hard being a mum or dad when you're kids are in trouble and so very far away!

So, with this new news, I'm about to phone the goat seller and see if he can deliver her when I arrive back instead, on Sunday.

 

[babsbag]

I had to look up the hay, and it is about perfect for a goat. Can be up to 14% protein which is above perfect for a lactating animal. As far as grain, if the hay is a good as it should be I wouldn't give her much until she kids and then introduce it slowly but I would let her have up to 3 qts. if she is raising a kid(s) and you are milking her. The 16% grain should be good enough; especially if there is a big difference in price. If she gets too much grain now she can grow BIG kids which makes kidding more difficult.

BOSS is good too, but only a 1/2 cup or less a day. It just adds some extra fat that mine usually need when in production. Mung beans might be interesting too, but just a guess, no experience. Mine love pumpkins, squash, pumpkin seeds, and acorns.

Can you get a loose goat mineral? They really need these. Of course I don't know the composition of your soils at all so really no way for me to know the make-up of the hay you will get but selenium, copper, zinc, and manganese are the ones that are usually talked about when talking goats.

Need to get your kidding kit started in case you need to order something. Lots of towels or disposable pads for beds are good. Iodine too for dipping the cords. There is a list somewhere...let me find it.

Sorry about your daughter but glad she is still getting to come and visit and that she wasn't injured more seriously. She might set off the metal detector at the airport though

 

[thailand]

Thanks Babsbag, the countdown is on till Sunday when she comes "home" to us! Oh....so excited! Thanks also for the kind thoughts about my daughter..you never stop being a mum, no matter how old they are

So, for the sake of clarity.....when I get this pregnant goat home, assuming she is about 90 days pregnant, I should just free-feed her the Pangola hay? (Just been and bought 3 x bales this morning). And are you saying I should feed her a little of the grain then at this point...if so 3 quarts now? Should I give her a little BOSS now too....again how much please (90 days pregs?). Should I give her alfalfa hay too....I can get that here. How much of this hay?

I can get loose goat minerals so will make sure to buy some soon.

The selenium, copper, zinc and manganese you talk about....that is in the loose minerals right? So that would be taken care of.

Thanks so much.....I'm persnickety about details, and a terrible worry-wort so I like things to be super clear LOL

Edited with an afterthought: I only have today and tomorrow morning now to get everything together for her (before heading off to Bangkok)....so, we don't seem to be able to buy Nutri-dench here in Thailand. I'm wondering what else I may be able to give her to de-stress her after travelling for 2 hours in the back of the seller's pickup truck? She should arrive here mid-afternoon Sunday. Thanks

 

[sadieml]

Hello, there. I think what @babsbag was saying is do just the 16% hay, loose minerals, and browse until she kids. Then add in some grain (up to 3qts.) and maybe a little BOSS. The extras will beef up the fat content of her milk and boost production (grain = more milk). Also, even though it never looks like they're drinking a lot, they need fresh water all the time. You shouldn't need to add alfalfa if your hay has 16% protein. Yes the selenium, copper, zinc, and manganese should be in the minerals. Remember to offer baking soda free choice, for those gassy times. This can help prevent bloat. You can also make "Goat Cookies" as occasional treats.

Here's a recipe I found but haven't tried, yet:
Ingredients
1 cup uncooked oatmeal
2 cups raisin bran (crunched up works best)
1 cup raw wheat germ (or wheat bran)
4 large carrots - shredded
1 cup molasses
½ cup applesauce

Preparation
Combine molasses and applesauce in a bowl.
Combine all other dry ingredients in a separate bowl.
Gradually add the molasses and applesauce mixture to the dry ingredients to obtain a thick dough.
(If more dry ingredients are needed, add a little more raisin bran and/or wheat germ to the mixture.)
Shape into desired-sized balls and place onto a greased baking sheet.
Bake at 300 degrees until dried out and done (about 30 minutes). Can burn easily.

I intend to add beet pulp or just mashed beets instead of adding more wheat. I may even leave out the wheat altogether. If I let the mashed beets sun-dry for a day or 2, they may be okay. I don't want to buy a 50 lb bag of beet pulp, and I haven't found 5 or 10 lb bags. I'm thinking that if the beets don't dry enough, I might add some dry barley instead of wheat. I plan to make them this week, so I'll let you know how they turn out and how they go over with the boys. My son says these might be pretty good for human kids, too. We'll see. He likes their grain mix except for the cracked corn and BOSS. He said he could live with the cracked corn if the BOSS were just kernels, no shells. We're strange around here. We always taste new animal foods just to see what they're like.

 

[babsbag]

You might not want to give her nutri-drench unless you can add it to her water, goats don't take kindly to being "drenched" and I save it for emergencies; drenching might really stress her out.

I am hoping that she is people friendly and if so, give her lots of scratches on the head and some lovin'. I have brought home quite a few goats in my time and have never had a serious problem. Stress usually manifests as a snotty nose and/or cough, they call it shipping fever. Usually doesn't last long if they even get it. Only one out of many has had it here.

From what I read the Pangola hay is very palatable and some animals actually get fat on it. I don't know if I would free feed it to her, I give my buck (the only goat that lives alone) about 4 lbs a day. I would feed her and see if she will leave some or if it really is so good that she wants to eat without stopping. If she stops then just don't give her anymore until she finishes it. I don't think you need the Pangola and Alfalfa unless one goes out of season and you can't get it.

Find out what the seller is using, the same is good to start.

No grain for now unless you just want to be nice with a handful. Judge her condition, if she isn't skinny she doesn't need any. BOSS is the same, a handful as a treat every few days won't hurt. The big thing with goats is to not make any food changes quickly. When you add the grain AFTER KIDDING do it slowly, only a cup a day to start. She might not need as much as 3 qts. it really depends on the goat. I feed mine on the milk stand and the slower ones get more as it keeps them happy. If you are milking her and she has kids she is nursing she will most likely need the grain, unless Thai goats are hardier than mine

The minerals will have those minerals that I listed, and others. Put them out free choice, but out of the rain. Also some people put out of pan of baking soda free choice too, I have never done that but not saying that you shouldn't.

Questions are good, I knew nothing when I got the goats I have now; I was a tad bit afraid of them. The one I had 33 years ago lived by my dumb luck. She ran free all of the time unless I locked her up with the dogs. There were stray dogs and coyotes everywhere and just the fact that my own dogs didn't kill her is amazing. I would come home and find the dogs sitting in the far corner of their dog kennel and the goat in their house.

 

[Latestarter]

Are you intending to milk her for family use after she kids? If so, do you have a milking stand for the goat to get on for milking? If so, there's normally a shelf/bucket/tray on the front so when the doe puts her head/neck through the holder (not sure what it's actually called) and you close it to keep her in place, you would put a little grain in the bucket to keep her busy/occupied while you milk. She then associates being milked with getting grain (a treat). If you intend to milk her, you can start getting her used to the milk stand and you touching her all over, including her udder and teats before she ever kids. This will make milking much easier for you when you actually start (about 3 weeks after she kids). Be patient... if she's never been milked before it may take some time and trust for her to get to that point. Why it's best to start the process early. Training for the stand is ALSO beneficial for when you need to give her a mani/pedi

You CAN giver her a little grain starting immediately, but it shouldn't be necessary based on 14-16% hay. Use it as a treat to get her to "like" you and bond to you. Just remember... bonding with you, hubby, and 9 kids, that little bit of grain (each) will add up FAST! You can get a bale of the alfalfa hay and see which of the two she prefers, but really the one that saves you money should be fine. Hay by the same name CAN vary in quality. Depends on when cut, where grown, how old, how stored, etc. So you could get a bale now and a bale you get 3 months from now could be better or worse.

Other than that, she should be just fine with the hay and the browse from the land next door/across the street... You don't want to give her a lot of grain before she kids as the kids will get the benefit of that as well, and grow large, which could cause birthing problems. AFTER she kids, then slowly start giving her grain, increasing the amount over time to help her maintain condition and adequately produce high quality milk while she's producing. What Babs was saying is you can go up to ~ 3 quarts (max) if she is feeding her kids and you are milking her... BOSS would be a treat either side of kidding.

For de-stressing, I've always heard (and so far it's proven true) that ice cream or chocolate or even better, a combination of both works fairly well I suggest YOU start consuming it well before your goat arrives

There's no guarantee she'll be stressed... Just don't crowd her, stay calm, move slow, make sure she has water, hay, minerals, & baking soda available to her. You can have some treats ready to help her focus on "now" rather than what she's just been through. Be there with her, don't leave her alone.

 

[Latestarter]

Didn't realize Babs was typing while I was