So what to feed this pregger goats?

[ohiofarmgirl]

i'll look into the sprouts... as soon as i'm done sniffing my pumpkins!!!
;-)

actually i kinda got the idea to give her half of one of the jack-be-little pumpkins.. nice starter side and i have 3 50 pound bags of them!!!

 

[FarmerChick]

my 3 giant pumpkins from the yard.

took them to the pasture and smashed open and goats ate all of them....every single seed and the rinds. that herd pulverized those 3 pumpkins..LOL

 

[freemotion]

Those little pumpkins keep a little longer, so save them if they look good now, and feed them last. I have a gazillion of them in boxes in my cellar. I have one empty box and once a week I transfer every darn tiny pumpkin from one box to the next, looking at all sides for suspicious colors or spots. By the time I feed these seriously, there will be snow on the ground and the chickens will be interested, too, so I will put a pot of water on the wood stove and throw a bunch in.

We are always tripping over buckets, pails, and various other containers near my back kitchen door!

 

[FarmerMack]

hey all you organic goat lovers! (or likers)

suggestions on how to cater to a pregnant doe??

I was told by an experienced goat herder to give my pregnant doe some luke warm water with molasses in it for extra energy. She seemed to love as all the goats did. Just by organic molasses if there is such a thing

 

[FarmerMack]

my 3 giant pumpkins from the yard.

took them to the pasture and smashed open and goats ate all of them....every single seed and the rinds. that herd pulverized those 3 pumpkins..LOL

Pumpkin seeds are a natural wormer too. i noticed what the goats didnt eat the hens attacked in the end my pumpkins were nothing but small bits of orange remnants on in the dirt

 

[FarmerChick]

LOL--hens on the attack. Pumpkins don't have a chance do they> lol

Pine trees are good natural wormer also. All my pines in the pastures are attacked constantly. When we cut down like 4 giant pines, I threw them in the pasture and they stripped the bark bare. Then I hauled out the tree skeletons.

I collect christmas trees from everyone and feed them...not the ones that are commercially sprayed though. My goats go thru those trees in a flash..lol...good winter treat for them.

 

[FarmerChick]

hey all you organic goat lovers! (or likers)

suggestions on how to cater to a pregnant doe??

I was told by an experienced goat herder to give my pregnant doe some luke warm water with molasses in it for extra energy. She seemed to love as all the goats did. Just by organic molasses if there is such a thing

good idea....when my does are about 3 weeks from kidding, I add sweet feed into their pellet ration. Keeps ketosis at bay. Preggo does use up their glucose stores quickly....so sugar in their system right before kidding is important actually. Carrying twins, trips, quads, can sure tack their system fast and they die...that bit of sweet feed ensures they are getting what they need.

 

[FarmerMack]

hey all you organic goat lovers! (or likers)

suggestions on how to cater to a pregnant doe??

I was told by an experienced goat herder to give my pregnant doe some luke warm water with molasses in it for extra energy. She seemed to love as all the goats did. Just by organic molasses if there is such a thing

good idea....when my does are about 3 weeks from kidding, I add sweet feed into their pellet ration. Keeps ketosis at bay. Preggo does use up their glucose stores quickly....so sugar in their system right before kidding is important actually. Carrying twins, trips, quads, can sure tack their system fast and they die...that bit of sweet feed ensures they are getting what they need.

That is exactly what the herder told me. i didn't need anything but feed for milkers and the in the last 30 days of the pregnancy the molasses water.
Orion and lil Bo came out fine.

 

[FarmerChick]

yea when I first bought 50 goats and bred them (not knowing too much and learning very fast) I had 3 does die. Very very fast. Fine one day, boom on the ground the next and dead within a day. I had no idea why cause they were cared for very well. Called the vet when another doe went down and he came and hit her with an IV of propolyene glycol and other stuff and she jacked right back up. But he said usually they don't respond well at all and don't make it......well I never had any does die over the next 14 years of goat farming at kidding time. I read up on ketosis and preg toxemia and all that and know how to fight that problem now.

 

[PattiXmas]

Okay, now I am confused. Is it okay to feed goats Sweet Feed and hay? Our Sweet Feed isn't just strictly Sweet Feed - it's a mixture that our local feed store mixes up for dairy goats. They make it for each "growing" level of goats and increase the protein. Right now, we are feeding the feed that is recommended for pregnant or lactating goats. Am I doing it wrong? They get a few flakes of hay a day and about 4 scoops of the mixture a day.