what do goats like?

[bj taylor]

i'm new to goats. I have just acquired a 1 1/2 yr doe & 7 doelings (boer/texmaster mix - if breed makes a difference). their housing is a carport w/dirt floor & open on both ends (visually). both ends have panels enclosing & the goats are locked up in there during the night. I get the distinct impression they are not feeling secure or cozy, or whatever else you want to term it. they are very safe from any predation. the perimeter fencing is very good. I want them to have good housing & haven't found a lot to read about to inform me how to make it the best for them.
they are meat goats currently being used for brush control so there are no issues such as milking.

do goats like cubby hole kind of places to sleep at night, or do they just like to sleep out in the open?

thanks for any input. it's appreciated.

 

[Pearce Pastures]

If you can make them a shelf to sleep on, they would probably love that. Nothing fancy, just something to let them get off the ground. Or be fancy and share pics!

 

[bj taylor]

a shelf?! I can totally do that. it will be absolutely nothing fancy. what kind of height are you talking about? two to three feet?
thanks a lot!

 

[Pearce Pastures]

Yeah, that should do it. This is our barn sleeping area, but it is also a play toy too.

 

[Moonshine]

I've been looking around and got the idea to put two car jack iron things on the ground and a 2x8 board on them and my goats love it. Its prolly a little less than a foot off the ground. Also my 5 year old is done playing in his step 2 plastic play house with steps and a slide. I took the slide off and put it in the goat pin and they love that too. Oh and I got them a big fat stump they love and a dog house I put shavings and hay in and they like all of that.

 

[Moonshine]

Oh something else, I saw a pic of a goat laying in a tire. These are all things that are laying around my house so super cheap lol I was thinking about putting an old tire in their pin and see if they like it too.

 

[Moonshine]

Yeah, that should do it. This is our barn sleeping area, but it is also a play toy too.
http://www.backyardherds.com/forum/uploads/2030_194.jpg

I absolutely love this and have see it pics before and was telling my mom about it!! I am going to build something like it one day for my babies for sure!!!

 

[bj taylor]

i'm being a bit challenged to get hubby motivated to help w/these things - but I will prevail

 

[CordleFarm]

My goats have a huge barn that they never use They would much rather pile into three dog houses instead. Dogloos are very popular at my house.

 

[woodsie]

My goats have a huge barn that they never use They would much rather pile into three dog houses instead. Dogloos are very popular at my house.

That's funny...I had two very decent shelters in my pen and all three kids thought it necessary to pile into and curl up in the dog kennel!