- CARE FOR YOUR PET FAINTING GOAT
- Basic terminology
- Learn the lingo:
- Kid - a goat less than 6 months of age
- Doeling - immature female goat
- Buckling - immature male goat
- Doe - mature female goat
- Buck - mature male goat
- Wether - castrated male goat
- Polled – Born without horns
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- Fundamental Facts
- Lifespan: 10-12 years
- Space required per goat: indoor shelter 12’x12’ min. Pasture 2000sq. Ft.
- Goats need shelter and good fencing.
- Goats are social animals and need companions.
- Winter feeding: hay 2x per day from October thru April
- Fresh water supply year-round.
- Breeding age: females - 8 to 10 months.
- Gestation period: 150 days.
- Number of kids per gestation: 1 – 4.
- Ruminates: goats have a 4 chamber stomach and chew their cud.
- Behavior
- • Goats are social animals and enjoy the company of other goats or farm animals.
- • Goats can jump over 4 feet high. (Not Fainting goats)
- • Goats investigate everything in their environment with their mouths including: paperwork, clothing, etc.
- • Goats can be trained to lead.
- • Goats are avid climbers! They could climb on your car! (Not Fainting goats)
- • Goats chew off the bark around trees.
- • They like shade on hot days and relax in the sun on cool days.
- • They don’t like going outside in the winter.
- • Our Fainting goats are more docile than the average pygmy. They don’t climb or escape.
- Just For Fun
- Ramps and platforms. Goats like to climb and like small doghouse-like areas to rest.
- Feeding For All Ages
- Be sure to have fresh, clean water available for goats at all times. Winter water is very important! Tank should
not be allowed to freeze. Tank heaters should be used carefully and wires protected from nibbling goats. They
need hay twice per day in winter and should be monitored to ensure all goats are getting their share of food.
Goats often shove smaller or more submissive goats out and eat all the food. They need good quality hay and
grain concentrates if pasture is not available. Goats are browsers. They actually prefer a wide variety of plants
to munch on. They will eat many noxious weeds and will strip bark off of trees.
- Kids
- Kids should get 8-10% body weight of colostrum in the first 12 hours of life.
- Bottle feeding schedule (if an orphan kid, unable to nurse from mom):
- Age Amount Times per day
- 1 - 2 days ½ - 3/4 cup 4
- 3 - 7 days 1-1 ¼ cup 3
- 2 - 6 weeks 2- 2 ¼ cups 2
- 6 - 8 weeks 2 ½- 3 cups 2
- 8 - 12 weeks Weaning time for most goats, except Angoras at 4 months.
- Wean by introducing alfalfa and grass hay into the diet gradually, starting at 1 week of age. Introduce pasture at
4 weeks of age.
- Adults
- Hay:
- • Grass hay, usually 3% of body weight per day, have available at all times.
- • Alfalfa hay is preferred but is often very rich and can be mixed or fed once a day if grassy hay is provided
continually.
- Grain or concentrate
- • Only needed in the winter or if goats do not have access to good pasture.
- • Pregnant or nursing mothers need more and should be fed separate to ensure proper amount.
- • Feed small amounts of grain if needed, less than or equal to 1 pound per day.
- • Important note: Goats can get VERY sick (rumen acidosis) if they eat too much grain so it is critical to store
grain in goat-proof containers and not over-feed.
- • Only feed grain or concentrates made for goats, for example: goat ration, goat chow, goat grain. Make
sure that the grains have been rolled, flaked, cracked or crimped to insure optimal digestion.
- • Horse grain or horse feed is not recommended because goats may develop an intestinal impaction.
- Supplements:
- • Baking soda, available as free choice (they can eat it if and when they want) to reduce rumen acidity.
- • Trace mineral salt free choice. We use sheep mineral. Look for 300 ppm copper.
- • Regions with Selenium deficient soil (Northeast US, Southern Atlantic Seaboard and Pacific Northwest)
should supplement selenium.
- • Regions with high Selenium in soil (Rocky Mountain States) should avoid supplements that contain
Selenium due to the potential for Selenium toxicity.
- Very Important Vaccinations
- All goats should be vaccinated for:
- • Clostridium perfringens type C & D toxoid vaccine Use sheep product and sheep dose (2 ml
subcutaneously). Vaccinate kids at 4, 8 and 12 weeks of age, then booster annually. Booster all does one
month before kidding. Booster adults annually.
- • Tetanus toxoid- vaccinate annually.
- Very Important Vaccinations - Consult Your Veterinarian
- In areas where the following diseases are endemic, or common, goats should be vaccinated with:
- • Leptospirosis Bacterin - If needed vaccinate does one month prior to breeding.
- • Contagious Ecthyma vaccine - Do not use this vaccine in newborn kids or sick goats because this is a
modified live vaccine and may cause disease in young and immuno-compromised animals.
- • Chlamydia and Campylobacter Antigen - If needed vaccinate does one month prior to breeding.
- De-worming, Parasite Control
- • Adults should be dewormed every six months.
- • Kids should be dewormed just prior to weaning, 3 weeks after weaning and at 6 months of age.
- • It is most effective to alternate between types of dewormers.
- • Three common types are Benzimadazole compounds (Thiabendazole, Mebendazole, Cambendazole, and
Fenbendazole), Levamisol products, and Ivermectin (Ivomec). De-lousing:
- • Apply Extabar delouser topically in the fall since lice are most problematic in the winter.
- • It is important to repeat application of the delousing agent 2 weeks later to kill newly hatched lice eggs.
- Hoof Health
- • Goats should have their feet trimmed a minimum of once every 4 months.
- • Pointed hoof shears, often call sheep hoof shears, should be used.
- • Consult an experienced hoof trimmer for advice on technique.
- • Simply lift up goat feet while the animal is standing, do not tip them up on their rumps like sheep.
- • Remove hoof wall that has over grown the sole, shorten the toe, and level the sole and the heel.
- • Use caution so as not to quick the feet which will cause bleeding and soreness.
- Shelter
- Adequate shelter should provide more than just rain protection. It should be clean and dry. It should be open to
allow access from pasture for shade and wind protection. It should be able to be closed up for protection from
winter weather. It should be large enough to allow winter exercise and if there are several goats they should be
allowed to have areas were they can relax away from other more dominant goats. Platforms and pallets are
preferred to insulate them from the cold and damp. Shelter should be kept clean and dry. Bedding should be
maintained to prevent excess moisture that damages hooves and causes disease and illness. Daily cleaning of
shelter is required. Hay should be kept dry and free of mold. Water should be checked daily and tank cleaned
often.
- Goats are not Sheep
- This is not a silly question; some goats, particularly angoras, may look like sheep.
- Goats have 60 chromosomes; sheep have 54. Fertile goat-sheep hybrids, geeps?!, are rare.
- The major difference is feeding behavior - sheep are grazing animals while goats are browsers.
- Goats, although very social animals, are not as flock-oriented as sheep.
- Goats are more likely to seek shelter in wet weather than sheep.
- Male goats will rear up on their hind legs and lunge downward to butt heads while male sheep will run at, or
charge, each other to butt heads. If you mix male goats and sheep, the sheep will dominate because they don't
play by the same rules and will charge the goats while they are rearing up.
- Goats have an erect tail; sheep have hangy-down tails.
- Most goats have beards. Sheep do not have beards.
- Fencing
- If there's one thing that is a definite challenge with goats, it has to be fencing to keep them where you want
them! I am writing this article from first hand experience and hope to highlight a few do's and don'ts of what I
have found to work and to not work. Before you rush into fencing, take into consideration a few things that may
save you a lot of time, money and hard work.
- Type of fencing
- Area you would like to fence
- Your terrain
- Amount of money you have to spend
- Do it yourself or hire someone?
- Types of Fencing
- The way I see it, there are basically five (5) types of fencing from which to choose:
- • Chain Link
- • Hog Wire
- • Electric Fence
- • Cattle Panels
- • Movable
- Perhaps the best method of fencing for goats is Chain Link fencing. With chain link fencing, you can be almost
100% certain that your goats will never get out. While this may indeed be the best method, there is one distinct
disadvantage to this type of fencing - the overall cost. People desiring to fence in a large area for their goats to
roam and browse could literally spend thousands of dollars on this type of fencing and for the most part, once
constructed, it remains permanent. In my opinion, a chain link fence system would be best utilized for small pens
leading into larger pastures, fenced using another method.
- Hog Wire fencing is perhaps the next best method of fencing and rivals electric fencing. (Quite often, hog wire
fencing and electric fencing are used in combination). Hog wire is a term used for the type of fence that has
several 4" to 6" squares. While this type of fencing is also very effective, there are a couple of disadvantages to
its overall use. The opening of the squares often allow for a goat to stick its entire head through the fence to the
other side. If your goats are horned, quite often the goat can become stuck in place on the fence. Young kids
often can wiggle through this type of fencing as well. Hog Wire fencing requires 3 basic components; the fence, t-
posts and clips. Hog Wire fencing generally requires tightening as well.
- Electric Fencing is perhaps the fencing alternative most widely used by not only goat ranchers, but by ranchers
of other animals as well. As mentioned with Hog Wire fencing, these two types of fencing are often combined
whereas an Electric Fence wire may be run at any height along the span of Hog Wire fencing to deter "fence
climbing" by the goats. Electric Fencing requires a few more components; t-posts, insulators, in-line fence
lighteners, 14 or 17 gauge galvanized wire, bracing (optional but recommended), ground rods (at least two (2)
are recommended), lightning arrestor/diverter (optional but recommended), and a high quality electric fence
charger.
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