Goat Care
Need a vet? We trust Dr. Dan in Wills Point, TX. Click for website or call 903-873-9132
Disclaimer: Always consult a veterinarian or trained professional for health care needs. The following is NOT medical advice.
Disclaimer: Always consult a veterinarian or trained professional for health care needs. The following is NOT medical advice.
OUR "GO TO" SITES FOR CARE:
Fias Co Farms A more natural approach to caring and treating your goats
Onion Creek/Tennessee Meat Goats LOTS of info about illness, diseases, and treatments
PLACES TO BUY SUPPLIES: Jeffers Pets, Valley Vet, PBS Animals, Premier1, Tractor Supply, Hamby Dairy (good price for tattoo kit)
Fias Co Farms A more natural approach to caring and treating your goats
Onion Creek/Tennessee Meat Goats LOTS of info about illness, diseases, and treatments
PLACES TO BUY SUPPLIES: Jeffers Pets, Valley Vet, PBS Animals, Premier1, Tractor Supply, Hamby Dairy (good price for tattoo kit)
The Basics
Housing: Goats need protection from rain, wet ground, and wind. To help prevent worm overload, try rotating pens, not overcrowding, and providing clean, dry areas. Nigerian dwarfs grow a winter coat, so heat lamps are usually not necessary unless in extreme weather or for newborn kids during freezing weather.
Feed: Goats are browsers (like deer), not grazers. They will eat grass, but prefer weeds, flowers, herbs, tree leaves, bark, etc. If you have a good pasture area, you may not need hay. Fresh water is a must. During winter time, you may need to add warm water to encourage drinking. Some people provide grain daily, others only provide when does are near kidding, lactating or to bucks in rut. Black oil sunflower seeds (BOSS) are a tasty treat and provide nutrients.
Minerals: Goats need supplemental minerals. It's essential to their health. My recommendation is use loose minerals loose minerals that can easily be gobbled up, rather than blocks that are licked. Also try to use goat specific minerals because it has more copper than generic breed minerals. Low copper can cause a host of problems for goats. Some external signs of low copper are faded coats, coppery look, and fishtails. We give a copper bolus (Santa Cruz brand) every 6-8 months to keep copper levels good.
Hooves. Every goat is different, but hooves generally need trimming every 1-3 months. Not trimming can cause structural issues such as bad pasterns and lameness. Imagine the area of your leg above your ankle crumpling backwards. Wouldn't that feel uncomfortable? That's similar to what happens when goats have bad pasterns. Youtube has lots of videos showing how to trim hooves. Some tips to naturally file hooves: 1) Lay square stones in heavy traffic 2) Build a stone mountain. 3) Cover a board with asphalt roofing sheets. Use the board like a ramp or lay on ground.
Disbudding/Dehorning: This is a personal choice. Horns help regulate body temp, but can cause injury and shows don't allow horns. You will need a disbudding iron. Try to disbud by 7 days of age to prevent scurs. Get an experienced person to teach you. Dehorning is not the same as disbudding. It's a surgical procedure that removes the horn and exposes a pocket to the skull. I do not advise doing this.
Castration: To castrate, you can band or Burdizzo. Research both methods and decide what is best for you.
Eyelid Check: SUPER IMPORTANT TO DO! This is one of the easiest ways to monitor your goat's condition. The inner, bottom eyelid should be a medium to deep pink color. Lighter colors indicate low iron. White means death may occur and you need to take action. Low iron is often caused by worm load, but may be due to other things. Click for more info on FAMACHA
Diseases & Illness: Instead of taking up tons of space on this topic, visit some of our fav sites listed above for how to recognize and treat illnesses and diseases.
Vaccination: Most people give annual CDT vaccine which helps protect against tetanus and enterotoxemia (commonly called overeating disease). There is a new goat CL vaccine available. Research “CL goats” to learn more about this disease. Due to antibodies created, your goat will test positive for CL if vaccinated.
Feed: Goats are browsers (like deer), not grazers. They will eat grass, but prefer weeds, flowers, herbs, tree leaves, bark, etc. If you have a good pasture area, you may not need hay. Fresh water is a must. During winter time, you may need to add warm water to encourage drinking. Some people provide grain daily, others only provide when does are near kidding, lactating or to bucks in rut. Black oil sunflower seeds (BOSS) are a tasty treat and provide nutrients.
Minerals: Goats need supplemental minerals. It's essential to their health. My recommendation is use loose minerals loose minerals that can easily be gobbled up, rather than blocks that are licked. Also try to use goat specific minerals because it has more copper than generic breed minerals. Low copper can cause a host of problems for goats. Some external signs of low copper are faded coats, coppery look, and fishtails. We give a copper bolus (Santa Cruz brand) every 6-8 months to keep copper levels good.
Hooves. Every goat is different, but hooves generally need trimming every 1-3 months. Not trimming can cause structural issues such as bad pasterns and lameness. Imagine the area of your leg above your ankle crumpling backwards. Wouldn't that feel uncomfortable? That's similar to what happens when goats have bad pasterns. Youtube has lots of videos showing how to trim hooves. Some tips to naturally file hooves: 1) Lay square stones in heavy traffic 2) Build a stone mountain. 3) Cover a board with asphalt roofing sheets. Use the board like a ramp or lay on ground.
Disbudding/Dehorning: This is a personal choice. Horns help regulate body temp, but can cause injury and shows don't allow horns. You will need a disbudding iron. Try to disbud by 7 days of age to prevent scurs. Get an experienced person to teach you. Dehorning is not the same as disbudding. It's a surgical procedure that removes the horn and exposes a pocket to the skull. I do not advise doing this.
Castration: To castrate, you can band or Burdizzo. Research both methods and decide what is best for you.
Eyelid Check: SUPER IMPORTANT TO DO! This is one of the easiest ways to monitor your goat's condition. The inner, bottom eyelid should be a medium to deep pink color. Lighter colors indicate low iron. White means death may occur and you need to take action. Low iron is often caused by worm load, but may be due to other things. Click for more info on FAMACHA
Diseases & Illness: Instead of taking up tons of space on this topic, visit some of our fav sites listed above for how to recognize and treat illnesses and diseases.
Vaccination: Most people give annual CDT vaccine which helps protect against tetanus and enterotoxemia (commonly called overeating disease). There is a new goat CL vaccine available. Research “CL goats” to learn more about this disease. Due to antibodies created, your goat will test positive for CL if vaccinated.
Breeding & Birth
How do goats make babies?
Boy + Girl = BABIES! Easy peasy, right? Nope. First, they must be in the mood. A doe must be in heat and a buck must be in rut (a time when boys sound like blubbering fools and wear pee like cologne). Nigerian dwarf usually come into heat every three weeks and can breed year round.
How much should my doe weigh before breeding?
40 lbs for Nigerian dwarf. While we wait longer, you can bred as early as 8 months of age IF the goat weighs enough.
How do I breed goats?
1) Let your boy shack up with a girl (or two...or lots) for as long as he likes OR 2) When you know your girl is in heat, use the "wham, bam, thank you ma'am" approach (aka: hand breeding). Put your doe & buck together for a one-time affair, let them do their thing, and separate when the deed is done. This is our preferred method since it lets us know exact due date.
How do I know my girl is bred?
When a buck gets the girl, she'll usually squinch up and arch back. Others will pee. If you don't see that, wait to see if doe comes back into heat or have pregnancy test done.
How long are does pregnant?
Mini breeds - 145 days gestation. Full size - 150 days. AGS has an online gestation calculator
Do I need to assist with birth?
Hopefully not. Try to only intervene when you can tell a baby is truly stuck. To help you prepare for troublesome kidding positions, click here for a chart with pics and assistance tips.
Boy + Girl = BABIES! Easy peasy, right? Nope. First, they must be in the mood. A doe must be in heat and a buck must be in rut (a time when boys sound like blubbering fools and wear pee like cologne). Nigerian dwarf usually come into heat every three weeks and can breed year round.
How much should my doe weigh before breeding?
40 lbs for Nigerian dwarf. While we wait longer, you can bred as early as 8 months of age IF the goat weighs enough.
How do I breed goats?
1) Let your boy shack up with a girl (or two...or lots) for as long as he likes OR 2) When you know your girl is in heat, use the "wham, bam, thank you ma'am" approach (aka: hand breeding). Put your doe & buck together for a one-time affair, let them do their thing, and separate when the deed is done. This is our preferred method since it lets us know exact due date.
How do I know my girl is bred?
When a buck gets the girl, she'll usually squinch up and arch back. Others will pee. If you don't see that, wait to see if doe comes back into heat or have pregnancy test done.
How long are does pregnant?
Mini breeds - 145 days gestation. Full size - 150 days. AGS has an online gestation calculator
Do I need to assist with birth?
Hopefully not. Try to only intervene when you can tell a baby is truly stuck. To help you prepare for troublesome kidding positions, click here for a chart with pics and assistance tips.