Management

Bianca, Delilah, and Paris posing pretty - 2005.

For he is our God and we are the people of his pasture, the flock under his care. Psalm 95:7

Management picture

The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Psalm 19:1

General Management

Our management is quite labor intensive but we greatly enjoy our time spent with the goats. The children and I practically live in the barn during kidding season. I feel it is time well spent. The majority of our dam-raised kids grow up very tame, thanks to all the love and attention they receive. In addition, by spending a lot of time with our goats, we observe any health problems early on and take care of them before they become serious. I do most of my own vet care and rely on my veterinarian only for the most serious and unusual situations.

I routinely milk two or three does to supply our family with milk, cheese, yogurt, buttermilk, and ice cream. If I desire more milk, I simply separate more kids from their dams at night and milk more does in the morning. I wait until the kids are at least three weeks of age before separating them from their dams at night.

Nutrition

Grain
All our goats are fed a 16% protein grain daily. I blend a combination of barley, corn, oats, soybean meal, black oil sunflower seeds, and vitamin / mineral pellets. If I am feeling ambition, I sometimes also blend in molasses and apple cider vinegar. The quantity of grain fed is varied depending on many factors including age, sex, body condition, stage of reproduction, and milk production. Typically, dry does and young does receive 1/2 to 1 cup grain daily. Lactating does receive 2 to 5 cups of grain daily depending on milk production. During the breeding season, bucks receive up to 1 pound of grain daily but otherwise they only receive a small treat.

Hay
During dry weather, my goats are out on pasture and browse and receive grass and alfalfa hay only as needed. During the rainy season, they receive free choice quality grass hay and at least ½ pound daily of premium alfalfa hay and/or 18% protein alfalfa pellets. Lactating does receive approximately 75% alfalfa hay and 25% grass hay.

Minerals & Supplements
I provide my goats with a free choice blend of dairy minerals, kelp, yeast culture, baking soda, and vitamins. This special blend seems to be very palatable with the does consuming an average of 2 tbs. each, on a daily basis.

Heath Care

This information has been compiled as general reference only. I am not a veterinarian, and this information is not intended to replace professional advice. I disclaim all liability in connection with the use of this information and offer no guarantees of its effectiveness.

Testing
All my goats over six months of age are tested annually for Caprine Arthritis Encephalitis (CAE) at Oregon State University and have all have tested negative. My herd was last tested on 2/15/07 and all my goats were again negative for CAE.

When I purchase a new goat, I test it for both CAE and Caseous Lymphadenitis (CL) before introducing it to the rest of my herd. I test for CL through the California Animal Health & Food Safety Lab in Davis, CA.

Vaccination Schedule
Information on our vaccination and deworming schedule for kids is listed below in the kid care section.

My does are vaccinated with Clostridum Perfringes Types C&D and Tetanus Toxoid (CD&T) five weeks before they are due to kid. Bucks are vaccinated in late summer.

We live in a selenium deficient area so I give all my goats a supplemental selenium and vitamin E (BoSe) injection in the late summer before breeding. I also give a dose of BoSe to my does five weeks and two weeks before they are due to kid.

Deworming
I take stool samples to the veterinarian's office at least once a year to determine if my herd has an internal parasite problem. It is helpful to know the type and extent of the internal parasite problem and treat accordingly.

I routinely deworm my does two days after kidding and again twelve days later. I also deworm twice in the late summer before breeding if a collection of stool samples checked by my veterinarian indicates that my herd has an internal parasite problem. I usually use the cattle dewormers Cydectin or Ivermec Plus. I follow the recommendations of Fias Co. Farm for the quantity and method of administration for these products. http/fiascofarm.com/goats/wormers.htm

The does that provide milk for our family's consumption are given my herbal dewormer blend once a week instead of chemical dewormers.

My bucks are dewormed in late winter and late summer with the same dewormers, schedule, and methods as the does.

Other health care

I trim the goats' hooves every two months and have never had a problem with foot rot.

I use diatomaceous earth (DE) as my primary external parasitic. I put the DE in an empty parmesan cheese container and sprinkle in on the goats' backs as needed to control lice. Most of my goats are body clipped in summer to further reduce the incidence of lice. I don't like to use insecticides to control external parasites on my animals for both my family's safety and for the safety of the animals themselves. However, I occasionally use Eprinex, a pour-on chemical dewormer to kill lice. It is applied along the goat's topline on the skin and is very effective in killing lice.

During times of stress, my goats are given probiotics with vitamin E. I usually use Probios One Plus Natural E in the gel form. I administer it by putting a ½ inch long, pencil-thick strip, on my finger and smear it in their mouth. If I want my whole herd to receive a dose of probiotics, I buy the granular form and mix it in their mineral mix for a period of 10 days.

Kidding Time

The majority of our does are scheduled to kid in March which matches well with our pasture supply and late spring goat shows. Many of our young does are large enough to breed at seven months of age and kid as yearlings.

A large part of our main barn is divided into kidding pens. Most of the pens are 4' x 8' with some slightly smaller. Does with a single kid stay in the smaller pens and does with multiples are moved to larger pens after kidding. For more information on making our kidding pens, see "kidding pens" below.

We keep the does with their kids in the kidding pens for two weeks. At two weeks of age, the kids and their dams are let out with the herd in the day and are brought back to the pens at night for special feeding and attention. If space permits, we sometimes keep them in this set up until weaning the wether kids at two months of age. These individual pens allow us to special feed each "family" and even the dam-raised kids turn out very tame. My two-legged kids are always in the pens playing with the babies!

pens

Kidding Pens
The pens are made with hog panels cut into the size I want with bolt cutters. To form the kidding pens, we attach the pieces of panel together with silver duct tape. I know that sounds tacky but it matches the color of the panels, is easy to put on, and has never failed in function. Also, when I want to tear the pens down, I can easily cut the duct tape with a knife. We use a clip to keep the pen doors shut. I know hog panels are too short to keep many goats in but I have only had a problem with a couple Nigerians jumping out. The jumpers were "teenage" does and not the pregnant or new moms that are usually in the pens.

Kid Care
We try to be present at all births to assist with the delivery if needed and make sure the kids nurse soon after birth. Shortly after birth, we dip the kid's umbilical cord in a two ounce jar of iodine.

If kids are especially small at birth (two pounds and under), and the weather is cold, I supply them with additional heat for a few days. I like to use a rubber heating pad (made for growing plants) or a heat light to give added warmth.

When kids are several days old, I give them a small oral dose of Probios with vitamin E to get their rumen started with good "bugs".

We dehorn all our kids between one and three weeks of age with an electric dehorning iron. The buck kids are usually ready by a week of age but some of the doe kids don?t have a horn bud emerge until they are over two weeks of age.

Kids receive their first CD&T vaccination at 5 weeks of age and a second booster at 8 weeks of age.

My kids are given a BoSe shot at five weeks of age and again at weaning.

I typically deworm my kids at monthly when they are under four months of age with Valbazen. I give 1 ml per 10 pounds orally as recommended on the Fias Co. Farm web site.

I use an elastrator tool and band the male kids that I don't plan to save as bucks. I put the band on at approximately eight weeks of age. If a kid is especially uncomfortable when banded, I give an oral dose of Banamine to ease his pain.

I wean buck and wether kids at two months of age. Many of my doe kids are not weaned until they are four months of age if I feel it is beneficial to their growth and development.

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