General Goat Herd Management Dr. tatiana Luisa Stanton Goat & Sheep Extension Associate Cornell University

What are goats used for?

Other uses?

Human Nutrition

Good management depends on :  Matching your care to the animal’s special needs  Suitable facilities  Good observation and record keeping

Matching your care to the goat’s needs -  What phase in production are your goats?  How much are they producing?

Production Phase  Birth  Weaning  Weaning to breeding (growth)  Pre-breeding  Breeding  Early gestation  Late gestation  Kidding  Lactation

Birth to weaning  BoSe injections  Check for extra teats  Disbud between 3–14 days  CAE prevention program  Feed program depends on the purpose kid is for – dairy replacement? Easter kid?  Give first Clostridium CD&T booster at 3- 4 wks of age and repeat 4 wks later

Weaning  Consider age and weight (often recommend at least 30 lbs or at least 10 weeks old)  Prior to weaning or at weaning, treat kid for coccidia  Make sure kid is readily eating hay and some creep feed prior to weaning  Drying off doe – eliminate grain and put on a low quality hay or pasture and consider dry treating

The growing weaned kid  An important time to develop rumen capacity and good eating habits, plan on about 4% dry matter intake  Provide lots of exercise and a ration relatively high in protein and calcium  Trim feet periodically  Monitor eye membranes regularly  Grain as needed depending on when you are hoping to breed her, weight you want to slaughter at, etc

Monitoring eye membranes

Prior to breeding  Doeling should be a minimum of 7 months old and 70 lbs – What are some considerations?  If you plan on giving a BoSe or MuSe shot give it prior to breeding  Flush does with lush pasture or small amount of extra grain about 2 to 3 weeks prior to breeding  Keep bucks away so that when you suddenly introduce them you will get a “buck effect”

Early pregnancy  Push young does who were smaller than you would have wished for at breeding  Mature does will have relatively low nutritional requirements if they are not lactating  Dairy does will need to be fed enough energy and protein that their production remains persistent without letting them get obese

Last third of pregnancy  Fetus is starting to grow rapidly  Increase the plain of nutrition for your does. Plan on about 4-5% dry matter intake. If it is less make sure you are providing sufficient feed quality  Increase energy content of feed and observe does for decreased appetite and possible ketosis – may need to separate out some does for extra feeding  Vaccinate does for Clostridium perfringens C&D and tetanus  Worm does if indicated

Subcutaneous Vaccination

Early lactation  Doe’s intake will need to be about 5-7% of her body weight  Provide a very palatable feed diet high in protein and calcium  Energy level will vary according to what her feed intake and milk production are  Make sure doe consumes sufficient fiber – ideally at least 60% of her diet should still be roughage  Generally we worm meat does at kidding

How much are they producing?  Are you raising kids as slaughter kids for Easter? Or as dairy replacement kids?  Is your meat doe raising triplets or just one big single?  How much is your dairy doe producing?

Housing

Good ventilation yet protected from the elements

High ceilings, wind resistant screening, fans

Good drainage

Easy to clean

Kidding in cold weather - smothering

Barns with good ventilation and no drafts

Kid Housing – minimal exposure to feces

Mangers  That your goat can’t go to the bathroom in

That are protected from the rain

That have enough room for all your animals to eat easily

That are “choke-proof”

That allow you to feed from outside the pen

That are the right dimensions –  Sometimes it pays to keep things temporary until you are sure they work right!

Making adjustments to your dairy barn

Hay Mangers

It pays to have a round bale feeder

Salt

Water

Forage  Invest in good quality forage – particularly for does in late pregnancy and at the beginning and peak of lactation  Good quality forage is also very important for kids depending on the quality of their creep feed  Goats are selective eaters  Goats have a rapid rate of passage of food through their rumens  Goats have a higher feed intake than most other livestock species

Hay  Beware of older hay or damaged hay that has lost much of its vitamin content  Keep in mind that a legume hay like alfalfa will better meet the calcium needs of a lactating doe or growing kid than a grass hay

Baleage and Silage  Goats are very susceptible to listeria

Pasturing Goats  Goats learn their eating habits from the herd  Goats can eat a wide variety of plants from trees to conventional grasses and tend to be very versatile eaters  Goats can not utilize mature hi-fiber grasses well  Goats are very susceptible to internal parasites  Few goats will naturally paw through snow to get grasses

Goats and worms

Goats are great browsers

Unfortunately, they are susceptible to the deer worm