FINISHED!!! and full of kids. They definitely approve of it 🙂
We are frantically working on our kid nursery so it is completed before the first kids arrive (Feb 2nd)! We work full time and are only able to work on the weekends which have been very rainy lately. We are upgrading the fencing from hog panels to a real woven-wire fence with real gates! The area has also been increased so they will have plenty of room to romp around.
There are two separate nurseries: one for doelings and one for bucklings. The bucklings are born with a strong instinct to breed so we begin sorting them by sex at one week of age.
The raised kid houses (made by Splintered Woodworks) are perfect and supply the kids with endless entertainment of climbing on/off the deck.
It’s beautiful!!!! 🙂 One side finished….. 3 more to go!!Very carefully, we used a ‘come-a-long’ to tighten the wire. Then wrapped every other strand around this end post. Afterwards, we nailed (with room to expand/contract) the wire to all of the line-posts. This is VERY strong.Pulled the wire down to the far corner. We wrapped the wire around the corner post.One of my husband’s great ideas… using the round bale spear to hold/move the VERY heavy roll of wire.Taking a break.Installing the gate hinges.Trimming the metal pin used for the H-brace.This is very STRONG!The boys will be on the left and the girls on the right.
One of the MANY positive aspects of having a small herd (currently we have six does and two bucks), is being able to give each doe their own private stall. We have been able to do this for years and the ‘girls’ love it. It doesn’t take them long to learn which stall is their own and they run right in it when I open the pasture gate.
They are brought in EVERY night and let out each morning. (I used to own horses so I naturally gravitated to this set up.) I can easily monitor each goat’s appetite, water consumption, stools and behavior at a glance. I can increase or decrease their hay/grain as needed. Also, when kidding time rolls around, they are already familiar with their stalls and daily routine so they are not stressed at all.
They are kept inside if the weather is bad (raining, snowing, etc.).
The stinky bucks stay in their pasture but are fed grain twice daily so I get to inspect them closely also.
This is the buck shelter. They do NOT come in the barn unless teasing a doe.
UPDATE: 2/27/19 — Stopped using the Dumor Goat Blocks and started using a 16% sweet goat feed as free-choice instead. The Dumor Goat Block has a very high amount of salt in it and the goats were not eating their loose minerals. Over the last 3 months, they did not eat any when they normally eat at least 20 pounds! The loose minerals are so MUCH more dense with vitamins/minerals than the Dumor goat block so they just aren’t getting the same nutrition level.
Loose minerals that are free-choice for all goats.
UPDATE: 5 weeks later — 1/26/19 Less than one week before our first 2 does freshen. Victoria is huge with possible triplets? Using the Dumor Goat Block is working GREAT! No sign of sluggish goats at all and all are eating like pigs! I am so relieved. <3 <3
In an effort to PREVENT any nutrient issues with our very pregnant dairy goats, we have begun feeding Dumor Goat Blocks. It is a soft protein block full of nutrition!
Last year, we had two pregnant does get toxemia during their last six weeks of pregnancy. We had to dose them daily with Polypropylene Glycol and CMPK until they began eating grain enough to sustain their selves and fetuses (approximately one week after parturition). The research indicated that we were not feeding them enough energy/calories (grain). Even though we grain twice daily, it obviously was not enough to meet their demands. They also have 24/7 access to good quality grass/orchard hay.
So this year, in addition to feeding grain twice daily, we are now keeping a Dumor Goat Block in the pasture for the does. We just started putting this block out now since most are within 8 weeks of parturition.
(Note: Our does and bucks always have free choice loose minerals, cobalt block, baking soda and copper sulfate powder available to them all year long.)
12″ of snow fell on December 9th, 2018!! How beautiful!!
The snow does make the farm chores more difficult but I still LOVE it!!!
The goats do not like it as much as I do. They prefer their individual cozy stalls with clean/dry shavings. They stay in during rain or snow but I let them out for 30 minutes to ‘play’ in it.
Buck shelter: Shortly after this photo was taken, the heavy snow was removed from the top of this ‘tent’ to keep it from collapsing. Look closely and you can see the sides are bowed out! Once the snow was removed, it regained its proper shape.Oh how I like the tank de-icers!!! <3 <3 One less chore to do.
UPDATE 1/11/19: They didn’t eat it at first but finally started eating it and are now going through a 33.3 pound block every two weeks.
Our two bucks have had a stressful rut season and have lost a lot weight. Particularly, MLRT Caesar, who rarely stops pacing the fence line. He doesn’t take time to eat! Their fecals are great with very, very low EPG so it isn’t internal parasites.
We have always grained the boys twice daily and they have free choice hay, loose minerals, cobalt, and copper sulfate. And they keep great weight and superb growth outside of the rut season. However, we just started using a Dumor Goat Block that is like a grain but has a 10-12% salt content which serves as a “limiter” to keep them from overeating it. It is a soft block that holds together well yet allows them to eat it easily. The idea is to let them eat 24/7 when they feel like it and maybe they will consume more calories.
MLRT Hro eating on the block. This is the 2nd block and they have now acquired a taste for it. Yay!MLRT Hiro looks better than Caesar. This photo doesn’t show how thin he really is. MLRT Caesar in all his cuteness!
