Seesaws for goats! WHEEEEE!

Jillis · #1 10/05/05, 10:22 PM

My 15 yo son built a seesaw for our doelings! He took two long, wide boards and nailed them to a decent sized log...nailed a crosspiece under each end to keep the 2 boards together...et voila!
They LOVE it! It is very low, and they walk back and forth and back and forth, dance on it, and push each other off. Sometimes it provokes them to spring in the air and do that wiggle in mid-air thing. They also like to jump over it and to play "Queen of the Seesaw." We just had a storm with dangerously high winds, so we kept them in the barn all day. We brought the seesaw into the barn to keep them from being bored---it helped considerably!

I have some great pix and when I finally take the time to go through the process I will try to post them!
Blessings, Jillis!

sancraft · #2 10/05/05, 10:45 PM

SOunds like fun. I'm going to build a playground for my goaties once we get settled in.

Meg Z · #3 10/06/05, 06:24 AM

Thanks for the great idea!

It's flat ground here, so I built mine a 'King of the Mountain" playground out of old cable reels. Three levels to jump and climb on. I coated each one with concrete, so they wouldn't slip on the wood (and patched the end holes, of course) and the concrete also helps reduce the hoof trimming I do.

I think they're going to really enjoy the seesaw they're going to get now!

Meg

steff bugielski · #4 10/06/05, 07:51 AM

Caution!!!
I hate to burst your bubble but I lost one of my baby goats to a similar toy. One baby was walking under and the rest ran over the top causing it to go down and the weight crushed his back.
Steff

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lgslgs · #5 10/06/05, 08:43 AM

Steff beat me to it. One of our friends had a set up like yours and had a goat crushed under it.

Make sure your goat climbing toys are all well anchored and don't have potential pinch or crush points.

Lynda

Jillis · #6 10/06/05, 10:26 AM

Caution noted! I did wonder about that, but, because it is on a log, it is too low for any of them to walk under. But when I get my little Nigerian Dwarf doelings next week I will put the seesaw away.
I do have a cable spool set up with the end hole patched, and my goat pen sports a HUGe boulder that the goats like to climb on. Good idea about the cement on the spools---I have an electrician friend who got us the spool, I'll ask him about the different sizes!
Thanks for all the input! Jillis!