feed question

[murphyjamie]

I am still learning the ins and outs of how to properly feed my goats. I currently give my wethers good quality hay, free choice minerals, and lot of fresh water. I brought home a doeling yesterday and I am still debating if I should continue giving her grain or feed her the same as the wethers. I do not want to give any grain to the boys since I have already had a bought with UC after giving grain. I read on this site that Beet pulps are good for helping put weight on a goat also. Can someone explain more about beet pulps? Could it cause UC like alfalfa or grain can do?

[plain vision]

Murphyjamie,

A couple of tips to prevent urinary calculi ... The calcium phoshorous ratio could be off in your feed. It needs to be a 2:1 ratio. Look on your feed tag, your calcium should be twice as high as your phosphorous. Also if the ratio is fine in your grain, it could be your hay throwing the ratio off. Alfalfa can be high in calcium. Also to prevent urinary calculi, oftentimes folks add ammonium chloride to the pellet/feed. Then the last tip and the best cure for it that i have found is a little product called Four Way Acid Pack. I am including the link to the place that you can buy it from. We always have packages on hand in case. We have heard of two cases of UC cleared completely from it. Some people just keep Acid Pack in the drinking water to prevent UC. It works so well, i have wondered if it would dissolve kidney stones in people. It is about $8.00 a package.

http://www.triquestboergoats.com/

that is the site to order it from and has some info on UC.

sonja

Originally Posted by murphyjamie

I am still learning the ins and outs of how to properly feed my goats. I currently give my wethers good quality hay, free choice minerals, and lot of fresh water. I brought home a doeling yesterday and I am still debating if I should continue giving her grain or feed her the same as the wethers. I do not want to give any grain to the boys since I have already had a bought with UC after giving grain. I read on this site that Beet pulps are good for helping put weight on a goat also. Can someone explain more about beet pulps? Could it cause UC like alfalfa or grain can do?

[KSALguy]

alfalfa does NOT cause UC, its actually one of the best hays you can feed to goats,

i have not experiance with Beet Pulp but i wouldnt think it would cause any problems,

depending on what you are going to use your doeling for you probably dont need to grain her at all eather, grain is basically for Heavy milkers or Meat Does raiseing meaty kids.

a little bit of grain wont hurt most bucks though, its just when you OVER feed them on grain that you get the UC problems

[Freeholder]

Originally Posted by murphyjamie

I am still learning the ins and outs of how to properly feed my goats. I currently give my wethers good quality hay, free choice minerals, and lot of fresh water. I brought home a doeling yesterday and I am still debating if I should continue giving her grain or feed her the same as the wethers. I do not want to give any grain to the boys since I have already had a bought with UC after giving grain. I read on this site that Beet pulps are good for helping put weight on a goat also. Can someone explain more about beet pulps? Could it cause UC like alfalfa or grain can do?

How old is the doeling? If she's still young and growing rapidly, she should have at least a small amount of grain, and some alfalfa hay. Grain and alfalfa balance one another (in the right proportions), as the grain has phosphorus needed to balance the calcium in the alfalfa.

Beet pulp is high in calcium and shouldn't be given to wethers. I don't think there's enough nutritional value in it to give it to a young growing goat, though it is sometimes used to help fatten show does.

I don't know how you are set up, but when I'm doing chores, in order to make sure all my goats get the grain they need, no more, no less, I tie all of them up. I have leads fastened to the pen fencing (cattle panels), far enough apart to keep them from tangling one another or snitching another goat's grain. Your wethers wouldn't much like it if they saw the doe getting grain when they didn't have any, but it would be one way of making sure she got what she needs even if she is sharing their pen.

Kathleen

[AllWolf]

Here is what I do for my goats..

If your going to have wethers or bucks do not give them grain because if give them to much grain it can cause UC or known as urinary calculi (A disease wethers / bucks can get from to much calcium/protein) They can have hay and grass. The medicated pellets I use for my bucks / wethers is Country Acres it has in the medicated pellets ammonium chloride. Also be sure to give them goat minerals. Which we give ours Ultralyx for goats not for sheep.

Quote: If you have wethers in with your does they can have some grain but make sure they are getting medicated pellets that has the ammonium chloride in them to help prevent the UC. I have a few wethers in with my does but these wethers I have with my does been with my does day 1 so they eat grain but I have in another pen wethers and I do not give them grain at all because if I give them grain they get sick so I stick with my stuff at top..

Now for the does you can give them. Cracked corn, oats, calf manna, alfalfa, wet molasses, soybeans and beet pulp. -Do not forget to let them have hay and goat mineral free of choice and lots of fresh drinking water. Again for my goats mineral for the Does we use Ultralyx for goats not for sheep.

Good Luck with your goats.