Feeding Question

[Countrygrl3]

How much hay/grain do your goats eat on a daily basis? Im trying to look ahead to feed costs?

Thanks!

Sue

[Vicki McGaugh TX Nubians]

Sue at the end of the year the does cost right at $1 a day to keep, everything included, that was last year. With grain and alfalfa pellet prices alone I bet we will be nearing $2. Why your milk, meat or kid prices have to recoup your spending, and why my lowest priced kids start at $350, so their mom has stayed for free. Vicki

[DocM]

My goats get alfalfa pellets (15%), at a rate of 1 lb per 50 lbs of body weight. Growing goats, lactating goats, and goats in their final 2 months of pregnancy get livestock pellets (not goat specific), varying amounts, 1lb a day for growers, 3 lbs per gallon of milk produced for milkers (1 1/2 lbs am and pm on milk stand). I don't feed hay. When I do feed hay, I feed about 4lbs per goat (a flake), be it grass or alfalfa. I find the pellets much more economical because there's no waste and nutritionally, I know exactly how much each goat is eating and can adjust as needed. They also get minerals without copper because I copper bolus, but the mineral costs are about the same for sheep or goat minerals (I feed sheep loose minerals, Shamrock). Each goat also gets a handful of BOSS (black oil sunflower seeds). This schedule is specific to my lamanchas, which seem fairly hardy, and they also have 8 hours of browsing a day. My average weight is about 130 lbs per goat. Last year, after expenses and including income, my goats cost me .79 a day each to feed. If you don't have income (milk, meat, breeding stock), your costs will be higher. My figures include medications and equip. Your time is also worth something.

[hoofinitnorth]

Sue, it will depend greatly on the feeds available in your locale.

I have 6 Nigerian Dwarfs, which include 2 growing bucks, 1 adult buck, 1 dry first freshener, 1 lactating first freshener, and 1 lactating adult. They all get free choice grass hay when it's cold or they are confined and legume (alfalfa) hay as their main meal. They do not currently graze or browse. Total hay consumption varies with the amount of turn-out they get (dry lot) and outdoor temperatures. Right now it is about 5F here but the stalls are about 15F simply because they are closed up. The water is warm and that helps keep their consumption down too. All the goats have thick winter coats but I do not coat/blanket them. On any given day, the adults eat a few pounds hay twice daily, more if I throw them extra grass hay for munchy snacks and added warmth.

For grain, my goats only eat what they can consume while on the milk stand. My growing bucks and dry doe, who are also breeding, are on the milkstand for the grain ration too, to learn to be handled, groomed, treated, etc. My adult buck is not breeding now so he does not get any grain except a small handful as a reward for getting on the milkstand for foot trims, etc. if I need to do that. No one gets grain off the stand. They each consume about 1/2 pound once daily, except for the does in milk that have two opportunities on the stand daily. Depending on the hays available to you, your supplemental grain ration, your turn-out and grazing/browsing availability, and the nutritional needs of your goats for growth, exercise, breeding, producing kids, and lactating, your costs can vary greatly.

I would start with your hay types and costs and go from there as a good base cost.

Hope that helps!

[jerryf]

You didn't say if you are feeding dairy goats or Boer goats.
My large Boer does consume 4 pounds of hay a day--grass when the does are dry, close to kidding and nursing.....alfalfa AM and grass hay PM. They are nursing kids so they are getting 3 # of a 16% grain mix.
When on pasture/summer time they get 1# of grain.

Jerry

[Countrygrl3]

I confess I know next to nothing about goats. I've raised hogs, chickens, cattle and horses but never goats. We are looking into a pair of nubians right now...I grow my own hay which is a timothy/orchard grass mix, does that have the proper nutrients in it for goats? My local feed store carry plenty of varieties of goat feed but I didnt know if they needed additional minerals as a supplement.

Thanks! You all are the best!

Sue

[Terri]

Hoofinitnorth?

How much milk do your Nigerians give? I have heard anywhere from 3/4 of a cup to 2 quarts!!!!!!!!

[hoofinitnorth]

Sue, try the archives here (click on "search" near the top right of your screen). We have had MANY discussions on feeding (recently even ) and there were some really good threads on books about feeding, etc.

I did buy a handful of the books suggested and while Feeds and Feeding is certainly a must-have for all livestock, I was disappointed that it did not specifically discuss feeding goats. In fact, there are only a couple of paragraphs even mentioning goats in my 1959 22nd edition (last one I could find that was changed/updated/edited)!

[mpillow]

5 goats to 1 cow....so 1/5 of a cow generally speaking. But you cant feed a goat "cow hay"...it has to be horse quality or better.