Crazy tethering question??

[christie]

1}Just wondering if anyone ever tried tying a goat w/ a large dog harness? Was thinking it would be better then tieing them up by the collar?

2}Another crazy thought is underground electric fencing {like for the dog with collars}. HAs anyone heard of anyone trying this?


3} Goats out loose... Do you leave you goats out to roam your yarde? Do they run off instantly, hard to catch? I guess how do I train a goat to stay with me.
My friends wether stayed in her yarde all the time. I am looking to milk and to have only a couple does, so I am not talking about a whole herd being out and about...
still getting educated
What is the 10x10 cattle fencing that I here to get? And where do I purchase that, I never seen that at my feed store.
Thanks in advance

[DixyDoodle]

I have two goats that were given to me by a lady that would open the gate up and the goats would just wander. She said they never went far. I don't let my goats loose though, too many worries about dogs or coyotes getting them. And who knows when they will take it into their heads to wander anyhow.

I have a harness for one of my goats, but it's for taking her walking (in parades, LOL). If I have to lead them, I just use a collar, but yeah, a harness would work better with some goats.

Re: fencing, just ask for goat/sheep fencing, but be sure it is 5ft tall, not 4. They usually keep it in the warehouse part, for storage reasons, a bundle of rolls takes up a lot of space! Be careful if you order "cattle" fencing, some has large holes in it that goats can slip through. My fencing has holes that are maybe 2" by 3" each. Or if you are just looking for a quick set-up, you could just buy a 10X12 chain link dog pen. If you buy other fencing later, you can use the pen in your yard, move it around on the lawn, let the goats in there to graze and fertilize! Or use it for your bucks, if you get some......BYW you will need a buck if you want milk, the females have to get pregnant to start them producing milk in the first place.

[goatsareus]

1) have never used a harness, but I did use a collar, goat ended up dead.

2) never heard of using the underground fencing for goats. I use the above ground electric fencing with great success. I suggest you concentrate your readings on the proper fencing for goats, read from many sources as you will find many suggestions. In this case, goats are livestock and need to be fenced like livestock for the long term well being of the goats. Goats can and will get mauled and killed by dogs and coyotes, they need the protection of fencing to keep them in and predators out.

3), yes I have done this, having goats out loose. You can have no landscaping/flowers/bushes with this method. You can not train a goat to stay with you.

[Alice In TX/MO]

The problem with tethering is that they get tangled on EVERYTHING.

The problem with letting them out in the yard is that many landscape plants are poisonous.

Goats have a mind of their own. They won't stay with you reliably. At least, mine won't.

[fishhead]

Good fencing keeps them safe from themselves and predators. It also gives you the piece of mind so that you don't have to check on them every 1/2 hour. You'd be amazed at what they can do with a free 1/2 hour.

I use electric fencing and it works well.

[nomad7inwi]

Having them tethered can work when you are near by, like on a high line. But I would not do it if I were not nearby. As others have stated other animals can attack them and on a line they can't run away.

The underground fencing still does not offer them any protection, and your entire property is there dinner. So unless you fence everything else, no garden, no flowers, not even hanging, no young trees, even older trees could be compromised. However I do think the underground fencing would probably work on keeping a goat in.

Offer them some grain or other treat, and goats are not hard to catch.

[goatsareus]

Originally Posted by nomad7inwi

Offer them some grain or other treat, and goats are not hard to catch.

This is true only if the goats know and trust you.

[Kittikity]

What might work for you is to build them a secured area while you're not home.. Like an extra large dog kennel or some posts and cattle panels.. Then you can tether them while you're home and able to watch them..

[DQ]

I think tethering is a bad idea on a long term basis. however I successfully used a harness to tether out a pygmy goat until I could figure out where she was escaping. always when I was at home. they do get tangled all the time. it was better than the collar I initiallly tried to use. I also used a zip line which worked better than just plain old staking out. to construct a zip line tie a cable or appropriate diameter line from two overhead fixtures (I used a tree and a corner post). make it very taut. purchase the correct size pulley and tie knots or affix *something* on your cable/rope to prevent the pulley from sliding close enough to your fixtures for the goat to get around them while tied. take a lead (short enough to not touch the ground) from the harness to the pulley and your goat can have a larger area to graze without having a long rope which increases the risk of entanglment. this is not a replacement for supervision though!!!!!!

[Minelson]

Mine roam the property when I'm home. Unfortunately they stay real close to the house. I would prefer them to go out in the grove. They do spend time around the barn and in the hay field. They do not wonder far at all. We are on 10 acres and surrounded by corn/soybean fields so we don't have to worry about goats destroying neighbors property. When I leave I always put them in their pen which is a shed enclosed with combination panels. Works great. I have 1 Pygmy with her 2 babies.

[mpillow]

Okay for the 3rd time trying to post...

I see this as no different than tying out a little dog in the yard and having a pitbull come in and kill it. The dog can get tangled and can spill its water too...have its chain catch on the doghouse roof and strangle....

I tie the goats out on my LAWN no brush and 3 apple trees(that I try to keep them away from because they'll eat it)....they each get about 2 hours to mow and then they go back in the pasture....I do not supply water during the 2 hrs.
It rarely gets to 90 here and on those days the goats will eat in the morning on the West side and on the North side of house in afternoon..In the case of rain they go back in the barn usually before the rain starts....

I also take them for walks in the woods untied, they follow well. The bugs are ferocious though.

Generally one of us humans is outside and the great Pyr is always out....as are the chickens...

No trouble tethering in 10 years. Our one strangle was in the pasture on loose fencing....she was not tied....

[Sweet Goats]

I believe tethering a goat = dead goat.

they have no way to get away form predators.

[mpillow]

I tether all the time....have for years.
I do check on them.
My goats like to visit the neighbors(their grass is greener)....my buck often has coffee time w/ older ladies next door before am milking/feeding....he is an escape artist...but always comes to his name and at mealtime.

Sometimes I give them a cinder block or a tire w/rim to drag around....

[Janis Sauncy]

So, if you have a goat "tethered" and it starts to rain, where does the goat go to get out of the rain? Or, what if it's 90 degrees? How does a tethered goat get out of the direct sun? If you have that goat tied to a tree, which would provide shade, how long does it take before the goat becomes wrapped around that tree? And how do to provide water to a tethered goat? Every time that goat drags its chain or rope across the bucket of water, that water is going to be spilled.

These are things to consider besides the obvious ones of strangulation or death or injury from attack by dogs or other animals.

I got a call from a guy once looking for a goat ("brush eater") that he could tie to a tire so it could drag it around his property and eat all those pesky blackberries. I told him I didn't have any for sale (a lie) and I didn't know anyone who did (another lie).

Janis

[maidservant]

Years back, we kept a pygmy doe tethered. She just had a rounded leather collar (rounded doesn't tighten as easily and doesn't get caught in fur). We had her on a 20 ft dog chain, she had a building to get into when it rained and if she wanted shade, and we tied her water bucket to the building on the shady side. I took her for walks for exercise and for foraging. She never got tangled, although there wasn't anything for her to get tangled on except for her post that she was tied to. We used swivels on each end of the chain though. We've never had any problem with preditors more than opossums and hawks here.

I don't recommend tying out goats, but I was young, and my family had never been told otherwise. I would have a milk goat or two now, except for the fact I can't afford fencing. I will have goats again, just not yet.

Emily in NC - who is still goatless....

[christie]

I already have An acer paddock w. electric 3 wire tape fencing. But there is no browse in there. Or if there is will be gone in seconds. I was only curious about tethering/ or being loose only for a short period of time when I am home, and watching them!! I really don't have any predators around Now,
I don't like the idea of them dragging something,though it is a thought, it just doesn't sound good for them.
When I raise a baby I will try to train it w/ my dogs fence, see how that goes, again,only while being supervised.

I noticed that alot of people mentioned the elements, Can goats be in the rain, or do they just not like it?
If they are in the paddock they have there run in, but what if there browsing in a fenced area, do they have to be brought in? What about winter,? Do they not go outside?

I figured they were like my horse, and prefer to be outside as much as possible.

[sammyd]

We tether quite a bit. goats and cows. Haven't had a dead one yet.
Proper attention to the surroundings you are tethering them in is a must.
We do not have predators. We don't see to many really hot days but usually tether near a low shady tree anyway. We do not tether if it is raining.
If we are going to be gone for extended periods they have a pasture to hang out in.
Occasionaly we will let them roam free if we are working around the yard. We do have to encourage them to leave the fruit trees alone. They will either follow us into the barn or come when we shake their grain scoop.

[hoggie]

I tether but I have to add that I have no predators to worry about.

Goats need to be "taught" to tether the same as any other animals, and once they are used to a rope they aren't going to strangle themselves.

Points to remember

The tether rope needs a couple of swivels to keep it moving

If you want to give water on the tether, place the bucket in an old tyre and place it at the furthest reach of the tether rope so that the clip on the rope will reach to the centre of the bucket top. That way they can reach into teh bucket to drink but can't get the rope wrapped round it.

The tether needs to be moved completely every time they go on it - once they have trampled the grass and nibbled the tops off of everything they won't eat anything else.

It is better to tether at least two out together - one on it's own will spend the whole time wondering where it's friends are but two together will usually settle down and eat

You "may" find that, depending on how many goats you have, you may be able to tether a couple and let one roam loose. I find that on the whole they like to stay as a herd and the one loose one won't wander far from her friends. That way you can rotate who gets to roam loose and they all get a turn.

hoggie

[naturewoman]

Tethering is fine, if the conditions are right. You have to be smart about it, and you can't leave them tethered all day. My goats can't run free in my yard because of poisonous plants, young fruit trees, flower and herb gardens, and other things they would get into or damage. They won't go anywhere, but they'll get into trouble.

I tie them out for 2 to 6 hours a day (depending on weather and time). I move them around so they always have shade. If it starts raining, I immediately unhook them and all three of us race down to the barn. They hate the rain. I have tried giving them a drink of water when tied out but they always refuse it, so I don't bother any more. I never leave them tied in the sun on a hot day without shade, or for very long.

If I had to worry about predators (like neighbor's dogs), I'd not be able to tie them out, but where I live they are safe. If you are in an area where dogs run free, you would need to have your yard fenced. My dogs are on guard, and I check the goats constantly, just because I'm a worry wart.

The way I tether them works well for me. I use 3/4" rebar posts and a sledge hammer to pound them in (a post pounder would work too). The posts are about 4' to 5' tall and I drive them in until they are firm and the goats can't pull them out or bend them over (usually about a foot or more). But they are still easy enough for me to wiggle loose and pull out to move them to a new location as needed. I buy dog run cables, that are plastic coated multi-strand 3/8" (I believe) cable with a spring loaded clip at each end. These cables are available at pet stores, Wal-Mart, Bi-Mart, etc., and are weight-rated for heavy dogs. I buy the heavy dog run cables, not the skinny ones. The heavier ones don't get wrapped around their legs as easy..they are not flexible enough. I clip one end onto a welded steel 2-3" dia. ring (from Ace hardware), and drop that over the rebar post, so the cable freely swivels around the post. I make sure they cannot reach anything to get tangled in, or near a garden or tree they can't have access to. Some of my cables are 10' long (which gives them a 20' dia circle to mow)...or in some places I can use a 15' or 20' cable and give them more area to mow. Make sure there are no big rocks or sticks on the ground that can be caught by the cables, as they will be pulled to the center post and eventually cause the cable to stop spinning and get wrapped around the post. The ground must be free of loose large debris.

I've been doing this for many years without a problem. Never a goat injured.

If you live in a place where neighborhood dogs can get in your yard, I certainly wouldn't advise it. And never leave them tied out if you are not home to observe and protect them. I also wouldn't cable them so far away from the house that you can't hear them if they start crying. I like to be able to glance out my windows and see them any time I want.

I do take my goats on walks without leashes...but not near homes...just up my logging road where they can't damage someone's property or yard. If I go the other way toward homes, I put them on leashes. Walking a goat on a leash with a collar is not easy. Halters work much better.

[DixyDoodle]

I can't say I have never tied my goats out, as much as I recommend secure goat fencing.

I have done so occasionally, like when I'm at the garage and I can tie-out the goat right in front of the doors. I put one on a dog tie out cable. However, I NEVER leave them unattended. If I go inside for lunch or whatever, the goat goes in the pen.

Aside from it being coyote country, no one can ever say that they will not find a stray dog in their yard some day. Perhaps knawing on what is left of their goat. Particularly horrifying: leaving mini goats out with their babies! ACK! Talk about a free meal for the taking! Maybe I'm just a wimp, but I don't want my children coming home to find a beloved pet found partially eaten at the end of a leash. It would take less than a minute for a dog to lay open a goat, really. So unless you are right there, you wouldn't be able to stop it.

I also find that fencing (as opposed to loose goats) also is a physical deterrent to those who think it might be ok to help themselves to loose livestock. If your goat is way out in the front yard, what's to stop someone from just putting it in their car? I've heard of people snatching goats that are "easy pickings" for their Easter celebrations, etc. I like to think the fence shows that they are "mine" and not just misplaced goats for the taking. Just like when people see a "stray" dog wandering around the roadside ditch and they take it home---only it's not a stray but a local farm dog that is allowed to run the neighbourhood unfettered. I wouldn't be too keen on knowing my goat is visiting the neighbours.....isn't anyone worried about them getting hit by cars, even being backed over in the driveway?

Naw, I've invested too much in my goats. Sure, they can have mishaps no matter where they are, but why take chances?