Mixing Your Own Grain

Kye022984 · #1 08/11/10, 04:41 PM

Just wondering if anyone here mixes their own grain. I have met a lady who mixes her own feed by buying bulk oats and barley and a couple other things (I can't remember what they were) from a co-op called Azure Standard. I want to be able to feed organic, unprocessed grain to my baby and milker. I only have two goats so, if we bought in bulk it would last a long time.

Lada · #2 08/11/10, 05:20 PM

I have in the past - 25 lbs oats, 25 lbs barley, 15 lbs BOSS and 10 lbs cracked corn. I got lazy this year and have been using a sacked mixed feed, but I loved the stuff I mixed myself because I knew exactly what was in there..no "processed by-products".

Kye022984 · #3 08/11/10, 05:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lada

I have in the past - 25 lbs oats, 25 lbs barley, 15 lbs BOSS and 10 lbs cracked corn. I got lazy this year and have been using a sacked mixed feed, but I loved the stuff I mixed myself because I knew exactly what was in there..no "processed by-products".

Did you mix your own grain when you had a bred or milking doe? Wasn't sure if there is something special about those "dairy pellets" or not.

Cannon_Farms · #4 08/11/10, 05:47 PM

This can get terribly expensive but if you have the money go for it. The feed mixes do have added vitamins and minerals but you have to make sure you balance that out. Your main things in my opinion are an alfalfa, oats, cracked corn and rye grass hay if they are on non pasture. You can cause more problems by feeding alfalfa all the time than not but should be a part of a milkers diet.
I do not know what kind of hay is available or if you have pasture to make a good recommendation

Backfourty,MI. · #5 08/11/10, 06:00 PM

I mix my own feed for my girls. I use rolled oats, rolled barley, BOSS & rabbit pellets. Before anyone says anything about the rabbit pellets, I use them because I've yet to find an alfafa pellet that my goats will eat & believe me I've tried a number of different brands & from all different feed stores & mill's, etc. They always end up out in the woods for the deer.
In the winter I add cracked corn but in the summer I feel that heats them up just that much more.
They also get alfafa/grass hay 24/7 & pasture. Plus we have alfafa feilds planted that they browse & nibble in twice a day if they want to for awhile, I just don't leave them in it all day. There pastures are not in the Hay feilds.
I also give them Right Now Onyx loose mineral & baking soda free choice all the time.

springvalley · #6 08/11/10, 06:07 PM

BOSS- Please explain!>Thanks marc

Backfourty,MI. · #7 08/11/10, 06:20 PM

BOSS is Black Oil Sunflower seeds.

HappyFarmer · #8 08/11/10, 06:27 PM

We mix whole oats, cracked corn, BOSS, and alfalfa pellets. We also offer a protein tub (local hay is not the best) and Sweetlix MeatMaker loose minerals. Kelp also but not daily.

Ours didn't like the Alf pellets at first, either. We switched to the cubes, and they loved them! The only issue with the cubes was that we had to break them in flakes or the goats would choke on them. We started mixing the cubes with the pellets & then switched to just pellets, which they now eat.

HF

Kye022984 · #9 08/11/10, 06:40 PM

Well, a good friend of mine just told me about Chaffhay which sounds awesome and it's only a dollar more than than the baled alfalfa. So, if I am going to mix my own grain should it include Alfalfa if they are already getting a portion from the Chaffhay?

Pony · #10 08/11/10, 06:57 PM

1 part chops (corn), 1 part beet shred, 3 parts oats, 1 part BOSS.

Free choice alfalfa pellets. Grass hay and alfalfa hay (one in the morning, the other in the evening).

Free choice cattle mineral and baking soda.

COB sometimes in colder weather...

Marshmallows stuffed with probios...

Heck, you know what? As long as you balance your calcium and phosphorous, you'll be fine.

If you have good pasture and they're not pregnant or in milk, they'll probably do just fine on that for the whole Summer.

<shrug> I used to worry so much (ask Ozark Jewels and Yarrow) about what I was feeding, if I was feeding properly, was I going to make my goats sick...

They're not porcelain. Decent feed, plenty of fresh water, a place to shelter from the weather and predators...

It's all good.

HappyFarmer · #11 08/11/10, 06:58 PM

The best looking hay sometimes is not what it seems-it may not be worth that extra $1.

Pull a few samples & have it tested, along with your normal hay. It's a $45. test. Our coop will run it for free for it's customers. Our hay looks great but is lacking in both protein & energy. We then met with the nutritionist at the mill & told him we needed to buy bulk because of distance & costs, but wanted to balance their diet. He made recommendations for us based on the test results and the herd looks great. The only additional thing we do is copper bolus, and that's because we have a copper antagonist probably in our water. We have yet to test our water.

Mixing your own grains can work wonderfully, but if you have an imbalance, sooner or later (maybe even a couple years later) you will see issues. What works for one farm may not work on another, even if they are nextdoor.

I'm just curious, how much do you consider "bulk"? We buy approx 1000-1500# at a time, but have to watch for bugs in July/Aug (we're in the NorthEast). Being in CA I'm thinking you may have a bug issue if you buy too much at once. I'd ask the lady if she has issues & what she does to prevent infestation.
HF

Kye022984 · #12 08/12/10, 10:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HappyFarmer

The best looking hay sometimes is not what it seems-it may not be worth that extra $1.

Pull a few samples & have it tested, along with your normal hay. It's a $45. test. Our coop will run it for free for it's customers. Our hay looks great but is lacking in both protein & energy. We then met with the nutritionist at the mill & told him we needed to buy bulk because of distance & costs, but wanted to balance their diet. He made recommendations for us based on the test results and the herd looks great. The only additional thing we do is copper bolus, and that's because we have a copper antagonist probably in our water. We have yet to test our water.

Mixing your own grains can work wonderfully, but if you have an imbalance, sooner or later (maybe even a couple years later) you will see issues. What works for one farm may not work on another, even if they are nextdoor.

I'm just curious, how much do you consider "bulk"? We buy approx 1000-1500# at a time, but have to watch for bugs in July/Aug (we're in the NorthEast). Being in CA I'm thinking you may have a bug issue if you buy too much at once. I'd ask the lady if she has issues & what she does to prevent infestation.
HF

Well, one thing you have to remember for us buying in "bulk" means buying the oats, pellets, barley, & BOSS in 45-50# bags and mixing as we go, we only have two goats. We also dump all of our grain into metal trash cans with lids and a bungy over the top to keep out pets. It's been great so far and the only bug problem I see are the flies. As for the lady who mixes her own grain, she has been doing it for her nigerians for years and hasn't had any issues. We just are not on speaking terms with her anymore for good reasons (long story) so, I can't call her up on the phone and talk to her about it.

Alice In TX/MO · #13 08/12/10, 10:22 AM

Chaffhay molds if you are in a humid climate, especially if you have only two goats. (which you realize is a temporary condition

)

Feed them alfalfa pellets for the most part and good goat pellets with a bit of a boost of BOSS on the milk stand, if you want to keep it simple.

Kye022984 · #14 08/12/10, 11:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alice In TX/MO

Chaffhay molds if you are in a humid climate, especially if you have only two goats. (which you realize is a temporary condition

)

Feed them alfalfa pellets for the most part and good goat pellets with a bit of a boost of BOSS on the milk stand, if you want to keep it simple.

We are definitely not in a humid climate. We're in San Diego and our summers here are hot and dry. Oh, and I know it won't be two for awhile

We have babies coming in October and I definitely plan on keeping a doe (if we get one).

Alice In TX/MO · #15 08/12/10, 11:19 AM

I'm having trouble reconciling the idea of goats and San Diego.

My son is in the Navy, and we've visited there several times. He lived in Chula Vista part of the time. Yuppie neighborhoods.

Hmmmmmmmmm. Goats in San Diego.

Kye022984 · #16 08/12/10, 11:51 AM

Have you been out in East San Diego? And, I am not talking about the ghetto. There is a part of Chula Vista called East Lake, which is very Yuppie and ritzy. We live in what is called East County. Very "country" type folk. We are probably 5-6 miles from the rodeo grounds and the farther you go out the more land and rural it gets. My parents have 8 acres in Japatul which is ten minutes east of Alpine, which 20 years ago was a very small town. It's where I grew up. San Diego is very very big. I mean big enough for all of us San Diegans to recognize ourselves as East County, South Bay, North County, or Central San Diego. The goat community out here is small and everybody knows everybody but we're also all over the place, spread through out the county.

motdaugrnds · #17 08/12/10, 02:21 PM

We have always mixed our grains. We purchase the ingredients in 50# bags from Tractor Supply. I feed the does and bucks the same thing, just half as much to the bucks. The last couple months of pregnancy, we like to increase all slightly for the does.

We mix the following:
Sweet Feed (has selenium & molasses & vitamine E)
Alfalfa "pellets"
Cracked Corn
Shredded Beat Pulp (only because the grass/hay this year is not as high a quality)
Boss (Black Oil Sunflower Seed)

We keep the first 3 in their own bags, storing them in metal barrels with their own lids. (Nothing gets in and the only barrel that gets hit by sunshine is the one being used.) The Beet Pulp & BOSS we keep in a separate "closed" container.

We keep the "Golden Blend Minerals" from Hoeggers out as well as Baking Soda free choice.

For many years this has worked well for us. Our water is from a spring-fed well without iron in it. The pasture vegetation is also has very low iron content. (Our pastures presently need rennovation that we just have not been able to get to; but will before long. I like to keep New Zealand endophyte grass in them; but local grasses get blown in from all around .... grrrrr) This year, the herd will be getting the beans left from gardening.

What I am trying to convey is that, if you know what your ground/grass/water provides (and does not provide), then you will be better able to choose which grains to mix for your goats.

Creamers · #18 08/12/10, 07:56 PM

I mixed my own for 6 months - the results were okay, but the I like the condtion of our goats better on Blue Seal Caprine Challenger or Honor Goat by Purnia, and honestly, when I went to nationals and saw EVERYONE there - by and large - was feeding Purnia Noble goats, Honor Goat or Blue Seal. . .I think that convinced me to stick with the pre mixed.
Now, I do add Alfalfa pellets and BOSS to any feed.

LomahAcres · #19 08/12/10, 11:37 PM

We've always mixed our own grain as well. I didn't like feeding poultry feathers, animal fat and molasses to the girls, that all our local grains had in them.

Our current ration is 50# rolled barley + #15 Boss. We did have #10 corn in it, I just cut out because I've never liked feeding corn. Done that for the last 3 years, we'll see what the difference is. I'd tried adding 1/2 oats before but the girls turned up their noses to it. This is fed to everything, bucks, does in milk, dry or pregnant. Growing kids get this and 1/4-1/2 cup calf-mana on top for extra protein just while growing.

ozark_jewels · #20 08/13/10, 11:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LomahAcres

I didn't like feeding poultry feathers, animal fat and molasses to the girls, that all our local grains had in them.

Ditto. I like knowing exactly what my does are eating. I tried Purina and was seriously disapointed. Kent too. All the local grain mills haven't a clue either.

I simply feed whole oats and BOSS. 3 part oats to 1 part BOSS. I feed good grass hay and alfalfa pellets. I also keep out Right Now Onyx free choice minerals and kelp mixed 50/50 with the minerals. I do copper bolus and selenium twice a year. Most areas do need this for optimum health.

I've fed this for years now(at least 5 years), with only great results. They look great, grow great, milk great. I have 0 complaints.

But seriously, your feed is a very little part of their nutrition. Hay, fresh water, good minerals, proper extra mineral supplementation, these things all come first.