Deep bedding method

Minelson · #1 09/17/11, 12:08 PM

When do you start? It's been cold the last couple of days but we will still have 70's temps and bugs for a while. I was wondering today when I should start letting the bedding build up. Last year was my first year and I started in December...

victory · #2 09/17/11, 02:43 PM

It's getting colder here too in the evenings. I really think that you should go with what the weather is doing. I started last week when the weather changed, one of my goats was all poofed up in the morning, so that was a good indication for me..

sammyd · #3 09/17/11, 02:56 PM

we only clean out twice a year.
Once in spring and once about now before fall plowing.

houndlover · #4 09/17/11, 04:58 PM

Like Sammy, we deep clean 2X a year, now, and in the spring. We don't deep bed during the summer, in fact, after I clean in the spring, I don't add any hay/straw to their night pens. I start deep bedding when I start feeding more hay, about now, or in the next few weeks. Actually, I just let them bed themselves, by allowing the hay that falls out of the feeder to start filling the pen. My goats have benches around the sides they prefer to sleep on in the summer (and sometimes in winter).

Minelson · #5 09/17/11, 05:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by houndlover

Like Sammy, we deep clean 2X a year, now, and in the spring. We don't deep bed during the summer, in fact, after I clean in the spring, I don't add any hay/straw to their night pens. I start deep bedding when I start feeding more hay, about now, or in the next few weeks. Actually, I just let them bed themselves, by allowing the hay that falls out of the feeder to start filling the pen. My goats have benches around the sides they prefer to sleep on in the summer (and sometimes in winter).

In the summer I just put a small pile of shavings with a blob of hay on top every day and that is where they pee then at night. The rest is just concrete. I just fork their little "toilet" out everyday. This morning I noticed it was flat...someone slept on the toilet. So I'm thinking they are wanting bedding now. Even though they have an insulated hut, full of bedding that they can sleep in. Also a spool and a table to sleep on.

HappyFarmer · #6 09/17/11, 05:46 PM

December sounds about right. The moisture & warmth during the days & indian summer make for the perfect environment for coccidia oocysts to flourish. They can't flourish when its cold/freezing.

We feed their hay in the pasture feeder, away from their congregating areas, then in December-ish, when it really starts to get cold, we feed them under their overhang, and let the waste hay drop so it builds up, and add hay to the dog bed also. That area is patio blocks so it drains nicely during thaws.

Otherwise they are just fine, as they have had those fall months to acclimate to the colder weather.

HF

wintrrwolf · #7 09/17/11, 06:38 PM

I starting deep bedding now, its been getting really cold down to 42 over night then up to 67 during the day, today was suppose to be 71 but it didn't make it. Besides so far during the day I have a few hens that wander in the goat area and have been moving it around so far.

motdaugrnds · #8 09/17/11, 07:33 PM

We clean only in the spring. Then all summer the entire herd free range and they rarely get any bailed hay unless the weather is extremely hot as it was this summer. All the time subsequent to spring cleaning we let the sun and chickens clean out the barn (soil..no concrete) and come fall when we start giving them bailed hay, the bedding starts developing. By winter, if there isn't enough to be sure they will be warm, we add "straw" or Japanese Millet. Then come spring the routine begins again.

Backfourty,MI. · #9 09/18/11, 07:36 AM

I started doing the deep bedding method a couple winters ago so this will be the 3rd year & I think I'm going to wait awhile longer. We'll just play it by ear.

We've had a few nights in the 30's & 1 about 28 degree's & I have been giving them bedding those nights & cleaning their houses out each morning, But now the nights are supposed to be back in the 50's all week so they don't need any.

I don't give bedding during the warm months or nights because they will go in their houses to go potty on the bedding & then back outside to lay on their spools, etc. So if I don't give them bedding they don't go potty in their houses. Weird goats!!
When we are going to have rainy nights or something I make sure they have bedding cause they aren't going outside to potty.

houndlover · #10 09/18/11, 11:53 AM

Yeah, if I lived somewhere with an "indian summer" I'd probably wait... but winter hits here the weekend after labor day.. once we have to have a fire in the woodstove, I figure the girls are suffering too. I don't think SD gets an indian summer, does it? Seems like they also go from summer to winter overnight!

Minelson · #11 09/18/11, 01:00 PM

Well it got down to 33 one night last week. That was kinda freaky though. We have 70's in the 10 day forecast....I'm not sure if there is an indian summer here lol! I know we always had one in MN and WI. The weather is very strange here

LFRJ · #12 09/18/11, 04:53 PM

We tried deep bedding last year, our barn is only 12 X 8, and I don't think we'll do it again. It got REALLY deep. And it took me a solid week to dig it all out with a pitchfork. If we had a real barn that opened on both ends, and a tractor to push it out, I'd try it, but that was really hard on my back (and nostrils).

I'm hoping that our wood floor, covered by the 1/2inch rubber, covered by a tarp and THEN straw bedding will be easier to maintain, or that is, haul out and change over regularly, even through the winter months. Maybe it was heavier because it's so wet here? I know the goats spent twice as much time in it, which didn't help). They sure hate the rain.

Minelson · #13 09/18/11, 05:06 PM

It worked out great for us. I used shavings mixed with hay waste. The clean up was really easy since I made hubby do it

What I liked most about it was that it kept the barn warm all winter. It hardly ever got below 10 degrees in there....I'm used to seeing 10-15 below in there. What a huge difference

noeskimo · #14 09/19/11, 08:13 AM

I'm curious-I've never heard of this. I'm assuming that the bacteria releases heat as a product of decomp -but doesn't the damp hay cause hoof problems and increase parasite problems? Only practical in enclosed barns? Only practical in extremely frigid climates?(it was 100 here again yesterday,if I remember right, it's day 98) I guess what I'm saying is we will probably have a very cold winter-for us.Very,very dry.Would this be of any benefit to me with my loafing sheds?

Minelson · #15 09/19/11, 04:55 PM

I don't know what it would be like in Texas. But I always add more shavings/beddng to the top so they are always on dry. It gets pretty deep by the end of Winter. Lots of people from Tx on here so I'm sure someone will chime in

Apryl in ND · #16 09/20/11, 06:17 AM

We use the deep litter method with leftover hay and I love how warm it stays. It's so cold and dry here during the winter that the bedding is never wet on top. A couple inches underneath it composts and is VERY warm even on sub zero days. One day I want to overwinter my goats in a hightunnel that will be divided up and rotated to be used as a greenhouse alternating years. I am sure it would stay above freezing all winter between the solar heat and the constant composting.

The only thing I hate about it is that it is a PAIN to clean out by hand like we have to. This winter I am going to sprinkle corn around every week or so and turn my pigs in there to till and break it up. That will make clean up easier.

Apryl in ND · #17 09/20/11, 06:25 AM

Oh, to answer your originql question. The bedding builds up on it's own once I start feeding hay for the year. Seems to work for me. I still have not cleaned it out from last winter (which was only 5 months ago here). At this point I may just leave it since I am already feeding hay for the year. It doesn't smell amonia-ey and the barn is pretty open. I don't think parasites could live through the kind of heat the composting action makes.

sammyd · #18 09/20/11, 08:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by noeskimo

I'm curious-I've never heard of this. I'm assuming that the bacteria releases heat as a product of decomp -but doesn't the damp hay cause hoof problems and increase parasite problems? Only practical in enclosed barns? Only practical in extremely frigid climates?(it was 100 here again yesterday,if I remember right, it's day 98) I guess what I'm saying is we will probably have a very cold winter-for us.Very,very dry.Would this be of any benefit to me with my loafing sheds?

The hay is not damp. We test quite often by kneeling on it, if our knees get moist we would add more bedding.
We have 0 problems with parasites. Don't think it's from any heat generated by the process, just that once something is on the pile the goats usually leave it alone.
We have a pack in the summer and our temps reach the nineties. Normally the girls are outside during the day and inside at night. Our barn is enclosed but I know several cow dairies that use the bedded pack in three sided buildings.

NataliaTwoDoes · #19 09/20/11, 10:14 AM

I dont know much about deep bedding for goats but for chickens what I did read was that keeping the old bedding kept the bad bacteria and parasites in check because you are not getting rid of the good stuff like nematodes that parasitize the parasites by tossing the bedding so it is balanced. I imagine that the concept works the same for goats. I did this for my chickens and it was successful, I did mix DE in with the bedding occasionally tho.