Where to put goat barn

lamina1982 · #1 07/09/14, 01:24 PM

hello all,
So i have the goat fever and am looking to set up my pasture and goat barn. I am collecting pallets for what will be roughly a 10x13 structure. I have a nice brushy area planned out for pasture with some trees intermingled but not sure where i should put the barn. I have attached a picture of aireal map with some crude drawing points.
The more easterly X would be in the open/ field and be closer to the house. West of the pond is actually all pine trees for a section (doesnt really look that way in map/pic). It is alittle more flat up there and the trees would provide more shelter though maybe? Would have to adjust my pasture layout plan though. All along the South border (edge of pic) is a barb wire fence line. The neighbor has beef cows but they are always up higher in a different pasture.

I am planning on maybe 4 goats to start. A neighbor down the road has myotonics and myotonic/boer crosses which is what i am thinking about getting.

Thanks for any suggestions you have.

Where to put goat barn - Goats

Frosted Mini's · #2 07/09/14, 02:01 PM

Barbwire will not contain goats, so you will have to fence that side as well. To me, the area with more trees looks more exciting for goats.

But being closer to the house might be good too. Maybe does by the house, buck, dry does, etc penned in the trees.

lamina1982 · #3 07/09/14, 03:12 PM

This is a pic of the lower area vegetation, pond upper right area and lawn in foreground
Where to put goat barn - Goats

**mygoat** · #4 07/09/14, 04:03 PM

I would put the housing in a CENTRAL easy to access location and then build multiple rotational pastures around it. OR, build one HUGE pasture that you can divide up into smaller lots with electric netting that you move around, such that they're on each pasture for a week or less. Rotational grazing will support healthy pasture growth, potentially ELIMINATE feed costs during part of the year (depending on management and status of does) and drastically reduce worm/parasite problems which are the #1 heath concern of raising goats.

You may also wish to consider where the supplies and any feed may be stored.

A dry raised area is best, IMO, for the shelter. However if it is made of pallets, it may be easily moved too - depends on your plans.

Doug Hodges · #5 07/09/14, 08:56 PM

Central location. That way you can fence off sections and have access to the barn from each area. The barn is the hub

lamina1982 · #6 07/09/14, 09:33 PM

That is what i originally had planned, then thought maybe might be tter in the treeline. I think i have a decent flat spot in my original locationa dn then can make multiple areas on both sides. How big an area would be good to start for 4 goats. I know theyll enjoy as much as possible but need a starting point to plan fence expenses. Thanks

Doug Hodges · #7 07/09/14, 10:35 PM

My goats are always browsing my little 5 acres. I have around 30 something goats on that. I have 16x16 pens in the barn with 5 young bucks in one, 6 bigger kids around 6 months old in another and 9 that are 3-6 months in another. I keep constant hay out in all pens and in the sleeping area. Everything in the pens is fed free choice pellets and all the milkers and dry yearlings get fed on the stand twice a day on the milkers and once a day on the yearlings.

Sooooo 4 goats could live in a 20x20 area or 100 acres. It all depends in what you are going to feed them and how you want to keep them.

Awnry Abe · #8 07/09/14, 11:02 PM

I think the area you have marked off looks pretty ideal. Do you have a source of running water there? That stuff comes in handy,

coso · #9 07/10/14, 08:54 AM

Make it as close to the house as possible. Look at your drainage. Put it where you don't have to worry about water running in it !! Both of these will save you a lot of work !!

marusempai · #10 07/10/14, 10:54 AM

If you are going to be milking, you want that milking parlor as close to the house as possible.

Other than that I'd say central location in the pasture. The goats seem to prefer to stay near the barn, so they don't use the far ends of the pasture as well as I'd like.

Speaking of pastures, I really want to cross fence my back pasture for more intensive management, but the barn is in one corner and the loafing shed is in the far other corner, so there would be a lot of areas with no building (although there are trees for shade in all areas). Would I need to build sheds if I say quartered the pasture? Because half of the pastures would then have shade but not a proper shelter.