# stall size



## mtmom75 (May 19, 2011)

Right now my barn is just one big open space, and all 4 does are together with no stalls. I'd like to split the barn into stalls before they start having kids. Also, it seems like 2 of them eat most of the grain, and the other 2 are always getting pushed away from the feed, so I'd like to be able to separate them so I know they're all getting the right amount of food. 

Anyway, I have space to make 4 stalls in my barn, and each stall would be 4 x 6. Do you all think 4 x 6 is a large enough space for a ND doe and her kids (when she has them)?


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## Randi (Apr 22, 2011)

You need to remember space for the babies, separate from mommy for weaning time. Also, what will become of the babies, are you selling them? 

At my house, I pour the feed along a plastic gutter and the does all have plenty of room to eat. If one nudges another out of the way, she just moves down a little and keeps on eating. I feed milkers on the stanchion.


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## 4theluvofgoats (Jun 9, 2011)

My kidding stalls are 4 x 8 and that leaves me room to be in there to help if needed. I have a seperate area sectioned off with a hog panel and a hole just big enough for the kids to go through that I use as a creep feeder and to seperate them from their moms at night so I can milk in the am.

~Christy


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## liz (Oct 5, 2007)

My stalls are 4x5 and just under that , I give grain individually to ensure that each are getting the correct ration...and my creep set up is similar to Christy's that allows me to separate kids at night to milk in the morning.

Now...each of the 3 stalls I have are in a 10x10 area that is separate from the goats main living area, you may not have that option. If you plan your breedings around the space you would have available, you could make just 3 stalls and have open space for a lounge area.


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## sweetgoats (Oct 18, 2007)

I have different sizes becasue I have to get as many stalls as I can and still be able to share water as much as possible.
I have 10 x 4, 6 x 6 stalls, 4 x 4 and 5 x 3. I have the small stall for the smallest goats. These are the kidding stalls also. I have two 6 x 6 stalls that I took one of the pannels out and it is one HUGE stalls because these two girls get along so well and that way I have one water tank that for them and they share with another stall.


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## HoosierShadow (Apr 20, 2010)

Our barn in small <16'x12' with an added 16'x7' sleeping area>. I have it divided into 3 stalls and a small walkway. I 'think' the stalls are probably about 8' long and 6' wide and they are perfect size for our does w/kids <kiko, boer/nubian, boer>. I'd think as small as ND are, a 4x6 would be plenty big depending on how many kids they have.

We have a feeding trough from Tractor supply and I have 4 girls who eat from it. Two of them are piggies, but one is awful about it. I have to stand there and keep the peace or the big piggy/herd queen will chase everyone out and no one gets to eat. I kept a small stick in my hand, and when she'd try to do something I didn't like I would tap her on the horns and tell her firmly NO! She quickly learned she wasn't doing that with me there. 
Oh and she's a smarty too, see, they have an order in how they eat, kind of funny actually, she is on the end, her buddy is next to her, then our younger red doe next to her, and the older red doe on the other end. This is the order they eat in EVERY day. 
Miss smarty horns will move down just a little and eat, and if you don't watch she will keep going, THEN she will come back to the grain in front of her. I call her a hoarder LOL!!! I caught on to what she was doing, and so now I reach in and spread the food she tries to come back to out for the others!

Unless they are completely nuts and you can't control them <LOL>, if you want them to learn to eat together, and think certain ones aren't getting enough and getting pushed away, maybe be a referee? My girls know I won't put up with the bullying at feeding time.


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## jaycee (Aug 3, 2011)

HoosierShadow said:


> Oh and she's a smarty too, see, they have an order in how they eat, kind of funny actually, she is on the end, her buddy is next to her, then our younger red doe next to her, and the older red doe on the other end. This is the order they eat in EVERY day.


Haha yes my girls all have their order as well. I have the little 6 quart plastic feeders that hang on a 2X4, 5 in a row so no one can get pushed out or theres always an empty hole. If anyone gets out of line then its just a mess and no-one is happy until we are all in the right place. My wife came out to help feed last week, in fact, and she started filling the pans from the WRONG end... meaning the bossy girls pushed the others out of the way and started eating from the opposite end that everyone was used to. Of course this led to jumping over each other and crawling under and mauling my wife with the coffee can and of course alot of yelling and complaining. My wife says holy moly what is wrong with these goats they are crazy!? I said Duhh its all your fault you filled the pans from the wrong end hahahaha! Such silly obsessive compulsive goats


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

4x6 is fine for a kidding stall for ND's.


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## Guest (Jan 20, 2012)

My kidding barn has 6 stalls 5x10. These are then split with a portable panel as needed and as large or small as needed. I have grain feeders built in to the panels on one end and hanging feeders on the gate end. In each pen I built vee shaped feeders to hold hay but leaves fall on the floor and are wasted water is a pain when everything is full though, using 1.5 gal pails. I would rather have 12 5x5 pens side by side then I could have a heated water trough running the whole thing.
The very best and most of this last batch did, have them outside in the kidding lot. The kids seem to do better if they are born outside then inside then taken outside. I like to get the kids dry and make sure their eating and if the temp is above 15 and the suns out then out they go. I do have a couple of things for the kids to crawl into to get out of the weather. The best one is a 200 gal sprayer tank cut off at the bottom so the fill hole is about 8 inches off the ground when you stand it on end. Then I hung a 250 watt heat lamp in it. It holds about 15 10 day old kids and there is the barn and a creep feeder with a guard around the bottom that another 15 get under. I think a square tote would hold 30 or more kids and I cut all mine in half for tanks.


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