# Warm Mash?



## Stacykins (Mar 27, 2012)

I know in the winter, critters tend to drink less. Fresh, ice free water is critical, I know. 

But what about adding a bit of hot water to their grain to make kind of a hot mash? My girls each get a small portion of grain (a 50/50 mix of Dumor sweet textured feed and Dumor pelleted feed (not sweet)) in the evening. They vacuum it up in a few minutes (I police grain time, so nobody gets more than their portion). Do you think making their normal ration a hot, moist one might be appealing? Do you think it would be good for them, if they did like it? I'd be careful to make sure the temperature wasn't too hot, more warm.


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## Trickyroo (Sep 26, 2012)

I used to give my horse warm mash every night 
I would put about 3-4 alfalfa cubes in hot water , let them soak and swell up , then cut up carrots , sometimes a apple and give it to her when its not hot , just warm 
She looked forward to that mash with all her heart  I just loved giving it her too. She lived for over twenty years , so it couldnt have been too bad for her...but with goats , I dont have the experience to say either way.....but when my first girls were young babies , I tried to give them a little bit of it , boy , did that bring nback memories for me , but they wouldnt go near it , they looked at like I was giving them 
jet fuel !!! Now , maybe it would be different since they are older...


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## Trickyroo (Sep 26, 2012)

Im very curious to what the guys say about it though .....I would love to try it again and if its good for them , it would be so much fun doing that again


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## xymenah (Jul 1, 2011)

Some goats will eat wet feed some will not. I would just give it a try and see. Just wet one portion and let everyone try it so you don't waste.


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

You could also put the hot water in their water bucket for warm water.


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## Trickyroo (Sep 26, 2012)

ksalvagno said:


> You could also put the hot water in their water bucket for warm water.


Yes , they do like that . But it's not as much fun .
Keeping them hydrated is the most important though


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## Stacykins (Mar 27, 2012)

I think on especially cold days I'll do the warm water thing in their buckets. They are too far away from the house for bucket heaters, but I keep a rubber mallet with me to bust up ice several times a day. If warm water right away will encourage them to drink more, that is worth it. 

I will try a bit of warm mushy food for the goats tomorrow. If they turn up their noses, the chickens will scarf it down. The chooks LOVE food like prepared oatmeal, and can barely contain their excitement when they see me coming with it. They become little feathery trip hazards, hah!


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## liz (Oct 5, 2007)

I feed all my goats a meal of crushed hay cubes once a day... when it's cold out though, I'll pour hot water over them and divide their rations between the feeders, they all enjoy a warm meal. For my boys, I do feed grain during winter and I will make a mash with hot water for them.

Oh... I've also made my goats oatmeal with raisins and molasses and "served" it hot in very cold weather 
Everyone gets buckets of hot water 2-3x a day in cold weather.


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## Trickyroo (Sep 26, 2012)

How long would a bag of hay cubes last ?
Its tied up and sitting in my garage ( no cars in it )


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## Stacykins (Mar 27, 2012)

Wish I knew how long it was good for. As long as it is dry and mold free, it is probably still good. Food slowly loses nutrients as it ages, though. 

The mash was...not a hit, yet! Everybody got a half cup portion. Artie, my boer wether, was the only one who seemed curious enough to at least try it. He'd take a lick, think about it, take another lick, think about it again. Everybody else was wondering where the 'usual' stuff went. I'll try 'em a couple more times over the next few days. Almost makes me wish my goats were like my conure (parrot). If she's unsure about a new food, she needs to see me try it (or pretend try it) and she'll give it a go! Makes introducing new food easy, haha.


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## silvergramma (Nov 9, 2009)

*about warm water*

if you have electricity in your barn you can use a tank heater that has floating and submergable capabilities,,we did that one year with a small sheep trough it worked but you need to insulate the trough


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## Stacykins (Mar 27, 2012)

Sadly electricity is not feasible at this time. Rubber water buckets and using a mallet to break open ice is what I used to keep their water free. Usually once the water is cleared of ice in the morning, it stays open for the rest of the day through the action of their drinking. 

My girls now really like a their evening grain in warm mash form! Took a bit of convincing them, but now they slurp it up as fast as they can! I think once they realized it wasn't bad that way, they took a liking to it!


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