# Building a goat mini barn - Updated 3-17-12



## HoosierShadow

Hey everyone, I am new here, and new to raising goats. We are getting our first two boer goat does in a few days - both are pregnant and due in a few months. We are very excited, and our kids are overly excited!

We have to construct a permanent shelter for them, temporarily we'll house them in our mower shed at night until a permanent shelter is built.

He's a rundown of my plan. Sorry if I rattle on...!

*Frame will be made out of PALLETS! We'll use some other wood to help with the construction, and We'll use treated plywood for siding. 2 pallets high would be around 8' tall.

*12'x12' shed. I measured that area and seems to be okay. I want to keep a 6'x6' area for a pallet of hay/straw and a trashcan w/feed. The rest for the goats.

*2 windows, on each side of the shed, with thin cut pieces of wood running verticle in the windows to keep anything outside from getting in! I'll make a solid cover for the winter months.

*Slanted roof.

*3 doors. One for us to come in/go out, and 2 for the goats - so if we have to seperate them, then we don't have an obsticle course of getting them in/out. Their doors will be open during the day with them inside and doors closed at night.

-- Question --- when the kids are born, and we have to seperate the does from each other for a few days or so, would a 6'x6' area be good enough for a doe and her kids? I want them to be comfortable, and they MUST be inside overnight. I figured 6x6 would be big enough for each. And when they are together again, then I'd open the area up.

ALSO - What is a good method of ventilation, especially if I have to have the windows closed? Should I leave an section near the top open, without covering it with wood siding?

ROOF- what is the best way to put on a roof, that is inexpensive? We don't want metal roofing. I want to have a slanted roof - something that wouldn't take as long to put together, so would it be better to make a frame for the roof, and use plywood with shingles? Or the sheets of stuff sort of like plastic <but not the kind that cracks/breaks easy>. I'd have to look at the pricing because they vary.

Is it really necessary to have a floor, or would the dirt be fine? We'd keep bedding in there, and later if need be we can make a floor...

We don't have a dog or a buck, and we've seen fox in the area and I know there have been coyote, so we will keep them inside each night.

We plan on having a small herd, and raising to sell for meat, And know that we'll need more shelter in the future. I actually plan on making small shelters for them with pallets when the time comes. So that everyone has a place to go. We'll also get a buck and looking into getting a dog.

Anyway, do I seem to be on the right track? The only building we've done so far is just replacing some floors in our home <LOL>. Yeah, this will be an adventure! But the bottom line is, I know what 'I' want, and I have it all planned out in my mind. Now let's just see if my husband has other ideas. He works all the time, so we don't have a whole lot of time to construct the shed.

The most inexpensive route would be great so if you all have any suggestions?

Thanks!


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## 4kids

*Re: Building a shed, questions any advice?*

We have a slanted roof- plywood with shingles (off the free pile at recycling). We also have an area at the top that is open for ventilation where the fasia board would be. On a normal house/shed you would enclose that with a soffet but on the goat shed we use it for ventilation. In the winter we just screw up a board to cover it. Dirt floors are probably best (although I don't have one). We lock our goats up at night also (bear on the loose)


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## liz

*Re: Building a shed, questions any advice?*

My answer would be to build BIGGER than you think you'll need.....I try and go by the 3x2 needed for each mini goat to be comfortable, Boers are significantly bigger than a mini and when you add in a minimum of 2 kids each, you will get overcrowded in no time. Pallets would do great as a frame...and if they are free thats even better! Dirt floors are fine provided the ground has adequate drainage....some that have dirt floors use sand or pea gravel with a layer of straw over it.


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a shed, questions any advice?*

Thanks so much!

We'll definitely look into getting sand or pea gravel <probably sand for now>.

I do plan on building onto the shed later, adding another section, or just making smaller shelters. I am going to take the pallets and stand them on end and see what I come up with on the measurements I gave. I am trying to keep from having to cut any pallets, and each one is 4' wide. 
We don't have a lot of land, so we won't keep a real big herd, not sure how many we'll end up trying to raise yet, but we're sure excited to get started. My husband's family raise goats in Mexico, and are very successful. 
We want our kids to get involved with 4-H. These does aren't registered, but the kids will be.


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## liz

*Re: Building a shed, questions any advice?*

No cutting would be great! I blew a fuse the other day using the power saw...so no cutting is a plus!
12X12 is fine for the goats....as long as they are comfy, you can even go 12 x 16 to ensure your hay and feed area doesn't encroach on their space.


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a shed, questions any advice?*

Well like I said, my husband has his 'own' ideas too. He just wants to use 2x4's as a frame for treated plywood <like the premade sheds that we have>, and a slanted roof. But if he goes that route, we might do a 'A' room instead. He's worried the 'pallets' will take up too much space...LOL BUT, we will be using the pallets reguardless of what we do - shed or shelters. If we do what he wants ::sigh::, then we'll make their temporary shelter out of pallets and some tarp just until their shed is done.

In the future, we'll use the pallets for shelters for a buck, for dog <if we get a pyramese <spelling?>, and for other goats. All does and young kids would be in the main shelter  We're getting this figured out! We'll do the plywood roof with shingles - my husband said all the other stuff is just too noisy when it rains. LOL.


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a shed, questions any advice?*

My husband FINALLY will start to get two nights off a week now starting tomorrow & Saturday! So MAYBE if it doesn't rain all day tomorrow we can get to work, I am tired of looking at this not even half finished project! Our girls are around a month from kidding, and I want to get them settled in already!

We need 2x4x12's and we can start the frame for our roof - we already have the other 2x4's we need for the frame.

I'll post pics whenever we get started again to show progress.


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a shed, questions any advice?*

Ok so here's our progress so far... from start until now. BTW, it's taking us forever thanks to a LOT of rain this month!

Day 1 - my husband measuring, and putting pieces of wood he cut up into the ground for the support and to help keep the building level. These things are SOLID, so no worry of them failing us.

My husband, son, daughter, and who we refer to as our 'building inspectors' <LOL>, Sweetheart and Snow White.










Day 2










4 Pallets on their sides equals - 16ft. long. 









Day 4
My BIL helping my husband



























They took some 4x4 posts, cut them down and used them to wedge in between the pallets to help keep them together. It's VERY VERY sturdy.









We had to wait for what seemed like forever to start on it again. We have had a LOT of rain this month - I guess we're making up for the lack of rain we 'didn't' have in April.
It took 2 days to do the roof frame



















Anyone want some firewood? LOL Eventually we'll move it somewhere else...










Taken from our back deck. See the temporary shelter on the right? LOL I did have a tarp up but my husband needed it, so I just put the dog house up there on pallets, and that gave them a temporary shelter. And two of our girls LOVE to sleep on pallets... So that's why there are pallets laying around.










The roof frame nearly ready to start laying the roofing!









The pics above were taken on May 20th- morning.

Here are a few from that same evening.




























So that's what I have so far. My husband is out working on it right now. He is putting more 2x4's vertically through the middle of the 'mini' barn and I can only imagine what else he is doing LOL

We went with ONDURA ROOFING at Lowes. We are not done, still need a few more pieces. They come in 4'x6 1/2' foot sheets and are around $20 each sheet. I think the top piece that covers the arch <not sure what it's called?> was around $15 and covers up to around 6 1/2' long.

All in all, it has cost us more than we thought, BUT that is because my husband decided to use more 2x4's for support. He spaced the 2x4 frames apart every 2' as you can see in the pics above. He also used 2x4's around the door frames. 
I'll try to get better pics, and if anyone ever considers doing something like this, I can try to show more detailed pics of how they put things together. THis thing is VERY STURDY.


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a shed, questions any advice?*

BTW, since there is a roof up, I took the temp shelter down, the girls were sad! So I had to put a pallet in the mini barn for them to sleep on....LOL


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## SterlingAcres

*Re: Building a shed, questions any advice?*

That's looking really good so far!  Keep us posted on the progress!


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## liz

*Re: Building a shed, questions any advice?*

I like it! Awesome use of the pallets too.

I like the pallets for "sleeping" ...I have benches built into walls as my goats like to sleep above the ground too...and the underside is a great hiding place for those that are low in the pecking order.


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a shed, questions any advice?*

Thanks! I've got to get some more pics of it, and we're still trying to work on getting the siding. It's slow going <we only have an SUV and the siding won't fit in it>. I have hauled EVERYTHING in my SUV so far...LOL

I love using the pallets! And the best part...THEY ARE FREE!!! And I love the fact we can recyle them! We have several left over - we can use them as dividers in the mini barn to seperate goats <put posts in the ground, pull the pallets in place over the posts, and then we can take them out when we don't need them.

Also - I want to make an outdoor shelter with pallets, and a tarp. Sure it won't look fashionable but it works and I've seen other goat breeders use this as well. 
BUT for the roof on that, I'd tear pieces of wood off of another pallet to fill in the spaces, that away water doesn't pool up and weigh down the tarp.


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## Bellafire Farm

*Re: Building a shed, questions any advice?*

Ok, I just had to post on this...

I've made smaller shelters/mini-shed for each of my pens by using about 6 free pallets each. Everyone has been giving me such a hard time about my "FREE" pallet buildings!! My husband just grumbles to no-end when he's putting them together with me... but I'm SO CHEAP...and times are tough... 
They have turned out beautifully and are amazing solid (so far - knock on wood pallets :ROFL: ) Most of mine are only about 4-5 ft tall "inside" , about 8ft long, and about 5-6 feet deep. They work perfect and are each tightly sided with a Heavy Duty tarp right now until we can purchase some cheaper plywood/T-111 siding to paint. 
I'm looking into making one for the doe's pen that is "2-story", meaning two pallets stacked, like you did on the sides of your "barn"... I just love it! I think your creativeness is inspiring and just wonderful!! Not to mention, it makes me feel better about mine!


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a shed, questions any advice?*



Bellafire Farm said:


> Ok, I just had to post on this...
> 
> I've made smaller shelters/mini-shed for each of my pens by using about 6 free pallets each. Everyone has been giving me such a hard time about my "FREE" pallet buildings!! My husband just grumbles to no-end when he's putting them together with me... but I'm SO CHEAP...and times are tough...
> They have turned out beautifully and are amazing solid (so far - knock on wood pallets :ROFL: ) Most of mine are only about 4-5 ft tall "inside" , about 8ft long, and about 5-6 feet deep. They work perfect and are each tightly sided with a Heavy Duty tarp right now until we can purchase some cheaper plywood/T-111 siding to paint.
> I'm looking into making one for the doe's pen that is "2-story", meaning two pallets stacked, like you did on the sides of your "barn"... I just love it! I think your creativeness is inspiring and just wonderful!! Not to mention, it makes me feel better about mine!


Thanks! And yours sound GREAT! Tell your husband not to grumble, it's saving a LOT of $$$, imagine what it would have cost to get the supplies to build the shelters! 
My husband wasn't big on the idea, BUT I did show him some sample ideas of what other people did, and that's what got him on board.

BTW, when I was a kid years ago, my dad built an ENTIRE barn out of pallets! He did use some kind of metal siding to cover it, but still, the pallets were very sturdy, and he made 6 divider stalls with pallets for the horses to come in at feeding time! It made feeding so much easier!

There are so many things you can do with pallets, and you can cut them into sections, etc. and make things. We will need a hay rack and a long feeder inside, and I plan on doing as much as I can with the pallets and scrap wood.

What has been costly is the roof so far. If we could go back, I'd have told my husband to use pallets for the frame and piece them together! It would have worked! But we didn't think about it. We're happy with the end result though! And it is probably a bit easier doing it this way.

The roof is 16'x14' and when all said and done it is taking us 10 Ondura sheets, and 3 ridge covers. We bought the last sheet and cover today. He'll cut the sheet into small sections to go over the edges at the ends of the roof - if you look at the pics you'll see what I mean.


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a shed, questions any advice?*



Bellafire Farm said:


> Ok, I just had to post on this...
> 
> I've made smaller shelters/mini-shed for each of my pens by using about 6 free pallets each. Everyone has been giving me such a hard time about my "FREE" pallet buildings!! My husband just grumbles to no-end when he's putting them together with me... but I'm SO CHEAP...and times are tough...
> They have turned out beautifully and are amazing solid (so far - knock on wood pallets :ROFL: ) Most of mine are only about 4-5 ft tall "inside" , about 8ft long, and about 5-6 feet deep. They work perfect and are each tightly sided with a Heavy Duty tarp right now until we can purchase some cheaper plywood/T-111 siding to paint.
> I'm looking into making one for the doe's pen that is "2-story", meaning two pallets stacked, like you did on the sides of your "barn"... I just love it! I think your creativeness is inspiring and just wonderful!! Not to mention, it makes me feel better about mine!


Thanks! And yours sound GREAT! Tell your husband not to grumble, it's saving a LOT of $$$, imagine what it would have cost to get the supplies to build the shelters! 
My husband wasn't big on the idea, BUT I did show him some sample ideas of what other people did, and that's what got him on board.

BTW, when I was a kid years ago, my dad built an ENTIRE barn out of pallets! He did use some kind of metal siding to cover it, but still, the pallets were very sturdy, and he made 6 divider stalls with pallets for the horses to come in at feeding time! It made feeding so much easier!

There are so many things you can do with pallets, and you can cut them into sections, etc. and make things. We will need a hay rack and a long feeder inside, and I plan on doing as much as I can with the pallets and scrap wood.

What has been costly is the roof so far. If we could go back, I'd have told my husband to use pallets for the frame and piece them together! It would have worked! But we didn't think about it. We're happy with the end result though! And it is probably a bit easier doing it this way.

The roof is 16'x14' and when all said and done it is taking us 10 Ondura sheets, and 3 ridge covers. We bought the last sheet and cover today. He'll cut the sheet into small sections to go over the edges at the ends of the roof - if you look at the pics you'll see what I mean.


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## GoldenSeal

*Re: Building a shed, questions any advice?*

I have about 50 pallets sitting in my yard...hmmm  We've picked them up here and there over the years and now I want to build a few barns!! How many pallets did it take to build your barn?? We have a ton of 2x4's we got last year for free as well. This is a brilliant idea. You mentioned you had some more detailed pictures somewhere? Would you mind posting them so I can show hubs when he gets home from work today?


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a shed, questions any advice?*

Here's some updates on what we have done/are going to do.

First, yes, I am keeping the tarp companies in business :laugh:

Front of the barn with the addition we are making on the side. Addition has an OSB roof and the tarp for now, eventually we'll put something over the OSB, for now how we have it...works. Hubby will fill in the triangle space at the top of the doorway of the addition with OSB. But I think for now we'll just keep tarp and a pallet in front of the doorway for the winter, and open it up in the spring. I don't want anything permanent blocking this doorway, but I might make something I can close over the top of the doorway in nasty weather, and latch it open when it's nice out.

We've been debating what to do with the stall door, and hubby wants us to cover it with OSB for now.We, and use the back stall door instead, so there isn't a lot of draft coming in from the front. So...eventually it will be boarded up, and later we'll put a stall door on it.
Front stall is the kidding stall for our first doe due <in 4 days!>









My husband works 6 days a week, and hasn't had much time to work, so he tried to put up a few more supports last night for the low side of the roof. He has a couple more to install at the far end and then we'll hang the OSB. 
This addition is 16'x6' this is where the girls eat and eventually where they will sleep when we need the stalls for kidding. 
The only thing we've bought with this addition has just been the OSB on the roof and for the sides. We have one small section we need to put on the roof, and it will be ready for shingles, metal or Ondura roofing.









Backside of the barn & doorways we are using. Very little wind and no snow/rain come in on this side. Oh, the tarp over the doorway has worked great! But this weekend unless something drastic happens, we'll have a stall door up on this side. We keep loose hay in half of the back stall that we've had to pull from round bales. 









I don't have a real short lens for my camera, so it makes the inside of the barn seem very small, but it's 16'x12' each stall is 8'x6' 
There are pallets my husband mounted that divide the stalls. On the left side of the big goat there is a pallet that is just tied in place, and we are going to make that our gate getting in/out of the stall, eventually we'll mount a small gate there, for now...my lil pallet works :wink: The pallets on the right we will not cover with anything. Once the addition has siding it will block the wind. In the bottom pallets on that wall I have stuffed some old bedding <not nasty, just old> in the slots and that will keep the drafts off of the babies when they are born :wink:










It's SLOWLY coming along. I told hubby great idea in saving it for the last minute! But really he's been busy at work, and the weather hasn't been in our favor for working outside, not to mention it's getting dark not long after he gets home.

So far the only thing we've bought for this is some 2x4's for the roof frame and door frames on the barn, the Ondura roofing on the barn, and the OSB boards. 
For the addition the only thing we've bought is OSB for the roof. Everything else has been recycled materials!

Eventually I'll make a couple of small houses behind the barn with pallets, and I also need to make a permanent buck shelter. I'll use pallets, OSB, and not sure what I'll use for the roof on those yet.


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## liz

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - New Pics added!*

Looking good!! Tarps are awesome too...though with the wind around here I found that I'm replacing them yearly, no biggie though cause they are cheap!

My goat buddy Steph has a very handy hubby too...for her buck pen, he made "A" frame type shelters with T-1-11 siding left from their barn, they look good and they are moveable, deep enough to house 3-4 bucklings or 2 adult bucks. I'm thinking of building an A frame for my boys to use in the pasture so the barn goes empty and airs out over the summer.


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - New Pics added!*

Thanks Liz! We don't get a lot of really high winds, usually just with thunderstorms in the spring/summer. I get the smaller ones I use on the doorways for about $2.99 each at a store in town. We have a 20x12' over the addition roof that was about $12, so yep they are cheap, but do the job  Hopefully the rain won't be so bad this weekend so we can get stall doors up. We still haven't been able to finish staining either! We need at least 2 dry days to get that done. In early spring we'll prime & paint everything.


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## toth boer goats

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - New Pics added!*

Very nice..... :thumb:


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## milk and honey

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - New Pics added!*

Great Pics! I love it! I have a pallet fence... and playthings made of them.. but that TAKES THE CAKE!! It looks Awsome! You must be very proud to have built a free barn..
Great Job.. I love free things!


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - New Pics added!*



milk and honey said:


> Great Pics! I love it! I have a pallet fence... and playthings made of them.. but that TAKES THE CAKE!! It looks Awsome! You must be very proud to have built a free barn..
> Great Job.. I love free things!


Thanks! I got the idea from my dad. When I was a kid, my dad built a HUGE barn out of pallets, and put some kind of metal siding. I wish I could find a pic of it, I'll have to see if he has any! It was BIG with 6 stalls for our horses. So when we were trying to figure out what we were going to do about shelter, I told my husband we should build it out of pallets! 
making sure it's level and sturdy is the key, and something my husband is fussy over, he levels everything to the point I want to hide the level sometimes LOL!!!!


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## rocky_ridge_goats

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - New Pics added!*

That's nice. Our barn is a work-in-progress... it's getting windows and siding come spring.. and maybe a people door as well.


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - New Pics added!*



rocky_ridge_goats said:


> That's nice. Our barn is a work-in-progress... it's getting windows and siding come spring.. and maybe a people door as well.


Great to hear! I hope you'll share pics too 
I'd LOVE to have windows in ours, but I haven't been able to convince my husband yet. 
However, the side where the addition is attached there is no siding so you can see through the pallets into the addition.

Hubby has been working on the addition putting OSB siding on it, he redid all the sides evening them up more and redid the entire outside support wall. He still has some work to do to that part, but we're getting closer to getting that part done. Tomorrow I'd like to make my hay feeders.


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## iddybit acres

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - New Pics added!*

My hubby re****ly picked up a side job, helping the local garbage man. Their tearing down a couple old building's in town. My hubby told them about me and my critter rescue/ rehoming that i do and they gave us all the wood and the sheet of plywood are all intack! Hubby dropped our snowmobile trailor off there and they call when it's full so we can empty it!! I work at the local gas staion so i have bought them all coffee =} I'm going to have a barn building BBQ in the spring everyone's welcome bring a hammer :stars: :leap:


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - New Pics added!*

Wow sounds great! I hope it all goes wonderful! You'll have to get pics of your progress! 
We still have soooo much left to do to our barn! We havent' filed our taxes yet, and decided we'd use some $$ from that for roofing and more OSB --- we're adding onto the front of our barn when the weather is better and hubby isn't working so much. I can't WAIT to get it done and get it looking really nice <looks tacky without paint and with tarps everywhere LOL>


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## iddybit acres

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - New Pics added!*

Well so far i have about 75 full sheet's of 1/4 inch (i think) panel board's, and a huge mound of 1x2's, 2x4's all in perfect condition!! My neighbor down the road is redoing his cattle barn this summer and has gifted us all the metal roofing off his old one! And hubby found me about 100 perfect pallet's! This snow can go away now, i have spring fever, guess til it goes away i can start the plan's!


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## WalnutGroveFarm

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - New Pics added!*

Cool


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - New Pics added!*

We'll be working on the barn again soon! We had to put it off because hubby is working way too much right now and the weather just never seems to co operate on his only day off! 
We put it on hold because we plan on adding on another section.

The space in front of the barn between the fence and the barn will be our final addition..









I am not sure how wide of a space it is from barn to fence? so it would be ?? x around 18' Just a rough guess.

In the main part of the barn I want to divide it into stalls similar to the temporary set up we have now inside there. The 16'x6' addition we built on the other side of it will be for hay and feeding/sleeping. I think in the part we add on I want to build at least 2 stalls, and have a place to stack up hay.

My new question would be.... for boer goats... what's the smallest stall you would have?

I want to put together some sort of floor plan for what I want...

But the past week I think I've said 'I can't wait until the barn is done' at least 20 times...LOL It's 'comfortable' and works the way I have it done <you'd all laugh at my building antics :laugh: >, but I am ready for it to be completed


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## RPC

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - ? about stalls page 2*

Sorry I am no help but in that picture do you guys still have your wether? I thought he was for christmas?


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - ? about stalls page 2*

My husband's uncle ended up coming over and well you know.... it was right after New Years. I don't really care for goat meat, at least night what I've had, and we ended up having lots of family here and a ham and turkey for Christmas. I need to find someone that can cook it differently...give it another try.


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## iddybit acres

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - ? about stalls page 2*

How are your building addition's coming along??


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## PznIvyFarm

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - ? about stalls page 2*

I saw this post, and since I will need to build a shed to house my new buck and a buddy for him (at first he will have a pen in the barn with the girls, but later I want to give him separate housing b/c i will need the pen for mommas and babies) I thought i'd check it out.

I heard 'pallet barn' and I thought hmmmmm but it is REALLY NICE! And then I saw 'our building inspectors Sweetheart and Snow White' and I thought, that's funny someone else on TGS has goats with the same names', i remember b/c they were due a little earlier than my girls and I followed their progress

and then i saw it was an older post and it is the same Sweetheart and Snow White.

I am VERY IMPRESSED with your barn, I may have to consider something similar (although i haven't found free pallets yet, when i need them i usually have to buy them for a few bucks each)

One question - how do you get your goats to leave the tarps alone? Mine like to chew things like that.

If you want tarplike material to cover windows, or a doorway, the plastic feed bags work well. I usually hate them b/c the paper ones make great weed barriers in the garden, i put them down in the pathways and cover with mulch, but the plastic ones get in the way when I redesign the garden and move stuff around. But some things only come in plastic feed sacks so i keep them b/c i'm a packrat. I made a door wind barrier for the winter - put some small rocks in the bottom of two bags to weight them down, and stapled them to a two by four, slightly overlapping. The two by four was mounted over the doorway on the outside. On sunny days I would open their inner door, and they could squeeze out between the bags, but the wind couldn't get in. They gradually nibbled on it, so it may not last for next winter, but the bags are free.


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## freedomstarfarm

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - ? about stalls page 2*

They are usually around for free. I would call stores and see if they give them away. Or if you see some laying out back a store ask. Good luck!


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## iddybit acres

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - ? about stalls page 2*

ask your local feed store, hardware store or handy man garage!! The feed store here has the nicer, better quality one's with closer slat's for $1!


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - ? about stalls page 2*

I am so sorry that I never replied, somehow I totally missed the replies on here 

I know it was 2 months ago... but I don't really know why the goats don't mess with the tarp? They chew on them for a few seconds, get bored and go do something else. I figured the tarps wouldn't last long around them!

I am back to work on my barn! It's been a while since we've done much other than raise the floor on the front side - I had pallets and OSB down in the back half until today.
I pulled it all up, and am raising the floor in the back half. I tore down the divider wall that made the barn into two large stalls. I'm going to make 3 stalls. One will be slightly bigger than the other 2 <for kidding>, and each stall will be big enough for a doe and twins.

Of course my biggest problem is...now I have to make some hay feeders! I want a small feeder in each stall. I want home made but don't have access to wire/panels...I think I may make these for each stall:
http://nigeriandwarfgoats.ning.com/phot ... t=featured










Once we get the inside done, then I plan on getting our barn addition roof finished, and get the barn primed/painted. We also have to decide on barn doors....
The doors are about 4ft wide or so...the width of a pallet on it's side.

My husband wants sliding doors on both sides of the barn, but I'd rather have Double dutch doors. I think it would be better to have the Double dutch...so I can open the top or bottom if need be for air circulation.
This is the door I like









We'd just make the door out of OSB and some 2x4's, so nothing fancy, but beats not having doors...especially in the winter!

So that's what I am working on now....I am determined it's getting done LOL


----------



## GotmygoatMTJ

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - ? about stalls page 2*

I don't think I've ever posted on this, but I have to say I love your idea(/fathers)!! It gives me some inspiration to build a rabbitry. xD


----------



## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - ? about stalls page 2*

Thanks! I can't wait until we get the stalls done! It's hysterical right now...everything is held together with rope LOL But the stalls are usuable right now until they are permanent, I need to try and get a picture. 
My problem is I can't dig posts for the stall walls, but I can for the front of the stalls for support - because the way I had to raise the floor. BUT I have other ideas that will work unless my husband helps me. 
I wish I had my dad here, the barn would have been completely done a long time ago!


----------



## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - ? about stalls page 2*

We almost have the stalls done! One stall has a door, but we haven't put a latch on it yet, the others just need the doors. I think I have an idea for simple hay feeders for each stall.... After this the only major things we really need to do are get more OSB and hinges/locks for the outside doors, some roofing for the barn addition and get it painted!

Pallet for the stall walls, and front. OSB for the stall doors. So the only thing We've had to buy is hinges, latches, and some OSB....Not too bad 
I'll get some pics to share tomorrow...


----------



## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - ? about stalls page 2*

We have the stalls nearly done. The doors are all on, later we will have to make a frame on the inside of the doors so they don't get warped/bend, but for now they are fine. The idea I had for locking them closed isn't tight enough, so my husband will probably just make a sliding latch at the top/bottom with wood...I'll share pics when he gets them done.

I went out and took some pictures before we got started on finishing the doors...

Front looking towards the back...


















Middle stall.... don't mind the feeder....It's hanging there temporarily so I can feed the young does and a recently weaned mama away from the others... The stalls are spacious, I can keep an adult and 2 older kids in each stall...I don't know the exact measurements though...









Looking through the back doorway into the back stall. I plan on filling this stall up with hay once we get the outside door on, I won't need it for kidding until next year..









Barn addition....again I think it's 16'xabout 7'. Plenty of room for the girls. obviously the hay feeder/feeder are just temporarily....and yes I use pallets and rope for everything so it seems LOL!!! It works though!!! For these hay feeders, I willprobably tear the inside boards off <side where the hay goes>, put a bottom on it about half way down, or cut the pallets in half and mount them so hay isn't falling down on the ground under the hay feeder... I used scrap pieces of OSB on the sides to keep the younger goats from jumping up into the hay...
Oh, I only give hay once a day right now, or I'd never get them out to graze, they LOVE the hay we've been feeding LOL









The only other thing to do to this side is get some permanent roofing to go over the OSB. Right now it's obvious we still have tarps up there. Not in a big rush to get this done since we're in our dry season...









Oh....and I had a stalker the entire time...rubbing her head all over me, doing her best to get my attention...because after all she is the 'queen' and is soooooo attention deprived <yeah right LOL>. 









She's quite a poser too... :laugh: 


















Anyway, that's all I have for now, I'll get more pics as we go. Hopefully this can help anyone else trying to put together a shelter for your goats without spending too much $$$. BTW, so far all we've spent on the stalls is the hinges.... We've had that piece of OSB we used for the doors for almost a year!


----------



## Tolers Boers

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - Updated pics 8-1-11*

hey who has free palllets? Im in KY Monticello i think u are doing great. we have a barn but i am looking for play things i think pallets would make some nice structure for play area. we gave them our picnic table lol.

what we go thru for out babies....our 3 year old is still our baby.


----------



## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - Updated pics 8-1-11*

Try any feed stores/farm supply stores, warehouses, or stores in your area. Explain they are for a home project if you have too, that away you can get them for free. I absolutely will not pay for pallets, too many places around here that will let me have them for free. I get mine from a local horse supply store, or if they don't have any I check with the lumber store across the drive from them, they always have some sitting next to their dumpster...or a local feed store as my third option.


----------



## StaceyRosado

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - Updated pics 8-1-11*

back where I use to work behind the shopping center there were pallets in the dumpster every day. Drove me nuts but I didnt have a use for them at the time. Watch when I need them they wont be there


----------



## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - Updated pics 8-1-11*

A couple of pics from today..we haven't had a chance to work on it as we spent the past couple of days doing some other projects that needed tending too.

It'll be nice when we get it painted. Nope we're not painting it that dark brown to match the roof...I'm thinking something a little prettier with a red tint, but something that will hopefully match the house...









Front view...I wanted to add onto the front, but think we're fine with what we have....I think I'll make a few small run ins instead...


















Backside....


----------



## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - Updated pics 8-6-11*

Soooo today we went to Lowe's to get some paint/primer and look at roofing options for the barn addition. We considered the metal roofing, but decided to wait. There is a Habitat for Humanity 'Restore' that sells a lot of stuff for 50% off, so I am going to check with them first, might save us some $$ and I've been trying to find an excuse to go check the place out anyway! 

However we were at Lowes in the paint aisle...I was picking color cards for dark reddish brown, something to kind of match the house <wood sided dark stained>, but nothing too dark.

My husband says....'I want blue'

I said HUH???? You want a....BLLLUUEEEEE barn??? LOL

This went on for a few minutes....he said he wanted to paint the foundation around the bottom of the house with any left over paint or buy some to match the barn...I said WHAT???? YOUR GOING TO PAINT SOME OF THE HOUSE BLUE TOO???? WHAT THE.....?!?! 
Then I tried to reason with him and told him, it would be 'okay' to have a blue barn, if the HOUSE was blue, but NOT the bottom where the wood stops, which is about 2ft from the ground. 
So in my shock....after several minutes of me turning away not wanting to see a card or hear a word.....he says 'I want it to match the shed.'

GREY!!! YOU WANT GREY!!!!! :laugh: :slapfloor:

YES! he told me LOL

My husband is not from the USA, and although his english is GREAT, he just couldnt' think of the word grey, and the closest thing in his mind was blue.
But he didn't look down the color card section far enough for the grey cards <they didn't look grey until you picked them up either>.

Of course I picked on him...and he won't hear the end of this for a while :laugh:

Anyway, he picked the color. I told him if we don't like it, then we can blame him.... but if we like it, then it's my doing since I did let him pick it... :laugh:

It's a color called Flagstaff I believe, can't wait to get the barn painted! I've been waiting almost a YEAR to get it painted!

Okay enough rambling...heh...but I couldn't resist...it was just too funny....

After we paint...all we have to do is put doors on it/paint the doors, and get the roofing on the addition. We have to make some hay feeders for the stalls, as we just haven't had a chance to do that, except a temporary one for the twins who are stalled at night. 
As long as we can get it painted and looking good...the rest will fall in place. I just worried we would run out of time to get it painted before icky weather sets in.

So that's my update for now  I think we might but primer on tomorrow! We may not have enough primer/paint to do it all, but it'll be a good start, and we can pick up more as we need it


----------



## mrs. lam

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - bought some paint today*

I know how you feel, Candice. :greengrin: My husband is Asain and sometime's I have to really stop and listen to figure out what it is he is trying to get across. His sister is the worst. We visted them in July and she kept asking my step son if he wanted to live with her...? Just for the night then he could go home with us....She meant "spend the night" :ROFL: Poor Andy was thinking he was moving to OK. Oh, when she wanted to invite her other brother and sis in law to dinner she told him "they needed to talk" after he got off work. He was worried and rushed home thinking something was wrong. Now he's so made at her they haven't talked in weeks. :doh:

Our barn will be finished by the weekend. We tried pallets but just don't have time to do it. Hubby hired someone to build a wood frame and metal roof and sides. We will finish it in wood and I get to paint it! He likes barn red. He's always liked the old red barns in pictures and movies. 

Gina


----------



## toth boer goats

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - bought some paint today*

:ROFL:

I know... husbands do have different tastes... but you are right.. the blame if it looks off... goes onto him...HeHe... :laugh: :hi5:

Your Project looks wonderful.... :thumb:


----------



## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat shed/mini barn - bought some paint today*

Thanks Pam I am glad you agree! :laugh:

My husband, son and my youngest daughter worked on putting the primer on. I 'think' the paint will be a little darker. It's definitely....bright...heh...But IMO I think it looks a whole lot better!

The color is called Flagstaff, but again I think for the paint the sample on the can looked a little darker than the primer.










Taken from my back deck


















Hard at work









Marissa was just soooo serious.... :laugh: 



























Of course it was fun until she realized it was all over her LOL









So that's what we have done so far. Tomorrow we'll paint it. We did the backside, but I forgot to get pictures. Doing all of that took about 1 1/2 gallons of tinted primer, maybe a little more? So I am guessing about that much in paint. We have a few more pieces of OSB to cut and put in place here and there, then we'll be ready to get the stuff to make doors.
I want double dutch doors on the front and back, and then a regular door on the back of the barn addition that I can close in the winter or when it rains/storms/etc.


----------



## toth boer goats

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - Primed and ready to paint! 8*



> Thanks Pam I am glad you agree! :laugh:


 :wink: :greengrin: :thumb:

Wow.. it looks real good with just the primer on it... 

What good kids you have to help..... they are adorable..... :hi5:


----------



## freedomstarfarm

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - Primed and ready to paint! 8*

It is looking so great!!
Love the kids helping out!!


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - Primed and ready to paint! 8*

Thanks so much! The kids love doing stuff like that, and it's great when it's a project that they can help with  They painted the barn yesterday afternoon, and it looks the same, I was kind of hoping the paint would be a little darker to match the sheds, however, I think it only took a gallon of paint, so my husband may paint the sheds to match the barn. He'll also go around the bottom of the house with this as well.

Saturday we plan to go to the Habitat for Humanity 'Restore' and see if they have any kind of building materials. We need to get that additions roof done, and I want to work on getting the doors on the barn. Eventually I am going to fill the loft and back stall up with hay for winter.


----------



## toth boer goats

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - Primed and ready to paint! 8*

You are all doing a great job there..... :hi5: :thumb: :greengrin:


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - Primed and ready to paint! 8*

Thanks so much Pam! It's amazing what you can do when you put your mind to it  We were going to add onto the front of the barn, but I think instead we're just going to make a run in shelter there later on. We don't plan to keep more than 5 breeding does, and I've decided I don't want to keep grain in the barn at all, I'd rather keep it in the shed so no accidental break ins by the goats LOL


----------



## RPC

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - Primed and ready to paint! 8*

Wow it looks great congrats on getting it painted. This is the first time I have almost gotten to see your husband's face. I think the goats will be happy with their nicely painted barn.


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - Primed and ready to paint! 8*

Thanks Roger! I can't wait to get it done. My husband is working on putting some better posts in the ground where we had our buck pen, and he's putting the fence up for it so we can get a buck soon. That means' until we get a buck pen/shelter built the barn is on hold again LOL

I can't believe I've never shared pics of my husband, but then he is usually busy anytime I have my camera out or at work.

The brats have already scratched the barn in 2 places so I'll have to do a touch up, yep they just want to keep me busy like I don't have enough to do already LOL


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## PznIvyFarm

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - Primed and ready to paint! 8*

Was looking for more ideas for a buck house (wanted to make it look cute, not just functional) and discovered your idea is famous

http://gardenaustin.com/2010/06/26/goat-shed-made-from-palettes/

You should post and take credit for it

And this is my favorite design so far


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## GotmygoatMTJ

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - Primed and ready to paint! 8*

I love that buck house! *swoon*
Though I think it would be rather interesting to get up there and clean it out. O__O


----------



## PznIvyFarm

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - Primed and ready to paint! 8*

True. My chickens are on the second floor and that is bad enough


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## GoatGirlMO

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - Primed and ready to paint! 8*

Hey Hoosier... what type of paint did you get? We have a horse shed that is just wood and needs to be painted... all our things are white (or should be...) and it looks terrible but we are arguing over what type of paint will last the longest.


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - Primed and ready to paint! 8*

We went to Lowes and bought a really good external Primer and had it tinted, and then used an external paint over it. I can't remember the name of the primer we used, but it wasn't very expensive, and it is supposed to be really good, If you go to Lowes I am sure they would recommend the same thing most likely. You can have it tinted to the color of your choice.

We still have not finished the roof on our barn addition  Seems like every time we plan to do it, something happens! So frustrating! I ran out of time to do it before I worked the horse sale, then spent 1/2 the $$$ we were going to use for doctor visits thanks to my inner ear drama <and spending more of that for the co pay at the ear doctor next week!>, and now hubby has to get tires on the car and the crapmobile <haha SUV> plates need renewed too. 
I'm buying another tarp to put over it today <hopefully they have the size I need!>, and when I get payment for some pictures that should pay for the roofing  It'll work out. The goats sleep in the barn aisle so it's not like they don't have a dry place to sleep, but the old tarp is really leaking now and don't want the OSB/2x4 frame rotting, plus the dry bedding I put down on Mon when I cleaned the barn out isn't dry anymore in many spots


----------



## PznIvyFarm

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - Primed and ready to paint! 8*

I have a question - what did you do inside? It looked like your pallets were 'good side' (ie more boards) on the outside of the barn, I was thinking it might be better to have the side with more boards on the inside since the outside will be covered anyway - thoughts on this?


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## freedomstarfarm

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - Primed and ready to paint! 8*

Love the buck tower!

Hoosier you do need to post on that blog and take credit! Your barn is just great!!


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - Primed and ready to paint! 8*



PznIvyFarm said:


> I have a question - what did you do inside? It looked like your pallets were 'good side' (ie more boards) on the outside of the barn, I was thinking it might be better to have the side with more boards on the inside since the outside will be covered anyway - thoughts on this?


Somehow I missed your question 

We wanted the good boards/more boards on the outside, just seemed to be a better idea at the time. We're not real concerned with how it looks inside. But having the boards spaced apart you can climb up the walls if need be - we put scrap wood, and misc stuff up in the beams so we can get up there and get them down.

We're hoping and praying all goes well so in the next week we can get a roof on the barn addition! We've been okay with tarp, but it looks tacky, but also with all the wind we've had come through lately it put a hole in the back side, so it's starting to leak into the back part of the sleeping area when it rains.
I rearranged the sleeping area yet again! Since the square bales of hay are in the 3rd/back stall, I have to eventually have some kind of a stall for one of our does who is due in the next month. So I've got that figured out 

I'll get pics to share tomorrow, and tell some more of my 'ideas' We worked all afternoon out in the pen, I usually don't clean the sleeping area out all the way until sometime in March, but since it was so nice, I went ahead and got it done. I feel like I got so much accomplished! now I am exhausted LOL


----------



## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - Primed and ready to paint! 8*

We are FINALLY going to finish this thing LOL OMG it's only taken FOREVER!
We have the $$ to do it, so no excuses. Hoping to get the roof over the addition and doors on the barn early next week since it's supposed to be extremely cold and snowy this weekend.
The addition area roof is starting to get wet and leak towards the outside wall, so it's a good thing we are doing this soon. The tarp got torn during a wind storm.

My son took some pics with our old point and shoot camera late this evening.

Can you tell we've not had a 'dry period' in months? I keep layering the area around the barn with old hay from a round roll we keep for just that purpose. The rocks around the barn are wonderful, keeps the goats from walking in wet hay or mud. BTW we will eventually be adding on to the front of the barn, but need to get our other projects done first. 









It looks small, but again it's 16' x 12'. Last stall is still half filled with grass/clover/mix hay bales. My husband takes the round bales - rolls the bad stuff off of them, and stuffs them at the end in the aisleway so they can have it whenever they want - doesn't get wet or much waste either! 
next year we'll have a different place to store hay, for now this works.


















We put wooden frames around the outside of the stall doors, lowered the locks. I'll get the 'hook locks' for the top so when we are in the stall I can lock the door while I am inside if need be.









This was made as a temporary hay feeder....I never expected it to last, figured they'd tear it apart, worried they would chew on it. Nope, it's lasted! The only thing I really need to do is take the black netting off they did tear that up. Eventually we'll have regular hay feeders in here, but it works great for now. I have it nailed on the backside and it's wedged - not going anywhere. It's one of those HUGE totes. 









Ithma waiting for some of the clover hay









Ithma getting what she wants, in peace and quiet from the others!
We'll be digging up some of the old muck to finish filling in our flower beds, and the rest I plan to box in with pallets so it doesn't get spread out so bad . If for some reason we don't add on to the front of our barn, then we'll build something back here somewhere along this fence line to store hay, and I also want a small shelter next to it. 









Hay feeders we built the other day. I found a pallet that was perfect, we cut it in half, and I told my husband my idea, so he helped me get it mounted. Works great, and they really don't waste much at all. We made 2 of them. I'm going to go back and see if they have another pallet like this, so I can use it to make permanent hay feeders in the stalls.









This one is a little wider than the one above - <we shortened the one above since it is near a doorway>









Mineral feeder. This is also mounted 'temporary.' This is in the back of the barn addition. Eventually I'll move it towards the frontside after we get the roof/sides finished up.









You can't really tell, but I push the middle down with a finger to make a 'groove' so when I am out I can check to see if it's been messed with, helps me know they are using it.









Everything in here is temporary except for the hay feeders. It's changed from past pics huh? I like that I can rearrange it to my needs. 
I can't WAIT to get the roof finished - water is running down the tarps and getting the outside OSB on the bottoms wet as you can see in the pic. Once we get the roof on that won't happen. We'll also fix the OSB so they are level, but we may not put anything in the gap between the top of the OSB and the roof - helps with air flow in the summer - also that's facing East, and our weather never comes from the east...so wind/rain/snow/etc isn't a problem.
I put the pallets in the middle to divide it into two - it's 16'x7'. The back section will actually be a stall for a doe who is due in a few weeks since there is hay in the 3rd stall in the barn.... I am already feeding her back there. But originally all 4 girls were eating here in this feeder. I actually like that they are all eating seperate right now LOL


















This will be Snow White's stall when she kids in a couple of weeks. Hay feeder will hopefully be replaced by then as it's had it's day LOL Right now it's stuffed with hay we'll use for bedding, etc. She doesn't stay in here only for feeding time. I wish I could get pics of the stalls, they are about 4'x6' or so...plenty big for a mama and twins. I probably do have pics of the stalls somewhere.









Anyway, that's all for now. I'll have to get pics of our temporary buck shelter <it's hideous but works GREAT LOL>. We'll be getting it finished as soon as we finish the barn. I may talk my husband into going ahead and getting the roofing for it so we have it.


----------



## lissablack

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - A little update 2/9/12*

Love those pics. It looks cozy. Is that green stuff growing outside in your pens? The minerals look really red. Is that how they really look? I have heard people say if the minerals are real red there is too much iron in them and that interferes with the uptake of copper. Don't know if that's right.

Jan


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## GotmygoatMTJ

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - A little update 2/9/12*

Looking good!  Its so cozy, as Lissablack said. Almost an old timey homestead feel. (I'm watching Little House on the Prarie...)

I have also heard about the red mineral having too much iron in them, but looking at Ithma I'd say that her mineral is doing okay, no fish tail there and coat looks nice and shiny!


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - A little update 2/9/12*

Thanks ladies  It's coming a long SLOWLY LOL Main thing is it is cozy, they are dry, and biggest thing is these girls are brats <not kidding!>, so when they decide to bully each other they have a few places to go to get away from the fuss. I can't wait to add on or make an additional shelter, especially since we plan to buy at least 2 more does this year <but we won't be keeping a buck year round, right now we have a buck and twin boys in the buck pen>.

We do use red mineral, unfortunately we can not get them to eat the dark mineral we bought from Southern States. 
Actually we used this kind of mineral for about a year and a half and haven't had any copper issues that I have noticed. But once we tried the Souther States goat mineral they refused to touch it  I have nearly a whole bag of it left.
I think I am going to get another mineral feeder for the girls and put the other kind in it anyway, so they have access to both kinds, especially when I have to make a creep feeder <probably the back part of the barn addition>.

We've had a very mild winter, but also very wet. I don't think the ground has been dry since before Christmas! We start to dry out and get more rain. It's been a real time trying to keep the mud under control around the front/side of the barn. 
Hopefully it dries out a little in the near future, so when we're ready to start building more, we can do it. 
I don't want to get a bunch of pallets and have them sitting in the rain. If we add on to the front, that would be about 7 or 8'. I am hopeful!


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## Mandara Farm

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - A little update 2/9/12*

Wow, you've done a lot of work! Congrats on your cozy homestead barn!


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## toth boer goats

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - A little update 2/9/12*

Very nice job....I love it ...looks great........ :thumb: :hi5:


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - A little update 2/9/12*

Thanks Pam! It's definitely taken us long enough to get this thing done LOL My husband has not been in a rush, and then something always happens too! 
Hoping we will get the stuff Monday to finish it up. Or at least next weekend at the latest. He is working 11 hour shifts/6 nights a week, so he doesn't have much time to work on things around here.

With it being so bitterly cold this weekend, I put a tarp over the front doorway, and tied it to the pallet we keep in front of it, keep it open enough for them to get in/out, and the aisleway is very cozy, no wind 
Last night I put the meannie herd queen in her stall, younger doe in her stall, that away the two red girls can sleep in peace and quiet in the barn aisleway on a thick bed of hay that's been dropped from the round bale.

Not bad for a barn that's only cost us nails, OSB, some 2x4's <barn roof frame/doorway frames>, and the Ondura roofing, oh, and some gas $$ to go get the pallets. But I sure can't wait to get this done and add on, especially since we want to keep about 6 does instead of 4 <but we won't be keeping a buck year round>.


----------



## hardiegeart

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - A little update 2/9/12*

Great post with great ideas! very inspirational, thank you for all of the pictures, they help alot.


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## toth boer goats

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - A little update 2/9/12*

:thumbup:

I know how that goes...it seems like things have to wait sometimes.... but...good things come to those who wait right? :wink:

Wow... :shocked: your Husband is a hard worker... that is wonderful...sounds like a good man... :greengrin:

I know about the meanies...man... sometimes they make me so irritated.... :hair: :doh: :help:

No not bad at all ....it is amazing how things turn out ..... :thumb:


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - A little update 2/9/12*

Well thanks to mother nature, it'll be 50/50 on getting the roof on this weekend. They are saying a winter storm watch for Sat night/Sun, but after the last 'snow bust' I am not getting excited, probably end up raining...heh.

My husband did make a quick outside hay feeder for the girls. It works great, sure they drop some, later he can figure out something to help with waste. We were setting the hay between two logs, and in the wheel barrow , so this is a nice change! BTW, we have hay feeders in the barn, they prefer to be outside, especially if the sun is shining.

made out of scrap wood and very sturdy


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - A little update 2/17/12*

Well, fingers crossed that the weather co operates tomorrow, we might get the barn addition roof DONE! 
We bought some thin sheet metal to put over it at Home Depot today. The roofing won't match, but we decided not to use Ondura because there is a black walnut tree over the barn addition - even though we've cut back several branches on it, still the walnuts will fall on the roof in the fall, so we think it would do 'less' damage to metal than Ondura.

We also bought some hinges, locks and screws and some wood for the barn doors. The only thing we'll need is some OSB sheets for the doors, but not getting them until we're ready to get them put on, hopefully next Monday weather permitting.
Front door will be the split door, I am tired, forget what its called, but I posted a sample picture on one of the pages in this topic. Won't be fancy at all, but it'll be so nice to have DOORS. 
The back will be a solid door.

Can't wait to get this done. We have enough paint/primer for the doors, and to finish painting the outside, plus where the goats rub on the outside, they've got some chips, so we'll paint over those.

After the barn is done, we have to make the decision. add on to the barn, or make a couple of shelters and something to store hay in. We want to have a couple more does than what we have now, so we need more shelter space. Lots of fun, but it's SLOWLY coming together


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## toth boer goats

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - A little update 2/17/12*

ray: :hug:


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - A little update 2/17/12*

Well we got all the metal roofing up! But somehow we were one sheet short, so I am heading out to pick up one in just a few minutes. It's not the greatest 'looking' roof but hey...if it doesn't leak anymore, and I don't need a tarp? Not going to complain 
It's beautiful out today, 11:30am and already in the 50s. Rain chances later though, so we may get to see how the roof holds up!


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## KW Farms

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - Getting barn done FINALLY!*

Awesome!! I love it! Such a cute set up!  Get pics when you get a chance...of the metal roof! :thumb:


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## toth boer goats

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - Getting barn done FINALLY!*

That is good to hear..... I love it as well.... great work ... :wink: :thumb: :hi5:


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - Getting barn done FINALLY!*

Barn roof is done! YEAY!  I'll try to get pics, but it's really hard because it's right on the property line/trees/etc. so we'll see what I can get. It may not be beautiful, but as long as the girls stay dry! Nobody will really see it anyway, especially when trees start getting leaves.

We're hoping to get the doors on it probably do that on Mon if weather permits.

Hopefully we can work on the buck shelter soon, the boys are having fun with the tarps...LOL
My husband wants to tear that one apart and make it taller - he's tired of hitting his head when he goes in there, since it's only one pallet high...heh...


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## KW Farms

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - Getting barn done FINALLY!*

:stars: Yay!


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## toth boer goats

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - Getting barn done FINALLY!*

:leap: :leap: :leap:


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - Getting barn done FINALLY!*

My husband got the barn doors on the other day! YAY! 
Front has double dutch doors, and the back has a solid door. 
The only thing we have to do now is wait for the hardware store to get more of the gate latches we used for the doors, so we can put a piece on it for the top so we can latch it closed. For now we are leaving them open, weather is beautiful and have 2 moms with young babies inside.
My only concern is the way my husband did the locks...if doors get closed you WILL get locked in LOL
So..I am going to get clips to put in the clasp so anytime you open close you can use a clasp/clip to keep from getting locked in. I don't think he thought about that one LOL

Anyway, just need to get them painted, and other than eventually needing better/permanent hay feeders in the stalls in the future, then the barn is DONE!

BUT, I want to start on another project very soon. I want to do the buck house, but with summer right around the corner I think we'll hold off - their shelter is fine for summer. So I want to start on an additional shelter and place to store hay by the fence between the back of the barn and buck pen.

My idea is kinda like this, but no way near as big, and it would be you guess it....pallets, osb and metal roofing LOL
1 shelter on one side, hay storage in the middle and 1 shelter on the other side









I am guessing about 7-8ft tall <2 pallets high>, and probably about 8' square. BUT I don't know how big of an area we need for hay, it would definitely need to be a bigger. 
I don't want the front on the shelters to be completely open like that, but I am not going to go crazy on that, it'll face east, so no rain/wind/etc. will come in.

So that's what I want to work on next. I need to start collecting pallets for it, and get measurements. It'll slowly come together


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## HoosierShadow

*Re: Building a goat mini barn - Getting barn done FINALLY!*

Here are a couple of pictures of the barn with doors. 



























Nothing fancy, but it's coming along! My husband doesn't have much time to work on this stuff since he works so much right now. 
As soon as we get a few dry days in a row we'll get it painted/primed.
Need one more gate latch for the front bottom so we can latch it closed, hopefully the hardware store has more in.

The ground has just been so wet, and it's taken it's toll around the barn. Thankfully the rest of the pen is fine.
This is what we're dealing with









Inches of mud and water, and some old hay from a hay roll. It's pretty gross! Every time it starts to dry out, we get more rain! This is the worst it's ever been, but the thing is, the goats hardly ever come over here unless it's feeding time, and when they do they walk on the rocks around the sides of the barn. The mud is from us LOL

Anyway, so that's what we've done. Nothing fancy, but it works, didn't cost us an 'arm and a leg' either.

***Wanted to add that on the front right side you'll see the hideous pallet...LOL That's the creep area for the kids. Because of the hay feeder I have inside, I can't fit the pallet on the inside of the door, and the pallet was already cut to a perfect size for the kids, so what the heck...So the kids have about 5x7 area with hay and grain and they LOVE it. In the early evening when we feed everyone, Madison's twin girls and Trouble's buckling go inside their creep area to sleep, nibble on hay, or test the grain. Yep works great


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## Crunchymom

How did you guys put the pallets together? Nails? 

I'm thinking this is the way to go for us too, as I can get pallets for free like crazy where I am. The only thing I can see having to do different is that we will need to do corner posts set in the ground. We get steady winds of 20 to 40 miles an hour with gusts up to 75 miles an hour in the winter!


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## HoosierShadow

Crunchymom said:


> How did you guys put the pallets together? Nails?
> 
> I'm thinking this is the way to go for us too, as I can get pallets for free like crazy where I am. The only thing I can see having to do different is that we will need to do corner posts set in the ground. We get steady winds of 20 to 40 miles an hour with gusts up to 75 miles an hour in the winter!


Our barn is very very sturdy, so far we haven't had any problems with it against wind, etc. ::knock on wood!:: 
We nailed the pallets together, and also my husband took some kind of posts maybe 4x4? cut them into pieces, and wedged them between the pallets to help secure them. If you go to my first page of this topic and scroll down to the picture post Day 4 and then look down you'll see a picture of what I mean <just above where we started putting on the roof>.

We're getting ready to make a place to store hay, and a couple of run in shelters. We may not do the shelter above that I wanted to do, but as long as we have a couple of other shelters we'll be fine. For now we are fine since we've sold goats and only have 4 adults the rest are young kids


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## milk and honey

Great idea with the 'creep feeder'.. I tried using hardware clips to fasten a small fence panel on a stall... and the mommas saw that grain, and broke the clips and were in there in seconds! Determined Goats!


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## Texas.girl

Yesterday I finally found a source of free pallets. Every time I see pallets piled up I have asked but usually the company that makes the deliveries want their pallets back. But yesterday I hit gold. We had a full SUV load yesterday so we could only take a few pallets with us which we tied to the roof of my Rav4. It is over an hour drive to this source of pallets but must return today (computer mouse acting up and discovered goats ate the wiring on the generator-grrrrr), so going to fill my Rav4 with pallets and pile them on top again. I want to build a chicken coop with the pallets. Thanks for the idea.


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## packhillboers

Wow.. that is impressive to build it out of pallets like that. Good job and creativity too.


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## primal woman

Terrific use of pallets. 

I just built a shed of sorts out of office cubicles. So it is 8x8x5 feet high. Not bad. Throw some plywood on top and done. Spray painted it in a matter of minutes. 12 hour old baby in there right now.


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## HoosierShadow

I thought I"d update that we are adding on again lol

My husband has been on a roll this week, he's been on vacation, so we got the stuff for a roof and finished making a pallet frame. 
We just have to get a piece of roofing for a small part between the barn and new addition, and get OSB for siding, and it'll be ready to use!

It's around 7- 7 1/2' wide and 12' long


















He's taking the back wall off the sleeping shelter side and redoing that as well. You can see through that doorway there is nothing back there where the OSB wall once was lol I told him one thing at a time! Especially since our does will start kidding in about 2 weeks.


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