# Stall cleaning



## GoatieGerty (Jul 31, 2019)

I just made another post so I'm sorry if any of you are reading this twice from me haha - I am new to goats, 2 months in with my first kids.. 3 Nigerian Dwarf doelings. They have quite a large area in our barn - easily enough room for 4 more goats, however I'm keeping it simple right now with only 3. They are now almost 4 months old so they are still pretty small. My question is - how often should I be cleaning out their stall? I've got lime, straw, and pine shavings down for them which is on top of cement/concrete, not sure which. They have constant in/out access to pasture/the barn but for some reason they seem to prefer inside the barn. Truly so far I've only completely cleaned the stall out once (pitchfork all the straw out, sweep up any dust/dirt/old lime, let dry for a bit, and lay down all new everything.) I'm coming up on the time where I think I may need to do this again (monthly) but started reading on here that some people clean their stalls DAILY!! I realize most goat owners it seems have more goats than I do - so is a daily clean moreso for a larger group of goats? Am I okay cleaning out stalls once a month? Once winter comes I plan to do deep litter method.

Thank you!!


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## Goats Rock (Jun 20, 2011)

Do whatever you think is best for your situation. Kneel down in the pen, does it smell? Are your knees wet? If so, time to clean it out. If not, wait awhile. If they are going in one area (near the hay feed area, probably) maybe scoop that out. 

Since you only have 3, they won't compact the area as badly as more would. Those little feet can pack manure down until it is like concrete. (Those big rollers on highway jobs, with the little knobs sticking out, those are called sheepsfoot rollers. They pack the dirt like goat and sheep feet do to manure!) 

Basically, do what you are comfortable with.


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## GoatieGerty (Jul 31, 2019)

Goats Rock said:


> Do whatever you think is best for your situation. Kneel down in the pen, does it smell? Are your knees wet? If so, time to clean it out. If not, wait awhile. If they are going in one area (near the hay feed area, probably) maybe scoop that out.
> 
> Since you only have 3, they won't compact the area as badly as more would. Those little feet can pack manure down until it is like concrete. (Those big rollers on highway jobs, with the little knobs sticking out, those are called sheepsfoot rollers. They pack the dirt like goat and sheep feet do to manure!)
> 
> Basically, do what you are comfortable with.


It does smell in there because, poop. But it's not an outrageous smell at all. I kneel or sit all the time and have never gotten any part of me wet. So I suppose i'll just stick with my once monthly and use my best judgment for the time being. Thankyou!


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## NigerianDwarfOwner707 (May 17, 2018)

GoatieGerty said:


> It does smell in there because, poop. But it's not an outrageous smell at all. I kneel or sit all the time and have never gotten any part of me wet. So I suppose i'll just stick with my once monthly and use my best judgment for the time being. Thankyou!


Not the smell, more the feel of the air. Does it feel thick or dusty? It's okay if it has a whiff of a bad scent, but it shouldn't feel like you're IN that scent if you know what I mean.


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## GoatieGerty (Jul 31, 2019)

NigerianDwarfOwner707 said:


> Not the smell, more the feel of the air. Does it feel thick or dusty? It's okay if it has a whiff of a bad scent, but it shouldn't feel like you're IN that scent if you know what I mean.


Ohh okay gotcha gotcha. No, it doesn't feel thick. I smell the smell when I first walk in the barn then after a moment I forget it's there. So I'd imagine it's not that bad with the once monthly deep clean!


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## NigerianDwarfOwner707 (May 17, 2018)

I prefer to use no bedding at all by the way. I have rubber mats down and I sweep up poop with a dustpan every day. They pee in litter boxes. Goats don’t really need bedding unless it’s the winter. Even if you don’t use an actual box of some sort, just choosing a corner to put some bedding or a small section of barn for a thin layer of pine shavings is really helpful. If you use pine shavings you just scoop out the soiled stuff and replace with new.

In the winter I make a special section of bedding with a thick layer of straw too, separate from their litter boxes.

If you are willing to sweep up poop daily, the no bedding method is my preferred method.


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## GoatieGerty (Jul 31, 2019)

NigerianDwarfOwner707 said:


> I prefer to use no bedding at all by the way. I have rubber mats down and I sweep up poop with a dustpan every day. They pee in litter boxes. Goats don't really need bedding unless it's the winter. Even if you don't use an actual box of some sort, just choosing a corner to put some bedding or a small section of barn for a thin layer of pine shavings is really helpful. If you use pine shavings you just scoop out the soiled stuff and replace with new.
> 
> In the winter I make a special section of bedding with a thick layer of straw too, separate from their litter boxes.
> 
> If you are willing to sweep up poop daily, the no bedding method is my preferred method.


I think I read another thread that you said this in and there were photos of it as well and it looks like a super clean method which I like! I'm definitely keeping it in mind. For now, the actual bedding hasn't been bad or too much work.. yet lol. I have a ramp and platform that goes to a doggie door in/out of the barn which is where they prefer to stand and lay on so a lot of the poop is right on the wooden platform for that which I am able to easily sweep up and discard out of the barn anyway! When I was reading whatever thread I did earlier and everyone was saying they clean out daily I panicked for a minute like I'm some sort of dirty goat owner (rofl)


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## NigerianDwarfOwner707 (May 17, 2018)

GoatieGerty said:


> I think I read another thread that you said this in and there were photos of it as well and it looks like a super clean method which I like! I'm definitely keeping it in mind. For now, the actual bedding hasn't been bad or too much work.. yet lol. I have a ramp and platform that goes to a doggie door in/out of the barn which is where they prefer to stand and lay on so a lot of the poop is right on the wooden platform for that which I am able to easily sweep up and discard out of the barn anyway! When I was reading whatever thread I did earlier and everyone was saying they clean out daily I panicked for a minute like I'm some sort of dirty goat owner (rofl)


Yes I mention my method a lot!! Anyway, I prefer gazing into a spotless barn with 0 smell and 0 flies during the summertime at least. It's just easier to manage, though there is nothing wrong with deep bedding methods. But even in winter, when my goats want to cozy up, I don't want them doing that in their pee and poop. It may be OCD, it is, but I cannot let a day go by without cleaning.


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## DaGoatandPugLady (Nov 19, 2018)

NigerianDwarfOwner707 said:


> Yes I mention my method a lot!! Anyway, I prefer gazing into a spotless barn with 0 smell and 0 flies during the summertime at least. It's just easier to manage, though there is nothing wrong with deep bedding methods. But even in winter, when my goats want to cozy up, I don't want them doing that in their pee and poop. It may be OCD, it is, but I cannot let a day go by without cleaning.
> View attachment 161883


Do those rubber mats soak up the urine or do they only pee in the litter box?


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## ReNat (Jan 20, 2019)

This year I made me an earthen floor, I put a pallet on top, goats sleep on the pallet. Land with a slope where I made close to the stall drainage channel. In the morning I scraper with a long handle clean the little that remains on the pallet (as a scraper fit inverted traditional rake inverted fingers in the top). I want to note that goats are clean, no smell and the daily cleaning is not necessary, about 1 time in 2-3 months I clean the stall and manure sell for$ 2 each goat. I don't use straw. I'm happy, probably because I'm lazy


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## Goats Rock (Jun 20, 2011)

I'd love a spotless barn, but with the large herd I have and the big barn, not practical for me. I do deep straw and all the wasted hay goes on top until I clean it out. Monthly in warm months, longer in the winter.


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## NigerianDwarfOwner707 (May 17, 2018)

DaGoatandPugLady said:


> Do those rubber mats soak up the urine or do they only pee in the litter box?


They only pee in the litter box. Though when we moved them and they were scared they did pee on the mats twice, and it stays on the surface so you can just mop or wipe it up with a paper towel.


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## NigerianDwarfOwner707 (May 17, 2018)

ReNat said:


> This year I made me an earthen floor, I put a pallet on top, goats sleep on the pallet. Land with a slope where I made close to the stall drainage channel. In the morning I scraper with a long handle clean the little that remains on the pallet (as a scraper fit inverted traditional rake inverted fingers in the top). I want to note that goats are clean, no smell and the daily cleaning is not necessary, about 1 time in 2-3 months I clean the stall and manure sell for$ 2 each goat. I don't use straw. I'm happy, probably because I'm lazy


Who do you sell the manure too?


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## seachick (Jun 2, 2010)

NigerianDwarfOwner707 said:


> Yes I mention my method a lot!! Anyway, I prefer gazing into a spotless barn with 0 smell and 0 flies during the summertime at least. It's just easier to manage, though there is nothing wrong with deep bedding methods. But even in winter, when my goats want to cozy up, I don't want them doing that in their pee and poop. It may be OCD, it is, but I cannot let a day go by without cleaning.
> View attachment 161883


I NEED more info on this, pretty please! Your barn looks a lot like my new one, except I do have pine pellets and shavings over my stall mats. Can I see what the litter box looks like?


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## NigerianDwarfOwner707 (May 17, 2018)

seachick said:


> I NEED more info on this, pretty please! Your barn looks a lot like my new one, except I do have pine pellets and shavings over my stall mats. Can I see what the litter box looks like?


I'll get you a pic this afternoon. It's just the bottom of a plastic dog kennel crate filled with pine shavings.


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## seachick (Jun 2, 2010)

NigerianDwarfOwner707 said:


> I'll get you a pic this afternoon. It's just the bottom of a plastic dog kennel crate filled with pine shavings.


Thanks!! I'd love to see and know the dimensions. We have 3 ND kids and I just made a makeshift litter box in a corner that's probably too small for them once grown. I'm super interested to see how this goes! I am new to goats this year and just built the barn, figuring things out as I go along 

(For one thing, I totally did not anticipate goat math. I designed the barn for 2 does, so it probably only holds 50 bales of hay, enough for 2 goats for the year. Now I have 3. Might have to build some sort of secondary hay storage next year!)


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## NigerianDwarfOwner707 (May 17, 2018)

seachick said:


> Thanks!! I'd love to see and know the dimensions. We have 3 ND kids and I just made a makeshift litter box in a corner that's probably too small for them once grown. I'm super interested to see how this goes! I am new to goats this year and just built the barn, figuring things out as I go along
> 
> (For one thing, I totally did not anticipate goat math. I designed the barn for 2 does, so it probably only holds 50 bales of hay, enough for 2 goats for the year. Now I have 3. Might have to build some sort of secondary hay storage next year!)


We have 2 10x10 barns. One is the hay barn and one is the goat barn. Designed for 2 goats but can easily hold more. Our hay barn holds about 10 bales comfortably, so we formed a relationship with our local hay farmer and he keeps 50-100 bales yearly for us at his place and delivers small amounts when we need it. He's great.

I like to use the larger size of crate for the litter box, 40 x 27 x 30 inches. I have 2, one goes indoors and one goes under their awning outside. The outdoor one they use more. The one in the barn is a slightly smaller size, not sure of the dimensions.

It doesn't have to be too big, as long as one can fit in it.

Baby pools work well too.


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## NigerianDwarfOwner707 (May 17, 2018)

Haven't been out yet but here's a good photo that shows more of the litter box.


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## Iluvlilly! (Apr 6, 2019)

@NigerianDwarfOwner707 Do you think TSC would have those kind of mats?


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## NigerianDwarfOwner707 (May 17, 2018)

Spades said:


> @NigerianDwarfOwner707 Do you think TSC would have those kind of mats?


TSC has big horse stall mats that are heavy as heck!!

I spent a lot of time trying to find these. They are actually dog kennel mats, and they are great because you can cut them down to size.

I got these on amazon but currently they are unavailable. https://www.amazon.com/Multipurpose-Dog-Training-Anti-Slip-Cushioning/dp/B07DFB3MKW


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## ReNat (Jan 20, 2019)

NigerianDwarfOwner707 said:


> Who do you sell the manure too?


I live in an industrial city, we have a lot of small landowners who use the land only as a garden and work in production and live in apartment buildings . Buy, because goat manure is valuable as a fertilizer that is cheaper than in the store.


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## seachick (Jun 2, 2010)

Spades said:


> @NigerianDwarfOwner707 Do you think TSC would have those kind of mats?


I used the Tractor Supply ones. They are actually easy to cut! Wicked heavy though. But they form really nice tight seams of you cut them slightly oversize and jam the edges together.


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## seachick (Jun 2, 2010)

NigerianDwarfOwner707 said:


> Yes I mention my method a lot!! Anyway, I prefer gazing into a spotless barn with 0 smell and 0 flies during the summertime at least. It's just easier to manage, though there is nothing wrong with deep bedding methods. But even in winter, when my goats want to cozy up, I don't want them doing that in their pee and poop. It may be OCD, it is, but I cannot let a day go by without cleaning.
> View attachment 161883


Thank you so much! I'm going on Craigs list to find a dog crate now


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## NigerianDwarfOwner707 (May 17, 2018)

seachick said:


> I used the Tractor Supply ones. They are actually easy to cut! Wicked heavy though. But they form really nice tight seams of you cut them slightly oversize and jam the edges together.


Yes they are just so hard to manage because of the weight.


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## Dwarf Dad (Aug 27, 2017)

seachick said:


> Thank you so much! I'm going on Craigs list to find a dog crate now


A vet office may have more than they need. Try an animal shelter or thrift store. If you know someone who used to have a large dog, they may have one taking up space.


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## ReNat (Jan 20, 2019)

Based on my experience, I can assure you that the floor of the pallets for goats is the best, even if the goat throws its berries, it will clean them with its hooves before lying down, and these berries have where to fall.


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## NigerianDwarfOwner707 (May 17, 2018)

ReNat said:


> Based on my experience, I can assure you that the floor of the pallets for goats is the best, even if the goat throws its berries, it will clean them with its hooves before lying down, and these berries have where to fall.
> View attachment 162021


Yes but you also have to be particular about the pallets so the spaces are the correct size for berries but not for hooves.

I think a lot gets trapped under those pallets and things build up.

The photo of my barn, that's how it looks every day. It really does stay clean and it's easy TO clean.

View attachment 162023


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## ReNat (Jan 20, 2019)

NigerianDwarfOwner707 said:


> Yes but you also have to be particular about the pallets so the spaces are the correct size for berries but not for hooves.
> 
> I think a lot gets trapped under those pallets and things build up.
> 
> ...


Agree with you shed you have a remarkable, however daily cleaning, not for me. Well, if you make a barn for goats according to all the rules,there should be two passes, one manure passage, where only goats go and another feed passage, which will not allow the hay to fall under the feet of the goat.

Your fears have the ground, although in practice I can explain that the width of the pallets is sufficient, and the goat's foot does not get stuck there.


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## NigerianDwarfOwner707 (May 17, 2018)

ReNat said:


> Agree with you shed you have a remarkable, however daily cleaning, not for me. Well, if you make a barn for goats according to all the rules,there should be two passes, one manure passage, where only goats go and another feed passage, which will not allow the hay to fall under the feet of the goat.
> 
> Your fears have the ground, although in practice I can explain that the width of the pallets is sufficient, and the goat's foot does not get stuck there.


The pallet you showed a photo of is different than what we have here. They have very large slits and the goats wouldn't be able to walk on them without tiptoeing.


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## Tab Carloni (Jan 28, 2019)

NigerianDwarfOwner707 said:


> I prefer to use no bedding at all by the way. I have rubber mats down and I sweep up poop with a dustpan every day. They pee in litter boxes. Goats don't really need bedding unless it's the winter. Even if you don't use an actual box of some sort, just choosing a corner to put some bedding or a small section of barn for a thin layer of pine shavings is really helpful. If you use pine shavings you just scoop out the soiled stuff and replace with new.
> 
> In the winter I make a special section of bedding with a thick layer of straw too, separate from their litter boxes.
> 
> If you are willing to sweep up poop daily, the no bedding method is my preferred method.


Unreal! Did you do some sort of training to get them to go pee in the litter box or do they just do it! Mind blown.


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## NigerianDwarfOwner707 (May 17, 2018)

Tab Carloni said:


> Unreal! Did you do some sort of training to get them to go pee in the litter box or do they just do it! Mind blown.


Nope. They did it themselves. They naturally want to pee where there is bedding, kind of like cats and litter boxes/dirt. So because the litter box is the only area of bedding, that's where they pee. It won't work, however, if the whole barn has bedding. They may favor one spot or corner naturally, but to really be litter box trained you must also choose a no-bedding method which does involve daily cleanup.


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## Tab Carloni (Jan 28, 2019)

That is really awesome. I wonder if it would work for my girls - Eddie and Freddie seem to have way better manners lol! I guess I would need to put 3-4 down since we have a larger herd. I may try this out and see how it goes, we already have the barns lined with the horse stall mats


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## NigerianDwarfOwner707 (May 17, 2018)

Tab Carloni said:


> That is really awesome. I wonder if it would work for my girls - Eddie and Freddie seem to have way better manners lol! I guess I would need to put 3-4 down since we have a larger herd. I may try this out and see how it goes, we already have the barns lined with the horse stall mats


I recommend baby pools for more goats


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## Tab Carloni (Jan 28, 2019)

Genius!


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## GoatieGerty (Jul 31, 2019)

NigerianDwarfOwner707 said:


> Nope. They did it themselves. They naturally want to pee where there is bedding, kind of like cats and litter boxes/dirt. So because the litter box is the only area of bedding, that's where they pee. It won't work, however, if the whole barn has bedding. They may favor one spot or corner naturally, but to really be litter box trained you must also choose a no-bedding method which does involve daily cleanup.


Update: I bought just one rubber mat for my girls last weekend from Tractor Supply to see how/if it worked for us- and so far, SO MUCH easier. Like you said, they naturally do not pee on the mat, rather where there is straw/pine shavings. And sweeping the poops off the mat is a breeze. Going back to TSC for another couple this weekend. Thanks for the tip!!


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## NigerianDwarfOwner707 (May 17, 2018)

GoatieGerty said:


> Update: I bought just one rubber mat for my girls last weekend from Tractor Supply to see how/if it worked for us- and so far, SO MUCH easier. Like you said, they naturally do not pee on the mat, rather where there is straw/pine shavings. And sweeping the poops off the mat is a breeze. Going back to TSC for another couple this weekend. Thanks for the tip!!


I'm so glad it has helped!!


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## Noreen (Jun 20, 2019)

GoatieGerty said:


> I just made another post so I'm sorry if any of you are reading this twice from me haha - I am new to goats, 2 months in with my first kids.. 3 Nigerian Dwarf doelings. They have quite a large area in our barn - easily enough room for 4 more goats, however I'm keeping it simple right now with only 3. They are now almost 4 months old so they are still pretty small. My question is - how often should I be cleaning out their stall? I've got lime, straw, and pine shavings down for them which is on top of cement/concrete, not sure which. They have constant in/out access to pasture/the barn but for some reason they seem to prefer inside the barn. Truly so far I've only completely cleaned the stall out once (pitchfork all the straw out, sweep up any dust/dirt/old lime, let dry for a bit, and lay down all new everything.) I'm coming up on the time where I think I may need to do this again (monthly) but started reading on here that some people clean their stalls DAILY!! I realize most goat owners it seems have more goats than I do - so is a daily clean moreso for a larger group of goats? Am I okay cleaning out stalls once a month? Once winter comes I plan to do deep litter method.
> 
> Thank you!!


I'm new to goats too. What is the deep litter method? My goats only have an 8x4 covered shed with a plywood bottom to sleep in for now. Plans to build a nicer shed early next year. I have a lot of straw in there for them to sleep on and change it out every few weeks. Not the best plan i'm realizing. They poop and pee all over it but I can't change the straw every day. Does deep litter method just mean to put down more straw?


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## Noreen (Jun 20, 2019)

NigerianDwarfOwner707 said:


> I'm so glad it has helped!!


What kind of rubber matt?


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## Iluvlilly! (Apr 6, 2019)

NigerianDwarfOwner707 said:


> I prefer to use no bedding at all by the way. I have rubber mats down and I sweep up poop with a dustpan every day. They pee in litter boxes. Goats don't really need bedding unless it's the winter. Even if you don't use an actual box of some sort, just choosing a corner to put some bedding or a small section of barn for a thin layer of pine shavings is really helpful. If you use pine shavings you just scoop out the soiled stuff and replace with new.
> 
> In the winter I make a special section of bedding with a thick layer of straw too, separate from their litter boxes.
> 
> If you are willing to sweep up poop daily, the no bedding method is my preferred method.


@Noreen Does this help?


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## Iluvlilly! (Apr 6, 2019)

Noreen said:


> What kind of rubber matt?


You can get some a TSC, i think they are called horse stall mats, maybe!


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## SalteyLove (Jun 18, 2011)

Noreen said:


> I'm new to goats too. What is the deep litter method? My goats only have an 8x4 covered shed with a plywood bottom to sleep in for now. Plans to build a nicer shed early next year. I have a lot of straw in there for them to sleep on and change it out every few weeks. Not the best plan i'm realizing. They poop and pee all over it but I can't change the straw every day. Does deep litter method just mean to put down more straw?


Here is a description. 
https://simplelivingcountrygal.com/the-deep-litter-method/


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## GoatieGerty (Jul 31, 2019)

Noreen said:


> What kind of rubber matt?


Far delayed so I apologize but my local Tractor Supply has 4x6 rubber mats for about $35 each. They are heavy but they're def helpful to eliminate the straw bedding and just be able to sweep up the little poos daily quick and easy.


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## GoatieGerty (Jul 31, 2019)

Noreen said:


> I'm new to goats too. What is the deep litter method? My goats only have an 8x4 covered shed with a plywood bottom to sleep in for now. Plans to build a nicer shed early next year. I have a lot of straw in there for them to sleep on and change it out every few weeks. Not the best plan i'm realizing. They poop and pee all over it but I can't change the straw every day. Does deep litter method just mean to put down more straw?


Sounds like for now you may just have to keep adding layers of straw/pine shavings until next year when you can build a nicer shed next year! And yes basically the deep litter method is essentially that over winter. The composing waste provides a bit of heat and you continuously add more bedding to the top to eliminate odors, etc.


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## Chris488 (Sep 4, 2018)

GoatieGerty said:


> And yes basically the deep litter method is essentially that over winter. The composing waste provides a bit of heat and you continuously add more bedding to the top to eliminate odors, etc.


Yep, this works really well. I found that our boys will seek out those spots where the litter is warmer and that's where they'll bed down on colder nights.


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## whitejerabias (May 6, 2019)

With the deep litter method, what do you do about flies?


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## ReNat (Jan 20, 2019)

whitejerabias said:


> With the deep litter method, what do you do about flies?


This is only for the North, flies in sub-zero temperatures are not active!


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## TNakaLynn (Aug 24, 2020)

NigerianDwarfOwner707 said:


> They only pee in the litter box. Though when we moved them and they were scared they did pee on the mats twice, and it stays on the surface so you can just mop or wipe it up with a paper towel.


I have one that pees about 1 gallon each night! I'd need some really hefty paper towels to clean up after her. Love the replies here...I've been shoveling every day and it's killing what little family time I have. Sounds like I can just focus on the urine areas (amonia smell/control) and chill a little on the berries. Thanks everyone!


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## fivemoremiles (Jan 19, 2010)

we put a 10 oz tarp on the floor. and cover the tarp with 4 inches of wood chips. when it is time to clean we just fold the tarp and pull it out the double door.


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## seachick (Jun 2, 2010)

Hi everyone- I'm interested to hear what NigerianDwarfOwner707 and others who have tried the litter box method have to report after a year! Is it still working?

I tried this briefly last year with my half-grown kids, but it was getting cold so I went back to wood shavings bedding for the winter. Recently I tried again. Now I have a much larger herd of 6 goats, some of which are adults whose berries are MUCH bigger. Additionally, they are foraging on pasture, and I found that for the first part of the summer, when the forage is lush and green, their poops were much softer/clumpier than the hard little pellets that my kids were making when they were just on hay and grain. So between the poop consistency and the fact that 6 goats in a small space trampled the poop into the pee puddles on the stall mats, by the next morning it was a gross mess, everyone had dirty hooves (not fun on the milk stand!!!) and I abandoned the experiment.

I'm disappointed, because I really wanted it to work. Perhaps with fewer goats who are not on pasture, it does? How is it going for everyone else?


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## NigerianDwarfOwner707 (May 17, 2018)

Works just fine for me. There shouldn’t be pee puddles - remember you still have to use shavings on one spot so they pee there.

As for poop, there are things you can do to change the texture of the poop when it’s getting loose from pasture, of course - but sometimes they trample the poop down a bit, only found this happens on rainy days when they don’t go outside.

No matter what, goats poop a ton, and it’s always gonna get in there hooves even if it’s sitting on top of bedding.

I think what happened here is that you had pee puddles as well which made things disgusting and allowed the poop to get pretty mushed.

The controlling of the pee is the goal of litter training - it won’t work if you just have no bedding and assume they pee.... where?


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## seachick (Jun 2, 2010)

NigerianDwarfOwner707 said:


> it won't work if you just have no bedding and assume they pee.... where?


Oh no- I did have a litter box for them- sorry if that wasn't clear! And SOME used it, but many didn't, hence the puddles. Possibly if I'd waited longer before abandoning it things might have changed. But it was just so gross I couldn't continue! It also probably has something to do with the number of goats in my small-ish area. If things were more spread out it would have been better. I may try again sometime - just wondering how things were working out for others!


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## NigerianDwarfOwner707 (May 17, 2018)

First you have to make note of where they pee when there IS bedding. Then put the litter box there. Sometimes a box doesn’t work - sometimes just put some shavings in one specific corner.


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## seachick (Jun 2, 2010)

Yes, I did that- trouble is there isn't one spot. There are several. I have six goats. Most have more than one spot. Trust me, I spent a lot of time watching where they went and trying to be scientific about it 

Also, they DID use the litter box, but not any more or less than everywhere else. They weren't avoiding it.


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## Brice (Jan 24, 2018)

NigerianDwarfOwner707 said:


> Yes I mention my method a lot!! Anyway, I prefer gazing into a spotless barn with 0 smell and 0 flies during the summertime at least. It's just easier to manage, though there is nothing wrong with deep bedding methods. But even in winter, when my goats want to cozy up, I don't want them doing that in their pee and poop. It may be OCD, it is, but I cannot let a day go by without cleaning.
> View attachment 161883


I have the heavy TSC horse Mat in the goat barn. I am going to try you litter box method I bring home my first goats Saturday! Nigerian/ pigmy I will also try this outside one too. What do you use to clean your Matt and do you mop it daily?


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## NigerianDwarfOwner707 (May 17, 2018)

Brice said:


> I have the heavy TSC horse Mat in the goat barn. I am going to try you litter box method I bring home my first goats Saturday! Nigerian/ pigmy I will also try this outside one too. What do you use to clean your Matt and do you mop it daily?


I don't have to mop because I put shavings down in their box or a corner where they pee. The poop is dry and I take a dustpan and broom to sweep it up.


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## wndngrvr (Dec 10, 2011)

Everyone seems to have a different way -so what ever you are happy with. I have 22 does and our barn has the horse mats down. I use straw because they like it. I bed it pretty deep and my method is to rake off the dry and lift the wet from under it -weekly or every couple of weeks depending on the weather. Sometimes I have wet spots I will clean up every day or so. I respread the dry and put a little fresh on top. it also depend if the does are inside a lot or not. They have sleeping benches with rubber matting on them that I can take outside and hose off every day. 
I love the picture of your barn you clean daily. Would only work if you only have a few. Also important is good ventilation in your barn, the flowing air keeps it fresher and healthier for the animals. The back wall of our barn has a long lift up window of sorts and chicken wire over the opening. It is open from spring till the cold weather. The front part is all a wooden fence with the area above it open. Hard to explain but it works well for us. I have never had any lung issures and birthings are in stalls in the back that have a heat lamp in them. Best ever lamps from Premier sheep supply.


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## Soni Hise Sers (Sep 8, 2020)

NigerianDwarfOwner707 said:


> Haven't been out yet but here's a good photo that shows more of the litter box.
> View attachment 161917


How do you teach the goats to use a litter box? Our goats pee & poop indiscriminately.


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## NigerianDwarfOwner707 (May 17, 2018)

I don’t teach them. It’s the only place I put bedding, and it’s their instinct to only pee in bedding.


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## MadHouse (Oct 3, 2019)

I used the Litter boxes this summer. No bedding in the other parts of the stalls. I found out the litter boxes had to be big enough for the goats to stand in and move around.
I have 5 goats. Two does, one bucks, one wether, and one buckling.
All boys and one doe used the litter box pretty much every time (they may have peed over the rim so etimes). The largest goat, a doe, peed wherever she stood.
I went in there first thing in the morning. She would get up, I would call her over to the toilet, she followed and peed. I told her what a good girl she was. Lots of scratches, good girl.
She still peed anywhere she wanted at other times. But sometimes when I was in the barn she would go to the toilet , pee and look at me! 
So, you can train some of them easily, some not so easily.


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## MadHouse (Oct 3, 2019)

Also, during the hot months I had fans blowing to keep the flies and mosquitoes down. The fan dried up most of the pee this doe deposited. That’s how I managed to not have that yucky mess on the bare floor.
Now that is is colder, I have bedding all over the stall floors again.


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