# New goat owner who needs tips and suggestions!



## hbzuk (Oct 14, 2016)

I purchased 2 nigerian dwarf goats who i'll be bringing home in 2 weeks! I've been spending so much time getting prepared but I wanted to hear everyone's suggestions or tips on pretty much ANYTHING - fencing, food, shelter, raising them, milking them i'll take anything! I've done research on raising goats for about a year now so I have a good understanding of caring for a goat but i'm sure the moment I bring them home i'll have so many questions. One of our goats will be in milk and possibly pregnant and the other is a few months old. 

We have a space of about 900 square feet for the pen but we live on 11 acres so they'll get a chance to move around but their main pen will be 900 sq ft. I'm working on the fencing, we purchased landscape timbers for posts, boards to go across but we haven't purchased any metal wire fencing yet. Any tips on fencing?

I've read so much on feed for goats but i'd love to hear everyone's suggestions for feed. I purchased "goat minerals", hay with alfalfa and oats, and I was looking into grabbing a bag of grain.

Should I put stuff in the pen to keep them occupied? Silly question, but i feel like i'll get them home, put them in and they'll just stare at me like "why am I in here". 

Thank you!!!


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## nancy d (Oct 5, 2007)

Ask the owner what kind of grain they are getting & feed them that until they get used to being in a new place. After that you can slowly transition them to what is available.
We use the 4 or 5 ' field fencing, also known as horse fencing.
And welcome to TGS!


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## Marndan (Jan 4, 2016)

Hi!! I am new as well and am excited to see the replies on this post!! Welcome!!


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

As far as grain, it really depends what is in your area. If you list brands of grain, we can help you with what is good. What type of goat mineral did you buy?


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

All good suggestions.

Welcome, glad you are here on TGS.


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## hbzuk (Oct 14, 2016)

I purchased Manna Pro Goat Mineral. As far as the grain, the closest store that sells grain for goats in my area is a Tractor Supply. They carry Purina Goat Chow (and a few other kinds of Purina grain), Producer's Pride All Grain feed and Dumor sweet formula feed. Do you suggest any of those? Thank you so much!!


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

Manna Pro is fine.


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## goathiker (Apr 14, 2011)

With only Purina grain mixes to choose from I would use Noble Dairy Parlor, it's an okay grain that seems to be good for them (for a by-product feed).


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## goatblessings (Jan 6, 2015)

You said one of the goats will be in milk AND pregnant? If pregnant, find out when she is due. You will want to dry her off at least 2months before kidding to let her body prepare, plus you don't want to be milking out the colostrum she will need for her new kids. Make sure she is up to date on her CDT, selenium, etc.
Welcome and have fun!


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## catharina (Mar 17, 2016)

Hello & welcome! What you need to put in the pen are things to climb on! The goats will love them, & you'll enjoy watching them play! People use whatever they have access to. Mine have 3 plastic dog igloos (they like to go inside too) & a pile of very large chunks of broken up concrete. Other people use half barrels, truck tires, plastic toddler slides & play houses, or they build things!


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## Suzanne_Tyler (Jul 19, 2014)

Welcome to TGS! 

Keep in mind that Nigerian babies can slip through 4 inch squares of fencing, so you probably want something smaller than that. 

Shelter should be dry and draft free. I use straw for bedding. 

If you are in a copper deficient area, you'll need to give copper bolus. Signs of copper deficiency are rough coat, dull or reddish coat, hair curling at the ends, anemia, and less parasite resistance.


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## hbzuk (Oct 14, 2016)

Any hay suggestions? I purchased a bag of alfalfa/timothy/oat hay that I believe was advertised for horses, but I'm thinking it's still over for the goats right? I'm reading that some hay makes the milk taste off... i'm wondering if I should get something else


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## Suzanne_Tyler (Jul 19, 2014)

I give my herd free choice alfalfa. It's high in protein and calcium, so is good for the milkers and helps prevent urinary calculi in the bucks and wethers.


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## wndngrvr (Dec 10, 2011)

We prefer the red top goats and sheep fence rather than the larger square field fence. Babies can even get thru the goat and sheep fencing. It is a 4" square. What kind of predator problems do you have in your area? We have problems and use the Niteguard flashing red lights on multiple spots of the fencing. All corner posts and some shinning down into our wooded area outside the pen. Foxes can run thru field fence but not the small squares but I only worry about new babies with the foxes. 
Toys - my husband cut a large tree into stumps and ours have several in their pens. Also a wide board between a couple of stumps -they love being up on that also. The stumps are mainly for the boys. Our girls get to run out in an area where hubby parks backhoe, four wheeler and a couple of trailers. These are their favorite toys. The love the four wheeler and spend a lot of time on it.
The girls have a "play house" you can see in the second picture.


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