# What should I be feeding my buck?



## TheMixedBag (Oct 16, 2010)

Barclay was 4 months yesterday, and at weighing today, he's 25 1/4 inches, or roughly 57lb (Jenny was at 130 -whoo!-, and Talala was at 115). He's currently on full pasture and a grain mix that's 2 parts alfalfa pellets, 1 part BOSS, 1 part dairy ration and 1 part Calf Manna.

Will this be OK to keep him on for life, or should I be cutting out grain? I've had him on this mix to help him catch up on weight (coccidiosis and early early weaning), and I'd estimate he's probably 10-15lb behind (he's american Saanen). What would be the best feed to keep him on? I'll have him separated around the end of July, and plan on keeping Talala in with him as a companion.


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## peggy (Aug 11, 2010)

Good question....I'd be interested in hearing answers from the experts. I always heard that grain after a certain age was not good for them.


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## liz (Oct 5, 2007)

I personally have fed bucklings grain every day for the first year, then as pastures grow and they get over the baby stage I don't grain but always provide hay in the am as well as a mineral with added AC, during rut I give all bucks grain because they tend to forget to eat due to the one track mind and they continue to get it til pastures are growing and they are content to browse.


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## goathiker (Apr 14, 2011)

I raise many bucks and wethers. Right now I have 11 ranging in age from 2 weeks to 7 years. Here's what works for me.
Every boy on my place gets free choice grass and/or oat hay and free choice alfalfa. Right now they are getting new crop alfalfa hay, usually they get alfalfa pellets, the little boys get both. I mix 1 part beet pulp into 4 parts alfalfa pellets before putting them out. I was doing more beet pulp but, the price is going up on me. They are maintaining weight on this mix.
Tiny boys get as much 16% show goat or meat goat feed as they will eat in 15 minutes 4 times a day. Littles that are eating well are worked up to 1 lb. per 50 lbs. of body weight. This is the amount that is neccesary for the cocci preventative in the feed to work. 
They are weaned around 5 months and at least 80-100 lbs. Boys who don't reach the 80 lb. mark aren't weaned until 6 months.
During the stress of weaning and until they are doing well within their pen group, I weight tape every couple of days to make sure they are still gaining or at least are maintaining their weight. Stress can cause Cocci or worms to bloom.
November is whole herd health; Every animal is gone over thoroughly, copper bolused, bo.se shot, etc. I also start giving vitamin D once a week at this time. My kids won't see much sun again until spring.
The first winter is hard on them, so, I leave them on meat goat pellets at about 2 lbs. a day until the weather warms up again regardless of when they turn a year old.
Okay, May is again whole herd health; copper, bo.se, and booster shots. The yearling boys are @ 150 to 180 lbs. They are very slowly switched from their meat goat pellets to about 1/2 lb. of rolled oats and barley mixed half and half. This switch must be made slowly to allow their stomach bacteria to change for digesting whole grains. They stay on this for life. Once they reach 200 lbs, they get @ 1 cup a day when idle, more when working or thin. Always alfalfa in some form to balance it, even on the trail.
They always have clean, dry, loose minerals. They also get a heaping teaspoon of sea kelp on their grain daily.
I always avoid feeding super high phosphorus foods ie: corn, Boss, millet, milo late cut teff, cabbage, turnip greens, rutabaga greens, swiss chard, buck- wheat, etc,
Water water water, if they're not drinking enough try putting 1/4 cup of cheap sweeted drink mix in 5 gallons of water. They love it cold in the summer and warm during the winter. Mine particularly like Tang.


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## TheMixedBag (Oct 16, 2010)

Is that for meat goats or dairy goats?

The problem I'm having with figuring this out is how to keep him with one of the does (his pen will be adjacent but I'm still worried about him trying to break it down) and not have to worry horribly about UC.

The other problem is getting him back to the size he ought to be. He's about 25" at the shoulder and only about 57-ish pounds at 4 months (him being Saanen, it seems like he ought to be bigger).

I do plan on keeping him on at least the pellets, and whatever kind of hay I can get for him year round.


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## goathiker (Apr 14, 2011)

These are dairy goats...
Your hay, alfalfa and minerals are the very most important things. If you get the very best forage and forage pellets you can find and afford, you shouldn't need much grain at all. My girls maintain their weight well and milk 4 to 12lbs, a day depending on who we're talking about. They don't ever get more than 2lbs. of whole grains daily while milking and only about a 1/2lb. while pregnant.
A small part of why I feed the way I do is because I run so many wethers in my herd. The real reason is because it is just better for the animals themselves. Goats who are fed large amounts of high protein and by product grains usually look good and often milk a bunch, for a while. Then they burn out, the protein starts taking a toll on their body, and their useful life is over at 7 or 8 years old. I'd rather have a more even plane of production and have my does still producing at 12 or 13 years.
I used to do it the other way, lots of dairy food, goat ration, fillers and additives. I had does with bad feet, does with congested udders, mastitis, does that would never gain weight. Kids that were small and unthrifty, that wouldn't thrive after weaning. Oh, they had beautiful coats and looked healthy but, all the problems just weren't worth it.
This time I'm doing it differently and the results have been amazing. They don't just look healthy, they truely are. My 3 week old babies are averaging 20 to 30lbs this year, they hit the ground running and never look back. They grow like crazy and when I breed this years doelings at 10 months old, they will be well over 100lbs. and will keep growing while pregnant.
I would bet that for what you're paying for just Calf Manna and Boss, you could use the same money and give your goats free choice 16% alfalfa pellets, beet pulp, and buy higher quality hay. Your bucking will catch up and thrive on a diet of excellent forage/forage pellets. The grain just adds carbs.


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## TheMixedBag (Oct 16, 2010)

How would I go about starting off free choice pellets? The local mill has 17% at about 9-10 bucks a bag, and if it would be cheaper and still have everyone gaining weight, I'll definitely do it. Beet pulp may be more iffy, it's about 15 bucks for a 40lb bag.


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## goathiker (Apr 14, 2011)

Just like changing anything you offfer them about a lb. a day for the first week and raise it by another lb. the next.
Some goats are really picky about eating them and will leave them if there is anything else that's better.
I've adjusted mine so that I know how much to put out twice a day so that they eat it all and don't waste any but also get enough during the day. Right now I'm using a trough. In my plans of redoing everything that I started this year, I'm going to build a feeder something like a giant rabbit feeder that will hold 50lbs of pellets at a time.
A good general rule is 3 lbs. per day per adult or growing animal. They don't eat much more than that once they are used to them being there.
The beet pulp adds calories that are "healthy" calories, from fiber instead of carbs. I feed about 1/2 lb per animal daily. Yes I know it's more expensive. In the long run though you come out ahead. Last I looked Calf Manna was over $30 a bag and boss was $16 per 25lb. I no longer need to feed either of these things.
If you can improve your hay and forage pellets to the quality I know is available out there, you literally could feed nothing more than rolled oats with a little cracked corn on the milk stand. I feed rolled because I think it's easier on their teeth, many people feed the cheaper whole with no issues. I add barley for copper and B vitamins, many people don't. You does may not produce quite as much milk but, the quaility will be better, the does will be healthier and your buck can stay with your does because nothing is in the pen that he can't eat.
All this is to go with a good mineral package that is given free choice, of course.
If you look at the ingredients on a bag of goat ration, your going to see alfalfa meal, beet pulp, grain by products, protein by products, etc. I cut out all the fillers and floor sweepings and feed the whole foods instead.


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## comingsummers (May 6, 2010)

Goathiker, how many pounds of hay are they eating a day?


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## goathiker (Apr 14, 2011)

At a rough estimate, I'd say they're eating (and pulling out of the feeder to lay on) @ 4lbs. of hay daily per animal. The big boys are eating a little more, maybe 5lbs. They were 220-240lbs last check.


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## RMADairyGoats (Jun 20, 2011)

We feed our bucks grass hay and nothing else. I do not give our boys alfalfa or grain. However, when they are under 5 months, I feed them straight alfalfa and about a cup (or big handful) of 12% horse grain. Also, when they are in rut, I give them one feeding of alfalfa and one of grass, and a cup of grain. We have two bucks, if you have more or big boys than I would give some more of both.


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## goathiker (Apr 14, 2011)

I've found that they build better muscle and come into working season alot healthier if I feed them like they are working only less of it year round. The grass hay here is about 1.3 calcium to 1 phosphorus with a protein rating of around 12%. I want their food to reflect the 2.5 to 3CA to 1PH that and the 14% protein that they need for their health. Adding alfalfa makes up the difference if fed in around equal amounts. The nature of hay is the about same everywhere, the things that will be different are the protein content and the palatability.


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## TheMixedBag (Oct 16, 2010)

You know anything about standlee hay? (they have a website, somewhere....) I have big doubts about being able to get decent quality alfalfa, and Atwoods sells super-compressed bales of the weed-free stuff for about $11 per bale.


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## goathiker (Apr 14, 2011)

Standlee hay is grown in eastern Idaho. They seem to eat it fine and I used it for my in does last winter. They did pick through and waste though, I think trying to get it broken apart and the quality went up and down. I found alot of dirt and rocks at times. Your source of alfalfa pellets sounds good though. They can't pick through or make a nice new bed out of them so they are cost effective in the long run. If you do both, they do gain a lot quicker.


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## Itchysmom (Apr 3, 2010)

When you say a pound of grain...can you put that into cup weight? I know different grains weigh differently.


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## goathiker (Apr 14, 2011)

I'll go through and weigh what I have a little later this morning for you.


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## goathiker (Apr 14, 2011)

Sorry, got busy raking pens today.
So, 1 cup of each thing
twice cleaned rolled oats 2oz
rolled barley 4oz
cracked corn 5oz
beet pulp pellets 6oz


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