# Goat pen cleaning?



## CAjerseychick (Sep 21, 2013)

Ok another newbie query here-- so I have the doelings in the chicken yard (the hens fly out and range during the day and come back at night to the coop)-- its about 40 ft by 20 ft= 800 square ft...
Am noticing the little suckers do poop and pee like crazy... its dirt with a little straw in patches and berry bushes in 2 corners and some periwinkle on the edges, so pretty bare...oh and a huge maple tree smack in the middle....
Should I just put down more straw (it sprinkled alittle today and I am concerned that the rainy season is upon us) -- it does get pretty soggy in the winter-- what do other people do with their goat pens?


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## liz (Oct 5, 2007)

My pens are grassy with packed dirt around the shed doors...and it does get mucky when raining, I rake out all debris and have it to where no water will stand in pens, drains away and have stepping stones out from the shed to the grassy areas. I use either flat rocks , pieces of wood planks and concrete pavers so they don't get their feet muddy. I also have wooden pallets with the slats close together to use as resting areas outside.


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## Rusty (Aug 21, 2013)

I use concrete blocks with pallets (planks close together) on top and then straw..works great..


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## CAjerseychick (Sep 21, 2013)

ok thanx guys, luckily pen is very gradually sloped so water doesnt puddle... but I see I will be building goatie decks for them....


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## WillowGem (Aug 3, 2011)

My goat pen is grass, with patches of dirt in areas.
I put down a line of paving blocks from the gate of the pen to the barn.
They also have cable spools and pallets covered with plywood to rest on.
My boys don't like getting their feet dirty, so they stay mostly on the paver trail...LOL!!


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## CAjerseychick (Sep 21, 2013)

I guess one other query I had was, do people scoop up the poo or will it dissolve in the dirt ? Or do I cover up the little piles with straw or what ( I have been tossing straw out there )....


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## WillowGem (Aug 3, 2011)

I rake my pen with a leaf lake, then use a snow shovel to scoop up the piles. I do get some poo in the piles, but the majority of it I leave to decompose in the pen. 
I've found that piles of straw in the pen can get smelly, especially if the weather is wet. So I try raking the pen up every day, it smells much cleaner to me.


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## J.O.Y. Farm (Jan 10, 2012)

I rake and sweep my pen often... Mine has some spots of dirt and lots of grass.. I rake it all then sweep the dirt.. I use a shovel to get the piles out like stated above.


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## Scottyhorse (Feb 11, 2013)

Yeah straw in the pen stinks when it gets hot or rainy. I just leave the poo in my pen. 
Next year I will be hopefully planting it very thickly with some sort of goat grazing mix, so I am really hoping to cut down on hay (which makes a mess) and it will hide the poo


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## CAjerseychick (Sep 21, 2013)

Ok I will leave off on the hay then (luckily sun came out and the air is cool is nice 70's these days)-- that back pen in the corner of my field is looking better all the time-- its thick berry bushes and knee high grass and weeds with a willow stand.....


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## WillowGem (Aug 3, 2011)

I've also discovered that a leaf blower does a great job with cleaning up goat poop.
Blow them all into a corner of your pen, then scoop up the pile with a shovel.


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