# Health issues and Feeding



## Rex (Nov 30, 2008)

Most health issues with goats ultimately stem from us treating them too well. We buy the best hay, the richest grain and all the supplements they can eat. When in reality they function the best with just some clean water, a big brush patch to chew on and a mineral block to lick once in a while.

A goats digestive system is designed to process roughage. Thats brush, leaves and weeds. When we take them home and feed them top quality 3rd cutting alfalfa and grain we often cause health issues. 

Carolyn Eddy wrote a great book on how to feed wethers called appropriately enough, "Diet for Wethers." It goes into detail about the appropriate amounts and types of feeds to keep our boys happy and healthy. I recommend it to everyone.

Given all the questions about diet, I thought I'd list our feeding schedule and encourage others to do the same so we can compare.

Some owners go to great lengths to weigh and measure each part of their goats diet. I'm positive this yields much better control of their goats diet, unfortunately I just ain't that kind of guy. I'm more of a hand full of this and that type of guy so the following feeding schedule is not the "Holy Grail" of feeding instructions. In fact, others may even disagree with parts of it but it has worked well for us over many many years.

Kids get free choice alfalfa with approximately 2-4 cups of grain depending on how big they are.

1 year olds get pasture and free choice alfalfa with approximately 4-6 cups of grain.

2 year olds get pasture and just enough alfalfa to make sure its all cleaned up at the end of the day and 6-8 cups of grain.

3 year olds get pasture in the summer and mostly grass (maybe with some alfalfa mixed in) hay and little or no grain.

4 and over get pasture in the summer and straight grass hay in the winter. The only grain would be as a small handful treat.

Using this method we have always raised happy healthy boys. After all these years we have only had one case of UC which was in a three month old wether who had accidentally got into the grain bin and gorged himself. Those of you at the Yakima Rendezvous will remember that one.


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## Bob Jones (Aug 21, 2009)

I appreciate all the experience you all bring to the forum.

I have been overwhelmed with the variety and drastically different advice on feeding from various sources. 

On the one hand I am told that a goat can eat just about anything that grows and as long as he is free to choose, he won't eat enough poisonous stuff to hurt him. Another tells me no alfalfa since it is too hot. Another says they don't need grain and it will kill them. Another just moves his around from one weed lot to another.

Currently my 2/3s of an acre has been more than enough free browse. They love the Chinese elm and Box elder tree leaves, and the morning glory with occasional snacks of cherry, apple and grape leaves. They eat all the apples that hit the ground. 

I give them a couple cups of pellets, and an occasional handful of outdated food storage rolled oats and rice. And they have shared hotdogs with me. Oh, and they get a smorgasbord of wild stuff every weekend when we hike.

And I have a bucket of goat molasses stuff that they can get at occassionally.

I am sure I must be a lousy parent to these kids. 
I am hoping that the molasses stuff and the pellets provide the vitamins they need. 

I have been thinking that variety provides a good diet even if it isn't a formula of some sort. Am I crazy?

I was planning to cover my usual leaf pile this fall so they can much on leaves all winter, and probably bring in some hay. But I have been told not to get good alfalfa, but the cheapest grass hay available.


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## ashkelon (Jul 25, 2009)

Mine will climb wherever they have to, to get chinese elm! I thought it was just the goats here.

My goat runs with the boers who are destined to be bar-b-que, unless there are people around. So most of what he gets is browse, what ground chicken grains he can get until he's chased out, and 80/20 round bales (orchard grass / timothy) when he wants. He also cops sweet feed and the ground grain that the old horse gets (mostly corn, safflower, sunflower and oats).

He doesn't have any taste as perverted as hot dogs, but he loves life savers, nerds and what ever kind of candy the kids are eating. He is very clever about stealing it. He also stole and at unpasteurized string cheese. He doesn't like the peanuts, but the arabians will do anything for them!

The only problem I've had so far is keeping his mineral block away from the horses. He has access to their sea salt block, but their minerals are on a shelf where he can't get them, and his are under a shelf that they can't reach.


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## sweetgoatmama (Dec 10, 2008)

Cheap grass hay is relative. If you live here in the northwest the local hay has no food value at all and we feed some orchard or timothy grass to use for grass hay.
You need to do some research on how to balance a diet. There are several posts here about this as an imbalanced diet can cause urinary calculi. 

The main thing I'd be concerned about in your post is the lack of a trace mineral supplement. The other thing is the molasses that they can get into sometimes. Overfeeding can lead to stones so every time they get a big blast of high protein, unbalanced calcium and phosphorus you are putting them at risk.

I have written a book on feeding called Diet for Wethers. If you read it you will have all the tools to evaluate your feeding program.


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## ashkelon (Jul 25, 2009)

I will see if my library will get me a copy of your book. I certainly want to read it!

I would say his grain consumption falls in the level of one-two handfuls a day. Usually less. And our grain is actually stored off site. I had an insulin resistant pony, and I don't like to run the risk of any of them loading on grain -- horses or goats.

The other "odd" things are just what he cons the children out of, and they are not inclined to share (they've been threatened!). 

He has free choice sea salt and his own minerals, which only the goats can get too. The horses have their own.

This year I brought my horses in off 5000 acres of rolling savanah. I don't like limiting them (or the goats) to only the 50 acres they have now, but luckily the grass is good and we can shunt them from side to side to let it rest. 

There are thousands of acres of city property here that has been feral since the teens and twenties. I hand graze the horses every day at some point, because I like the bond it builds when they graze with me, and it gives them a chance at browse not on my land... Of course Cabra follows.

I've noticed Cabra's choice in browse is close to the things the arabians eat, but that the stock horse and the shire don't touch. Herbaceous things and chickweed, purslane, and young trees. I have to watch the horses with the maples, they are thick.

My grandfather used to say that all horses are born with a place to die, and they spend their whole life testing places out to find it. I truly believe the truth of that is the unnatural way we keep them. 

Balance is the key. I know there are people who shudder at the mounds of snow on my unblanketted horses in the winter, but the horses are fine with their trees, windfalls, and lean-to.


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## Rod Meyer (Jun 1, 2009)

I don't have a lot of advice right now since I just got into the goats last spring. But believe me I read most of you guys post!

Thank you for sharing all your great advice and your stories around the camp fire. Its been a big help.

By the way, the wolf topic a few days ago over on the other forum was interesting.


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